Name	John Tyler
Office	10th President of the United States
Term start	April 4, 1841
Term end	March 4, 1845
Predecessor	William Henry Harrison
Successor	James K. Polk
Office2	10th Vice President of the United States
President2	William Henry Harrison
Term start2	March 4, 1841
Term end2	April 4, 1841
Predecessor2	Richard Johnson
Successor2	George Dallas
Office3	President pro tempore of the Senate
President3	Andrew Jackson
Term start3	March 3, 1835
Term end3	December 6, 1835
Predecessor3	George Poindexter
Successor3	William King
Jr/sr4	United States Senator
State4	Virginia
Term start4	March 4, 1827
Term end4	February 29, 1836
Predecessor4	John Randolph
Successor4	William Rives
Office5	23rd Governor of Virginia
Term start5	December 10, 1825
Term end5	March 4, 1827
Predecessor5	James Pleasants
Successor5	William Giles
State6	Virginia
District6	23rd
Term start6	December 17, 1816
Term end6	March 3, 1821
Predecessor6	John Clopton
Successor6	Andrew Stevenson
Birth date	March 29, 1790
Birth place	Charles City County, Virginia, U.S.
Death date	January 18, 1862
Death place	Richmond, Virginia, U.S.
Party	Independent (1841–1862)
Otherparty	Democratic-Republican Party (Before 1825) Democratic Party (1825–1834) Whig Party (1834–1841)
Spouse	Letitia Christian (1813–1842) Julia Gardiner (1844–1862)
Children	{{flatlist | Mary Robert John, Jr. Letitia Elizabeth Anne Contesse Alice Tazewell
Style	margin-bottom: 0.5em; }}

{{flatlist |

David Gardiner

John Alexander

Julia Gardiner

Lachlan

Lyon Gardiner

Robert Fitzwalter

Pearl

}} |alma_mater = College of William and Mary |profession = Lawyer |religion = Episcopal |signature = John Tyler Signature.svg |signature_alt = Cursive signature in ink |branch = Volunteer Military Company |serviceyears = 1813 }} John Tyler (March 29, 1790 – January 18, 1862) was the tenth President of the United States (1841–1845). A native of Virginia, Tyler served as a state legislator, governor, U.S. representative, and U.S. senator before being elected Vice President (1841). He was the first to succeed to the office of President following the death of a predecessor. Tyler's opposition to nationalism and emphatic support of states' rights endeared him to his fellow Virginians but alienated him from most of the political allies that brought him to power in Washington. His presidency was crippled by opposition from both parties, and at the end of his life, he would join the South in secession from the United States.

Tyler was born to an aristocratic Virginia family and he came to national prominence at a time of political upheaval. By the 1820s the nation's only political party, the Democratic-Republicans, began to split into factions, none of which shared Tyler's strict constructionist ideals. His opposition to Democratic leaders Andrew Jackson and Martin Van Buren led him to be elected Vice President on the Whig ticket. Upon the death of President William Henry Harrison on April 4, 1841, only a month after his inauguration, a short Constitutional crisis arose over the succession process. Tyler took the oath of office on April 6, 1841. He then moved into the White House and assumed full presidential powers, a precedent that would govern future successions and eventually be codified in the twenty-fifth amendment.

Once he became president he stood against his party's platform and vetoed several of their proposals. As a result, most of his cabinet resigned, and the Whigs, dubbing him ''His Accidency'', expelled him from the party. While he faced a stalemate on domestic policy, he still made several foreign policy achievements, signing the Webster–Ashburton Treaty with Britain and the Treaty of Wanghia with China. Tyler dedicated his last two years in office to his landmark accomplishment, the 1845 annexation of the Republic of Texas. With little hope for re-election, he created a third party to move public opinion in favor of annexation, which led to the 1844 presidential election of expansionist Democrat James K. Polk over Tyler opponents Henry Clay and Van Buren.

Tyler essentially retired from electoral politics until the outbreak of the Civil War in 1861. He sided with the Confederate government, and won election to the Confederate House of Representatives shortly before his death. As a result of his opposition to the Union, his death was the only one in presidential history not to be officially mourned in Washington. Although some have praised Tyler's political resolve, his presidency is generally held in low esteem by historians; today he is considered an obscure president, with little presence in the American cultural memory.

Early life and law career

John Tyler was born on March 29, 1790, in the early years of the newly established nation. From birth he was politically tied to his future running mate William Henry Harrison: both were born in Charles City County, Virginia, descended from aristocratic and politically entrenched families. The Tyler family proudly traced its lineage to colonial Williamsburg in the mid-17th century. John Tyler, Sr., popularly known as Judge Tyler, was a friend and college roommate of Thomas Jefferson and served in the Virginia House of Delegates alongside William's father Benjamin Harrison V. Judge Tyler served four years as Virginia Speaker of the House before becoming a state court judge. He would later serve as governor and as a judge on the U.S. District Court at Richmond. His wife Mary was the daughter of a prominent plantation owner, Robert Armistead. She died of a stroke when her son John was seven years old.

The young Tyler was raised with his two brothers and five sisters on Greenway Plantation, a estate with a six-room mansion his father had built. Various crops including wheat, corn, and tobacco were grown at Greenway by the Tylers' forty slaves. Tyler was an unhealthy child, very thin and prone to chronic diarrhea. Such afflictions would continue to burden him throughout his life. At the age of twelve, he entered the preparatory branch of the elite College of William and Mary, continuing the Tyler family's tradition of attending the college. Tyler graduated from the school's collegiate branch in 1807, at age seventeen. Among the books that informed his economic views was Adam Smith's ''The Wealth of Nations''. His political views were deeply shaped by Bishop James Madison, the college's president, who served as a second father and mentor to him.

After graduation Tyler went on study law with his father, who was a state judge at the time. Tyler was admitted to the bar at the age of 19, in violation of bar regulations: the judge who administered the bar exam neglected to inquire about his age. By this time his father had become Governor of Virginia (1808–1811), and the young Tyler started a practice in Richmond.

Early political career

Start in Virginia politics

At the age of 21, Tyler was elected by his fellow Charles City County residents to the Virginia House of Delegates, the lower house of the Virginia General Assembly. He served five successive one-year terms (and would return later in his career), seated on the Courts and Justice committee. The young politician's defining attributes were on display by the end of his first term: a strong support of states' rights and opposition to a national bank. He joined fellow legislator Benjamin W. Leigh in pushing for the censure of U.S. Senators William Branch Giles and Richard Brent from Virginia, who had voted for the recharter of the First Bank of the United States against the legislature's instructions.

In addition to infighting over the national bank, the United States was facing ongoing hostilities with Britain in the War of 1812. Tyler's education had impressed on him a strong sense of anti-British nationalism, and at the onset of the war he urged military action on the assembly floor. After the British capture of Hampton, Virginia in the summer of 1813, Tyler eagerly organized a small militia company of county residents to defend Richmond, but no attack came their way and he dissolved the company two months later. In 1816 he resigned to serve on the Governor's Council of State, a group of eight advisors elected by the legislature.

U.S. House of Representatives

Tyler's three terms in the United States House of Representatives would be his foray into national politics. The death of U.S. Representative John Clopton in the fall of 1816 left a vacancy in the 23rd district which Tyler was well positioned to fill. He faced his friend and political ally Andrew Stevenson, then Speaker of the Virginia House of Delegates, in the congressional election. The race was amicable despite the high political stakes. Tyler's political connections and campaigning skills won him the election by a slim margin. He was sworn in as a Democratic-Republican to the Fourteenth Congress on December 17, 1816, to complete Clopton's term. He was re-elected to a full term the following spring.

While the Democratic-Republicans had a historical platform of states' rights, they had begun to adopt nationalist tendencies. In the wake of the War of 1812, Congress was pushing to fund the states' reconstruction and infrastructure projects. Tyler held fast to his strict constructionist beliefs, rejecting such proposals on both constitutional and personal grounds. Virginia was not "in so poor a condition as to require a ''charitable'' donation from Congress," he contended. He was chosen to participate in an audit of the Second Bank of the United States in 1818 as part of a five-person committee, and was appalled by perceived corruption within the bank. He argued for the annullment of the bank charter, although Congress rejected any such proposal. His first clash with then-General Andrew Jackson followed Jackson's 1818 invasion of Florida during the First Seminole War. While praising Jackson's character, Tyler condemned the general's zealous behavior and his execution of two British subjects. Tyler was re-elected without opposition in early 1819.

The defining issue of the Sixteenth Congress (1819–21) was the admission of Missouri to the Union, and whether slavery would be permitted in the new state. Tyler was a leader in opposing the Missouri Compromise of 1820, which would for the first time establish national boundaries for the establishment of slavery. In his view, the compromise served only to diminish and divide the states, while unnecessarily expanding federal authority. Acknowledging the ills of slavery, he argued that allowing it in Missouri would attract existing slaveowners from Southern states, dissipating the population of slaves and reducing each state's reliance on the practice. Thus, in his view, emancipation would occur organically at the state level without federal intervention. He voted against the Missouri Compromise—which passed regardless—and all bills which would restrict slavery in new territories.

Tyler declined to seek renomination to Congress in late 1820, citing illness. He privately acknowledged his dissatisfaction with the office, as his opposing votes were largely symbolic and did little to change the political culture in Washington; he also observed that funding his children's education would be difficult on a Congressman's low salary. He resigned on March 4, 1821, endorsing his former opponent Stevenson for the seat, and returned to private law.

Return to state politics

He was soon drafted for a second stint in the Virginia House of Delegates, which lasted from December 1823 to December 1825. Upon taking office he found the chamber thrust into debate over the impending presidential election of 1824. The congressional nominating caucus, an early system for choosing presidential candidates, was still in effect despite its growing unpopularity. Tyler attempted to bring the lower house to endorse the caucus system and choose William H. Crawford as the Democratic-Republican candidate. Despite the legislature's support of Crawford, opposition to the caucus system killed his proposal. Tyler's most lasting effort in this second legislative tenure was salvaging the College of William and Mary, which suffered from waning attendance and risked closure. Rather than move it from rural Williamsburg to the populous capital of Richmond, as some suggested, Tyler proposed that a series of administrative and financial reforms be enacted. His reforms were successfully adopted: by 1840 the school would see its highest-ever attendance.

Tyler's political fortunes were growing, with his name taken up for consideration in the 1824 U.S. Senate election. He was nominated in December 1825 for Governor of Virginia, a position which was then appointed by the legislature. He was elected 131–81 over John Floyd, whose candidacy had little traction. The office of governor was determinately powerless under the original Virginia Constitution (1776–1830), lacking even veto authority. Tyler enjoyed a prominent oratorical platform but could do little to influence the legislature. His most visible act as governor was delivering the funeral address for President Thomas Jefferson, a Virginia native who died on July 4, 1826. Tyler was deeply devoted to Jefferson, and his ornate eulogy was well received.

Tyler's governorship was otherwise uneventful. He promoted states' rights and adamantly opposed any concentration of federal power. In order to thwart federal infrastructure proposals, he suggested Virginia actively expand its own road system. A proposal was made to expand the state's poorly funded public school system, but no significant action was taken. Tyler was re-elected unanimously to a second term in December 1826.

U.S. Senate

In January 1827 the Virginia General Assembly was considering the impending re-election of U.S. Senator John Randolph. Randolph was a contentious figure: although he shared the staunch states' rights views held by most of the Virginia legislature, he had a reputation for fiery rhetoric and erratic behavior on the Senate floor, which put his allies in an awkward position. Furthermore, he had made enemies by fiercely opposing John Quincy Adams and Henry Clay. The nationalist wing of the Democratic-Republican Party, who supported Adams and Clay, were a sizable minority in the Virginia legislature. They hoped to unseat Randolph by capturing the vote of states'-rights supporters who were uncomfortable with the senator's reputation. They approached Tyler, and promised their endorsement if he ran against Randolph. Tyler repeatedly declined the offer, endorsing Randolph as the best candidate, but the political pressure continued to mount. Eventually he conceded that he would accept the seat if chosen, and the legislature elected him in a vote of 115–110. He resigned his governorship on March 4, 1827, as his Senate term began.

Tenuous alliance

By that time of Tyler's election, the Senate was already engaged in the 1828 presidential election. Adams, the incumbent president, was to be challenged by Andrew Jackson. By now the party had splintered into Adams' National Republicans and the Jacksonian Democrats. Tyler was repulsed by both candidates, each embodying the nationalist views he had always rejected. Still, he was increasingly drawn to Jackson, hoping that his administration would be less insistent on internal improvements than Adams'. In considering Jackson he wrote, "Turning to him I may at least indulge in hope; looking on Adams I must despair."

The first session of the Twentieth Congress began in early December 1827. Tyler served alongside his close friend Littleton Waller Tazewell, a fellow Virginian who shared his strict constructionist views and uneasy support of Jackson. Throughout his tenure, Tyler vigorously opposed all bills which provided for national infrastructure projects. He and his Southern peers were appalled by the protective Tariff of 1828, promoted by Jackson's allies and known to its detractors as the "Tariff of Abominations". Tyler sorely suggested that the bill's only positive outcome would be a national political backlash, restoring a respect for states' rights.

Despite supporting Jackson in the previous election, Tyler would soon find points of disagreement with the Democratic president, who was inaugurated in March 1829. He was frustrated by Jackson's newly emerging spoils system, describing it as an "electioneering weapon". He voted against many of the president's nominations when they appeared to be based on patronage or did not follow Constitutional procedure. Such an act was considered "an act of insurgency" against his party. He was particularly offended by Jackson's use of the recess appointment to install three treaty commissioners to meet with Turkey; he authored a bill chastising the president for this use of executive power.

Still, Tyler attempted to remain on good terms with Jackson, only opposing him on principle rather than partisanship. He defended Jackson for vetoing the Maysville Road funding project, which Jackson considered unconstitutional. He voted to confirm several of the president's appointments (including Jackson's future running mate Martin Van Buren) amid strong opposition from the National Republicans. The leading issue in the 1832 presidential election was the recharter of the Second Bank of the United States, which both Tyler and Jackson opposed. Congress voted to recharter the bank in July 1832, and Jackson vetoed the bill for a mixture of constitutional and practical reasons. Tyler voted to sustain the veto and endorsed Jackson for re-election.

Break with Democrats

Tyler's uneasy relationship with his party came to a head during the 22nd Congress, as the Nullification Crisis of 1832–33 began. The state of South Carolina, threatening secession, passed the Ordinance of Nullification in November 1832 declaring the "Tariff of Abominations" null and void within its borders. This raised the constitutional question of whether states had the right to nullify federal laws. President Jackson, who denied such a right, prepared to sign a Force Bill allowing the federal government to use military action to enforce the tariff in South Carolina. Tyler, who sympathized with South Carolina's reasons for nullification, rejected Jackson's use of military force against a state and gave a speech in February 1833 outlining his views. He supported Henry Clay's attempts to craft the Compromise Tariff of 1833. This bill would gradually reduce the tariff over ten years, alleviating tensions between the states and the federal government.

In casting his vote against the Force Bill, Tyler knew he would permanently alienate the pro-Jackson factions of the Virginia legislature, even those who had tolerated his irregularity up to this point. This would jeopardize his re-election in February 1833, in which he faced the pro-administration Democrat James McDowell. With Clay's endorsement, he was re-elected to a full term by a twelve-vote plurality; several legislators who had supported him only weeks beforehand were moved to vote against him as a result of the Force Bill vote.

Jackson further lost Tyler's support by moving to actively dissolve the bank. He issued an executive order in September 1833 directing Treasury Secretary Roger B. Taney to immediately begin transferring funds from the bank to state-run banks. Tyler saw this as "a flagrant assumption of power", a breach of contract, and a threat to the economy. After months of agonizing over the decision, he decided to ally with Clay and the anti-Jackson factions of Congress on the bank issue, while still maintaining the bank's unconstitutionality. Sitting on the Senate Finance Committee, he voted for two censure resolutions against the president in March 1834. By this time, Tyler was formally in line with Clay's newly formed Whig Party, which held control of the Senate. On March 3, 1835, with only hours remaining in the congressional session, the Whigs voted him President ''pro tempore'' of the Senate as a symbolic gesture of approval.

Shortly thereafter, the Democrats took control of the Virginia House of Delegates, and Tyler's seat in the Senate was threatened. That December, the legislature offered him a judgeship in exchange for resigning his seat, but he declined. Tyler understood what was to come: he would soon be forced by the legislature to cast a vote that went against his constitutional beliefs. Senator Thomas Hart Benton of Missouri had repeatedly introduced a bill expunging the censure of Jackson from the record. With the support of Virginia's Democrats, Tyler could be instructed to vote for the bill. If he disregarded the instructions, he would be violating his own principles—"the first act of my political life was a censure on Messrs. Giles and Brent for opposition to instructions," he noted. Over the next few months he sought the advice of his friends, who gave him conflicting advice. By mid-February he felt that his Senate career was likely at an end. He issued a letter of resignation to the Vice-President on February 29, 1836, saying in part:

Presidential election, 1836

While Tyler wished to attend to his private life and family, he was soon swept up in the presidential election of 1836. He had been speculated as a vice-presidential contender since early 1835, and the same day the Virginia Democrats issued the expunging instruction, the Virginia Whigs nominated him as their candidate. The new Whig Party was not organized enough to hold a national convention and name a single ticket against Jackson's chosen successor, Martin Van Buren. Instead, Whigs in various regions each put forth their own preferred ticket, reflecting the party's tenuous coalition: the Massachusetts Whigs nominated Daniel Webster and Francis Granger, the Anti-Masons of the Northern and border states backed William Henry Harrison and Granger, and the states' rights advocates of the middle and lower South nominated Hugh Lawson White and John Tyler. Tyler, despite his strong following at the Virginia and Ohio conventions, only received 47 electoral votes in the November 1836 election, trailing both Granger and the Democratic candidate, Richard Mentor Johnson. Harrison was the leading Whig candidate for president, but he lost to van Buren.

Later state politics

Tyler had been drawn into Virginia politics even as a U.S. Senator. From October 1829 to January 1830, he served as a member of the state constitutional convention, a role which he was reluctant to accept. The original Virginia Constitution gave outsize influence to the state's more conservative eastern counties, as it allocated an equal number of legislators to each county (regardless of population) and only granted suffrage to property owners. The convention gave the more populous and liberal counties of western Virginia an opportunity to expand their influence. Tyler, a slaveowner from eastern Virginia, supported the existing system. He largely remained on the sidelines during the debate, however, not wishing to alienate any of the state's political factions. He was focused on his Senate career, which required a broad base of support, and gave speeches during the convention promoting compromise and unity.

After the 1836 election, Tyler expected his political career was at an end, and he had designs on returning to private law. In the fall of 1837 a friend sold him a sizable property in Williamsburg. He had barely settled in, however, when he was again elected to the Virginia House of Delegates. He took office in 1838 and his peers unanimously elected him Speaker. Tyler was a national political figure by this point, and his third delegate service touched on such national issues as disposal of public lands.

In February 1839, the legislature again considered a U.S. Senate election, this time the seat of incumbent William Cabell Rives, a Conservative Democrat who had succeeded Tyler. Rives had drifted away from his party, signalling a possible alliance with the Whigs. As Tyler had already fully rejected his party, he expected the Whigs would consider him as a candidate instead. Still, the Whigs found Rives a more politically expedient choice, as they hoped to draw a useful coalition with the Conservative Democrats for the 1840 presidential election. This strategy was espoused by Whig leader Henry Clay, who otherwise admired Tyler. Tyler was turned down for the nomination, while in-party squabbles delayed Rives' re-election until January 1841.

