Lita Ford: M15 Concert Bar and Grill (Corona, CA) 2015-01-17 Jack Lue Series

Lita Rossana Ford (born September 19, 1958) is a British-American rock guitarist, vocalist and songwriter, who was the lead guitarist for The Runaways in the late 1970s before embarking on a solo career in the 1980s.

Early life
Ford was born to a British father and an Italian mother in London, England. At the age of four, she moved with her family to the United States, eventually settling in the Angeles area by the time she was in the second grade. Inspired by Ritchie Blackmore's work with Deep Purple, she began playing the guitar at the age of 11. Her vocal range is mezzo-soprano.

Music career
The Runaways
In 1975, at age 16, Ford was recruited by recording impresario Kim Fowley to join the all-female rock band he was assembling called The Runaways. The band soon secured a recording contract and released their first album in 1976. The band's "jailbait on the run" gimmick[6] garnered significant media attention and The Runaways became a successful recording and touring act during their late 1970s heyday. Ford's lead-guitar playing became an integral element of the band's sound until their eventual break-up in April 1979.

In 1977, internal conflicts were erupting within The Runaways, who had by that time already parted ways with producer Fowley, lead singer Cherie Currie, and bassist Jackie Fox. Vocalist/guitarist Joan Jett wanted the band to shift to a more Ramones-influenced punk rock sound, while Ford and drummer Sandy West wanted to continue playing the hard rock-oriented songs the band had become known for. With neither faction willing to compromise, the band finally broke up in April 1979.

Solo career

Ford performing on December 19, 1988 in the "Olympiahalle" venue of Munich, Germany.
Following the breakup of The Runaways, Ford set about launching a solo career. Her debut solo album, entitled Out for Blood, was released in 1983 and was a commercial disappointment. Her next release, Dancin' on the Edge (1984) achieved moderate success and Ford's popularity began to rise. Dancin' on the Edge included the single "Fire in My Heart", which reached the Top 10 in several countries outside the United States. The follow-up single, "Gotta Let Go", performed better, reaching number one on the Mainstream Rock charts.

Ford toured extensively for the next four years while not releasing any new music. A follow-up to Dancin' on the Edge, entitled The Bride Wore Black, was recorded with Tony Iommi serving as producer, but never released. Ford claims this was because the new Mercury Records president "was a country fan and he didn't have a clue as what to do with me". The status of those recordings remains unclear; Ford has alternately stated that the unfinished album remains "sitting in my closet" and may still be released one day[8] or is "in (record) label hell! Who knows what shelf that is sitting on!"

Following the failure to have her third solo album released, Ford signed with RCA Records, hired Sharon Osbourne Management, and re-emerged with a more radio-friendly pop-metal sound. In 1988, she released her most commercially successful album, the self-produced Lita. The album featured several singles including "Kiss Me Deadly", "Back to the Cave", "Close My Eyes Forever", and "Falling In and Out of Love", a song co-written by Nikki Sixx of Mötley Crüe. The ballad "Close My Eyes Forever", a duet with Ozzy Osbourne, remains her most successful song, reaching No. 8 on the US Billboard Hot 100.

Ford followed up the success of Lita with the album Stiletto (1990). Stiletto featured the singles "Hungry" and "Lisa" (a song dedicated to her mother). However, the album failed to match the success of her previous release. Ford's next release was Dangerous Curves (1991), which featured her last charting single to date, "Shot of Poison". Ford's final album prior to a lengthy recording hiatus was Black on the German ZYX Records.

Hiatus and return to stage

Ford performing on June 27, 2009.
By the mid-1990s, Ford placed a reduced priority on her music career as she turned her attention towards raising her two young sons. Following the release of Black in 1995, Ford did not release new material until the Wicked Wonderland album almost fifteen years later.

In June 2008, Ford reemerged with a new band with Stet Howland (WASP) on drums, playing several warm-up gigs under the moniker Kiss Me Deadly prior to Rocklahoma in the New York City area. In June 2009, she began touring the United States and Europe with a new line-up consisting of current Guns N' Roses guitarist Ron 'Bumblefoot' Thal, Bumblefoot drummer Dennis Leeflang, and Deepfield bassist PJ Farley.

After a long recording hiatus, Ford released the new album Wicked Wonderland on October 6, 2009, on the JLRG Entertainment label.[11] In an interview with ExclusiveMagazine.com, Ford spoke about her new material: "I just wanted to kick ass! I don't know what's popular, or the flavor of the day. I just wanted the music to rock! The lyrics are very personal and that's it. I wasn't going to come out in sandals with hairy armpits!".

In May 2011, Ford promised to release a "real comeback album" later in the year with drummer Chuck Spradlin, saying that 2009's nu metal-inspired Wicked Wonderland, was too much of a collective project with ex-husband Jim Gillette. "A lot of people have told me that they want a real Lita Ford album, and I know what they mean. They are going to get it," she was quoted as saying at the time. The album Living Like a Runaway was released in June 2012 on SPV/Steamhammer Records. True to her word, the album was much more in line with her earlier work. The title is also celebratory, as Ford had recently settled differences with her former Runaways' bandmates. In 2013 Lita was awarded by Guitar Player Magazine The Certified Guitar Legend Award.

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