Characteristic Picture: Ted Van Pelt, CC BY 2.0
Rising from the inventive collision of two early Los Angeles onerous rock bands in 1983, L.A. Weapons developed into one of many Sundown Strip’s most recognizable acts in the course of the Eighties and Nineties. The band was initially based by guitarist Tracii Weapons and drummer Rob Gardner underneath the title Pyrrhus, with singer Michael Jagosz and bassist Ole Beich finishing the unique lineup. Following a merger with Hollywood Rose in March 1985 to kind Weapons N’ Roses, Tracii Weapons rapidly reformed L.A. Weapons with a recent lineup in 1986, finally establishing what would grow to be generally known as their “traditional” configuration by 1987.
L.A. Weapons launched 17 studio albums throughout their historical past, with their 1988 self-titled debut reaching gold standing, their second album Cocked & Loaded in 1989 attaining platinum certification, and Hollywood Vampires in 1991 additionally reaching platinum. The band achieved their biggest chart success with Hollywood Vampires, which peaked at quantity 42 on the Billboard 200, whereas the one “The Ballad of Jayne” from Cocked & Loaded reached quantity 25 on the Mainstream Rock Chart and quantity 33 on the Billboard Sizzling 100. Over 4 many years, the band skilled quite a few lineup adjustments and finally operated as two separate variations concurrently from 2006 to 2016, with one led by Tracii Weapons and Phil Lewis and one other by drummer Steve Riley.
The band’s catalog displays the evolution of Los Angeles onerous rock from the glam steel period by means of subsequent many years, with members contributing various musical influences and types. By 2025, the first L.A. Weapons lineup consisted of Tracii Weapons on lead guitar, Phil Lewis on lead vocals, Ace Von Johnson on rhythm guitar, Johnny Martin on bass, Adam Hamilton on studio drums, and Shawn Duncan on dwell drums. The band’s longevity by means of altering musical developments demonstrated their dedication to steady touring and recording, with 2025 marking the anticipated launch of their album Leopard Pores and skin.
Tracii Weapons
Tracii Weapons, born Tracy Irving Richard Ulrich on January 20, 1966, based L.A. Weapons in 1983 at Fairfax Excessive College in Los Angeles the place he met future bandmates Rob Gardner and Michael Jagosz. The band initially recorded their debut EP Collector’s Version No. 1 earlier than briefly merging with Hollywood Rose to kind the unique Weapons N’ Roses lineup in March 1985. Weapons remained with Weapons N’ Roses for just a few months earlier than the band’s members diverged, with Axl Rose persevering with the challenge and Slash finally changing Weapons as lead guitarist. Weapons reformed L.A. Weapons in 1986 with new members together with vocalist Paul Black, guitarists Mick Cripps and Robert Stoddard, and drummer Nickey Alexander.
Weapons served as L.A. Weapons’ major guitarist and first songwriter from the band’s 1988 self-titled debut by means of his departure in 2002. He carried out on their most commercially profitable releases together with L.A. Weapons (1988), Cocked & Loaded (1989), and Hollywood Vampires (1991), contributing guitar work and songwriting credit to their platinum-selling releases. His lead guitar performances on tracks equivalent to “Rip & Tear,” “The Ballad of Jayne,” and “Kiss My Love Goodbye” turned signature parts of the band’s sound in the course of the peak of their industrial success within the late Eighties and early Nineties. Weapons continued recording and touring with the band by means of extra studio albums together with Vicious Circle (1994), American Hardcore (1996), Man within the Moon (2001), and Waking the Lifeless (2002).