Presidential election, 1840

At the Whigs' convention of 1840, Tyler supported Henry Clay's presidential candidacy. After Clay had been passed over in favor of William Henry Harrison, Tyler was named Harrison's running mate. Their opponent was Democratic incumbent Martin Van Buren. The Whigs' 1840 campaign slogans of "Log Cabins and Hard Cider" and "Tippecanoe and Tyler too" are among the most famous in American politics. "Tippecanoe and Tyler too" not only offered the slight sectionalism that would further be apparent in the presidency of Tyler, but also the nationalism that was imperative to gain the American vote.

Harrison and Tyler won the election by an electoral vote of 234-60 and a popular vote of 53 percent to 47 percent. On March 4, 1841, Tyler was inaugurated as the 9th Vice President of the United States.

Vice-presidency, 1841

Tyler was sworn in on March 4, Harrison drawing the crowd's attention at the inauguration. Once sworn in, Tyler delivered only a five-minute bromide about states' rights before the new President stepped in to give his two-hour address. Expecting few responsibilities, the Vice President stayed in Washington, D.C. only long enough to preside over the Senate confirmation of Harrison's cabinet. He then quietly repaired to his home in Williamsburg, Virginia. Historian Robert Seager II later wrote, "Had William Henry Harrison lived, John Tyler would undoubtedly have been as obscure as any Vice-President in American history."

Harrison, meanwhile, struggled to keep up with the demands of Henry Clay and others who sought offices and influence in his administration. He did not seek Tyler's advice regarding cabinet appointments, and Tyler reportedly offered none, only hoping that it "be cast of the proper material" and avoid factionalism and patronage. Harrison's old age and fading health were no secret during the campaign, and the question of the presidential succession was on every politician's mind. The first few weeks of the presidency took a clear toll on Harrison's health, and after being caught in a rainstorm in late March he began to succumb to pneumonia and pleurisy.

Secretary of State Daniel Webster sent word to Tyler of Harrison's illness on April 1; two days later, Richmond attorney James Lyons wrote with the news that the President had taken a turn for the worse, remarking that "I shall not be surprised to hear by tomorrow's mail that Gen'l Harrison is no more." Tyler determined not to travel to Washington, not wanting to appear unseemly in anticipating the President's death. However, at dawn on April 5, two couriers—Webster's son Fletcher, Chief Clerk of the State Department, and a Senate officer named Mr. Beall—arrived at Tyler's home bearing the message that Harrison had died the day before.

Presidency, 1841–1845

"His Accidency"

Harrison's unprecedented death in office caused considerable disarray regarding his successor. The Constitution of the United States stated only that:

In Case of the Removal of the President from Office, or of his Death, Resignation, or Inability to discharge the Powers and Duties of the said Office, the same shall devolve on the Vice President.

This led to the question of whether the office of the presidency itself "devolved" upon Vice President Tyler, or merely its powers and duties. By the time Tyler arrived in Washington at 4 am on April 6, 1841, he had firmly resolved that he was now, in name and fact, the President of the United States, and acted on this determination by taking the oath of office in his hotel room. He considered the oath redundant to his oath as vice president, but wished to quell any doubt over his accession. Immediately after his inauguration, Tyler called Harrison's cabinet into a meeting, having decided to retain its members. Webster informed him of Harrison's practice of making policy by a majority vote. The cabinet fully expected the new president to continue this practice. Tyler was astounded and immediately corrected them:

I beg your pardon, gentlemen; I am very glad to have in my Cabinet such able statesmen as you have proved yourselves to be. And I shall be pleased to avail myself of your counsel and advice. But I can never consent to being dictated to as to what I shall or shall not do. I, as President, shall be responsible for my administration. I hope to have your hearty co-operation in carrying out its measures. So long as you see fit to do this, I shall be glad to have you with me. When you think otherwise, your resignations will be accepted.

He delivered a ''de facto'' inaugural address on April 9 reasserting his fundamental tenets of Jeffersonian democracy and limited federal power. Tyler's claim was not immediately accepted by opposition members in Congress such as John Quincy Adams, who argued for Tyler to assume a role as a caretaker under the title of "Acting President", or remain Vice President in name. Among those who questioned Tyler's authority was Whig leader Henry Clay, who had intended to be "the real power behind a fumbling throne" and exercise considerable influence over Harrison and now transferred that ambition onto his close friend, Tyler. He saw Tyler as the "Vice-President" and his presidency as a mere "regency".

On June 1, impressed by his authoritative actions, both houses of Congress passed resolutions declaring Tyler the 10th President of the United States. Tyler had thus become the first U.S. vice president to assume the office of president upon the death of his predecessor, establishing a precedent that would be followed seven times in the 19th and 20th centuries. Yet it was not until 1967 that Tyler's action of assuming both the full powers and the title of the presidency was legally codified in the Twenty-fifth Amendment.

Although his accession was given approval by both the Cabinet and, later, the Senate and House, Tyler's detractors (who, ironically, would eventually include many of the Cabinet members and members of Congress who had legitimized his presidency) never fully accepted him as President. He was referred to by many nicknames, including "His Accidency," a reference to his having become President, not through election, but by the accidental circumstances regarding his nomination and Harrison's death. However, Tyler never wavered from his conviction that he was the rightful president; when his political opponents sent correspondence to the White House addressed to the "Vice President" or "Acting President," Tyler had it returned unopened.

Economic policy and party conflicts

{{infobox u.s. cabinet |align	right |clearno |NameTyler |source
President	John Tyler |President start1841 |President end1845
Vice president	''None'' |Vice President start1841 |Vice President end1845
State	Daniel Webster (W) |State start1841 |State end1843
State 2	Abel P. Upshur (W) |State start 21843 |State end 21844
State 3	John C. Calhoun (D) |State start 31844 |State end 31845
War	John Bell (W) |War date1841 |War 2John C. Spencer (W) |War start 21841 |War end 21843
War 3	James M. Porter (W) |War start 31843 |War end 31844
War 4	William Wilkins (D) |War start 41844 |War end 41845
Treasury	Thomas Ewing, Sr. (W) |Treasury date1841
Treasury 2	Walter Forward (W) |Treasury start 21841 |Treasury end 21843
Treasury 3	John C. Spencer (W) |Treasury start 31843 |Treasury end 31844
Treasury 4	George M. Bibb (D) |Treasury start 41844 |Treasury end 41845
Justice	John J. Crittenden (W) |Justice date1841
Justice 2	Hugh S. Legaré (D) |Justice start 21841 |Justice end 21843
Justice 3	John Nelson (W) |Justice start 31843 |Justice end 31845
Post	Francis Granger (W) |Post date1841
Post 2	Charles A. Wickliffe (W) |Post start 21841 |Post end 21845
Navy	George E. Badger (W) |Navy date1841
Navy 2	Abel P. Upshur (W) |Navy start 21841 |Navy end 21843
Navy 3	David Henshaw (D) |Navy start 31843 |Navy end 31844
Navy 4	Thomas W. Gilmer (D) |Navy date 41844
Navy 5	John Y. Mason (D) |Navy start 51844 |Navy end 51845 }}

Tyler quickly found himself at odds with his former political supporters. Harrison had been expected to adhere closely to Whig Party policies and to work closely with Whig leaders, particularly Henry Clay. The former Democrat shocked Congressional Whigs by vetoing most of their entire agenda. Twice he vetoed Clay's legislation for a national banking act following the Panic of 1837 – even after the bill had been tailored to meet his stated objections in the first veto – leaving the government deadlocked.

On September 11, 1841, following the second bank veto, members of the cabinet entered Tyler's office one by one and resigned - an orchestration by Clay to force Tyler's resignation (and place his own lieutenant, Senate President Pro Tempore Samuel L. Southard, in the White House). The exception was Secretary of State Daniel Webster, who remained to finalize what became the 1842 Webster-Ashburton Treaty, as well as to demonstrate his independence from Clay. Two days later, when the president stood firm, the Whigs in Congress officially expelled Tyler from the party. A national backlash ensured, as Tyler was lambasted by Whig newspapers and received hundreds of letters threatening his assassination.

Tariff and distribution debate

By mid-1841 the federal government faced a projected budget deficit of $11 million. Tyler recognized the need for higher tariffs, but wished to stay within the 20-percent rate created by the Compromise Tariff of 1833. He also supported a plan to distribute to the states any revenue from the sales of public land, as an emergency measure to manage the states' growing debt, even though this would cut revenue to the federal government. The Whigs supported high protectionist tariffs and national funding of state infrastructure, and so there was enough overlap to forge a compromise. The Distribution Act of 1841 created a distribution program with a proviso requiring tariffs to remain below 20 percent; a second bill enacted the top rate on previously low-tax goods. Despite these measures, by March 1842 it had become clear that the federal government was still in dire fiscal straits. In a recommendation to Congress, Tyler lamented that it would be necessary to override the Compromise Tariff of 1833 and raise rates beyond the 20 percent limit. Under the previous deal, this would suspend the distribution program, reverting funds back to the federal government.

The defiant Whig Congress would not raise tariffs if it would affect the distribution of funds to states. In June 1842 they passed two instances of a bill which would raise tariffs and unconditionally extend the distribution program. Tyler found it "highly impolitic, if not unconstitutional" to abandon a revenue source (sales of public lands) while trying to resolve a deficit crisis. He vetoed both bills, burning any remaining bridges between himself and the Whigs.

Impeachment attempt

Shortly after the tariff veto, the House of Representatives initiated the first impeachment proceedings against a president in American history. This was not only a matter of the Whigs supporting the bank and tariff legislation which Tyler vetoed. Until the presidency of the Whigs' archenemy Andrew Jackson, presidents vetoed bills rarely, and then generally on constitutional rather than policy grounds, so Tyler's actions also went against the Whigs' idea of the presidency. A resolution was introduced by John Minor Botts of Virginia on July 10, 1842. It levied several charges against the president and would appoint a nine-member committee investigating his behavior, with the expectation of a formal impeachment recommendation. Clay found this measure prematurely aggressive, favoring a more moderate progression toward Tyler's "inevitable" impeachment. The Botts bill was tabled until the following January, when it was rejected, 83–127.

A House select committee headed by former president John Quincy Adams, who was now a member of Congress, condemned Tyler's use of the veto and assailed his character. While the committee's report did not formally recommend impeachment, it clearly established the possibility. In August 1842, by a vote of 98–90, the House endorsed the committee's report. Adams sponsored a constitutional amendment to change the two-thirds requirement to override a veto to a simple majority, but neither house passed such a measure.

The Whigs were unable to pursue further impeachment proceedings in the subsequent 28th Congress, as in the elections of 1842 they lost control of the House (although they retained a majority in the Senate).

Near the end of Tyler's term in office, on March 3, 1845, Congress overrode his veto of a minor bill relating to revenue cutters. This marked the first time any president's veto had been overridden.

Cabinet and judicial appointments

For two years, Tyler struggled with the Whigs, eventually nominating 22 men to the six cabinet offices. When he nominated John C. Calhoun in 1844 as Secretary of State, to reform the Democrats, the gravitational swing of the Whigs to identify with "the North" and the Democrats as the party of "the South" led the way to the sectional party politics of the next decade. Tyler's final Cabinet consisted of five Southerners and one Northerner (William Wilkins, Secretary of War).

Four of Tyler's Cabinet nominees were rejected, the most of any president. These were Caleb Cushing (Treasury), David Henshaw (Navy) James Porter (War), and James S. Green (Treasury). Henshaw and Porter served as recess appointees before their rejections. Tyler aggravated this problem when he repeatedly renominated Cushing. As a result, Cushing was rejected three times in one day, March 4, 1843, the last day of the 27th Congress.

Two vacancies occurred on the Supreme Court during Tyler's presidency, as Justices Smith Thompson and Henry Baldwin died in 1843 and 1844, respectively. Tyler, ever at odds with Congress – including the Whig-controlled Senate – nominated several men to the Supreme Court to fill these seats. However, the Senate successively voted against confirming John Canfield Spencer, Reuben Walworth, Edward King and John M. Read (King was rejected twice). One reason cited for the Senate's actions was the hope that Whig Henry Clay would fill the vacancies after winning the 1844 presidential election. Tyler's four unsuccessful nominees are the most by a president.

Finally, in February 1845, with less than a month remaining in his term, Tyler's nomination of Samuel Nelson to Thompson's seat was confirmed by the Senate. Nelson's successful confirmation was a surprise. Nelson, although a Democrat, had a reputation as a careful and noncontroversial jurist. Baldwin's seat remained vacant until Polk's nominee, Robert Grier, was confirmed in 1846.

Tyler was able to appoint only six other federal judges, all to United States district courts.

Foreign and military affairs

Tyler's difficulties in domestic policy were matched by adept accomplishments in foreign policy. He had long been an advocate of expansionism toward the Pacific and free trade, and was fond of evoking themes of national destiny and the spread of liberty in support of these policies. His presidency was largely continuous with Jackson's earlier efforts to promote American commerce across the Pacific. Eager to compete with Great Britain in international markets, he sent lawyer Caleb Cushing to China, where he negotiated the terms of the Treaty of Wanghia (1844). The same year, he sent Henry Wheaton as a minister to Berlin, where he negotiated and signed a trade agreement with the German ''Zollverein''. This treaty was rejected by the Whigs, mainly as a show of hostility toward the Tyler administration. The President also applied the Monroe Doctrine to Hawaii, told Britain not to interfere there, and began the process towards the eventual annexation of Hawaii by the United States.

In 1842, the Secretary of State, Daniel Webster, negotiated the Webster–Ashburton Treaty with Britain which concluded where the border between Maine and Canada lay. The issue of where the border lay had caused tension between the United States and Britain for a notable amount of time and had brought the two countries to the brink of war on several occasions. The treaty improved Anglo-American diplomatic relations. However, Tyler was unsuccessful in concluding a treaty with the British to fix the boundaries of Oregon. On Tyler's last full day in office, March 3, 1845, Florida was admitted to the Union as the 27th state.

Tyler advocated an increase in military strength. His administration drew the praise of naval leaders, who saw a marked increase in naval warships. Tyler brought the long, bloody Second Seminole War to an end in 1842, and expressed interest in the civilizing, so to speak, of the Native Americans. He also advocated the establishment of a chain of American forts from Council Bluffs, Iowa, to the Pacific.

In May 1842, when the Dorr Rebellion in Rhode Island came to a head, Tyler pondered the request of the governor and legislature to send federal troops to help it suppress the Dorrite insurgents. The insurgents under Thomas Dorr had armed themselves and proposed to install a new state constitution. Before such acts, Rhode Island had been following the same constitutional structure that was established in 1663. Tyler called for calm on both sides, and recommended the governor enlarge the franchise to let most men vote. Tyler promised that in case an actual insurrection should break out in Rhode Island he would employ force to aid the regular, or Charter, government. He made it clear that federal assistance would be given, not to prevent, but only to put down insurrection, and would not be available until violence had been committed. After listening to reports from his confidential agents, Tyler decided that the 'lawless assemblages' had dispersed and expressed his confidence in a "temper of conciliation as well as of energy and decision." He did not send any federal forces. The rebels fled the state when the state militia marched against them. With their dispersion, they accepted the expansion of suffrage.

Annexation of Texas

Tyler, an advocate of Western expansionism, made the annexation of the Republic of Texas part of his platform soon after becoming President. Texas had declared independence from Mexico in the Texas Revolution of 1836, although Mexico still refused to acknowledge it as a sovereign state. The people of Texas actively pursued joining the Union, but Jackson and Van Buren had been reluctant to inflame tensions over slavery by annexing another Southern state. Tyler, on the other hand, intended annexation to be the focal point of his administration. Secretary Webster, opposed, convinced Tyler to focus on Pacific initiatives until later in his term.

Early attempts

In early 1843, having completed the Webster–Ashburton treaty and other diplomatic efforts, Tyler felt ready to pursue Texas. Now lacking a party base, he saw annexation of the republic as his only pathway to independent re-election in 1844. For the first time in his career he was willing to play "political hardball" to see it through. As a trial balloon he dispatched his ally Thomas Walker Gilmer, then a U.S. Representative from Virginia, to publish a letter defending annexation, which was well received. Despite his successful relationship with Webster, Tyler knew he would need a Secretary of State who supported the Texas initiative, and so he forced Webster's resignation and installed Hugh S. Legaré as an interim successor.

With the help of newly appointed Treasury Secretary John C. Spencer, he cleared out an array of officeholders, replacing them with pro-annexation partisans, in a reversal of his former stand against patronage. He elicited the help of political organizer Michael Walsh to build a political machine in New York. In exchange for an appointment as consul to Hawaii, journalist Alexander G. Abell wrote a flattering biography, ''Life of John Tyler'', which was printed in large quantities and given to postmasters throughout the country to distribute. Seeking to rehabilitate his public image, Tyler embarked on a nationwide campaign tour in the spring of 1843. The positive reception of the public at these events contrasted starkly with his ostracism back in Washington. The tour centered around the dedication of the Bunker Hill Monument in Boston, Massachusetts. Shortly after the dedication, Tyler learned of Legaré's sudden death, which dampened the festivities and forced him to cancel the rest of the tour.

He appointed Abel P. Upshur, a popular Secretary of the Navy and close adviser, as his new Secretary of State, and nominated Gilmer to fill his former office. Tyler and Upshur began quiet negotiations with the Texas government, promising military protection from Mexico in exchange for a commitment to annexation. Secrecy was necessary, as the Constitution required Congressional approval for such military commitments. Upshur planted rumors of possible British designs on Texas to drum up support among Northern voters, who were wary of admitting a new pro-slavery state. By January 1844 Upshur told the Texas government that he had found a large majority of Senators in favor of an annexation treaty. The republic remained skeptical, and finalization of the treaty took until the end of February.

USS ''Princeton'' disaster

It was only one day after completing the treaty that Upshur and Gilmer were killed in a freak accident. A ceremonial cruise down the Potomac River was held aboard the newly built USS ''Princeton'' on February 28, 1844. Aboard the ship were 400 guests, including Tyler and his cabinet, as was the world's largest naval gun, the "Peacemaker". The gun was ceremoniously fired several times in the afternoon to the delight of the onlookers, who then filed downstairs to offer a toast. Several hours later, Captain Robert F. Stockton was convinced by the crowd to fire one more shot. As the guests moved up to the deck, Tyler paused briefly to watch his son-in-law, William Waller, sing a ditty.

At once an explosion was heard from above: the gun had malfunctioned. Tyler was unhurt, having remained safely below deck, but dozens of others were instantly killed, including his crucial cabinet members, Gilmer and Upshur. Also killed or mortally wounded were Virgil Maxcy of Maryland, Rep. David Gardiner of New York, Commodore Beverly Kennon, Chief of Construction of the United States Navy, and Tyler's black slave and body servant. For Tyler, any hope of completing the Texas plan before November (and with it, any hope of re-election) was instantly dashed. Historian Edward P. Crapol later wrote that "Prior to the Civil War and the assassination of Abraham Lincoln," the ''Princeton'' disaster "unquestionably was the most severe and debilitating tragedy ever to confront a president of the United States."

Ratification and 1844 election

In what the Miller Center of Public Affairs considers "a serious tactical error that ruined the scheme [of establishing political respectability for him]", Tyler appointed former Vice President John C. Calhoun in early March 1844 as his Secretary of State. Calhoun was a leading advocate of slavery, and his attempts to get an annexation treaty passed were resisted by abolitionists as a result. When the text of the treaty was leaked to the public, and found to implicitly endorse both slavery and a possible confrontation with Mexico, public opposition grew. Both Clay and Van Buren, the respective frontrunners for the Whig and Democratic nominations, took a stance against annexation.

