List of Night Ranger members - Wikipedia
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Members of Night Ranger performing live in 2008 (top) and 2009 (bottom).
Night Ranger is an American hard rock band from San Francisco, California. Formed in 1979 under the name "Stereo", the group was originally a trio composed of former Rubicon members Jack Blades (bass, lead vocals), Kelly Keagy (drums, lead vocals) and Brad Gillis (guitar, backing vocals).[1] In 1980, the group expanded to a five-piece with the addition of keyboardist Alan Fitzgerald and second guitarist Jeff Watson, as well as changing its name to "Ranger" and later Night Ranger.[2] After four commercially successful albums, the band experienced its first lineup change in early 1988 when Fitzgerald left prior to the recording of Man in Motion.[3] Jesse Bradman, one of the substitute performers on the album, subsequently joined the group full-time.[1] After Blades announced his departure, Night Ranger officially broke up in April 1989.[4]
Two years after disbanding, Night Ranger was reformed by Keagy and Gillis, who recruited Gary Moon as the replacement for Blades.[5] In 1993, David Zajicek joined the band as touring guitarist and keyboardist.[6] Following the release and touring of Feeding off the Mojo, Blades, Watson and Fitzgerald all returned to mark a reunion of the original five-piece lineup of Night Ranger, after being invited to tour Japan.[7] Two more studio albums followed, before Fitzgerald was replaced in 2003 by Michael Lardie of Great White.[8] Watson also left in April 2007, with Whitesnake's Reb Beach taking his place for subsequent tour dates.[9] Following a Japanese tour shortly after Beach's arrival, Lardie was replaced by Christian Matthew Cullen.[10] In January 2008, Joel Hoekstra joined the band full-time, as Beach returned to Whitesnake.[11][12]
Following the addition of Hoekstra, the Night Ranger lineup remained stable for three years, until Eric Levy replaced Cullen on keyboards in March 2011.[13] Hoekstra remained for two studio albums and one live release, before it was announced in August 2014 that he was leaving to join Beach in Whitesnake.[14] He was soon replaced by Keri Kelli, who had previously substituted for Hoekstra during shows in 2012 and 2013.[15][16]
| Image | Name | Years active | Instruments | Release contributions |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Kelly Keagy |
|
|
all Night Ranger releases |
|
Brad Gillis |
| ||
|
Jack Blades |
|
|
all Night Ranger releases, except Feeding off the Mojo (1995) |
| Eric Levy | 2011–present |
|
all Night Ranger releases from Somewhere in California (2011) onwards | |
|
Keri Kelli | 2014–present (plus select shows in 2012 and 2013) |
|
|
| Image | Name | Years active | Instruments | Release contributions |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Jeff Watson |
|
|
all releases from Dawn Patrol (1982) to Live in Japan (1990), and from Neverland (1997) to Hole in the Sun (2007) |
| Alan Fitzgerald |
|
|
all releases from Dawn Patrol (1982) to Big Life (1987), and from Neverland (1997) to Seven (1998) | |
| Jesse Bradman | 1988–1989 |
| ||
| Gary Moon | 1991–1996 |
|
Feeding off the Mojo (1995) | |
|
Michael Lardie | 2003–2007 |
|
|
| Christian Matthew Cullen | 2007–2011 | none | ||
|
Joel Hoekstra | 2008–2014 |
|
|
| Image | Name | Years active | Instruments | Details |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| David Zajicek | 1993–1996 (died 2016) |
|
Zajicek joined Night Ranger's touring lineup in 1993, as well as contributing guitar to Feeding off the Mojo.[1][6] | |
|
Reb Beach | 2007–2008 |
|
After Watson was fired, Beach replaced him in the band for 2007 dates, appearing on Rockin' Shibuya 2007.[9] |
| Deen Castronovo |
|
|
Castronovo substituted for Keagy in 2011, and again during 2017 after the drummer had a heart operation.[17] | |
| Brandon Ethridge | 2012 |
|
Ethridge substituted for Levy for one show on September 1, 2012, as his wife was giving birth.[citation needed] | |
|
Fred Coury | 2017 | drums | Coury substituted for Keagy alongside Castronovo, while the regular drummer was recovering from surgery.[17] |
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- ^ a b c "Night Ranger: Biography & History". AllMusic. Retrieved May 9, 2019.
- ^ Russell, Xavier (June 2018). "Boogie Night!" (PDF). Rock Candy. No. 8. p. 39. Retrieved May 9, 2019.
- ^ Giles, Jeff (March 1, 2017). "30 Years Ago: Night Ranger Struggle To Maintain Momentum With 'Big Life'". Ultimate Classic Rock. Retrieved May 9, 2019.
- ^ Rene, Sheila (April 14, 1989). "Here and There" (PDF). The Gavin Report. No. 1752. p. 21. Retrieved May 9, 2019.
- ^ Henriques, Christina (January 6, 1993). "Picking Up Where He Left Off". Miami New Times. Retrieved May 9, 2019.
- ^ a b McNeice, Andrew J. "Interviews: Night Ranger - Kelly Keagy". MelodicRock.com. Retrieved May 9, 2019.
- ^ Burgess, Mick (June 8, 2017). "Jack Blades (Night Ranger) Interview". Metal Express Radio. Retrieved May 9, 2019.
- ^ Devenish, Colin (July 2, 2003). "Great White Downsize Tour". Rolling Stone. Retrieved May 9, 2019.
- ^ a b "Night Ranger - Reb Beach To Replace Departed Jeff Watson On Upcoming Tour". Brave Words & Bloody Knuckles. April 10, 2007. Retrieved May 9, 2019.
- ^ Cavacini, Michael (July 20, 2018). "Christian Matthew Cullen Discusses Night Ranger". Michael Cavacini. Retrieved May 9, 2019.
- ^ Derrough, Leslie Michele (November 14, 2011). "Joel Hoekstra". Glide Magazine. Retrieved May 9, 2019.
- ^ Cavacini, Michael (June 8, 2018). "A Conversation With Joel Hoekstra". Michael Cavacini. Retrieved May 9, 2019.
- ^ "Please Make Welcome Eric Levy". Night Ranger. March 8, 2011. Archived from the original on July 14, 2011. Retrieved May 9, 2019.
- ^ DeRiso, Nick (August 21, 2014). "Guitarist Joel Hoekstra Leaves Night Ranger For Whitesnake". Ultimate Classic Rock. Retrieved May 9, 2019.
- ^ Munro, Scott (September 1, 2014). "Night Ranger name guitarist". Classic Rock. Retrieved May 9, 2019.
- ^ Mosqueda, Ruben (March 28, 2019). "Interview with A New Revenge and Night Ranger guitarist Keri Kelli". Sleaze Roxx. Retrieved May 9, 2019.
- ^ a b "Night Ranger's Kelly Keagy Takes Leave Of Absence Following Successful Heart Procedure". Blabbermouth.net. April 14, 2017. Retrieved May 9, 2019.