METALLIAN - Night Ranger

Dawn Patrol – 1982 – Boardwalk/Camel
Midnight Madness – 1984 – Camel
Seven Wishes – 1985 – Camel
Big Life – 1987 – MCA
Man In Motion – 1988 – MCA
Live In Japan – 1990 – MCA
Feeding Off The Mojo – 1995 – Drive
Neverland – 1997 – Legacy/Columbia
Rock In Japan '97 – 1997 - Zero
Seven – 1998 – CMC
Hole In The Sun – 2007 – Frontiers
Rockin' Shibuya 2007 – 2008 - Frontiers
Somewhere In California – 2011 – Frontiers
High Road – 2014 - Frontiers
35 Years And A Night In Chicago – 2016 - Frontiers
Don't Let Up – 2017 - Frontiers
ATBPO – 2021 - Frontiers
40 Years And A Night with Contemporary Youth Orchestra - 2023 - Frontiers

Members

Vocals

Jack Blades – KELLY KEAGY – JACK BLADES

Guitar

Rubicon, Ozzy Osbourne, Solo, Fiona, Next, Skills>>BRAD GILLIS>>Fiona, Solo, Skills – Solo, Mother’s Army, MSG>>Jeff Watson>>Solo, Mother’s Army, MSG, Legacy X – Airborne>>David Zaijcek – Alice Cooper, Empire, Saints of The Underground, Adler’s Appetite, Vince Neil, Slash, Project Rock>>KERI KELLI>>Project Rock

Bass

Rubicon>>Jack Blades>>Damn Yankees, Shaw/Blades, Revolution Saints – Three Dog Night>>Gary Moon – Rubicon, Damn Yankees, Shaw/Blades, Revolution Saints>>JACK BLADES>>Revolution Saints

Drum

Rubicon, The Mob>>KELLY KEAGY>>Solo, The Mob, Scrap Metal

Keyboard

Montrose, Gamma, Ronnie Montrose, Sammy Hagar>>Alan Fitzgerald>>Alliance, Van Halen – Jesse Bradman>>Saints & Sinners, Poison, Eddie Money, Joey Tafolla, Marty Friedman Winterland The Band - Montrose, Gamma, Ronnie Montrose, Sammy Hagar>>Alan Fitzgerald>>Van Halen – Garaj Mahal>>ERIC LEVY

History & Biography

This band was founded in San Francisco in 1979 and ceased activities in 1989. The group was created by former members of Rubicon, which was a pop band. The band called itself Stereo and recruited former Montrose keyboardist Fitzgerald. Watson was added and the band soon became Ranger. The name was changed again to avoid conflict with other bands out there in 1982. Gillis filled in on the guitar slot with Ozzy Osbourne (Bernie Torme was out) and the band also opened for the man. The name was Night Ranger by the time the guitarist was back. Concert promoter Bill Graham pushed the group. They obtained support slots for Santana and Judas Priest among others. The band had a deal with Boardwalk, but switched to MCA (which had bought Camel Records) with the former biting the dust with owner Bogart’s death. MCA had hit pay dirt with Night Ranger’s ballad-oriented and radio friendly sounds. Each album sold over a million copies. The success was partly due to a supportive MTV. Midnight Madness’ Sister Christian was a radio hit. Through its label’s film studio connections the band appeared on the soundtrack for films like Sixteen Candles and The Secret To My Success. The band toured with Outfield in support of Big Life. The band’s popularity was waning as the trend was shifting from keyboard-heavy bands to a dirtier sound a la LA Guns and Guns N’ Roses. Fitzgerald left in 1988 seemingly tired of the band’s sound. The band’s albums failed to find traction. Blades took off to Damn Yankees with right-wing extremist Ted Nugent and Night Ranger split up. Keagy and Gillis recruited Gary Moon and tried to make a go of it again in 1991. Next in was guitarist David Zaijcek. This line-up recorded Feeding Off The Mojo. With Damn Yankees going home Blades returned and the band signed to CMC International. The entire original membership was together again with various projects having even less success than Night Ranger. The band was part of the 1999 tour Rock Never Stops Tour, which featured the aforementioned Ted Nugent. Night Ranger announced an extensive USA tour for the summer of 2002. Alan Fitzgerald was again out in 2003. Great White’s Michael Lardie was in. Watson was kicked out in 2007. Reb Beach was his replacement. The new guys would return to their old bands however soon enough. Shockingly, the band travelled to the Guantanamo Bay prison to perform for the military unit there. Blades would produce bands and albums like Great White’s Can't Get There From Here. Sammy Hagar gathered members of Chickenfoot, Night Ranger and Mr. Big for a sold-out February 2014 benefit concert to help defray mounting expenses for Lisa Lauser, the wife of drummer David Lauser. Lisa was his Webmaster, while David drummed for him. Whitesnake recruited Joel Hoekstra of Night Ranger on guitar following the departure of Doug Aldrich. Revolution Saints was a new 2015 project on Frontiers. Gillis guested on Joe Lynn Turner’s The Sessions covers’ album. The band released a live DVD/2-CD recording called 35 Years And A Night In Chicago on December 2nd, 2016, with Frontiers Records. Frontiers Music released Don't Let Up, a new studio album by the band, on March 24th 2017. Fred Coury of Cinderella fame toured with the band in 2017 filling in for Keagy.

The band commemorated the 35th anniversaries of its first two studio albums, Dawn Patrol and Midnight Madness, by performing both records in full during an October 18th 2018 concert at the Genesee Theatre in Waukegan, Illinois. The band had a 2021 album and it was called ATBPO. Frontiers issued it in August. And The Band Played on referenced the pandemic. There was a music video for Bring It All Home To Me. Next featured Brad Gillis of Night Ranger and was a high school band involving future Griffin member Sprayberry. Frontiers Music had yet another project. Different Worlds was the debut album by Skills and released on May 13th 2022. The band was singer vocalist Renan Zonta (Electric Mob), guitarist Brad Gillis (Night Ranger), bassist Billy Sheehan (Mr. Big) and drummer David Huff (Giant).

Jeff Watson underwent a couple of brain surgeries to drain blood from the cavities in 2022. He was at home recovering next. Bret Michaels was headlining a solo tour called Parti-Gras in the USA in July 2023 with Night Ranger and Jefferson Starship opening. 40 Years And A Night with Contemporary Youth Orchestra album and video was available through Frontiers in October 2023. The album was recorded during a one night only Night Ranger performance with Cleveland’s Contemporary Youth Orchestra at the Key Bank State Theatre in Cleveland, Ohio on November 9, 2022. The Contemporary Youth Orchestra (CYO) is made up of 80+ musicians aged 12 to 18, representing more than 40 schools in Ohio. The students performed alongside Night Ranger throughout their set. Night Ranger was touring the USA in the spring and summer of 2024. Ted Nugent joined Night Ranger on stage in Jackson, Michigan on May 25th for the Damn Yankees' song Coming Of Age and Ted Nugent's own Cat Scratch Fever. The band was also booked for The Mountain Music Festival in August in Tennessee, USA. Night Ranger was booked for the inaugural Boardwalk Rock festival in Maryland, USA for May 2025.

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Night Ranger