Tyler knew, with virtually no chance of re-election, that the only way to salvage his presidency and legacy was to move public opinion in favor of the Texas issue. He formed a third party, the Democratic-Republicans, using the officeholders and political networks he had built over the previous year. The Tyler supporters, holding signs reading "Tyler and Texas!", held their nominating convention in Baltimore in May 1844, just as the Democratic Party was holding its presidential nomination. With their high visibility and energy they were able to force the Democrats' hand in favor of annexation. Ballot after ballot, Van Buren failed to win the necessary supermajority of Democratic votes, and slowly fell in the ranking. It was not until the ninth ballot that the Democrats discovered an obscure pro-annexation candidate named James K. Polk. They found him to be perfectly suited for their platform, and he was nominated with two-thirds of the vote. Tyler considered his work vindicated, and implied in an acceptance letter that annexation was his true priority rather than re-election.

Tyler was unfazed when the Senate rejected his treaty by a vote of 16–35 in June 1844, as he felt that annexation was now within reach. He called for Congress to annex Texas by joint resolution rather than by treaty. Satisfied with the prospects of success, he dropped out of the race in August and endorsed Polk for the presidency. Polk's narrow victory over Clay in the November election was seen by the Tyler administration as a mandate for completing the resolution. Tyler announced in his annual message to Congress that "a controlling majority of the people and a large majority of the states have declared in favor of immediate annexation." In late February 1845, the House by a substantial margin and the Senate by a bare 27–25 majority approved a joint resolution offering terms of annexation to Texas. On March 1, three days before the end of his term, Tyler signed the bill into law. After some debate, Texas accepted the terms and entered the union on December 29, 1845, as the 28th state.

Post-presidency and death

Tyler retired to a Virginia plantation, originally named "Walnut Grove" (or "the Grove"), located on the James River in Charles City County, Virginia. He renamed it "Sherwood Forest", in a reference to the folk legend Robin Hood, to signify that he had been "outlawed" by the Whig Party. He did not take farming lightly, and worked hard to maintain large yields throughout the 1840s. His neighbors, largely Whigs, appointed him "overseer" of his road in 1847 in an effort to mock him. To their displeasure he treated the title seriously, frequently summoning his neighbors' slaves to attend to road work, and continued to bear the title even after his neighbors asked him to stop. He withdrew from electoral politics, rarely receiving visits from his friends. He was asked to give an occasional public speech, but was not sought out as an adviser. One notable speech was at the unveiling of a monument to Henry Clay; acknowledging the political battles between the two, he spoke highly of his former colleague.

On the eve of the Civil War, Tyler reentered public life to sponsor and chair the Virginia Peace Convention, held in Washington, D.C. in February 1861 as an effort to devise means to prevent a war. The convention sought a compromise to avoid civil war while the Confederate Constitution was being drawn up at the Montgomery Convention. When the convention's proposals were rejected by Congress, Tyler abandoned hope of compromise and saw secession as the only option. He was sanguine about a peaceful secession, predicting that a clean split of all Southern states would not result in war. When war ultimately broke out, Tyler unhesitatingly sided with the Confederacy and became a delegate to the Provisional Confederate Congress from February 4, 1861. He was then elected to the House of Representatives of the Confederate Congress. On January 5, 1862, he left for Richmond, Virginia in anticipation of his congressional service, but he would not live to see the opening sessions.

Throughout Tyler's life, he suffered from poor health. As he aged, he suffered more frequently from colds during the winter. After his exit from the White House, he fell victim to repeated cases of dysentery. He had many aches and pains in the last eight years of his life. On January 12, 1862, after complaining of chills and dizziness, he vomited and collapsed. He was revived, yet the next day he admitted to the same symptoms. He was treated for the rest of the week, but his health did not improve, and he made plans to return to Sherwood Forest on the 18th. As he lay in bed the previous night he began suffocating, and Julia summoned his doctor. Just after midnight, Tyler took a last sip of brandy, and told his doctor, "I am going. Perhaps it is best." It is believed that he had suffered a stroke. Tyler is buried in Hollywood Cemetery in Richmond, Virginia, by the side of former President James Monroe.

Tyler's death was the only one in presidential history not to be officially recognized in Washington, because of his allegiance to the Confederacy. He had requested a simple burial, but Confederate President Jefferson Davis and his fellows delivered a grand, politically pointed funeral, painting Tyler as a hero to the Confederacy. Tyler's favorite horse named "The General" is buried at his Sherwood Forest Plantation with a gravestone which reads,

Here lie the bones of my old horse, "General," Who served his master faithfully for twenty-one years, And never made a blunder. Would that his master could say the same!

Marriage and family

Tyler's first wife was Letitia Christian Tyler (November 12, 1790 – September 10, 1842), with whom he had eight children: # Mary Tyler (1815–47) # Robert Tyler (1816–77) # John Tyler, Jr. (1819–96) # Letitia Tyler Semple (1821–1907) # Elizabeth Tyler (1823–50) # Anne Contesse Tyler (1825) # Alice Tyler (1827–54) # Tazewell Tyler (1830–74) Tyler's wife Letitia died in the White House in September 1842.

His second wife was Julia Gardiner Tyler (July 23, 1820 – July 10, 1889), with whom he had seven children: # David Gardiner Tyler (1846–1927) # John Alexander Tyler (1848–83) # Julia Gardiner Tyler Spencer (1849–71) # Lachlan Tyler (1851–1902) # Lyon Gardiner Tyler (1853–1935) # Robert Fitzwalter Tyler (1856–1927) # Pearl Tyler (1860–1947)

Tyler was a slaveholder for his entire life. Early in his presidency, he was attacked by abolitionist publisher Joshua Leavitt, who alleged that Tyler had fathered (and sold) several sons with his slaves, prompting a response from the Tyler administration–linked newspaper ''The Madisonian''. A number of African American families today have an oral tradition of descent from Tyler, but no evidence of such a link has ever surfaced.

As of August 2011, Tyler has two living grandsons through his son Lyon Gardiner Tyler (1853–1935). Lyon Gardiner Tyler, Jr., was born in 1924, and Harrison Ruffin Tyler was born in 1928. Harrison Tyler maintains the family home, "Sherwood Forest."

Legacy

According to the White House's biography of him, Tyler "strengthened the Presidency", but also "increased sectional cleavage that led toward civil war". Tyler was and is also considered to have, by claiming "the right to a fully functioning and empowered presidency instead of relinquishing the office or accepting limits on his powers," established a precedent for future Presidents of the United States. With regards to Tyler's foreign policies, it is argued that "Tyler could claim an ambitious, successful foreign policy presidency, due largely to the efforts of Secretary of State Webster." The city of Tyler, Texas, is named after him. The personal papers of the Tyler family, including John Tyler, can be found at the Special Collections Research Center at the College of William and Mary.

See also

Second Party System

Dorr Rebellion

U.S. presidential election, 1840

Sherwood Forest Plantation

List of Presidents of the United States

US Presidents on US postage stamps

Notes

Sources

Books

*"Considered the standard and best full-length biography," according to the University of Virginia's Miller Center of Public Affairs; a top recommendation of ''Encyclopedia Britannica''.

(online edition)

Articles

Citations

External links

John Tyler from the White House

John Tyler: A Resource Guide from the Library of Congress

Biography by Appleton's and Stanley L. Klos

U.S. Senate Historian's Office: Vice Presidents of the United States—John Tyler

John Tyler in Union or Secession: Virginians Decide at the Library of Virginia

POTUS - John Tyler

Tyler's letters refusing government intervention, April and May 1842

List of Descendants

First State of the Union Address

Second State of the Union Address

Third State of the Union Address

Fourth State of the Union Address

John Tyler's Health and Medical History

Hollywood Cemetery - John Tyler's final resting place

John Tyler's Grandson Still Does Tours in the Old Tyler Home

Extensive essay on John Tyler and shorter essays on each member of his cabinet and First Lady from the Miller Center of Public Affairs

Finding aid of the Tyler Family Papers, Group A

A Guide to the Governor John Tyler Executive Papers, 1825-1827 at The Library of Virginia

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name	John Mayer
landscape	yes
background	solo_singer
birth name	John Clayton Mayer
birth date	October 16, 1977
birth place	Bridgeport, Connecticut, U.S.
origin	Fairfield, Connecticut, U.S.
instrument	Guitar, vocals, omnichord, piano, vibraphone, harmonica, percussion, flute, clarinet, violin
genre	Blues rock, pop rock, acoustic rock, blue-eyed soul
occupation	Musician, songwriter, record producer, columnist, graphic designer, photographer, comedian, television host
years active	–present
label	Arista, Aware, Columbia
associated acts	John Mayer Trio
website
notable instruments	Fender StratocasterMartin GuitarsGibson Guitars }}

John Clayton Mayer ( ; born October 16, 1977) is an American musician singer-songwriter, recording artist, and music producer. Born in Bridgeport, Connecticut and raised in Fairfield, Connecticut, he attended Berklee College of Music in Boston. He moved to Atlanta in 1997, where he refined his skills and gained a following, and he now lives in New York City. His first two studio albums, ''Room for Squares'' and ''Heavier Things'', did well commercially, achieving multi-platinum status. In 2003, he won a Grammy Award for Best Male Pop Vocal Performance for "Your Body Is a Wonderland."

Mayer began his career performing mainly acoustic rock, but gradually began a transition towards the blues genre in 2005 by collaborating with renowned blues artists such as B. B. King, Buddy Guy, and Eric Clapton, and by forming the John Mayer Trio. The blues influence can be heard on his album ''Continuum'', released in September 2006. At the 49th Annual Grammy Awards in 2007 Mayer won Best Pop Vocal Album for ''Continuum'' and Best Male Pop Vocal Performance for "Waiting on the World to Change". He released his fourth studio album, ''Battle Studies'', in November 2009. He has sold over 10 million albums in the U.S. and 20 million albums worldwide.

Early life

John Clayton Mayer was born on October 16, 1977 in Bridgeport, Connecticut to Margaret, an English teacher, and Richard, a high school principal. He grew up in Fairfield, Connecticut, the second of three children.His father is Jewish, and Mayer has said that he "relat[es] to Judaism". He attended Andrew Warde High School in Fairfield although he was enrolled in the Center for Global Studies at Brien McMahon High School in Norwalk for his junior year. (Then known as the Center for Japanese Studies Abroad, it is a magnet program for students wanting to learn Japanese.) During an appearance on ''Late Night with Conan O'Brien'', Mayer said that he had played the clarinet for a while in middle school, with minor success.

After watching Michael J. Fox's guitar performance as Marty McFly in ''Back to the Future'', Mayer became fascinated with the instrument, and when he turned 13, his father rented one for him.

A neighbor gave Mayer a Stevie Ray Vaughan cassette, which cultivated Mayer's love of blues music. Mayer started taking lessons from a local guitar-shop owner, Al Ferrante, and soon became consumed with playing the instrument. His singular focus concerned his parents, and they took him twice to see a psychiatrist—but Mayer was determined to be fine. Mayer says that the contentious nature of his parents' marriage led him to "disappear and create my own world I could believe in". After two years of practice, he started playing at blues bars and other venues in the area, while he was still in high school. In addition to performing solo, he was a member of a band called Villanova Junction (named for a Jimi Hendrix song) with Tim Procaccini, Joe Beleznay, and Rich Wolf. Mayer considered skipping college to pursue his music, but the disapproval of his parents dissuaded him from doing so.

When Mayer was seventeen, he was stricken with cardiac dysrhythmia and was hospitalized for a weekend. Reflecting on the incident, Mayer said, “That was the moment the songwriter in me was born,” and he penned his first lyrics the night he got home from the hospital. Shortly thereafter, he began suffering from panic attacks, and lived with the fear of having to enter a mental institution. He continues to manage such episodes with Xanax, an anti-anxiety drug. After graduation, he worked for fifteen months at a gas station until he saved enough money to buy a 1996 Stevie Ray Vaughan signature Stratocaster.

Career

Early career

Mayer enrolled in the Berklee College of Music in Boston, Massachusetts, aged 19. However, at the urging of his college friend and Atlanta, Georgia native, Clay Cook, he left school after two semesters and moved with Cook to Atlanta. In Atlanta they formed a two-man band called LoFi Masters and began performing in local coffee houses and club venues such as Eddie's Attic. According to Cook, they began to experience musical differences due to Mayer’s desire to move more towards pop music. As a result, the two parted ways, and Mayer embarked on a solo career.

With the help of local producer and engineer Glenn Matullo, Mayer recorded the independent EP ''Inside Wants Out''. Cook co-wrote many of the songs from the EP including Mayer's first commercial single release, "No Such Thing". The EP includes eight songs with Mayer on lead vocals and guitars. However, Cook's only contribution was backing vocals on the song “Comfortable”. For the opening track, “Back To You”, a full band was enlisted, including the EP’s co-producer David "DeLa" LaBruyere on bass guitars. Mayer and LaBruyere then began to perform throughout Georgia and nearby states.

Major label success

Mayer’s reputation began to build, and a March 2000 appearance at South by Southwest brought him to the attention of "launch" label, Aware Records. After including him in the Aware Festival concerts and having his songs included on Aware compilations, in early 2001, Aware released Mayer's internet-only album entitled, ''Room for Squares''. During this time, Aware inked a deal with Columbia Records that gave Columbia first pick in signing Aware artists, and so in September of the same year, Columbia remixed and re-released ''Room for Squares''. As part of the major label "debut", the album's artwork was updated, and the track "3x5" was added. The re-release also included reworked studio versions of the first four songs from his indie album, ''Inside Wants Out''.

By the end of 2002, ''Room for Squares'' had spawned several radio hits, including "No Such Thing," "Your Body Is a Wonderland", and ultimately, "Why Georgia". In 2003, Mayer won a Grammy for Best Male Pop Vocal Performance for "Your Body Is a Wonderland." In his acceptance speech he remarked, "This is very, very fast, and I promise to catch up." He also figuratively referred to himself as being sixteen, a remark that many mistook to mean that he was only sixteen years old at the time.

In 2003, Mayer released a live CD and DVD of a concert in Birmingham, Alabama titled ''Any Given Thursday''. The concert featured songs previously not recorded, such as "Man on the Side" (co-written with Cook) and "Something's Missing", which later appeared on ''Heavier Things''. The concert also included "Covered In Rain". According to the accompanying DVD documentary, this song is "part two" of the song "City Love", which features the line "covered in rain". Commercially, the album quickly peaked at number seventeen on the ''Billboard'' 200 chart. The CD/DVD received conservative, although consistent, praise, with critics torn between his pop-idol image, and (at the time) emerging guitar prowess. Erik Crawford (of Allmusic) asked "Is he the consummate guitar hero exemplified when he plays a cover of Stevie Ray Vaughan's 'Lenny', or is he the teen idol that the pubescent girls shriek for after he plays 'Your Body Is a Wonderland?'"

''Heavier Things'', Mayer's second album, was released in 2003 to generally favorable reviews. ''Rolling Stone, Allmusic'' and ''Blender'' all gave positive, although reserved, feedback. ''PopMatters'' said that it "doesn't have as many drawbacks as one might assume". The album was commercially successful, and while it did not sell as well as ''Room for Squares'', it peaked at number one on the US Billboard 200 chart. Mayer earned his first number one single with the song "Daughters" as well as a 2005 Grammy for Song of the Year, beating out fellow contenders Alicia Keys and Kanye West. He dedicated the award to his grandmother, Annie Hoffman, who died in May 2004. He also won Best Male Pop Vocal Performance, beating Elvis Costello, Prince, and Seal for the award. In a February 9, 2009 interview on ''The Ellen DeGeneres Show'', Mayer said that he thought he should not have won the Grammy for Song of the year because he thought that Alicia Keys' If I Ain't Got You was the better song. Because of this, he removed the top half of the Grammy and gave it to Keys, and kept the bottom part for himself. At the 37th Annual Songwriters Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony in 2006, Mayer was honored with the Hal David Starlight Award.

Mayer again recorded live concerts across seven nights of his U.S. tour in 2004. These recordings were released to the iTunes Store under the title ''As/Is'', indicating that the errors were included along with the good moments. A few months later, a "best of" CD was compiled from the ''As/Is'' nights. The album included a previously unreleased cover of Marvin Gaye's song "Inner City Blues (Make Me Wanna Holler)", featuring a solo from Mayer's support act, jazz and blues turntablist DJ Logic. All the album covers of the ''As/Is'' releases feature drawings of anthropomorphic bunnies.

With increased exposure, Mayer's talent came into demand in other areas. Steve Jobs invited Mayer to perform during the keynote address of Apple's annual Macworld Conference & Expo, in January 2004, as Jobs introduced the software application GarageBand. The gig led to Mayer becoming a fixture of the event. He rejoined Jobs on stage for a solo performance at Macworld 2007, following the announcement of the iPhone. Mayer has also done endorsements, such as a Volkswagen commercial for the Beetle's guitar outlet and for the BlackBerry Curve.

Change in musical direction

Mayer began to collaborate extensively, often working with artists outside of his own genre. He appeared on Common's song "Go!" and on Kanye West's "Bittersweet Poetry". Following these collaborations, Mayer received praise from rap heavyweights Jay-Z and Nelly. When asked about his presence in the hip hop community, Mayer said, "It's not music out there right now. That's why, to me, hip-hop is where rock used to be."

It was around this time that Mayer began hinting a change in his musical interests, announcing that he was "closing up shop on acoustic sensitivity." In 2005, he began a string of collaborations with various blues artists, including Buddy Guy, B.B. King, Eric Clapton, as well as jazz artist John Scofield. He also went on tour with legendary jazz pianist Herbie Hancock, which included a show at the Bonnaroo Music Festival in Manchester, Tennessee. These collaborations led to recordings with several of these artists, namely, Clapton (''Back Home'', Crossroads Guitar Festival), Guy (''Bring 'Em In)'', Scofield (''That's What I Say''), and King (''80''). Although Mayer has maintained a reputation for being a sensitive singer-songwriter, he has also gained distinction as an accomplished guitarist, influenced by the likes of the above artists, as well as Jimi Hendrix, Stevie Ray Vaughan, Eric Clapton, Tommy Herman, Robert Cray, and Freddie King.

John Mayer Trio

This sample features an extended electric guitar solo.}}

In the spring of 2005, Mayer formed the John Mayer Trio with bassist Pino Palladino and drummer Steve Jordan, both of whom he had met through previous studio sessions. The trio played a combination of blues and rock music. In October 2005, the Trio opened for The Rolling Stones during a sold-out club tour of their own, and that November, released a live album called ''Try!'' The band took a break in mid-2006. In September 2006, Mayer announced plans for the Trio to begin work on a future studio album.

''Continuum''

Mayer's third studio album, titled ''Continuum'', was released on September 12, 2006, and was produced by Mayer and Steve Jordan. Mayer suggested the album was intended to combine his signature pop music with the feel, sound, groove, and sensibilities of the blues. In that vein, two of the tracks from his Trio release ''Try!''—"Vultures" and "Gravity"—also were included on ''Continuum''.

The first single from ''Continuum'' was "Waiting on the World to Change", which debuted on ''The Ron and Fez Show''. The song was the third most downloaded song of the week on the iTunes Store following its release on July 11, 2006, and debuted at #25 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 Chart.