Past L.A. Weapons, Weapons pursued quite a few initiatives that demonstrated his vary as a guitarist and bandleader. In 1991, he participated within the supergroup Contraband alongside Scorpions’ Michael Schenker, Ratt’s Bobby Blotzer, Vixen’s Share Pedersen, and Shark Island’s Richard Black, releasing a self-titled album. Weapons launched his solo report Killing Machine in 1993, later re-released in 1999 by Deadline Information and printed in Europe underneath the title “All Eyes Are Watching.” From 2002 to 2005, he fashioned the onerous rock supergroup Brides of Destruction with Mötley Crüe bassist Nikki Sixx, releasing Right here Come the Brides in 2004 (which charted at quantity 92 on the Billboard 200) and Runaway Brides in 2005. In 2006, Weapons based The Tracii Weapons Band with vocalist Paul Black, drummer Nickey Alexander, and bassist Jeremy Weapons, which later turned acknowledged as a model of L.A. Weapons. He reunited with Phil Lewis in 2016 and has continued recording and touring, releasing The Lacking Peace (2017), The Satan You Know (2019), Checkered Previous (2021), and Black Diamonds (2023). In 2021, Weapons launched the album Evil and Divine as Sunbomb alongside Stryper frontman Michael Candy on Frontiers Information.
Phil Lewis
Phil Lewis was born on January 9, 1957, in London, England, and commenced his skilled music profession in 1978 when he co-founded the British glam rock band Woman alongside guitarist Gerry Laffy. The band, which additionally included future Def Leppard guitarist Phil Collen, launched their debut album Sheer Greed in 1980 on Jet Information, establishing themselves as a part of the brand new wave of British heavy steel motion. Lewis was instrumental in serving to Woman land their report cope with the assist of actress Britt Ekland, his girlfriend on the time. After Phil Collen joined Def Leppard in 1982, Woman disbanded, although the band would reunite periodically and later launched Killing Time in 1997 with leftover and unreleased materials.
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Following Woman’s preliminary breakup, Lewis joined the band New Torpedos after which fronted Bernie Tormé’s onerous rock band Tormé, with which he launched Again to Babylon in 1986 and Die Fairly, Die Younger in 1987. He fashioned the facet challenge Filthy Lucre with Steve Dior and launched the album Popsmear in 1997. Lewis relocated to California and joined L.A. Weapons in 1987, changing authentic vocalist Paul Black. He appeared on the band’s self-titled debut L.A. Weapons (1988), which went gold, and supplied lead vocals for his or her breakthrough second album Cocked & Loaded (1989), which achieved platinum standing with the one “The Ballad of Jayne.” Lewis contributed to Hollywood Vampires (1991), additionally licensed platinum, and Vicious Circle (1994) earlier than departing the band following that album’s restricted industrial efficiency.
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Throughout his first departure from L.A. Weapons from 1995 to 1999, Lewis pursued various work, together with producing albums for different artists, mixing audio for Fox Sports activities, and dealing as a phone psychic. He additionally carried out with The Liberators, a facet challenge with Quicker Pussycat guitarists Brent Muscat and Eric Stacey. Lewis returned to L.A. Weapons in 1999 as a part of the traditional lineup reunion.
Steve Riley
Steve Riley was born in Massachusetts and moved to Los Angeles following highschool to pursue a music profession. He briefly performed with Steppenwolf in 1979 earlier than becoming a member of the heavy steel band Keel, the place he carried out on their 1984 album The Proper to Rock, produced by Gene Simmons of Kiss. Riley joined W.A.S.P. in 1984, changing authentic drummer Tony Richards, and carried out on the band’s most commercially profitable interval. He appeared on W.A.S.P.’s 1985 gold-certified album The Final Command, their 1986 follow-up Contained in the Electrical Circus, and their 1987 dwell album Reside… within the Uncooked, touring with the band throughout a interval that established W.A.S.P. as main forces within the steel scene. Riley’s drumming type drew influences from Buddy Wealthy, Ginger Baker, and John Bonham, creating a particular method that mixed technical precision with uncooked energy.
