Once great players that gone off the deep end and never really recovered

[Blazer]

Let's talk about the players that were victims of the Rock N roll lifestyle and sank in deep and never were able to get it back on track again.

I'll start with the guy who thought he'd achieved instant stardom when replacing a well known member of what was then the biggest metal band on earth.


Vinnie Vincent.

When Vinnie Vincent was hired by Kiss he brought the shred element in that band and a songsmith with kickass tunes which made all the difference in getting Kiss's credibility back on track with two KILLER albums "Creatures of the night" and "Lick it up" for a while Vinnie Vincent was the "hot new guy"


Vinnie Vincent doing a solo during the 1984 "Lick it up" tour

However, Vinnie forgot the first rule: you have to pay your dues if you want to make it big. When Eric Carr replaced Peter Criss, Carr made himself loved by the fans by being humble, outgoing and accepting that the road to stardom would take small steps. Even now seventeen years after his death Eric Carr is remembered by Kiss fans as a true member of the band, one that paid his dues and enjoyed the merits.

Vinnie Vincent however went into instant-diva. Talked big about himself, treated fans and other bandmembers like shit, raring to living the life of a star before he even got on the road with Kiss. Gene Simmons described Vinnie in the "kiss exposed" documentary as the "Most self-destructive" person he knew.

As we all know now it wasn't Vinnie who would become the accepted Kiss guitarist, the one who was worthy of taking Ace Frehley's place, that honor went to Bruce Kulick.

So what is Vinnie doing now? Not much really except from making appearences at Kiss expo's where he appears donning the make up and acting like a star.

And as for his playing?


Forget it...

[Rhythm N. Bliss]

Ric Grech
 
Prior to Blind Faith, he was the bassist/violinist in Family, one of the best bands you've never heard. Another famous bassist in Family was John Wetton.

Anyway, Ric then landed with Blind Faith, fairly late in the project. I read that producer Jimmy Miller said that Jack Bruce played bass on most of the Blind Faith tracks. According to the Blind Faith deluxe set liner notes, Grech did not come on board until after "Presence Of The Lord," "Well All Right," and some others had been recorded, so this may be true. Grech obviously played violin on "Sea Of Joy," though.

When Blind Faith imploded, Grech initially joined Winwood and Baker in Ginger Baker's Air Force, which also included Traffic's Chris Wood, ex-Moody Blue and future Wing Denny Laine, Graham Bond, and about 100 others.

After one album with them, Grech joined the reformed Traffic. Grech co-wrote their hit "Rock and Roll Stew" on the Low Spark album & also played on Welcome To The Canteen with Dave Mason rejoining Traffic for awhile, just long enough for a LIVE album & tour. I saw him several times with Traffic--on the Low Spark tour & Canteen tour, cuz they were my fav band at that time. He also played bass at Eric Clapton's Rainbow Concert.

After leaving Traffic, Grech joined yet another ill-fated supergroup in 1975: KGB. Besides himself, this group featured another supergroup veteran, Carmine Appice, with Mike Bloomfield on guitar, and some other session vets. They are said to have sucked. I never got to hear 'em. Bloomfield and Grech left after one album.

Grech also played with Gram Parsons on G.P..

Grech died of liver cancer (or some sort of liver disease) in 1990 or so.

Wikipedia bio:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ric_Grech

[uwe]

Let's talk about the players that were victims of the Rock N roll lifestyle and sank in deep and never were able to get it back on track again.

I'll start with the guy who thought he'd achieved instant stardom when replacing a well known member of what was then the biggest metal band on earth.


Vinnie Vincent.

When Vinnie Vincent was hired by Kiss he brought the shred element in that band and a songsmith with kickass tunes which made all the difference in getting Kiss's credibility back on track with two KILLER albums "Creatures of the night" and "Lick it up" for a while Vinnie Vincent was the "hot new guy"


Vinnie Vincent doing a solo during the 1984 "Lick it up" tour

However, Vinnie forgot the first rule: you have to pay your dues if you want to make it big. When Eric Carr replaced Peter Criss, Carr made himself loved by the fans by being humble, outgoing and accepting that the road to stardom would take small steps. Even now seventeen years after his death Eric Carr is remembered by Kiss fans as a true member of the band, one that paid his dues and enjoyed the merits.