On August 23, 2006, Mayer debuted the entire album on the Los Angeles radio station Star 98.7, giving commentary on each track. A subsequent version was released the next day on the Clear Channel Music website as a streaming sneak preview. On September 21, 2006, Mayer appeared on ''CSI: Crime Scene Investigation'', playing "Waiting on the World to Change" and "Slow Dancing in a Burning Room." The song "Gravity" was featured on the television series ''House'', in the episode "Cane & Able", and ''Numb3rs''. He recorded a session for the British program ''Live from Abbey Road'' at Abbey Road Studios on October 22, 2006.

On December 7, 2006, Mayer was nominated for five 2007 Grammy Awards, including Album of the Year. The John Mayer Trio also received a nomination for their album, ''Try!''. He won two: Best Pop Song with Vocal for "Waiting on the World to Change" and Best Pop Album for ''Continuum''. Mayer remixed an acoustic version of his single "Waiting on the World to Change" with vocal additions from fellow musician Ben Harper. In preparation for recording ''Continuum'', Mayer had booked the Village Recorder in Los Angeles to record five demo acoustic versions of his songs with veteran musician Robbie McIntosh. These recordings became ''The Village Sessions'', an EP released on December 12, 2006. As usual, Mayer oversaw the artwork of the release.

Mayer was featured on the cover of ''Rolling Stone'' (#1020) in February 2007, along with John Frusciante and Derek Trucks. He was named as one of the "New Guitar Gods," and the cover nicknamed him "Slowhand, Jr.," a reference to Eric Clapton. Additionally, he was selected by the editors of ''Time'' magazine as one of the 100 Most Influential People of 2007 and was listed among artists and entertainers.

On November 20, 2007, the re-issue of ''Continuum'' became available online and in stores. The release contains a bonus disc of six live songs from his 2007 tour: five from ''Continuum'' and a cover of the Ray Charles song "I Don't Need No Doctor". His new single, "Say", also became available through iTunes. On December 6, 2007, "Belief" was nominated for Best Male Pop Vocal for the 50th Annual Grammy Awards. He accompanied Alicia Keys on guitar on her song "No One" at the ceremony.

In February 2008, Mayer hosted a three-day Caribbean cruise event that included performances with various musicians including David Ryan Harris, Brett Dennen, Colbie Caillat and Dave Barnes, among others. The event was called "The Mayercraft Carrier" and was held aboard the cruise ship known as the ''Carnival Victory''. A follow up cruise titled "Mayercraft Carrier 2" set sail from Long Beach, California from March 27–31, 2009 on the Carnival Splendor.

On July 1, 2008, Mayer released ''Where the Light Is'', a live concert film of Mayer's performance at the Nokia Theatre L.A. Live on December 8, 2007. The film was directed by Danny Clinch. It features an acoustic set and a set with the John Mayer Trio, followed by a set with John's band from the ''Continuum'' album. The DVD and Blu-ray bonus material includes footage of Mayer backstage and playing outside on Mulholland Drive.

Australian artist Guy Sebastian invited Mayer to collaborate on three songs from his 2009 album ''Like It Like That''. Mayer also played guitar on the title track of Crosby Loggins' debut LP, ''Time to Move'', released on July 10, 2009.

On July 7, 2009, Mayer performed an instrumental guitar version of Michael Jackson's "Human Nature" at Jackson's televised memorial service.

''Battle Studies'' and ''Born and Raised''

On November 17, 2009, Mayer's fourth studio album, ''Battle Studies'', was released and debuted at number one on the U.S. Billboard 200 album chart. The album consists of 11 tracks with a total time of 45 minutes. The first single from the album, "Who Says", was released on September 24, 2009 in advance of album, and was followed on October 19 by the single "Heartbreak Warfare" and the single "Half of My Heart" released on June 21, 2010. Despite the album's commercial success, critics were mixed with their praise; while some reviews were glowing, calling it his "most adventurous", others called the album "safe" and noted that "Mayer the singer-songwriter and Mayer the man about town sometimes seem disconnected, like they don’t even belong in the same body."

Mayer admitted to ''Rolling Stone'' that he thought ''Battle Studies'' was not his best album.

Reports indicate that the follow-up to ''Battle Studies'' will be called ''Born and Raised'', and will be released in October 2011.

Other projects

Philanthropy and activism

In 2002, Mayer began the "Back to You" Fund, a nonprofit organization that focuses on fundraising in the areas of health care, education, the arts, and talent development. The foundation raises funds through the auction of exclusive John Mayer items, such as guitar picks, T-shirts, and signed CDs, made available on Mayer's auction site. The auctions have been successful, with some tickets selling for more than seventeen times their face value.

Mayer participated at the East Rutherford, New Jersey location of the Live Earth project, a musical rally to support awareness for global warming held July 7, 2007. In the summer of 2007, the environmental advocacy group Reverb set up informational booths and helped his crew conserve energy on his tour dates. He converted his tour bus to bio-diesel fuel.

Mayer has performed at a number of benefits and telethons for charity throughout his career. In response to the Virginia Tech massacre, Mayer (along with Dave Matthews Band, Phil Vassar, and Nas) performed a free concert at Virginia Tech's Lane Stadium on September 6, 2007. On December 8, 2007, Mayer hosted the first annual Charity Revue, a tradition he has continued each year. Charities who have benefited from the concerts include Toys for Tots, Inner City Arts, and the Los Angeles Mission. Both CDs and DVDs of the first concert were released under the title ''Where the Light Is'' in July 2008. It has not been announced whether the DVD proceeds will go to charity or not. Mayer appeared on ''Songs for Tibet: The Art of Peace'', a celebrity initiative to support Tibet and the 14th Dalai Lama, Tenzin Gyatso.

Design

In a ''Rolling Stone'' interview, Mayer recalled that after former Columbia Records head, Don Ienner, panned ''Continuum'', he briefly considered quitting music and studying design full time. In 2003, Martin Guitars gave Mayer his own signature model acoustic guitar called the OM-28 John Mayer. The guitar was limited to a run of only 404, an Atlanta area code. This model was followed by the release of two Fender signature Stratocaster electric guitars, beginning in 2005. A third Stratocaster, finished in charcoal frost metallic paint with a racing stripe, was also a limited-release, with only 100 guitars made. In January 2006, Martin Guitars released the Martin OMJM John Mayer acoustic guitar. The guitar was intended to have many of the attributes of the Martin OM-28 John Mayer but with a more affordable price tag. In August 2006, Fender started manufacturing SERIES II John Mayer Stratocasters. The new Olympic white with mint green pickguard and cream plastics replaced the shoreline gold model.

In January 2007, Two Rock collaborated with Mayer on custom-designed amps. Only 25 (all signed by Mayer himself) were made available to the public. June 2007 saw the release of the "album art" guitar, with the ''Continuum'' motif repeated on the face of the instrument, as well as a 500-run John Mayer signature Fender Stratocaster in Cypress-Mica, including the limited Cypress-Mica model was the INCSvsJM gig bag on which Mayer collaborated with Incase designs. In 2006, Mayer was estimated to have more than 200 guitars in his personal collection. In 2010, Fender announced a production model of Mayer's "The Black One" guitar.

Writing

With the June 1, 2004, issue of ''Esquire'', Mayer began a column called "Music Lessons with John Mayer". Each article featured a lesson and his (often humorous) take on various topics, both of personal and popular interest. In the August 2005 issue, he invited readers to create music for orphaned lyrics he had written. The winner was Tim Fagan of L.A., as announced in the following January's issue.

Mayer has been active online, and has maintained four blogs: a Myspace page, a blog at his official site, another at Honeyee.com, one at tumblr.com, and a photoblog at StunningNikon.com. He also is one of the most-followed persons on the micro-blogging site Twitter, reaching 3 million followers in January 2010. Although his posts often deal with career-related matters, they also contain jokes, videos, photos, his convictions, and his personal activities; they sometimes overlap in content. He is noted for writing the blogs himself, and not through a publicist. On January 23, 2008, he posted a graphic that read, "Done & Dusted & Self Conscious & Back to Work." on his official blog, followed by the quote "There is danger in theoretical speculation of battle, in prejudice, in false reasoning, in pride, in braggadocio. There is one safe resource, the return to nature.."; all the previous blog entries were deleted.

In the mid-2000s he did stand-up comedy sporadically making random appearances at the famed Comedy Cellar in New York and at other venues. He stated that it helped him write better but that increased media attention made him too careful in his technique.

Television

In 2004, Mayer hosted a one-shot, half-hour comedy special on VH1 entitled ''John Mayer Has a TV Show'', with antics including wearing a bear suit while anonymously teasing concertgoers in the parking lot outside one of his concerts. The American network CBS announced on January 14, 2009 that they were in negotiations with Mayer for a variety show; it may air as a special or as a regular series. In an interview with ''Rolling Stone'', posted online on January 22, 2010, Mayer confirmed that the program, also called ''John Mayer Has a TV Show'', was still in development, and that personnel were being hired. He described the concept as "a high quality music performance show, where I could also steer it a little bit. It's about there being a bastion of artists being made to look good and sound good.".

Mayer has made many appearances on talk shows and other television programs, most notably, on a ''Chappelle's Show'' comedy skit, ''Late Night with David Letterman'' and on the final episode of ''Late Night with Conan O'Brien''. Mayer made an appearance with Rob Dyrdek in the MTV show ''Rob Dyrdek's Fantasy Factory''.

Touring

{{externalvideo | align = right | width = 320px | video1 = Where the Light Is''">Official video Mayer performing an acoustic set from his DVD ''Where the Light Is'' | }} Mayer has toured with many musical groups, including Maroon 5, Guster, Howie Day, Mat Kearney, Counting Crows, Ben Folds, The Wallflowers, Teitur, Brett Dennen, Sheryl Crow, Colbie Caillat, Train, Ellie Goulding, OneRepublic and Paramore. Crow and Mayer, who had just previously appeared on the ''''Cars'' Soundtrack'' together, co-headlined a tour that ran from August to October 2006. In 2007, Mayer toured Europe, hoping to reach the popularity abroad that he enjoys in North America. The initial North American ''Continuum'' tour ended on February 28, 2007, with a show at Madison Square Garden, a performance which the ''New York Post'' described as "career-defining." In 2010, Mayer and Keith Urban performed at a CMT Crossroads concert which saw Mayer and Urban performing a medley of their own songs together and a rendition of George Michael's single, "Faith". This performance was led to Urban and Mayer teaming up again for future performances, including at the 2010 CMT Music Awards.

Mayer allows audio taping at most of his live performances, and he also allows for the non-commercial trading of those recordings. He does this to give fans the opportunity to recreate the live experience, and to encourage fan interaction.

Mayer often shows up at small venues unannounced (or with little advance notice) for surprise concerts—occasionally for free or without accepting the performance fee. He has made appearances throughout the Los Angeles, Atlanta and New York areas, including shows at The Laugh Factory, Eddie's Attic, and the Village Underground. His latest surprise appearace was on January 8, 2011 at Hotel Cafe where he played seven new unreleased songs.

Touring band members

;Current members

David Ryan Harris – guitar, backing vocals (2003–present)

Robbie McIntosh – guitar, slide guitar, backing vocals (2006–present)

Sean Hurley – bass, backing vocals (2008–present)

Bob Reynolds – saxophones, flute (2006–2008, 2010–present)

Bryan Lipps - trumpet (2010–present)

Charlie Wilson – keyboards (2009–present)

Aaron Sterling - drums (2011–present)

;Former members

Pino Palladino - Bass (2010)

Keith Carlock - drums, percussion (2010)

David LaBruyere – bass (1999–2008)

Nir Z - drums (2001)

Matt Mangano - guitar (2001)

Matt Johnson - drums (2002)

Stephen Chopek – drums, percussion (2001–2002)

Michael Chaves – guitar, keyboards, backing vocals (2001–2005)

Kevin Lovejoy – keyboards (2003–2004)

Erik Jekabsen – trumpet, flugelhorn (2003–2004)

Chris Karlic – saxophone, flute (2003–2005)

J.J. Johnson – drums (2003–2005, 2006–2008)

Onree Gill – keyboards (2004–2005)

Chuck McKinnon – trumpet, flugelhorn (2004–2005)

Keith Carlock - drums, percussion (2010–2011)

Ricky Peterson – keyboards, organ, backing vocals (2006–2007)

Charlie Wilson – keyboards (2009–2011)

Tim Bradshaw – keyboards, organ, lap steel guitar, backing vocals (2007–2008)

Kenna Ramsey - backing vocals (2009–2010)

Melanie Taylor - backing vocals (2009–2010)

Steve Jordan – drums, percussion, backing vocals (2003, 2005–2006, 2009–2010)

Brad Mason - trumpet, flugelhorn (2006–2008)

Personal life

Mayer has followed the discipline of Krav Maga.

He hosts an annual Interfaith Baking Contest, in which he judges his favorite from pictures of baked goods sent in by his fans during the end-of-year, holiday season.

Mayer has a number of tattoos. These include: "Home" and "Life" (from the song title) on the back of his left and right arms respectively, "77" (his year of birth) on the left side of his chest, and a koi-like fish on his right shoulder. His entire left arm is covered in a sleeve tattoo that he acquired gradually, ending in April 2008; it includes: "SRV" (for his idol, Stevie Ray Vaughan) on his shoulder, a decorated rectangle on his biceps, a dragon-like figure on his inner arm, and various other floral designs. In 2003, he got a tattoo of three squares on his right forearm, which, he has explained, he will fill in gradually. As of 2011, two are filled.

He is an avid collector of watches and owns timepieces worth tens of thousands of dollars. Mayer also has an extensive collection of sneakers, estimated () at more than 200 pairs.

Mayer's parents concluded an uncontested divorce on May 27, 2009. After the divorce, Mayer moved his (82-year-old) father to an assisted-living facility in Los Angeles.

Mayer sold his home in the Los Angeles suburbs in 2011. He currently lives in his apartment in the New York City neighborhood of SoHo.

Dating and relationship with the media

Mayer dated Jennifer Love Hewitt briefly in 2002. In a comedy routine at the Hollywood Laugh Factory in May 2006, he said that they never consummated their relationship; he later said that he immediately apologized to her for the raunchy routine. Mayer dated Jessica Simpson for about nine months, beginning in the middle of 2006. Rumors started in August of that year with a ''People'' magazine article, but kicked into high gear when Mayer and Simpson spent New Year's holiday together in New York City, both attending Christina Aguilera's New Year's Eve party. When Ryan Seacrest asked Mayer on the red carpet of the 2007 Grammy Awards, about his relationship with Simpson, Mayer responded in Japanese. Despite some initially conflicting translations, he said, "Jessica is a lovely woman, and I'm glad to be with her." However, the couple split in May 2007. He began dating actress Minka Kelly in September 2007, but they split up before the year's end. Mayer began dating actress Jennifer Aniston in April 2008, but Mayer broke it off the following August. They resumed dating in October 2008 and split up again in March 2009. His relationships with high-profile celebrities has led to his having a reputation as a "womanizer." Taylor Swift recently wrote a few songs about her relationship with Mayer, "Dear John". Mayer's relationship with Jessica Simpson coincided with some personal behavior changes that served to significantly increase his tabloid exposure. Previously, Mayer had expressed his resolve to completely avoid drugs, alcohol, clubbing, "red-carpet" events, dating celebrities and anything else that he felt would detract from his focus on his music. In interviews, however, Mayer has alluded to experiencing an extreme "anxiety bender" episode in his twenties that motivated him to be less reclusive. He later said he realized that, "If I wanted to see Jessica more, I had to grow up," and not be afraid to be without his guitar. He called his relationship with her "sexual napalm" and said she had the power to "change [his] values." He began making appearances at clubs in Los Angeles and New York (where he would stage pranks for the paparazzi), and in a ''Rolling Stone'' interview from 2006, he first mentioned that he had begun using marijuana. Mayer joined Aniston at the 81st Academy Awards in February 2009, where she was a presenter.

Mayer's relationship with the media has drawn controversy. He has been called long-winded and self-aware, stemming from his style as an interviewee. Mayer's discourse with the tabloid media (including hosting a TMZ segment and getting in Twitter battles with Perez Hilton) culminated in an impromptu press conference outside of his gym in New York, where he explained why he had broken-up with Aniston. The fall-out was unfavorable, and he was branded a "douchebag" for "saving face"; Mayer later said, "It was one of the worst times of my life," and maintains he did it to take responsibility for hurting her.

Controversies and allegations of racism

Despite assertions that he would not be doing any more press, an interview with ''Playboy'' magazine (posted to their website on February 10, 2010) set off accusations in the media and on Twitter of his being a misogynist, kiss-and-tell ex-boyfriend, and racist. He apologized via Twitter for his use of the word "nigger," saying, "It was arrogant of me to think I could intellectualize...a word that is so emotionally charged." He also tearfully apologized to his band and fans at his concert in Nashville later that night.

Solo discography

''Room for Squares'' (2001)

''Heavier Things'' (2003)

''Continuum'' (2006)

''Battle Studies'' (2009)

''Born & Raised'' (2011)

Awards

Grammy Awards

Mayer has won seven awards from eighteen nominations.

Year	! Awardee	! Category	! Result
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Others awards and nominations

Year	! Award	! Category
	MTV Video Music Awards		* Best New Artist in a Video for "No Such Thing" – nominated
Orville H. Gibson Guitar Awards		* Les Paul Horizon Award (Most Promising Up and Coming Guitarist)
VH1 Big in 2002 Awards		* Can't Get You Out of My Head Award for "No Such Thing"
Pollstar Concert Industry Awards		* Best New Artist Tour
	20th Annual ASCAP Awards		* ASCAP Pop Award – "No Such Thing" (shared with Clay Cook)Awarded to songwriters and publishers of the most performed songs in the ASCAP repertory for the award period.
31st Annual American Music Awards		* Favorite Male Artist – Pop or Rock 'n Roll Music
15th Annual Boston Music Awards		* Act of the Year	* Male Vocalist of the Year	* Song of the Year for "Your Body Is a Wonderland"
MTV Video Music Awards		* Best Male Video
Radio Music Awards		* Modern Adult Contemporary Radio Artist of the Year	* Best Hook-Up Song for "Your Body Is a Wonderland"
Teen People Awards		* Choice Music – Male Artist	* Choice Music – Album for ''Any Given Thursday''
Danish Music Awards		* Best New Artist
	BDS Certified Spin AwardsMarch 2004 recipients		* Reached 100,000 spins for "Why Georgia"
	33rd annual American Music Awards		* Adult Contemporary: Favorite Artist
World Music Awards		* World's Best Selling Rock Act
People's Choice Awards		* Favorite Male Artist
	35th Annual American Music Awards		* Adult Contemporary Music — nominated
23rd Annual TEC Awards		* Tour Sound Production (for the Continuum Tour)	* Record Production/Single or Track (for production on "Waiting on the World to Change")	* Record Production/Album (from production on ''Continuum'')

See also

Battle Studies World Tour

Notes

Footnotes

References

Edwards, G. (2006) ''Is Tiny Dancer Really Elton's Little John?'', New York: Crown Publishing Group. ISBN 0-307-34603-X

External links

"Music Lessons with John Mayer", database of Mayer's ''Esquire'' column at Esquire.com

Comprehensive John Mayer guitar tabs

"Square pegged", Mayer's first feature article in 2001, from ''Creative Loafing''

Nikon Podcast #3: "Exclusive Interview with John Mayer" (posted September 9, 2007) (listen)

"John Mayer's Soft-Sell 'World'", NPR ''Morning Edition'' interview from March 2007. (listen) (read)

Category:1977 births Category:American people of Jewish descent Category:American bloggers Category:American male singers Category:American pop singers Category:American rock guitarists Category:American rock singer-songwriters Category:Berklee College of Music alumni Category:Blue-eyed soul singers Category:Grammy Award winners Category:Krav Maga practitioners Category:Live Music Archive artists Category:Living people Category:Musicians from Connecticut Category:People from Bridgeport, Connecticut Category:People with synesthesia

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name	Al Jourgensen
background	solo_singer
birth name	Alain David Jourgensen
alias	The Alien, Alien Jourgensen, Hypo Luxa, Dog, Alien Dog Star, Buck Satan, Uncle Al, Enchanted Al
born	October 09, 1958Havana, Cuba
instrument	Vocals, guitar, keyboards, synthesizer, bass, harmonica, mandolin, saxophone, piano, drums
genre	Industrial metalIndustrial rockAlternative metalThrash metalNew WaveSynthpopEBMHardcore punk
years active	1978–present
label	Arista RecordsSire RecordsWarner Bros.Sanctuary Records13th Planet RecordsAlternative TentaclesWax Trax!
associated acts	MinistryRevolting CocksSkinny PuppyLardProng1000 Homo DJsPTPAcid HorseLead Into GoldPailheadBuck Satan & the 666 Shooters
website	http://www.ministrymusic.org
notable instruments	}}

Alain David Jourgensen (born October 9, 1958, in Havana, Cuba; often known as Al Jourgensen), is a Cuban-American musician best known as the founder and frontman of the industrial metal band Ministry. He is sometimes credited as Alain Jourgensen, Alien Jourgensen, Hypo Luxa (his alias as a music producer), Dog, Alien Dog Star and Buck Satan. He is a member and/or founder of several industrial rock bands, working as a singer, guitarist or keyboard player.

