Sniper | |
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Origin | Forest Hills, Queens, New York, United States |
Genres | Glam punk |
Years active | 1972–1979 |
Past members |
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Sniper was an early American glam punk band [1] that formed in New York City in 1972. They were one of several bands that played at the Mercer Arts Center, Max's Kansas City and the Coventry alongside the New York Dolls and Suicide, [2] [3] and were most famous for its former members, which included frontman Joey Ramone (Jeff Hyman), prior to his forming the Ramones, [4] and guitarist Frank Infante, later of Blondie.
Sniper formed in 1972, with the original lineup consisting of Joey Ramone, guitarists Bob Butani and Danny Wray, bassist Peter (Morgan) Morales, and drummer Patrick Franklyn. Ramone played with Sniper under the name "Jeff Starship". He later recalled, "I used to wear this custom-made black jumpsuit, these like pink, knee-high platform boots- all kinds of rhinestones- lots of dangling belts and gloves". [5] Ramone's brother, Mickey Leigh, later said, "I was shocked when the band came out. Joey was the lead singer and I couldn't believe how good he was. Because he'd been sitting in my house with my acoustic guitar, writing these songs like "I Don't Care", fucking up my guitar, and suddenly he's this guy on stage who you can't take your eyes off of". [4] Ramone continued playing with them until early 1974, when he was replaced by Alan Turner, formerly of 1960s Bronx rock band the Age of Reason. [6]
Sniper played regularly at Max's, Club 82 and CBGB as the punk scene developed. In 1975, they recorded their only demo, Hots, at Record Plant Studios.
In 1975, Butani left Sniper to join Tuff Darts and was replaced by Infante. Later that year, Sniper changed their name to Kid Blast and added Vinny (Bank) Sanchez on keyboards. In 1977, Turner was replaced by Michael Harrington, and Infante left to join Blondie. They continued playing until 1978, when they changed the name of the band to Grand Slam. Grand Slam continued to play dates in New York City and the East Coast, eventually recording "Stitch in Time" at the Record Plant for the Max's Kansas City Volume 2 compilation album. [7] They finally disbanded in 1979.
Wray became a studio session guitarist, later joining the DCvers, Sanchez stayed in New York and joined Mrozinski Music, [8] while Morales and Franklyn formed the band Hunter in London with vocalist Bob Chabala. Turner reformed the Age of Reason in 2015, [9] while Wray continues to perform with Wrayband. [10]
In 2022 discovered footage of Sniper with frontman Jeff Hyman appeared on YouTube.
Jeffrey Ross Hyman, known professionally as Joey Ramone, was an American singer, best known as the lead vocalist and a founding member of the punk rock band Ramones. His image, voice, and his tenure with the Ramones made him a countercultural icon. He, along with the guitarist Johnny Ramone, are the only two original members who stayed in the band until the disbandment in 1996.
New York Dolls were an American rock band formed in New York City in 1971. Along with the Velvet Underground and the Stooges, they were one of the first bands of the early punk rock scenes. Although the band never achieved much commercial success and their original line-up fell apart quickly, the band's first two albums—New York Dolls (1973) and Too Much Too Soon (1974)—became among the most popular cult records in rock. The line-up at this time consisted of, vocalist David Johansen, guitarist Johnny Thunders, bassist Arthur Kane, guitarist and pianist Sylvain Sylvain, and drummer Jerry Nolan; the latter two had replaced Rick Rivets and Billy Murcia, respectively, in 1972. On stage, they donned an androgynous wardrobe, wearing high heels, eccentric hats, satin, makeup, spandex, and dresses. Nolan described the group in 1974 as "the Dead End Kids of today".
Blondie is an American rock band founded in 1974 in New York City by singer Debbie Harry and guitarist Chris Stein. The band was a pioneer in the American new wave scene of the mid-1970s in New York City. Its first two albums contained strong elements of punk and new wave, and although highly successful in the UK and Australia, Blondie was regarded as an underground band in the U.S. until the release of Parallel Lines in 1978. Over the next four years, the band released several hit singles including "Dreaming", "One Way or Another", "Heart of Glass", "Call Me", "Atomic", "The Tide Is High", and "Rapture". The band became noted for its eclectic mix of musical styles, also incorporating elements of disco, pop, reggae, and early rap music.
Rocket to Russia is the third studio album by the American punk rock band Ramones, and was released on November 4, 1977, through Sire Records. Its origins date back to the summer of 1977, when "Sheena Is a Punk Rocker" was released as a single. That summer was known as the peak of the punk rock genre since many punk bands were offered recording contracts. The album's recording began in August 1977, and the band had a considerably larger budget with Sire allowing them between $25,000 and $30,000; much of this money went toward the album's production rather than recording.
