Great White

Great White is a typical Angeleno hard rock band from the 1980s. Relying on effective AC/DC-inspired hard rock, Great White brought a touch of glam to West Coast metal. Vocalist Jack Russell fronted a variety of high school rock bands before meeting guitarist Mark Kendall in 1977. The two decided to form a band together by the name of Dante Fox. Shortly after, they decided to change the group’s name to Great White – which was Kendall’s nickname at the time - and began playing the club circuit in L.A and Orange County, California. Signing to EMI, the group released their self-titled album in 1984, which was followed two years later by the slightly more successful Shot in the Dark (1986). Great White hit their commercial peak with the release of the hit albums Once Bitten (1987) and … Twice Shy (1989) and the hit singles “Once Bitten, Twice Shy,” “The Angel Song,” and “House of Broken Love.” However, after the 1991 album Hooked, Great White’s luck ran out when grunge took over the charts and brought an end to their commercial reign. After the release of the album Can’t Get There from Here (1999), the group finally split in 2001. Jack Russell issued his second album in 2002, but it was not a success, and he decided to tour as Jack Russel’s Great White, which proved to be a good career move. The group’s momentum came to a halt in February 2003 when the band played at a club in West Warwick, Rhode Island and their pyrotechnics set off a fire that resulted in the deaths of 100 people including band member Ty Longley. Jack Russell didn’t return to performing again until the classic line-up reunited in 2006. He left that line-up of the group in 2009 after injuring himself in a fall, which led to multiple back surgeries. Great White continued to tour and record with several new vocalists while Jack Russell put together a new version of Jack Russell’s Great White in 2011 and continued to tour and record. For over a decade both versions of the group existed, which would continue to confuse the casual fan. In July 2024, Jack Russell announced his retirement from music because he was suffering from Lewy body dementia. On August 7, 2024, Jack Russell died at the age of 63.

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