Biography

Jourgensen was born in Havana to a Cuban mother and father in 1958. Soon after, he came to the US to live with his mother and his Norwegian stepfather, who changed his name to Jourgensen. Growing up, he was a fan of such artists as The Beatles, Black Sabbath, Hawkwind, Pink Floyd, Can, Kraftwerk, The Rolling Stones, Led Zeppelin, Kitty Wells, Buck Owens, George Jones, Charlie Parker, Charles Mingus and Miles Davis. His stepfather was a stock car driver, and also a mechanic for Formula One driver Dan Gurney. Jourgensen was raised in Chicago, Illinois and Breckenridge, Colorado, eventually attending the University of Illinois - Chicago and University of Colorado. He worked as a radio DJ out of college, until becoming a professional musician by joining the band Special Affect, which included My Life with the Thrill Kill Kult founding member Groovie Mann. Jourgensen formed Ministry in 1981.

Jourgensen was married to Patty Marsh from 1984-2002. He has a daughter from the marriage, Adrienne, born April 13, 1985. He remarried in September 2002 to Angelina Lukacin at Graceland mansion.

His lyrics reveal many aspects of his life, such as his heroin and cocaine addictions, alcoholism and his political opinions. These were greatly influenced by the beat generation (William S. Burroughs collaborated on some of his tracks).

Jourgensen had been a life-long drug user, which culminated in the 1995 police raid of Ministry's Texas headquarters and Jourgensen's arrest for possession. He received a five year probation sentence, a time that he recalls as the darkest in his life. As of 2003, he maintains that he has been drug-free, ever since a bite from a venomous spider nearly caused him to lose an arm. Jourgensen currently lives and records in El Paso, Texas.

Professional life

Ministry

Jourgensen formed Ministry in 1981 after he left the band Special Affect, which was a new wave/synthpop band (notably including Frankie Nardiello, founder of My Life With The Thrill Kill Kult and drummer Harry Rushakoff of Concrete Blonde). Early singles by Ministry and Jourgensen's other projects were released on Wax Trax! Records. He was also featured as guest on some Skinny Puppy albums as well as producing their ''Rabies'' album. During that time, it is said that Jourgensen befriended Nivek Ogre, who later joined Ministry.

The band broke into the mainstream with 1992's legendary ''Psalm 69: The Way to Succeed and the Way to Suck Eggs'' album. One of its tracks got nominated for a 1993 Grammy Award for Best Metal Performance, losing to Nine Inch Nails' "Wish". However, its next album, ''Filth Pig'' (1995), divided their fanbase, leading to a commercial decline that became evident when Warner Bros. Records dropped Ministry from the record label in 2005.

Ministry's newest albums, ''Rio Grande Blood'' and ''The Last Sucker'', as well as the 2006 Revolting Cocks album ''Cocked and Loaded'' were released on Jourgensen's new record label, 13th Planet Records. He formed this label after falling out with the mainstream agendas of major industry labels.

Jourgensen appeared as a fictional musician in the film ''A.I.: Artificial Intelligence'', and has had a number of songs appear in other films, including the 2008 ''Wicked Lake'', produced by Fever Dreams, for which he composed the entire sound track. He also makes a small appearance in the film as an art school teacher.

In a November 2008 issue of ''Hustler Magazine'', Al Jourgensen announced that the end of Ministry was official. The reasons behind this were Ministry "takes up so much time" as well as the hassle of getting out new albums. He also said he was responsible for six other bands and can get seven albums done a year when he is not working on new Ministry material.

Despite Jourgensen's previous insistence that Ministry would never return, a reunion was announced on August 7, 2011. The band will play their first show in 4 years at Germany's Wacken Open Air festival in August 2012. A new album, entitled ''Relapse'', is also in the works.

RevCo

Revolting Cocks, now known as RevCo, is an American industrial rock band that began as a musical side-project for Richard 23 of Front 242, Luc Van Acker, and Al Jourgensen of Ministry. The band got their name after a fight in a Chicago bar in 1983. Jourgensen, Richard 23 and Luc Van Acker celebrated the formation of their new band with a few drinks. The evening ended in a brawl, with bar stools thrown through the windows. As he ejected the trio, the owner, a man Jourgensen recalls was named Dess, shouted, "I'm calling the police! You guys are a bunch of revolting cocks!" The trio decided to use the name for their band.

The band have changed lineups several times. RevCo currently features Al Jourgensen (guitars, keyboards, programming, background vocals, producer), Josh Bradford (vocals, background vocals), Sin Quirin (guitars, bass, keyboards) and Clayton Worbeck (keyboards, programming, mixing, bass). Their Seventh album, called Sex-O Olympic-O, which was produced by Jourgensen at his studio, was released on his 13th Planet label in March 2009. Their newest album, Got Cock?, was also released on April 13, 2010 on the same Label.

Production Work

Jourgensen and Paul Barker of Ministry worked as a music production team under the names Hypo Luxa and Hermes Pan, producing their own work as well as other Wax Trax! Records acts. He has also done production work for Reverend Horton Heat, Nine Inch Nails, Dessau and GWAR.

Jourgensen has set up a recording complex for his 13th Planet label in his home in El Paso, TX. He is currently working with longtime cohort and Dead Kennedys frontman Jello Biafra on new music for the duo's Lard project. Jourgensen is also scheduled to produce the new album from Prong.

Political views

Jourgensen frequently offered scathing criticism of the Bush family. Beginning with Ministry's 1992 album ''Psalm 69'', continuing with the 2004 album ''Houses of the Molé'', 2006's ''Rio Grande Blood'', and 2007's ''The Last Sucker''. His favorite targets have been former U.S. Presidents George H.W. Bush and George W. Bush. Ministry also contributed a song to the first Rock Against Bush album. The theme continues on Ministry's 2007 offering and in Jourgensen's various side projects.

Jourgensen expressed support for Barack Obama during the 2008 election, speaking in favor of progressive taxation.

Discography

with Ministry

with Revolting Cocks

Date of Release	Title	Label
1986	''Big Sexy Land''	Wax Trax!
1988	''You Goddamned Son of a Bitch - Live''	Wax Trax!
1990	''Beers, Steers, and Queers''	Wax Trax!
1993	''Linger Ficken' Good''	Sire Records
[[2006	''Cocked and Loaded''	13th Planet Records/Megaforce Records
2007	''Cocktail Mixxx''	13th Planet Records/Megaforce Records
2009	''Sex-O Olympic-O''	13th Planet Records/Megaforce Records
2009	''Sex-O MiXXX-O''	13th Planet Records/Megaforce Records
2010	''Got Cock?''	13th Planet Records/Megaforce Records

with Lard

Date of Release	Title	Label
1989	''The Power of Lard''	Alternative Tentacles
1990	''The Last Temptation of Reid''	Alternative Tentacles
1997	''Pure Chewing Satisfaction''	Alternative Tentacles
2000	''70's Rock Must Die''	Alternative Tentacles

References

External links

www.thirteenthplanet.com/ministry/

fumaga.com/10807/

Ministry @ prongs.org

Al Jourgensen is featured in VanityFair.com's article, 'The Best Little Music City in Texas', from March 2009.

Category:1958 births Category:Living people Category:American entertainers of Cuban descent Category:American heavy metal musicians Category:American heavy metal singers Category:American industrial musicians Category:American male singers Category:American people of Cuban descent Category:American rock singers Category:Ministry members Category:New Trier High School alumni

cs:Al Jourgensen da:Al Jourgensen es:Al Jourgensen fr:Al Jourgensen it:Al Jourgensen fi:Al Jourgensen sv:Al Jourgensen

Name	Sir Elton JohnCBE
Background	solo_singer
Birth name	Reginald Kenneth Dwight
Birth date	March 25, 1947
Birth place	Pinner, Middlesex, England
Instrument
Occupation	Musician, singer-songwriter, record producer, composer
Years active	1964–68 (Bluesology)1969–present (Solo)
Genre
Label	DJM, Uni, MCA, Geffen, Rocket/Island, Universal, Interscope, Mercury, UMG
Associated acts	Bernie Taupin, Tim Rice, John Lennon, Yoko Ono, Kiki Dee, Billy Joel, George Michael, Eminem, Gladys Knight, Stevie Wonder, Dionne Warwick,Neil Sedaka
Website	}}

Sir Elton Hercules John, CBE (born Reginald Kenneth Dwight on 25 March 1947) is an English rock singer-songwriter, composer, pianist and occasional actor. He has worked with lyricist Bernie Taupin as his songwriter partner since 1967; they have collaborated on more than 30 albums to date.

In his four-decade career John has sold more than 250 million records, making him one of the most successful artists of all time. His single "Candle in the Wind 1997" has sold over 33 million copies worldwide, and is the best selling single in ''Billboard'' history. He has more than 50 Top 40 hits, including seven consecutive No. 1 US albums, 56 Top 40 singles, 16 Top 10, four No. 2 hits, and nine No. 1 hits. He has won six Grammy Awards, four Brit Awards, an Academy Award, a Golden Globe Award and a Tony Award. In 2004, ''Rolling Stone'' ranked him Number 49 on its list of the 100 greatest artists of all time.

John was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1994. Having been named a Commander of the Order of the British Empire in 1996, John received a knighthood from HM Queen Elizabeth II for "services to music and charitable services" in 1998.

He has been heavily involved in the fight against AIDS since the late 1980s. In 1992, he established the Elton John AIDS Foundation and a year later began hosting the annual Academy Award Party, which has since become one of the most high-profile Oscar parties in the Hollywood film industry. Since its inception, the foundation has raised over $200 million.

John entered into a civil partnership with David Furnish on 21 December 2005 and continues to be a champion for LGBT social movements. In 2008, ''Billboard'' magazine ranked him as the most successful male solo artist on "The Billboard Hot 100 Top All-Time Artists" (third overall, behind only The Beatles and Madonna).

Life and career

Early life

John was born Reginald Kenneth Dwight on 25 March 1947, the eldest child of Stanley and only child of Sheila Eileen Dwight (née Harris) and was raised in Pinner, Middlesex in a council house of his maternal grandparents. His parents did not marry until he was 6 years old, when the family moved to a nearby semi-detached house. He was educated at Pinner Wood Junior School, Reddiford School and Pinner County Grammar School, until age 17, when he left just prior to his A Level examinations to pursue a career in the music industry.

When John began to seriously consider a career in music, his father, who served as a Flight Lieutenant in the Royal Air Force, tried to steer him toward a more conventional career, such as banking. John has stated that his wild stage costumes and performances were his way of letting go after such a restrictive childhood. Both of John's parents were musically inclined, his father having been a trumpet player with the Bob Millar Band, a semi-professional big band that played at military dances. The Dwights were keen record buyers, exposing John to the popular singers and musicians of the day, and John remembers being immediately hooked on rock and roll when his mother brought home records by Elvis Presley and Bill Haley & His Comets in 1956.

John started playing the piano at the age of 3, and within a year, his mother heard him picking out Winifred Atwell's "The Skater's Waltz" by ear. After performing at parties and family gatherings, at the age of 7 he took up formal piano lessons. He showed musical aptitude at school, including the ability to compose melodies, and gained some notoriety by playing like Jerry Lee Lewis at school functions. At the age of 11, he won a junior scholarship to the Royal Academy of Music. According to one of his instructors, John promptly played back, like a "gramophone record", a four-page piece by Handel that he heard for the first time.

For the next five years he attended Saturday classes at the Academy in central London, and has stated that he enjoyed playing Chopin and Bach and singing in the choir during Saturday classes, but that he was not otherwise a diligent classical student. "I kind of resented going to the Academy", he says. "I was one of those children who could just about get away without practicing and still pass, scrape through the grades." He even claims that he would sometimes skip classes and just ride around on the Tube. However, several instructors have testified that he was a "model student", and during the last few years he was taking lessons from a private tutor in addition to his classes at the Academy.

John's mother, though also strict with her son, was more vivacious than her husband, and something of a free spirit. With Stanley Dwight uninterested in his son and often physically absent, John was raised primarily by his mother and maternal grandmother. When his father was home, the Dwights would have terrible arguments that greatly distressed their son. When John was 14, they divorced. His mother then married a local painter, Fred Farebrother, a caring and supportive stepfather whom John affectionately referred to as "Derf", his first name in reverse. They moved into flat No. 1A in an eight-unit apartment building called Frome Court, not far from both previous homes. It was there that John would write the songs that would launch his career as a rock star; he would live there until he had four albums simultaneously in the American Top 40.

Pub pianist to staff songwriter (1962–1969)

At the age of 15, with the help of his mother and stepfather, Reginald Dwight became a weekend pianist at a nearby pub, the Northwood Hills Hotel, playing Thursday to Sunday nights for £35 a week and tips. Known simply as "Reggie", he played a range of popular standards, including songs by Jim Reeves and Ray Charles, as well as songs he had written himself. A stint with a short-lived group called the Corvettes rounded out his time.

In 1964, Dwight and his friends formed a band called Bluesology. By day, he ran errands for a music publishing company; he divided his nights between solo gigs at a London hotel bar and working with Bluesology. By the mid-1960s, Bluesology was backing touring American soul and R&B; musicians like The Isley Brothers, Major Lance, Billy Stewart, Doris Troy and Patti LaBelle and The Bluebelles. In 1966, the band became musician Long John Baldry's supporting band and played 16 times at The Marquee Club.

After failing lead vocalist auditions for King Crimson and Gentle Giant, Dwight answered an advertisement in the ''New Musical Express'' placed by Ray Williams, then the A&R; manager for Liberty Records. At their first meeting, Williams gave Dwight a stack of lyrics written by Bernie Taupin, who had answered the same ad. Dwight wrote music for the lyrics, and then mailed it to Taupin, beginning a partnership that {{as of |2012 |alt=still continues }}. When the two first met in 1967 they recorded what would become the first Elton John/Bernie Taupin song; "Scarecrow". Six months later Dwight was going by the name "Elton John" in homage to Bluesology saxophonist Elton Dean and Long John Baldry.

The team of John and Taupin joined Dick James's DJM Records as staff songwriters in 1968, and over the next two years wrote material for various artists, like Roger Cook and Lulu. Taupin would write a batch of lyrics in under an hour and give it to John, who would write music for them in half an hour, disposing of the lyrics if he couldn't come up with anything quickly. For two years, they wrote easy-listening tunes for James to peddle to singers. Their early output included a contender for the British entry for the Eurovision Song Contest in 1969, for Lulu, called "Can't Go On (Living Without You)". It came sixth of six songs. In 1969, John provided piano for Roger Hodgson on his first released recording, the single "Mr. Boyd" by Argosy, a quartet that was completed by Caleb Quaye and Nigel Olsson.

During this period, John was also a session musician for other artists including playing piano on The Hollies' "He Ain't Heavy, He's My Brother" and singing backing vocals for The Scaffold.

Debut album to ''Goodbye Yellow Brick Road'' (1969–1973)

On the advice of music publisher Steve Brown, John and Taupin started writing more complex songs for John to record for DJM. The first was the single "I've Been Loving You" (1968), produced by Caleb Quaye, former Bluesology guitarist. In 1969, with Quaye, drummer Roger Pope, and bassist Tony Murray, John recorded another single, "Lady Samantha", and an album, ''Empty Sky''.

For their follow-up album, ''Elton John'', John and Taupin enlisted Gus Dudgeon as producer and Paul Buckmaster as musical arranger. ''Elton John'' was released in April 1970 on DJM Records/Pye Records in the UK and Uni Records in the USA, and established the formula for subsequent albums; gospel-chorded rockers and poignant ballads. The first single from the album, "Border Song", made into the US Top 100, peaking at Number 92. The second single "Your Song" made the US Top Ten, peaking at number eight and becoming John's first hit single as a singer. The album soon became his first hit album, reaching number four on the Billboard 200 album chart.

Backed by ex-Spencer Davis Group drummer Nigel Olsson and bassist Dee Murray, John's first American concert took place at The Troubadour in Los Angeles in August 1970, and was a success.

The concept album ''Tumbleweed Connection'' was released in October 1970, and reached the Top Ten on the Billboard 200. The live album ''17-11-70'' (''11-17-70'' in the US) was recorded at a live show aired from A&R; Studios on WABC-FM in New York City. Sales of the live album were heavily hit in the US when an east coast bootlegger released the performance several weeks before the official album, including all 60 minutes of the aircast, not just the 40 minutes selected by Dick James Music. John and Taupin then wrote the soundtrack to the obscure film ''Friends'' and then the album ''Madman Across the Water'', the latter reaching the Top Ten and producing the hit "Levon", while the soundtrack album produced the hit "Friends". In 1972, Davey Johnstone joined the Elton John Band on guitar and backing vocals. The band released ''Honky Chateau'', which became John's first American number 1 album, spending five weeks at the top of the charts and spawning the hit singles "Rocket Man (I Think It's Going To Be A Long, Long Time)" (which is often compared to David Bowie's "Space Oddity") and "Honky Cat".

The pop album ''Don't Shoot Me I'm Only the Piano Player'' came out at the start of 1973, and produced the hits "Crocodile Rock" and "Daniel"; the former became his first US Billboard Hot 100 number one hit. Both the album and "Crocodile Rock" were the first album and single, respectively on the consolidated MCA Records label in the USA, replacing MCA's other labels including Uni.

''Goodbye Yellow Brick Road'' gained instant critical acclaim and topped the chart on both sides of the Atlantic, remaining at Number 1 for two months. It also temporarily established John as a glam rock star. It contained the number 1 hit "Bennie and the Jets", along with the popular and praised "Goodbye Yellow Brick Road", "Candle in the Wind", "Saturday Night's Alright for Fighting", "Funeral For A Friend/Love Lies Bleeding" and "Grey Seal" (originally recorded and released in 1970 as the B-side to the UK-only single, "Rock and Roll Madonna"). There is also a VHS and DVD as part of the Classic Albums series, discussing the making, recording, and popularity of "Goodbye Yellow Brick Road" through concert and home video footage including interviews.