Vinnie Vincent however went into instant-diva. Talked big about himself, treated fans and other bandmembers like shit, raring to living the life of a star before he even got on the road with Kiss. Gene Simmons described Vinnie in the "kiss exposed" documentary as the "Most self-destructive" person he knew.

As we all know now it wasn't Vinnie who would become the accepted Kiss guitarist, the one who was worthy of taking Ace Frehley's place, that honor went to Bruce Kulick.

So what is Vinnie doing now? Not much really except from making appearences at Kiss expo's where he appears donning the make up and acting like a star.

And as for his playing?


Forget it...

Herr Carlston is of course destined to opine on this in a comprehensive manner, but it seems poor Vinnie doesn't play solos anymore at all on that Kiss Convention. Which means he's either lost it or he was just polite and holding back. Why does he move in the same effeminate way as Herr Stanley?

Uwe

[PhilT]

I'm a big fan of Family, they're one of the few prog rock bands I can still listen to without cringing.

I'm not convinced about Rich Grech, though. He was famous because of the Blind Faith debacle, but I don't think the Family albums he played on stand up as well today, ground breaking as they were at the time, as Song for Me, which had the criminally under-rated John Weider on bass/violin, and the John Wetton era.

I saw Ginger Baker's Airforce at the Lyceum in London in 1970. They started 3 hours late, supposedly because Phil Seaman's drums had been impounded by customs on the way back from a gig in Germany. At the start Denny Laine announced that he'd been for a pee and dripped it all down his leg. It went downhill from there, total chaos.

Another Family connection, Rob Townsend (drummer) is now in The Blues Band, with Paul Jones and Tom McGuiness. Paul Jones can still sing and play harmonica simultaneously, seemingly without drawing breath.

[HornetAMX]

I always think about the great drummer Jim Gordon.  The list of great songs he played on is unbelievable as is the reason he ended up in prison.

http://www.drummerworld.com/drummers/Jim_Gordon.html

[gweimer]

Two names come to mind for me:

Peter Green
Syd Barrett

[Rhythm N. Bliss]

I always think about the great drummer Jim Gordon.  The list of great songs he played on is unbelievable as is the reason he ended up in prison.

http://www.drummerworld.com/drummers/Jim_Gordon.html

Me too. So damn sad that drugs messed him up. I saw him a lot with Traffic too...he & the aforementioned Ric Grech formed a great Rhythm Section!!
I saw 'em 4 times on the Low Spark tour & on the Welcome To The Canteen tour.

Also saw Jim Gordon with Derek & The Dominos.

[nofi]

not to give junkies a bad name but gordon was a paranoid schizophrenic. even though he was a substance abuser one has nothing to do with the other.

[Barklessdog]

Eddie Van Halen & Axel Rose come to recent memory

[eb2]

Ditto on Eddie.  He seems to be going deeper into a bad place, although I suspect he was always a bit off, and probably OCD.  I was listening to the first lp just the other day, and it is fun to listen too.  A nice take you back disc.

Another bass character was Ace Kefford from the Move, who literally got on the wrong end of some severe mental illness that went undiagnosed until it was too late. He is still alive, and apparently doing better, but he had his career go in the tank, along with everything else due to his problems. 

I think just as many got out when they figured out they could go off.  It seems that is a timeless hazard in the music biz.  I loved Barry Jenkins drumming, as well as Mitch Mitchell's.  Both fine, solid drummers, and held in very high regard back in the day, yet they both seemed to have had the presence of mind to say "enough."  Neither has chomped at the bit to record or tour.

Axl Rose I can live without.

[ramone57]

roky erikson is another guy who fell pretty hard.