Ramones is the debut studio album by the American punk rock band Ramones, released on April 23, 1976, by Sire Records. After Hit Parader editor Lisa Robinson saw the band at a gig in New York City, she wrote about them in an article and contacted Danny Fields, insisting that he be their manager. Fields agreed and convinced Craig Leon to produce Ramones, and the band recorded a demo for prospective record labels. Leon persuaded Sire president Seymour Stein to listen to the band perform, and he later offered the band a recording contract. The Ramones began recording in January 1976, needing only seven days and $6,400 to record the album.
End of the Century is the fifth studio album by the American punk rock band Ramones, released on February 4, 1980, through Sire Records. The album was the band's first to be produced by Phil Spector, though he had offered the band his assistance earlier in their career. With Spector fully producing the album, it was the first release that excluded original member Tommy Ramone, who had left the band in 1978 but had produced their previous album Road to Ruin. Spector used more advanced standards of engineering, such as high-quality overdubbing and echo chambers. These painstaking methods caused conflict between the band and Spector since the Ramones were accustomed to a quicker recording process. Spector emphasized the production value as well, working with a budget of around $200,000, far exceeding their earlier album sessions.
John William Cummings, better known by his stage name Johnny Ramone, was an American musician who was the guitarist and a founding member of the Ramones, a band that helped pioneer the punk movement. The band was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2002. Until the band's disbandment in 1996, Johnny, along with the lead vocalist Joey Ramone, were the only two original members who stayed since its inception.
Max's Kansas City was a nightclub and restaurant at 213 Park Avenue South in New York City, which became a gathering spot for musicians, poets, artists, and politicians in the 1960s and 1970s. It was opened by Mickey Ruskin (1933–1983) in December 1965 and closed in 1981.
Clement Burke is an American musician who is best known as the drummer for the band Blondie from 1975, shortly after the band formed, throughout the band's entire career. He also played drums for the Ramones for a brief time in 1987, under the name Elvis Ramone.
Halfway to Sanity is the 10th studio album by American punk rock band Ramones, and their last album to feature drummer Richie Ramone. It was produced by Daniel Rey and released on September 15, 1987, by Sire Records. Recording sessions began that April at Intergalactic Studios in New York City, with the band recording instruments before vocals in order to learn songs more quickly. It fared well on charts outside the United States, but peaked at No. 172 on the Billboard 200.
Richard Reinhardt is an American drummer best known by his stage name Richie Ramone, and for being the drummer for the punk band the Ramones from February 1983 until August 1987. As of 2022, he is one of the four surviving members of the band.
Frank Infante is an American guitarist and bassist best known as a former member of the new wave band Blondie.
Tuff Darts was an American punk rock band. They were one of the first bands to establish an audience at CBGB. They reached their greatest fame in the mid-late 1970s with such songs as "Slash", "(Your Love Is Like) Nuclear Waste" and their biggest single, "All for the Love of Rock and Roll", which was originally recorded by Ram Jam. The band appeared at popular New York City clubs like Max's Kansas City and CBGB and featured Robert Gordon (vocals), Jeff Salen (guitar), Bobby Butani (guitar), John DeSalvo (bass), and Jim Morrison (drums). This was the original band that was on the Live at CBGB's compilation record in 1976. After parting ways with Gordon, John Morelli, replaced Jim Morrison on drums and the band eventually found new lead singer Tommy Frenzy (Frenesi). In 1978, the group released their debut album Tuff Darts!, on Sire Records, produced by Bob Clearmountain and Tony Bongiovi, shortly before disbanding.
Andy Shernoff is an American musician, songwriter and record producer. He is a founding member of The Dictators, one of the original New York punk bands, in which he wrote nearly all of the songs, played bass guitar and keyboards, and sang backing vocals and occasional leads. He has been involved with a variety of other musical projects, most notably the heavily Dictators-populated Manitoba's Wild Kingdom and Joey Ramone's first studio album, Don't Worry About Me. He additionally co-wrote four Ramones songs with Joey.
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Mitchel Lee Hyman, best known by his stage name Mickey Leigh, is an American musician and writer. He is the brother of Joey Ramone, lead vocalist of the punk rock band Ramones.
Ruby and the Rednecks is an American Rock and roll band from New York City, inspired by New York Dolls, created by the singer, songwriter, playwright and actress Ruby Lynn Reyner with collaborating musical artists in 1970 and active until today. The band was originally composed by Ruby Lynn Reyner, John Madera, George Basley (drums), Augie Sabini (saxophone), Bobby Kent (drums),Susan Lampert, and Danny Couse, but currently has a new formation. From the original group, only Reyner and Lampert remain. Ruby wrote most of the lyrics herself. John Madera was praised as a guitar player.