Rocket Records to ''21 at 33'' (1974–1979)

John formed his own MCA-distributed label Rocket Records and signed acts to it – notably Neil Sedaka ("Bad Blood", on which he sang background vocals) and Kiki Dee – in which he took a personal interest. Instead of releasing his own records on Rocket, he opted for $8 million offered by MCA. When the contract was signed in 1974, MCA reportedly took out a $25 million insurance policy on John's life.

In 1974 a collaboration with John Lennon took place, resulting in Elton John covering The Beatles' "Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds" and Lennon's "One Day at a Time", and in return Elton John and band being featured on Lennon's "Whatever Gets You thru the Night". In what would be Lennon's last live performance, the pair performed these two number 1 hits along with the Beatles classic "I Saw Her Standing There" at Madison Square Garden. Lennon made the rare stage appearance to keep the promise he made that he would appear on stage with Elton if "Whatever Gets You Thru The Night" became a number 1 single.

''Caribou'' was released in 1974, and although it reached number 1, it was widely considered a lesser quality album. Reportedly recorded in a scant two weeks between live appearances, it featured "The Bitch Is Back" and the lushly orchestrated "Don't Let the Sun Go Down on Me". Pete Townshend of The Who asked John to play a character called the "Local Lad" in the film of the rock opera ''Tommy'', and to perform the song "Pinball Wizard". Drawing on power chords, John's version was recorded and used for the movie release in 1975 and the single came out in 1976 (1975 in the US). The song charted at number 7 in England. Bally subsequently released a "Captain Fantastic" pinball machine featuring an illustration of John in his movie guise.

In the 1975 autobiographical album ''Captain Fantastic and the Brown Dirt Cowboy'', John revealed his previously ambiguous personality, with Taupin's lyrics describing their early days as struggling songwriters and musicians in London. The lyrics and accompanying photo booklet are infused with a specific sense of place and time that is otherwise rare in John's music. "Someone Saved My Life Tonight" was the hit single from this album and captured an early turning point in John's life.

The album's release signalled the end of the Elton John Band, as an unhappy and overworked John dismissed Olsson and Murray, two people who had contributed much of the band's signature sound and who had helped build his live following since the beginning. Johnstone and Ray Cooper were retained, Quaye and Roger Pope returned, and the new bassist was Kenny Passarelli; this rhythm section provided a heavier-sounding backbeat. James Newton-Howard joined to arrange in the studio and to play keyboards. John introduced the lineup before a crowd of 75,000 in London's Wembley Stadium. The rock-oriented ''Rock of the Westies'' entered the US albums chart at number 1 like ''Captain Fantastic'', a previously unattained feat. Elton John's stage wardrobe now included ostrich feathers, $5,000 spectacles that spelled his name in lights, and dressing up like the Statue of Liberty, Donald Duck, or Mozart, among others, at his concerts.

To celebrate five years since he first appeared at the venue, in 1975 John played a two-night, four-show stand at The Troubadour. With seating limited to under 500 per show, the chance to purchase tickets was determined by a postcard lottery, with each winner allowed two tickets. Everyone who attended the performances received a hardbound "yearbook" of the band's history. That year he also played piano on Kevin Ayers' ''Sweet Deceiver'', and was among the first and few white artists to appear on the black music series ''Soul Train'' on American television. On August 9, 1975, John was named the outstanding rock personality of the year at the first annual Rock Music Awards at ceremonies held in Santa Monica, California.

In 1976, the live album ''Here and There'' was released in May, followed by the ''Blue Moves'' album in October, which contained the single "Sorry Seems to Be the Hardest Word". His biggest success in 1976 was "Don't Go Breaking My Heart", a duet with Kiki Dee that topped both the American and British charts. Finally, in an interview with ''Rolling Stone'' that year entitled "Elton's Frank Talk", John stated that he was bisexual.

Besides being the most commercially successful period, 1970–1976 is also held in the most regard critically. Within only a three year span, between 1972 and 1975 John saw seven consecutive albums reach Number 1 in the charts, which had not been accomplished before. Of the six Elton John albums to make the 500 Greatest Albums of All Time in ''Rolling Stone'''in 2003, all are from this period, with ''Goodbye Yellow Brick Road'' ranked highest at number 91; similarly, the three Elton John albums given five stars by Allmusic (''Tumbleweed Connection'', ''Honky Château'', and ''Captain Fantastic'') are all from this period too.

During the same period, John made a guest appearance on the popular ''Morecambe and Wise Show'' on the BBC. The two comics spent the episode pointing him in the direction of everywhere except the stage in order to prevent him singing.

In November 1977 John announced he was retiring from performing; Taupin began collaborating with others. Now only producing one album a year, John issued ''A Single Man'' in 1978, employing a new lyricist, Gary Osborne; the album produced no singles that made the Top 20 in the US but the two singles from the album released in the UK, Part-Time Love and Song for Guy, both made the Top 20 in the UK with the latter reaching the Top 5. In 1979, accompanied by Ray Cooper, John became one of the first Western solo artists to tour the Soviet Union (as well as one of the first in Israel), then mounted a two-man comeback tour of the US in small halls. John returned to the singles chart with "Mama Can't Buy You Love" (number 9, 1979), a song originally rejected in 1977 by MCA before being released, recorded in 1977 with Philadelphia soul producer Thom Bell. Elton reported that Thom Bell was the first person to give him voice lessons; Bell encouraged John to sing in a lower register. A disco-influenced album, ''Victim of Love'', was poorly received. In 1979, John and Taupin reunited, though they did not collaborate on a full album until 1983's ''Too Low For Zero''. ''21 at 33'', released the following year, was a significant career boost, aided by his biggest hit in four years, "Little Jeannie" (number 3 US), although the lyrics were written by Gary Osborne.

The 80s: ''The Fox'' to ''Sleeping with the Past'' (1981–1989)

His 1981 album, ''The Fox'', was recorded in part during the same sessions as ''21 at 33'', and also included collaborations with Tom Robinson and Judie Tzuke. On 13 September 1980, John, with Olsson and Murray back in the Elton John Band, performed a free concert to an estimated 400,000 fans on The Great Lawn in Central Park in New York City. His 1982 hit "Empty Garden (Hey Hey Johnny)", came from his ''Jump Up!'' album, his second under a new US recording contract with Geffen Records.

He married his close friend and sound engineer, Renate Blauel on Valentine's Day 1984 - the marriage lasted three years. The Biography Channel Special detailed the loss of Elton's voice in 1986 while on tour in Australia. Shortly thereafter he underwent throat surgery, which permanently altered his voice. Several non-cancerous polyps were removed from his vocal cords, resulting in a change in his singing voice. In 1987 he won a libel case against ''The Sun'' which published allegations of sex with rent boys.

With original band members Johnstone, Murray and Olsson together again, John was able to return to the charts with the 1983 hit album ''Too Low for Zero'', which included "I'm Still Standing" and "I Guess That's Why They Call It the Blues", the latter of which featured Stevie Wonder on harmonica and reached number 4 in the US, giving John his biggest hit there since "Little Jeannie". He placed hits in the US Top Ten throughout the 1980s – "Little Jeannie" (number 3, 1980), "Sad Songs (Say So Much)" (number 5, 1984), "Nikita" boosted by a mini-movie pop video directed by Ken Russell (number 7, 1986), a live orchestral version of "Candle in the Wind" (number 6, 1987), and "I Don't Wanna Go On With You Like That" (number 2, 1988). His highest-charting single was a collaboration with Dionne Warwick, Gladys Knight, and Stevie Wonder on "That's What Friends Are For" (number 1, 1985); credited as Dionne and Friends, the song raised funds for AIDS research. His albums continued to sell, but of the six released in the latter half of the 1980s, only ''Reg Strikes Back'' (number 16, 1988) placed in the Top 20 in the United States.

In 1985, Elton John was one of the many performers at Live Aid held at Wembley Stadium. John played "Bennie and the Jets" and "Rocket Man"; then "Don't Go Breaking My Heart" with Kiki Dee for the first time in years; and introduced his friend George Michael, still then of Wham!, to sing "Don't Let the Sun Go Down on Me". He enlisted Michael to sing backing vocals on his single "Wrap Her Up", and also recruited teen idol Nik Kershaw as an instrumentalist on "Nikita". John also recorded material with Millie Jackson in 1985. In 1986, he played the piano on two tracks on the heavy metal band Saxon's album ''Rock the Nations''.

In 1988, he performed five sold-out shows at New York's Madison Square Garden, giving him 26 for his career. Netting over $20 million, 2,000 items of John's memorabilia were auctioned off at Sotheby's in London.

The 90s: "Sacrifice" to ''Aida'' (1990–1999)

In 1990, John finally achieved his first UK number one hit on his own, with "Sacrifice" (coupled with "Healing Hands") from the previous year's album ''Sleeping with the Past''; it would stay at the top spot for six weeks. The following year, John's "Basque" won the Grammy for Best Instrumental, and a guest concert appearance he had made on George Michael's cover of "Don't Let the Sun Go Down on Me" was released as a single and topped the charts in both the US and UK. At the 1991 Brit Awards in London, Elton John won the award for Best British Male.

In 1992 he released the US number 8 album ''The One'', featuring the hit song "The One". John and Taupin then signed a music publishing deal with Warner/Chappell Music for an estimated $39 million over 12 years, giving them the largest cash advance in music publishing history. In April 1992, John appeared at the Freddie Mercury Tribute Concert at Wembley Stadium, performing "The Show Must Go On" with the remaining members of Queen, and "Bohemian Rhapsody" with Axl Rose of Guns N' Roses and Queen. In September, John performed "The One" at the 1992 MTV Video Music Awards, and also closed the ceremony performing "November Rain" with Guns N' Roses. The following year, he released ''Duets'', a collaboration with 15 artists including Tammy Wynette and RuPaul. This also included a new collaboration with Kiki Dee, entitled "True Love", which reached the Top 10 of the UK charts.

Along with Tim Rice, Elton John wrote the songs for the 1994 Disney animated film ''The Lion King'', which became the 3rd highest-grossing animated feature of all time. At the 67th Academy Awards ceremony, ''The Lion King'' provided three of the five nominees for the Academy Award for Best Song, which John won with "Can You Feel the Love Tonight". Both that and "Circle of Life" became hit songs for John. "Can You Feel the Love Tonight" would also win Elton John the Grammy Award for Best Male Pop Vocal Performance at the 37th Grammy Awards. After the release of the ''The Lion King'' soundtrack, the album remained at the top of ''Billboard'''s charts for nine weeks. On 10 November 1999, the RIAA certified ''The Lion King'' "Diamond" for selling 15 million copies.

In 1995 John released ''Made in England'' (number 3, 1995), which featured the single "Believe". John performed "Believe" at the 1995 Brit Awards, and picked up the prize for Outstanding Contribution to Music. A compilation called ''Love Songs'' was released in 1996.

Early in 1997 John held a 50th birthday party, costumed as Louis XIV, for 500 friends. John also performed with the surviving members of Queen in Paris at the opening night (17 January 1997) of ''Le Presbytère N'a Rien Perdu De Son Charme Ni Le Jardin De Son Éclat'', a work by French ballet legend Maurice Béjart which draws upon AIDS and the deaths of Freddie Mercury and the company's principal dancer Jorge Donn. Later in 1997, two close friends died: designer Gianni Versace was murdered; Diana, Princess of Wales died in a Paris car crash on 31 August. In early September, John contacted his writing partner Bernie Taupin, asking him to revise the lyrics of his 1973 song "Candle in the Wind" to honour Diana, and Taupin rewrote the song accordingly. On 6 September 1997, John performed "Candle in the Wind 1997" at the funeral of Diana, Princess of Wales in Westminster Abbey. The song became the fastest, and biggest-selling single of all time, eventually selling over 33 million copies worldwide. The best-selling single in UK Chart history, it sold 4.86 million copies in the UK. The best-selling single in ''Billboard'' history, and the only single ever certified Diamond in the United States, the single sold over 11 million copies in the U.S. The song proceeds of approximately £55 million were donated to the Diana, Princess of Wales Memorial Fund. It would win John the Grammy Award for Best Male Pop Vocal Performance at the 40th Grammy Awards ceremony in 1998. John has publicly performed "Candle in the Wind 1997" only once, at Diana's funeral, vowing never to perform it again unless asked by Diana's sons.

In the musical theatre world, in addition to a 1998 adaptation of ''The Lion King'' for Broadway, John also composed music for a Disney production of ''Aida'' in 1999 with lyricist Tim Rice, for which they received the Tony Award for Best Original Score at the 54th Tony Awards, and the Grammy Award for Best Musical Show Album at the 43rd Grammy Awards. The musical was given its world premiere in the Alliance Theatre in Atlanta. It went on to Chicago and eventually Broadway. He also released a live compilation album called ''Elton John One Night Only - The Greatest Hits'' from the show he did at Madison Square Garden in New York City that same year.

2000 to present

In 2000, John and Tim Rice teamed again to create songs for DreamWorks' animated film ''The Road to El Dorado''. In August 2003, John scored his fifth UK number one single when "Are You Ready for Love" topped the UK Charts. Returning again to musical theatre, John composed music for a West End Theatre production of ''Billy Elliot the Musical'' in 2005 with playwright Lee Hall. John's only theatrical project with Bernie Taupin so far is ''Lestat: The Musical'', based on the Anne Rice vampire novels. However it was slammed by the critics and closed in May 2006 after 39 performances.

John was named a Disney Legend for his numerous outstanding contributions to Disney's films and theatrical works on 9 October 2006, by The Walt Disney Company. In 2006 he told ''Rolling Stone'' magazine that he plans for his next record to be in the R&B;/hip-hop genre. "I want to work with Pharrell {Williams}, Timbaland, Snoop {Dogg}, Kanye {West}, Eminem and just see what happens."

In March 2007 he performed at Madison Square Garden for a record breaking 60th time for his 60th birthday, the concert was broadcast live and a DVD recording was released as ''Elton 60 - Live at Madison Square Garden''; a greatest-hits compilation CD, ''Rocket Man – Number Ones'', was released in 17 different versions worldwide, including a CD/DVD combo; and his back catalogue - almost 500 songs from 32 albums - became available for legal download.

On 1 July 2007, Elton John appeared at the Concert for Diana held at Wembley Stadium in London, in honour of Diana, Princess of Wales, on what would have been her 46th birthday. John opened the concert with "Your Song", and then closed the concert with his second performance, with "Saturday Night's Alright For Fighting", "Tiny Dancer", and "Are You Ready For Love".

In a September 2008 interview with ''GQ'' magazine, John said: "I’m going on the road again with Billy Joel again next year," referring to "Face to Face," a series of concerts featuring both musicians. The tour began in March and will continue for at least two more years.

In October 2003, John announced that he had signed an exclusive agreement to perform 75 shows over three years at Caesars Palace on the Las Vegas Strip. The show, entitled ''The Red Piano'', was a multimedia concert featuring massive props and video montages created by David LaChapelle. Effectively, he and Celine Dion share performances at Caesars Palace throughout the year - while one performs, one rests. The first of these shows took place on 13 February 2004. On 21 June 2008, he performed his 200th show in Caesars Palace. A DVD/CD package of ''The Red Piano'' was released through Best Buy in November 2008. A two year global tour was sandwiched between commitments in Las Vegas, Nevada, some of the venues of which were new to John. The Red Piano Tour closed in Las Vegas in April 2009.

Elton John performed a piano duet with Lady Gaga at the 52nd Grammy Awards. On 6 June 2010, John performed at the fourth wedding of conservative commentator Rush Limbaugh for a reported US$1 million fee. Eleven days later, and 17 years to the day after his last previous performance in Israel, he performed at the Ramat Gan Stadium; this was significant because of other then-recent cancellations by other performers in the fallout surrounding an Israeli raid on Gaza Flotilla the month before. In his introduction to that concert, Elton John noted he and other musicians should not "cherry-pick our conscience", in reference to Elvis Costello, who was to have performed in Israel two weeks after Elton did, but cancelled in the wake of the aforementioned raid, citing his [Costello's] conscience.

John's latest studio album is entitled ''The Union'' and was released on 19 October 2010. John says his collaboration with American singer-songwriter and sideman Leon Russell marks a new chapter in his recording career, saying: "I don't have to make pop records any more."

He is a member of the British Academy of Songwriters, Composers and Authors (BASCA),

Elton John began his new show "The Million Dollar Piano" at The Colosseum at Caesars Palace, Las Vegas on 28 September 2011. John will be performing the show at Caesars for the next three years. John performed his 3000th concert on Saturday 8 October 2011 at Caesars. In 2011, John performed vocals on ''Snowed in at Wheeler Street'' with Kate Bush for her ''50 Words for Snow'' album.

Artistry

Songwriting

John has written with his song-writing partner Bernie Taupin since 1967 when he answered an advertisement for talent placed in the popular UK music publication, ''New Musical Express'', by Liberty records A&R; man Ray Williams. The pair have collaborated on more than 30 albums to date.

The 1991 film documentary ''Two Rooms'' described the writing style that John and Taupin use, which involves Taupin writing the lyrics on his own, and John then putting them to music, with the two never in the same room during the process. Taupin would write a set of lyrics, then mail them to John, wherever he was in the world, who would then lay down the music, arrange it, and record.

Music style

John's voice was once classed as tenor, it is now baritone. His piano playing is influenced by classical and gospel music. He used Paul Buckmaster to arrange the music on his studio albums during the 1970s.

Personal life

Family

In the late 1960s, John was engaged to be married to his first lover, secretary Linda Woodrow, who is mentioned in the song "Someone Saved My Life Tonight". He married German recording engineer Renate Blauel on 14 February 1984, in Darling Point, Sydney, with speculation that the marriage was a cover for his homosexuality. John had come out as bisexual in a 1976 interview with ''Rolling Stone'', but after his divorce from Blauel in 1988 he told the magazine that he was "comfortable" being gay.

In 1993, John began a relationship with David Furnish, a former advertising executive and now filmmaker. John and Furnish entered a civil partnership on 21 December 2005. They held a low-key ceremony at the Windsor Guildhall, followed by a lavish party at their Berkshire mansion, thought to have cost £1 million. Their son, Zachary Jackson Levon Furnish-John, was born to a surrogate mother on 25 December 2010 in California. John and Furnish chose Lady Gaga, magazine editor Ingrid Sischy, and Sichy's partner Sandy Brant as Zachary's godmothers.

In September 2009, John announced his intention to adopt a 14-month-old boy, Lev, from an AIDS orphanage in Ukraine, but he was denied due to his age and marital status. Furnish stated they would continue to financially support Lev and his brother and would campaign for a change in Ukrainian law. John has ten known godchildren, including Sean Lennon, David and Victoria Beckham's sons Brooklyn and Romeo, Elizabeth Hurley's son Damian Charles, and the daughter of Seymour Stein.

Wealth

In April 2009, the Sunday Times Rich List estimated John's wealth to be £175 million (US$265 million), and ranked him as the 322nd richest person in Britain. John was estimated to have a fortune of £195 million in the ''Sunday Times Rich List'' of 2011, making him one of the 10 richest people in the British music industry. Aside from his main home "Woodside" in Old Windsor, Berkshire, John owns residences in Atlanta, Nice, London's Holland Park, and Venice. John is an art collector, and is believed to have one of the largest private photography collections in the world.