Riley joined L.A. Weapons in 1987 and have become a part of their “traditional” lineup alongside guitarist Tracii Weapons, rhythm guitarist Mick Cripps, vocalist Phil Lewis, and bassist Kelly Nickels. He carried out because the drummer on the band’s self-titled 1988 debut (on one monitor), offering full drum components on Cocked & Loaded (1989) and Hollywood Vampires (1991), each platinum-selling albums. Riley was fired from L.A. Weapons in January 1992 following allegations of assaulting Lewis throughout a European tour with Skid Row, however returned to the band in 1995. He continued recording and touring with the group all through the Nineties and 2000s, contributing to albums together with Vicious Circle (1994), American Hardcore (1996), Wasted (1998), Shrinking Violet (1999), Man within the Moon (2001), Waking the Lifeless (2002), Rips the Covers Off (2004), Tales from the Strip (2005), and Hollywood Ceaselessly (2012). Riley was a member of Phil Lewis’ model of L.A. Weapons from 2006 till the 2 lineups merged in 2016.
In December 2018, Riley launched his personal model of L.A. Weapons with guitarist Scotty Griffin, bassist Kelly Nickels, and vocalist Jacob Bunton. Following a authorized dispute with Tracii Weapons and Phil Lewis over the band title, a settlement was reached in April 2021, permitting Riley’s model to proceed performing as “Riley’s L.A. Weapons.” Beneath this title, the band launched the album Renegades by means of Golden Robotic Information and deliberate to launch The Darkish Horse in 2023. Riley handed away on October 24, 2023, on the age of 67, following a extreme case of pneumonia that he had battled for a number of weeks.
Mick Cripps
Mick Cripps joined L.A. Weapons in 1985 as rhythm guitarist alongside vocalist Paul Black, drummer Nickey Alexander, and bassist Robert Stoddard. When Phil Lewis changed Paul Black in 1987, Cripps continued within the rhythm guitar place for the band’s most commercially profitable interval. He carried out on the self-titled debut L.A. Weapons (1988), the platinum-certified Cocked & Loaded (1989), and the platinum album Hollywood Vampires (1991), contributing rhythm guitar work and co-writing credit to the band’s greatest industrial success. Cripps remained with the band by means of Vicious Circle (1994) earlier than departing in 1995, coinciding with Lewis’ first departure from the group.
Cripps returned to L.A. Weapons as a part of the traditional lineup reunion in 1999 and recorded with the reunited group on Biggest Hits and Black Beauties, Cocked & Re-Loaded, Reside: A Night time on the Strip, and Man within the Moon (2001). He recorded keyboard components on Man within the Moon earlier than departing once more. Cripps recorded on Waking the Lifeless (2002) earlier than Tracii Weapons left the band. Past his work with L.A. Weapons, Cripps has pursued different musical initiatives, although his major recognition comes from his 20 years with L.A. Weapons as a key member of their traditional lineup.
Kelly Nickels
Kelly Nickels joined L.A. Weapons in 1987 as bassist, arriving from Quicker Pussycat the place he had carried out as a full-time member. Nickels turned a core member of the band’s “traditional” lineup alongside Phil Lewis, Tracii Weapons, Mick Cripps, and Steve Riley. He carried out on the gold-certified self-titled L.A. Weapons (1988), contributing bass and occasional harmonica components alongside his backing vocal work. Nickels was featured on the platinum album Cocked & Loaded (1989), which generated three hit singles together with “The Ballad of Jayne,” “Rip & Tear,” and “By no means Sufficient.” He continued on the platinum Hollywood Vampires (1991), which spawned the hit single “Kiss My Love Goodbye” and charted at quantity 42 on the Billboard 200.
Nickels departed L.A. Weapons in 1995 after the discharge of Vicious Circle, although he returned in 1999 as a part of the traditional lineup reunion. He recorded with the reunited group on Biggest Hits and Black Beauties and Cocked & Re-Loaded earlier than departing once more in 2000. Nickels returned to the L.A. Weapons lineup in 2018 as a part of Steve Riley’s model of the band, acting on bass alongside Riley, guitarist Scotty Griffin, and vocalist Kurt Frohlich. He continued on this lineup by means of the discharge of Renegades (2020) and the deliberate The Darkish Horse album. Earlier than becoming a member of L.A. Weapons, Nickels established himself as a bassist with Quicker Pussycat, and his contributions to that band established him as a notable determine in Los Angeles’ onerous rock neighborhood.