In 2000, John admitted to spending £30 million in just under two years—an average of £1.5 million a month. Between January 1996 and September 1997, he spent more than £9.6m on property and £293,000 on flowers. In June 2001 John sold 20 of his cars at Christie's, saying he didn't get the chance to drive them because he was out of the country so often. The sale, which included a 1993 Jaguar XJ220, the most expensive at £234,750, and several Ferraris, Rolls-Royces, and Bentleys, raised nearly £2 million. In 2003, John sold the contents of his Holland Park home—expected to fetch £800,000 at Sotheby's—in a bid to create more room for his collection of contemporary art which includes many works of art by Young British Artists such as Sam Taylor-Wood and Tracy Emin. Every year since 2004, John has opened a shop called "Elton's Closet" in which he sells his second-hand clothes.

Other

Throughout his career, John has battled addictions to alcohol and cocaine. By 1975, the pressures of stardom had begun to take a serious toll on him. During "Elton Week" in Los Angeles that year, John suffered a drug overdose. He also battled the eating disorder bulimia. In a CNN interview with Larry King in 2002, King asked if John knew of Diana, Princess of Wales' eating disorder. John replied, "Yes, I did. We were both bulimic."

A longtime tennis enthusiast, John wrote the song "Philadelphia Freedom" in tribute to long-time friend Billie Jean King and her World Team Tennis franchise of the same name. John and King also co-host an annual pro-am event to benefit AIDS charities, most notably John's own Elton John AIDS Foundation, for which King is a chairwoman. John, who maintains a part-time residence in Atlanta, Georgia, became a fan of the Atlanta Braves baseball team when he moved there in 1991.

Watford Football Club

John became chairman and director of Watford Football Club in 1976, appointing Graham Taylor as manager and investing large sums of money as the club rose three divisions into the First Division. The pinnacle of the club's success was finishing runners up in the First Division and reaching the FA Cup Final a year later. He sold the club to Jack Petchey in 1987, but remained their life-long president. In 1997 he re-purchased the club from Petchey and once again became chairman. He stepped down in 2002 when the club needed a full-time chairman although he continued as president of the club. Although no longer the majority shareholder, he still holds a significant financial interest. In June 2005 he held a concert at Watford's Vicarage Road ground, donating the funds to the club, and another concert in May 2010. For a time he was also a part-owner of the Los Angeles Aztecs of the North American Soccer League.

AIDS Foundation

John has been associated with AIDS charities since the deaths of his friends Ryan White and Freddie Mercury, raising large amounts of money and using his public profile to raise awareness of the disease. For example, in 1986 he joined with Dionne Warwick, Gladys Knight, and Stevie Wonder to record the single "That's What Friends Are For", with all profits being donated to the American Foundation for AIDS Research. The song won John and the others the Grammy Award for Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal (as well as Song of the Year for its writers, Burt Bacharach and Carole Bayer Sager). In April 1990, John performed "Skyline Pigeon" at the funeral of White, a teenage haemophiliac he had befriended.

John founded the Elton John AIDS Foundation in 1992 as a charity to fund programmes for HIV/AIDS prevention, for the elimination of prejudice and discrimination against HIV/AIDS-affected individuals, and for providing services to people living with or at risk of contracting HIV/AIDS. This cause continues to be one of his personal passions. In early 2006, John donated the smaller of two bright-red Yamaha pianos from his Las Vegas, Nevada show to auction on eBay to raise public awareness and funds for the foundation.

To raise money for his AIDS charity, John hosts annually a glamorous White Tie & Tiara Ball, to which many famous celebrities are invited. On 28 June 2007, the 9th annual White Tie & Tiara Ball took place. The menu consisted of a truffle soufflé followed by Surf and Turf (filet mignon with Maine lobster tail) and a giant Knickerbocker glory ice cream. An auction followed the dinner held by Stephen Fry. A Rolls Royce ‘Phantom’ drophead coupe and a piece of Tracey Emin's artwork both raised £800,000 for the charity fund, with the total amount raised reaching £3.5 million. Later on in the event, John sang "Delilah" with Tom Jones and "Big Spender" with Shirley Bassey. Tickets for the Ball cost £1,000 a head. The event raised £4.6 million for his AIDS Foundation in 2006.

Activism

On 1 April 2010, John joined Cyndi Lauper in the launch of her ''Give a Damn campaign'' to bring a wider awareness of discrimination of the LGBT community as part of her True Colors Fund. In the advertisement, John states: "Imagine walking down the street and wondering if this is the day you'll get beaten up, or even killed, simply because of who you are". The campaign is to bring straight people to stand up with the gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgendered community and stop the discrimination. Other names included in the campaign are Whoopi Goldberg, Jason Mraz, Judith Light, Cynthia Nixon, Kim Kardashian, Clay Aiken, Sharon Osbourne, Kelly Osbourne, and Anna Paquin.

He is an occasional columnist in the ''Guardian''.

Honours and awards

John was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in his first year of eligibility in 1994. He and Bernie Taupin had previously been inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 1992. John was made a Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) in 1995. For his charitable work, John was knighted by Queen Elizabeth II on 24 February 1998. In October 1975, John became the 1,662nd person to receive a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

He became a recipient of a Kennedy Center Honor in 2004, and a Disney Legends Award in 2006. In 2010, Elton John was awarded with the PRS for Music Heritage Award, which was erected, on The Namaste Lounge Pub in Watford, where Elton performed his first ever gig.

Music awards include the Academy Award for Best Original Song for "Can You Feel The Love Tonight" from The Lion King (award shared with Tim Rice); the Golden Globe Award for Best Original Song in 1994 for "Can You Feel The Love Tonight" from The Lion King (award shared with Tim Rice); and the Tony Award for Best Original Score in 2000 for Elton John and Tim Rice's Aida (award shared with Tim Rice).

John has six Grammy Awards:

1987: Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal for "That's What Friends Are For", performed by Dionne Warwick & Friends (award shared with Dionne Warwick, Gladys Knight & Stevie Wonder)

1991: Best Instrumental Composition for "Basque", performed by James Galway

1994: Best Male Pop Vocal Performance for "Can You Feel The Love Tonight"

1997: Best Male Pop Vocal Performance for "Candle In The Wind" 1997

1999: Grammy Legend Award

2001: Best Musical Show Album for ''Elton John & Tim Rice's Aida'' (award shared with Guy Babylon, Paul Bogaev & Chris Montan (producers), Tim Rice (lyricist) and the original Broadway cast with Heather Headley, Adam Pascal, and Sherie Rene Scott)

Elton John Band

Since 1970, John's band, of which he is the pianist and lead singer, has been known as the Elton John Band. The band has had multiple line-up changes, but Nigel Olsson, Davey Johnstone, and Ray Cooper have been members (albeit non-consecutively) since 1970 (Olsson) and 1972 (Johnstone and Cooper). Ray Cooper is on and off with the Elton John Band because he works with other musicians as a session and road-tour percussionist. Furthermore, John has also used a number of session musicians in the time of his career.

Discography

;Studio albums

''Empty Sky'' (1969)

''Elton John'' (1970)

''Tumbleweed Connection'' (1970)

''Madman Across the Water'' (1971)

''Honky Château'' (1972)

''Don't Shoot Me I'm Only the Piano Player'' (1973)

''Goodbye Yellow Brick Road'' (1973)

''Caribou'' (1974)

''Captain Fantastic and the Brown Dirt Cowboy'' (1975)

''Rock of the Westies'' (1975)

''Blue Moves'' (1976)

''A Single Man'' (1978)

''Victim of Love'' (1979)

''21 at 33'' (1980)

''The Fox'' (1981)

''Jump Up!'' (1982)

''Too Low for Zero'' (1983)

''Breaking Hearts'' (1984)

''Ice on Fire'' (1985)

''Leather Jackets'' (1986)

''Reg Strikes Back'' (1988)

''Sleeping with the Past'' (1989)

''The One'' (1992)

''Duets'' (1993)

''Made in England'' (1995)

''The Big Picture'' (1997)

''Songs from the West Coast'' (2001)

''Peachtree Road'' (2004)

''The Captain & the Kid'' (2006)

''The Union (with Leon Russell)'' (2010)

''TBA'' (2012)

;Soundtracks, scores & theatre albums

''Friends'' (1971)

''The Lion King'' (1994)

''Aida'' (1998)

''The Muse'' (1999)

''The Road to El Dorado (soundtrack)'' (2000)

''Billy Elliot'' (2005)

''Lestat'' (2005)

''Gnomeo & Juliet'' (2011)

;Films

''Elton John: Me, Myself & I'' (2007) autobiography as himself

''The Country Bears'', US (2002) as himself

''Spice World'', UK (1997) as himself

''Tommy'', UK (1975) as Pinball Wizard

''Born to Boogie'', US playing as himself with Marc Bolan and Ringo Starr

References

;Bibliography

''Elton John: A Visual Documentary'', Nigel Goodall, Omnibus Press, 1993 ISBN 0711930783

''His Song: The Musical Journey of Elton John'', Elizabeth Rosenthal, Billboard Books, 2001, ISBN 0823088928

External links

Elton John's official website

Commentary by Elton John (''The Guardian'')

Category:1947 births Category:AIDS activists Category:Alumni of the Royal Academy of Music Category:Best Song Academy Award winning songwriters Category:Brit Award winners Category:British rhythm and blues boom musicians Category:British soft rock musicians Category:Commanders of the Order of the British Empire Category:English football chairmen and investors Category:English-language singers Category:English musical theatre composers Category:English pop pianists Category:English rock pianists Category:English singer-songwriters Category:English tenors Category:Grammy Award winners Category:Ivor Novello Award winners Category:Kennedy Center honorees Category:Knights Bachelor Category:LGBT composers Category:LGBT musicians from the United Kingdom Category:LGBT people from England Category:Living people Category:Musicians from London Category:People from Old Windsor Category:People from Pinner Category:People self-identifying as alcoholics Category:Religious skeptics Category:Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductees Category:Rocket Records artists Category:Silver Clef Awards winners Category:Singers from London Category:Songwriters Hall of Fame inductees Category:Watford F.C. directors Category:MusiCares Person of the Year Category:Grammy Legend Award

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name	Steven Tyler
background	solo_singer
birth name	Steven Victor Tallarico
alias	"Demon of Screamin'"
birth date	March 26, 1948
birth place	Yonkers, NY, US
instrument	Vocals, harmonica, piano, percussion, maracas, guitar, bass guitar, mandolin, violin, flute, mellotron, hammered dulcimer, accordion, saxophone, trumpet, drums
genre	Hard rock, blues rock, heavy metal
occupation	Singer-songwriter, musician, actor, multi-instrumentalist, talent judge
years active	1964–present
associated acts	Aerosmith, Chain Reaction, The Strangeurs }}

Steven Tyler (born Steven Victor Tallarico on March 26, 1948) is an American singer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist, best known as the frontman and lead singer of the Boston-based rock band Aerosmith, in which he also plays the harmonica, and occasional piano and percussion. He is the father of actress Liv Tyler. He is also known as the "Demon of Screamin'" and is equally known for his on-stage acrobatics. During his high-energy performances, he usually dresses in bright, colorful outfits with his trademark scarves hanging from his microphone stand. In the 1970s, Tyler rose to prominence as the frontman of Aerosmith, which released such milestone hard rock albums as ''Toys in the Attic'' and ''Rocks''. In the late 1970s and early 1980s, Tyler had a heavy drug and alcohol addiction, and the band's popularity waned.

He completed drug rehabilitation in 1986 and has subsequently maintained sobriety for over 20 years, aside from an addiction to prescription painkillers in the late 2000s, for which he successfully received treatment in 2009. After Aerosmith launched a remarkable comeback in the late 1980s and early 1990s with the albums ''Permanent Vacation'', ''Pump'', and ''Get a Grip'', Tyler became a household name and has remained a relevant rock icon. As a result, he has since embarked on several solo endeavors including guest appearances on other artists' music as well as film and TV roles (including as a judge on ''American Idol''). However, he has continued to record music and perform with Aerosmith, after more than 41 years in the band. He is included among ''Rolling Stone'''s 100 Greatest Singers. He was also ranked 3rd on ''Hit Parader'''s Top 100 Metal Vocalists of All Time. In 2001 he was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame with Aerosmith, and he was the presenter when AC/DC was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2003.

Early life

Steven Victor Tallarico was born March 26, 1948 in Yonkers, New York, the son of Susan (née Blancha), a secretary, and Victor A. Tallarico, a classical musician and pianist. His father was of Italian and German descent and his mother was of Polish, Russian and English ancestry (his maternal grandfather had changed his surname from "Czarnyszewicz" to "Blancha"). Tyler has stated that he grew up "under his father's piano", and that from what his father played, he got "that emotional thing" that he has with music. When he was sixteen, he formed his first band, called The Strangeurs, later changed to Chain Reaction, where he was the drummer, and later the lead singer. Tyler also had been part of a few local bands, like William Proud and The Left Banke. He was expelled from Roosevelt High School due to his drug use. He graduated from the Leonard Quintano for Young Professionals School in 1967. He attended Woodstock with Joe Perry and Joey Kramer, his future Aerosmith bandmates.

Career

Formation and success of Aerosmith (1970–1978)

Before Aerosmith was formed, Tyler wrote what would become one of Aerosmith's signature songs, "Dream On". In 1969, Tyler attended a local rock show in Sunapee, New Hampshire where he first saw future band-mates Joe Perry (guitars) and Tom Hamilton (Bass), who at the time were playing in a band called the Jam Band. Tyler later stated he was struck by their raw power and attitude. Around 1970, Tyler, Perry, and Hamilton decided to form a band. However, Tyler, who had typically performed drums in many of his previous bands, insisted that he be the frontman and lead singer of this band. Joey Kramer, a friend of Tyler's from New York, was recruited to play drums. They also added Tyler's boyhood friend Ray Tabano as a second guitarist. The band moved to Boston and shared a small apartment on Commonwealth Avenue in Brighton. Tabano was replaced by Brad Whitford in 1971.

After spending time on the Boston club circuit under the tutelage of their first manager, Frank Connelly, the band began working with New York managers Steve Leber and David Krebs. Leber describes the band as "the closest thing I've ever seen to the Rolling Stones." On October, 1971, the managers arranged the gig at the legendary nightclub Max's Kansas City to showcase the group to record company executives. They subsequently signed a record deal with Columbia Records in 1971 and released their eponymous debut album in 1973. This was followed by ''Get Your Wings'' in 1974. Around this time, Aerosmith continued to tour wherever they could, and opened for bands like Mott the Hoople. The band had a minor hit in "Dream On", which peaked at No.59 in 1973, but it wasn't until the back-to-back releases of ''Toys in the Attic'' (1975) and ''Rocks'' (1976) that Aerosmith broke into the mainstream. In 1975, they achieved their first Top 40 hit in "Sweet Emotion". Soon after, "Dream On" was re-released and hit No. 6 in 1976, followed by another Top 10 hit "Walk This Way". Additionally, ''Rocks'' produced the hit singles "Last Child", "Back in the Saddle", and "Home Tonight". By 1976, Aerosmith found themselves headlining huge stadiums and major rock music festivals. That year, Tyler emerged as a prominent rock star and sex symbol in his own right, gracing the cover of ''Rolling Stone'' magazine. 1977's ''Draw the Line'' continued the band's success, and they were catapulted to international fame and recognition, launching tours in Europe and Japan. A series of Hot 100 hits continued throughout the remainder of the decade, including "Draw the Line", "Kings and Queens", and "Chip Away the Stone". Aerosmith's first five albums have also all since gone multi-platinum, and all five are considered to be among the greatest hard rock albums of all time. Aerosmith toured heavily throughout the mid to late 1970s, and their live shows during this time period were captured through 1978's live album ''Live Bootleg!'' and the 1989 VHS release ''Live Texxas Jam '78''. 1978 also saw Tyler make his acting debut as the leader of The Future Villain Band in the film ''Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band'', alongside his fellow Aerosmith band-mates. The film also spawned Aerosmith's cover of the Beatles hit "Come Together", which would be Aerosmith's last Top 40 single for nine years.

Decline of Aerosmith (1979–1983)

As the decade wore on, the fast-paced life of touring, recording, living together, and using drugs began to take its toll on the band. Tyler and Perry often were called the Toxic Twins for their legendary intake of stimulants and heroin. Their relationship is well documented in many of Aerosmith's video releases as well as in the Aerosmith ''Behind the Music''. On July 28, 1979, after a huge fight at a concert in Cleveland, Perry left Aerosmith to begin his own band, The Joe Perry Project. ''Night in the Ruts'' was released that fall, and Aerosmith forged on with new guitarist Jimmy Crespo. In the fall of 1980, Tyler was injured in a serious motorcycle crash that left him hospitalized for two months and unable to tour or record for much of 1981. When the band re-convened to begin recording, Tyler formed a writing partnership with Crespo, co-writing and producing the album ''Rock in a Hard Place'' (1982). Brad Whitford had left in 1981, shortly after recording the guitar parts for the album's lead single, "Lightning Strikes". Whitford was replaced by Rick Dufay, and the band continued to tour into 1983. Tyler's drug abuse increasingly became problematic, and he collapsed on-stage.

Reuniting and getting clean (1984–1986)

On February 14, 1984, Perry and Whitford, who left the band in 1979 and 1981 respectively, showed up at an Aerosmith show. According to the band's ''Behind the Music'' special on VH1, Tyler alleges he made the first phone call to Perry encouraging them to meet up again. Backstage, they all met, and Perry and Whitford agreed to join the band once again. With the new reunion, the band also fired their managers Leber and Krebs, hired new manager Tim Collins (who was managing Joe Perry) and signed a new record contract with Geffen Records.

Aerosmith embarked on a reunion tour, the "Back in the Saddle Tour", and proceeded to record once again, releasing ''Done with Mirrors'' in 1985. The band was still using drugs, however, especially Tyler, who collapsed at a show in Springfield, Illinois, on the 1984 tour. In 1986, the band held a meeting in which the band members staged an intervention on Tyler and convinced him to enter a drug rehabilitation program.

After Tyler had successfully completed rehab, every other member of Aerosmith eventually followed suit; all had successfully exited their respective programs at various times in the mid-late 1980s.

Comeback and superstardom (1986–1999)

Aerosmith rose to prominence again when Tyler and Perry appeared on Run–D.M.C.'s cover of Aerosmith's "Walk This Way" in 1986, a track that combined elements of hip-hop and rock, that broke down the barriers between the two genres, broke rap into the mainstream, and introduced Aerosmith to a new generation. The track hit No.4 on the charts and launched a famous music video that saw heavy rotation. This paved the way for Aerosmith to mount a significant comeback. Tyler and Perry renewed their songwriting partnership but were now also working with outside songwriting collaborators brought in by the record company, like Desmond Child and Jim Vallance. In addition, to help give Aerosmith a slick sound that would be accessible to mainstream audiences, they were receiving help from producer Bruce Fairbairn and A&R; man John Kalodner. Aerosmith released ''Permanent Vacation'' in 1987, which became a huge multi-platinum success and launched three Top 20 hits ("Dude (Looks Like a Lady)", "Angel", and "Rag Doll"). The band launched a tour with the emerging Guns N' Roses opening many shows. ''Permanent Vacation'' was followed by 1989's ''Pump'', which was even more successful, selling 7 million copies and producing three Top 10 hits ("Love in an Elevator", "Janie's Got a Gun", and "What it Takes") and one Top 40 hit ("The Other Side"). ''Pump'' in particular saw Tyler expand his musical horizons, co-writing the innovative hit "Janie's Got a Gun", which won the band their first Grammy award. The band toured with many up-and-coming acts and performed in locations like Australia for the first time. In the late 1980s, Tyler also guested on albums by comedian Sam Kinison, Alice Cooper (a fellow 70s rocker also launching a successful comeback) and popular contemporaries Mötley Crüe. Around that time, Tyler and Perry also appeared at a Bon Jovi concert in Milton Keynes and performed "Walk This Way".