Paul Black
Paul Black was the unique vocalist for L.A. Weapons, becoming a member of the band in 1985 when Tracii Weapons reformed the group with guitarist Mick Cripps, drummer Nickey Alexander, and bassist Robert Stoddard. Black appeared on early recordings and performances earlier than being changed by Phil Lewis in 1987. Black remained related to the L.A. Weapons legacy, performing reunion exhibits with the traditional lineup and making visitor appearances at important band occasions. In 2006, in the course of the 20-year anniversary social gathering for the Cathouse Membership in Hollywood, Black took the stage with Tracii Weapons’ L.A. Weapons lineup. He labored with Tracii Weapons’ model of the band in 2008, showing as a touring vocalist in the course of the recording periods for what would grow to be Fairly in Black, although that album was not accomplished throughout his tenure.
Nickey Alexander
Nickey “Beat” Alexander was the unique drummer for L.A. Weapons’ 1985 reformation, acting on the band’s early recordings. He appeared as the only real drummer credit score on the self-titled L.A. Weapons debut album recorded in January 1988, although he was changed by Steve Riley earlier than the album’s launch on January 4, 1988. Alexander briefly returned to work with The Tracii Weapons Band in 2006 when Tracii Weapons fashioned that challenge with vocalist Paul Black and bassist Jeremy Weapons. Regardless of his restricted time with the principle L.A. Weapons lineup, Alexander performed a foundational position in establishing the band’s traditional rhythm part throughout their early life.
Johnny Martin
Johnny Martin joined L.A. Weapons as bassist in 2016 in the course of the reunification of Tracii Weapons and Phil Lewis. He had beforehand carried out as a bassist with Tracii Weapons’ model of the band earlier than changing into an official member of the reunited major L.A. Weapons lineup. Martin has continued as the first bassist for L.A. Weapons from 2016 by means of the current, contributing bass and backing vocals on The Lacking Peace (2017), The Satan You Know (2019), Checkered Previous (2021), and Black Diamonds (2023). He was featured on the anticipated 2025 album Leopard Pores and skin.
Ace Von Johnson
Ace Von Johnson joined L.A. Weapons in 2018 as rhythm guitarist and backing vocalist, changing Michael Grant who had departed in March 2018. Von Johnson has maintained his place within the band’s present lineup, acting on Checkered Previous (2021), Black Diamonds (2023), and Leopard Pores and skin (2025). He has toured extensively with the band all through his tenure, contributing rhythm guitar and vocal assist to the reunited classic-era lineup of Tracii Weapons and Phil Lewis.
Adam Hamilton
Adam Hamilton first joined L.A. Weapons in 2001 as bassist, contributing to the album Man within the Moon and performing keyboards on the report. He remained with the band by means of the discharge of Waking the Lifeless (2002), contributing bass work and backing vocals. Hamilton departed in 2007 to pursue songwriting and manufacturing work full-time. He rejoined the band in 2018 briefly as rhythm guitarist earlier than transitioning to studio drums by 2020. Since 2020, Hamilton has served because the studio drummer for L.A. Weapons, recording drums on studio releases whereas Shawn Duncan handles dwell drumming duties.
Shawn Duncan
Shawn Duncan joined L.A. Weapons as dwell drummer in Could 2022, changing Shane Fitzgibbon who had departed from the band. Duncan has continued as the first dwell efficiency drummer by means of touring and dwell appearances, whereas Adam Hamilton handles studio drum recording duties. Duncan carried out dwell with the band in the course of the promotion and touring cycle for Black Diamonds (2023) and the next Leopard Pores and skin (2025) album cycle.
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