With the twin successes of ''Permanent Vacation'' and ''Pump'', the band became an MTV sensation and Tyler became a household name. The band were featured on a "Wayne's World" sketch on ''Saturday Night Live'' in 1990, which is ranked as the No.1 moment of all time on the show. That same year, Aerosmith recorded one of the first episodes of ''MTV Unplugged''. In 1991, Aerosmith was one of the first bands to be featured on ''The Simpsons''. That year, the band also signed a $30 million record deal with their old label Columbia, which they would begin recording for later that decade. The box set ''Pandora's Box'' was released by Columbia in late 1991, and the band filmed a music video for "Sweet Emotion" to promote the release. Earlier in the year, the band also performed "Dream On" with an orchestra at MTV's 10th Anniversary celebration; their filmed performance was used as the official video for the song. After a brief break, the band returned to the studio in 1992 to record their next album. The band's A&R; man John Kalodner criticized some of the early material being considered for this album, targeting Tyler's sexually profane lyrics in particular. As Tyler was no longer using drugs, some members of the band and their management had believed Tyler had now become a sex addict. thumb|left|150px|Steven Tyler performing on the Get a Grip Tour in 1993. However, the band eventually began recording again and released ''Get a Grip'' in 1993, which became their most successful album worldwide, selling over 15 million copies and producing a series of hit singles ("Livin' on the Edge", "Cryin'", "Amazing", "Crazy"). While the album saw mixed reviews and received some criticism for over-using outside collaborators, Aerosmith won more awards during this time than any other, winning two Grammy Awards, four MTV Video Music Awards, two American Music Awards, a People's Choice award, and a Billboard Award. The band became well-known for their videos at this time, which featured film-like storylines and up-and-coming actors and actresses like Edward Furlong, Stephen Dorff, Jason London, Josh Holloway, and most notably Alicia Silverstone. Tyler's daughter Liv made her acting debut in the band's video for "Crazy" in 1994. The band also launched their biggest and most extensive tour yet, performing over 240 shows in nearly 30 countries, including touring Latin America for the first time and performing in many European countries for the first time.

After the 18-month long Get a Grip Tour ended in December 1994, the band took a break in 1995 to spend time with their families. This break was needed due to the grueling lifestyle of the previous 10 years under the helm of manager Tim Collins, who helped orchestrate much of the band's comeback and sustained success. Tyler and Perry also began writing for a new album, and the band performed a couple one-off shows in Boston to try out the new material, and vacationed together with their families in Florida. Aerosmith, however, almost broke up after the band's manager spread rumors that band members were saying bad things about each other and that Tyler was being unfaithful to his wife and using drugs again during recording sessions in Miami. The band subsequently fired Collins in 1996 in the middle of recording for their next album. In 1997, they released ''Nine Lives'', which went double platinum, launched three hits ("Falling in Love (Is Hard on the Knees)", "Hole in My Soul", and "Pink"), and won the band their fourth Grammy for "Pink". They toured for over two years in support of the album. In 1997, Steven Tyler and Joe Perry were featured in a commercial for the Gap. That fall, the band's tell-all autobiography was released.

In 1998, while on tour in support of ''Nine Lives'', Tyler suffered a ligament injury when his mic stand came crashing into his knee. Tyler and the band finished the show, but they had to cancel several dates, and Tyler had to wear a leg cast while filming the video for "I Don't Want to Miss a Thing". The song was the band's first No.1 hit and the only song to date by a rock band to debut at No.1 on the Hot 100. It has since become a slow-dance staple, and at the time introduced Aerosmith and Steven Tyler to yet another new generation. The song was written for the film ''Armageddon'', which featured Tyler's daughter Liv.

In 1999, Tyler and Perry joined Kid Rock and Run–D.M.C. to perform "Walk This Way" at the MTV Video Music Awards. Earlier that year, the band saw the Rock 'n' Roller Coaster Starring Aerosmith open at Walt Disney World.

Continued success and touring (2000–08)

In 2001, Aerosmith played at the Super Bowl XXXV Halftime Show and were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. The band also released the album ''Just Push Play'', which featured the Top 10 hit "Jaded". The band went on tour again in the summer of 2001, and since then Aerosmith has toured every year, except 2008. After the September 11 attacks, the band performed at the benefit concert "United We Stand" in Washington, D.C. Tyler donned a full-length jacket featuring the American flag, and the band performed a brief set including "Livin' on the Edge", "I Don't Want to Miss a Thing", "Just Push Play", and "Walk This Way". The band flew back to Indianapolis to perform a show that same night.

In 2002, Aerosmith's two-hour long ''Behind the Music'' was released, chronicling the band's tumultuous history and current activities and touring. They were also honored as MTV Icons. In the summer, they released the compilation ''O, Yeah! The Ultimate Aerosmith Hits'', which went double platinum and included the new track "Girls of Summer", which spawned a namesake tour with Kid Rock and Run–D.M.C. opening.

In 2003, Tyler received an honorary degree from Berklee College of Music, and, in 2005, received an honorary doctorate from the University of Massachusetts Boston. In 2003, Tyler also inducted AC/DC into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Tyler sang with AC/DC frontman Brian Johnson for a performance of "You Shook Me All Night Long". Later in the year, Tyler went on tour with Aerosmith for the Rocksimus Maximus Tour with KISS.

In 2004, Aerosmith released the blues cover album ''Honkin' on Bobo'' and launched a brief tour with Cheap Trick, focused on smaller markets. That summer, Tyler starred in a commercial for Sony's Cyber-shot camera, which also included the Aerosmith song "The Grind", a new song featured on ''Honkin' on Bobo''. Later that year, Tyler sang the National Anthem to kick off the 2004 World Series at Fenway Park. The 2004 film ''The Polar Express'' featured Tyler singing "Rockin' on Top of the World" alongside a group of computer-animated elves resembling Aerosmith.

In 2005, Tyler sang lead vocals on Santana's hit single "Just Feel Better" and made a cameo appearance in the film ''Be Cool''.

In 2006, after recovering from throat surgery and the grueling Rockin' the Joint Tour, Steven Tyler performed with Joe Perry and the Boston Pops Orchestra for the orchestra's annual Fourth of July concert, his first major public appearance since the surgery. During the concert, which was broadcast nationally on CBS, Tyler, Perry, and the orchestra performed a medley of "Walk This Way", "I Don't Want to Miss a Thing" and "Dream On". That year, Tyler also recorded a duet with country music artist Keith Anderson, titled "Three Chord Country and American Rock & Roll". The song, a remixed version of a song found on Anderson's debut album, was released as a single on the U.S. Hot Country Songs charts.

Later that year, the Aerosmith compilation ''Devil's Got a New Disguise'' was released, which included two new tracks. Tyler hit the road with Aerosmith again for the Route of All Evil Tour with Mötley Crüe and also made several more public appearances. He made a cameo appearance on the sitcom ''Two and a Half Men'', playing himself. On October 14, 2006, Tyler sang "God Bless America" during the seventh inning stretch at Game No.3 of the National League Championship Series between the St. Louis Cardinals and the New York Mets at Busch Stadium in St. Louis. On November 24, he volunteered by serving Thanksgiving dinner to the needy at a restaurant in West Palm Beach, Florida, before an Aerosmith show there.

In 2007, Tyler kept active in Aerosmith with the band's world tour which saw them perform in 19 countries. Also that year, Tyler and daughter Liv were profiled on ''E! True Hollywood Story.

On May 21, 2008, Tyler checked into Las Encinas Hospital rehabilitation clinic in Pasadena, California, to recover from multiple leg surgeries. He made a public statement saying that "The 'foot repair' pain was intense, greater than I'd anticipated. The months of rehabilitative care and the painful strain of physical therapy were traumatic. I really needed a safe environment to recuperate where I could shut off my phone and get back on my feet." In June 2008, ''Guitar Hero: Aerosmith'' was released, the franchise's first video game based solely around one band and the most successful game based around a band. On July 14, 2008, Tyler's mother, Susan Rey Tallarico, died at the age of 84. On July 18, 2008, Steven Tyler appeared with Billy Joel at the last concert to be played at Shea Stadium. Backed by Joel's band, he sang lead vocals on "Walk This Way". In August 2008 HarperCollins won an auction to publish Tyler's autobiography. That same month, Tyler performed with trumpeter Chris Botti in Boston. In December 2008, Tyler made a surprise appearance at the Trans-Siberian Orchestra concerts at Nassau Coliseum (December 12, 2008) and the Izod Center (December 13, 2008). At the Izod Center, he collaborated with the Trans-Siberian Orchestra on "Dream On" and "Sweet Emotion".

Recent events (2009–present)

On August 5, 2009, while on the Guitar Hero Aerosmith Tour, Tyler fell off a stage near Sturgis, South Dakota, injuring his head and neck and breaking his shoulder. He was airlifted to Rapid City Regional Hospital. Aerosmith was forced to cancel the rest of their 2009 tour, except for two shows in Hawaii in October. Back in 2007, Aerosmith had to cancel their first concert in Maui, which resulted in a class action lawsuit involving 8,000 plaintiffs. Attendees received tickets and, in some cases, reimbursements for out of pocket expenses. The band also performed in early November at an auto race in Abu Dhabi.

On November 9, 2009, it was reported that Steven Tyler had no contact with the other members of Aerosmith and that they were unsure if he was still in the band. On November 10, 2009, Joe Perry confirmed that Steven Tyler had quit Aerosmith to pursue a solo career and was unsure whether the move was indefinite. No replacement was announced. Despite rumors of leaving the band, and notwithstanding Perry's comment as reported earlier the same day, Tyler joined The Joe Perry Project onstage November 10, 2009, at the Fillmore New York at Irving Plaza and performed "Walk This Way." According to sources at the event, Tyler assured the crowd that despite rumors to the contrary, he is "not quitting Aerosmith." On December 22, 2009, ''Rolling Stone'' reported that Tyler had checked into rehab for pain management.

In 2010, Steven Tyler embarked on the Cocked, Locked, Ready to Rock Tour with Aerosmith, which saw them perform over 40 concerts in 18 countries. On September 16, 2010, it was reported that Tyler would have his first solo project. He wrote "Love Lives", which serves as a theme song for the Japanese sci-fi movie ''Space Battleship Yamato''. The song was based on the English translated script, as well as on some clips of the film itself. The single was released on November 24, a week before the movie was released. A preview of the single can be heard in the movie's trailers. On September 22, 2010, Fox confirmed that Tyler would join ''American Idol'' as a member of the judging panel for the program's tenth season, alongside Randy Jackson and Jennifer Lopez. In December 2010, Tyler performed at the Kennedy Center Honors, honoring Paul McCartney by performing several tracks from ''Abbey Road''.

On January 19, 2011, Tyler made his debut appearance as a judge on ''American Idol'', during the premiere of the show's tenth season, which aired through the end of May. On April 2, 2011, Tyler presented an award at the 2011 Kids' Choice Awards. The following day, Steven Tyler performed with Carrie Underwood at the Academy of Country Music Awards. Underwood and Tyler performed Underwood's song "Undo It" and completed their segment with an energetic version of the Aerosmith classic "Walk This Way". On May 3, 2011, Tyler released his autobiography ''Does the Noise in My Head Bother You?'' The book was accompanied by the new single "(It) Feels So Good", released May 10. The single reached #35 on the Billboard Hot 100. In addition, during breaks in between ''Idol'', Tyler worked on new material for Aerosmith's next studio album. Tyler performed the Aerosmith song "Dream On" on the season finale of ''American Idol'' on May 25.

In August 2011, it was announced that Tyler would be the inspiration for Andy Hilfiger's new fashion line, Andrew Charles. In addition to serving as the inspiration for all menswear, Steven and his daughter, Chelsea Tyler, will appear in the line's advertising campaign. Steven is also developing a signature scarf collection called "Rock Scarf" for Andrew Charles. Both the Andrew Charles collection and the Rock Scarf line will be exclusively available in select Macy's stores and on macys.com starting September of 2011.

Tyler is currently working with the other members of Aerosmith on the band's next studio album. After finishing up in the studio, the band will tour Latin America and Japan in the fall of 2011. In addition, Tyler has confirmed he will be on season 11 of ''American Idol'' which is set to air in January 2012.

Dirico Motorcycles (formerly Red Wing Motorcycles)

On September 15, 2007, at New Hampshire International Speedway, Steven announced the launch of Dirico Motorcycles (formerly Red Wing Motorcycles). Dirico's bikes are designed by Steven Tyler, engineered by Mark Dirico, and built by AC Custom Motorcycles in Manchester, New Hampshire.

Steven has been a long time motorcycle fan and riding enthusiast. About the new Dirico Motorcycles, Tyler said, “You get on one of these bikes and you can ride for days. These bikes are slick, rugged, and just damn cool. And they’re amazing to look at.”

Steven Tyler also participates in a variety of charity auctions involving motorcycles, including the Ride for Children charity.

Steven is also friends with Paul Teutul from American Chopper fame

Personal life

Family and relationships

In 1975, Tyler convinced the parents of 16 year old groupie Julia Holcomb (sometimes spelled Holcolm) to sign over guardianship to him so that he could live with her in Boston. They dated and did drugs together for three years. Holcomb was referred to as "Diana Hall" by the editor of the Aerosmith autobiography ''Walk This Way'' in an attempt to conceal her identity, but other sources have confirmed her identity. Pressures leading to their split included both their age difference (Tyler was 27 when they first met), a house fire, and a pregnancy that resulted in an abortion. Band member Ray Tabano wrote in ''Walk This Way'' that the abortion "really messed Steven up" because the child was a boy. Tyler wrote, "It was a big crisis. It's a major thing when you're growing something with a woman, but they convinced us that it would never work out and would ruin our lives...You go to the doctor and they put the needle in her belly and they squeeze the stuff in and you watch. And it comes out dead. I was pretty devastated. In my mind, I'm going, Jesus, what have I done?"

After returning Holcomb to her parents, Tyler had a brief relationship with fashion model Bebe Buell, during which he fathered actress Liv Tyler (Buell initially claimed that the father was Todd Rundgren to protect her daughter from Tyler's drug addiction).

In 1978, he married Cyrinda Foxe, from daughter Liv's marriage to British musician Royston Langdon from the band Spacehog.

On May 28, 1988, in Tulsa, Oklahoma, Tyler married clothing designer Teresa Barrick. A statement from Tyler's publicist read in part, "Despite Aerosmith's desire to keep the tour going as long as possible, [Tyler's] doctors advised him not to continue performing to give his voice time to recover." Aerosmith's remaining North American tour dates in 2006 on the Rockin' the Joint Tour were subsequently canceled.

The surgery, to correct a popped blood vessel in his throat, was a success. In the words of Tyler: "He just took a laser and zapped the blood vessel." After a few weeks of rest, Tyler and the rest of Aerosmith entered the studio on May 20, 2006 to begin work on their new album.

On July 3–4, 2006, Tyler and Joe Perry performed at the Boston Waterfront with the Boston Pops Orchestra and sang the songs "Dream On", "Walk This Way", and "I Don't Want To Miss A Thing" as part of the Boston July 4 Fireworks Spectacular. The concert was notable as Tyler's first public performance since the surgery. A tour launched later in fall 2006 with Mötley Crüe, titled the Route of All Evil Tour.

Steven Tyler's throat surgery was featured in 2007 on an episode of the National Geographic Channel series, ''Incredible Human Machine''.

Hepatitis C

In a September 2006 interview with ''Access Hollywood'', Steven Tyler revealed that he had been suffering from Hepatitis C for the past 11 years. He was diagnosed with the disease in 2003 and had undergone extensive treatment from 2003–2006, including 11 months of interferon therapy, which he said was "agony".

Discography

With Aerosmith

Collaborative work

Year	!Song	!Artist	!Album
	"Walk This Way"	Run-D.M.C. featuring Steven Tyler and Joe Perry
		Sam Kinison; guest performers include Steven Tyler	''Have You Seen Me Lately?''
	Various tracks	Alice Cooper; guest performers include Steven Tyler
	"Slice of Your Pie"	Mötley Crüe; guest performers include Steven Tyler
	"Sticky Sweet"	Mötley Crüe; guest performers include Steven Tyler	''Dr. Feelgood''
	"Roots, Rock, Reggae"	Bob Marley featuring Steven Tyler	''Chant Down Babylon''
	"Misery"		''Missundaztood''
	"Sing for the Moment"	Eminem featuring Steven Tyler and Joe Perry (uncredited; Dream On sample used; New recording not done)	''The Eminem Show''
	"I'm a King Bee"	Steven Tyler and Joe Perry	''Lightning in a Bottle Soundtrack''
	"Just Feel Better"
	"Three Chord Country and American Rock & Roll"	Keith Anderson featuring Steven Tyler	''Three Chord Country and American Rock & Roll''
	"Cryin'" and "Smile"	Chris Botti featuring Steven Tyler	''Chris Botti in Boston''

Solo work

Year	Single	Chart Positions
!width=45
2010		–
2011		35

Filmography

{|class="wikitable" style="font-size: 95%;" border="2" cellpadding="4" background: #f9f9f9; |- align="center" ! style="background:#B0C4DE;" | Year ! style="background:#B0C4DE;" | Film ! style="background:#B0C4DE;" | Role |- | 1978 || ''Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band'' || Member of the Future Villain Band |- | 1988 || ''The Decline of Western Civilization Part II: The Metal Years'' || Himself |- | 1990 || ''Saturday Night Live'': Musical guest; "Wayne's World" sketch || Himself |- | 1991 || ''The Simpsons'': "Flaming Moe's" episode || Himself (voice) |- | 1993 || ''Wayne's World 2'' || Himself |- | 1993 || ''Saturday Night Live'': Musical guest; "Bad Dancer" sketch || Himself |- | 1997 || ''Saturday Night Live'': Musical guest; "Mary Katherine Gallagher" sketch || Himself |- | 1999 || ''Clubland'' || David Foster |- | 2001 || ''Saturday Night Live'': Musical guest || Himself |- | 2003 || Lizzie McGuire||Father Christmas/Himself |- | 2004 || ''The Polar Express'' || Elf Lieutenant / Elf Singer |- | 2004 || ''Goodnight Joseph Parker'' || Sammy |- | 2005 || ''Be Cool'' || Himself |- | 2006 || ''Two and a Half Men'': two episodes || Himself |- | 2009 || ''Chris Botti in Boston'' || Himself |- | 2011 || ''American Idol'' || Talent Judge (Himself) |}

Awards and nominations

See also

Toxic Twins

References

External links

Category:1948 births Category:Aerosmith members Category:People of Calabrian descent Category:American musicians of Italian descent Category:American musicians of German descent Category:American musicians of Polish descent Category:American musicians of Russian descent Category:American musicians of English descent Category:American male singers Category:American rock singers Category:American heavy metal singers Category:American tenors Category:Berklee College of Music alumni Category:English-language singers Category:Idol series judges Category:Living people Category:Musicians from New York Category:People from Yonkers, New York Category:People self-identifying as substance abusers

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