Blabbermouth.net is a website dedicated to heavy metal and hard rock news, as well as album and music DVD reviews. Blabbermouth.net was founded and is run by Borivoj Krgin. The first version of the website was officially launched in March 2001. In October 2001, the website's design was completely changed and the record label Roadrunner Records began hosting it.

Users can post comments to selected news articles and album reviews, either in response to other user comments or in response to the article itself. Blabbermouth.net, described by the London Free Press as a "reliable industry and fan site",^[1] has been widely cited as a source on heavy metal and hard rock.

History[link]

Founder Borivoj Krgin came up with the concept of Blabbermouth in January 2000. Robert Kampf, a friend of Krgin who runs Century Media Records, was staying with Krgin in New York and set up a meeting with Gunter Ford of World Management. During the meeting, Ford suggested an idea for a "heavy metal portal," a site which would offer news, merchandise, and CD reviews to get record labels to sell their products through the site. Ford wanted Kampf to be involved. Krgin disliked the idea and wished for a site that offered around-the-clock news, as he thought that no good news sites existed.^[2]

Krgin began researching how to develop and host his own website two months after the meeting. After a year Krgin felt comfortable going "live." The initial "primitive" version of the site was launched on March 3, 2001. In October of the same year Monte Conner, a friend of Krgin, and a Roadrunner Records artist and repertoire approached Krgin with the idea of having the site hosted on the Roadrunner servers. This way, Krgin could focus on Blabbermouth.net's content rather than the technical aspects involved in running a site.^[2]

In February 2011, the website added a 'Shop' link to the site, clicking on the link takes you to a page that says "Coming Soon".

Sources[link]

According to his own words, Krgin spends most of his time operating the site, supposedly missing out on sleep and other life essentials.^[2] When finding information relating to bands Krgin claims to search bands official websites (including social networking sites ), which are usually reported on immediately, and band message boards where members of the band post. However, Krgin relies on the contacts he has made over the years ranging from band members, metal journalists, managers and other people in the music industry, stating this is where the "best" information comes from.^[2]

Krgin supposedly sends e-mails and makes telephone calls daily to obtain new information. Blabbermouth.net has a 'submit news' feature which has proved to be helpful to Krgin. When receiving a rumor he deems worthy of posting, Krgin will first research and contact people related to the band and question them about the rumour. It's claimed that 90% of the information posted is either found online or is submitted directly to the website by bands, managers, labels or associated persons.^[2]

Criticism[link]

Blabbermouth.net has been criticized by musicians and music industry persons for internet trolls (users that make derogatory comments) and news posts that are unrelated to heavy metal or hard rock.^[2] Krgin said he posts these articles to attract humorous comments from users, and as relief from the constant monotony of album news.^[2]

In September 2006, Krgin claims to have performed a cleanup of Blabbermouth.net's comments and to have adopted a policy whereby users can report offensive comments in order to have them deleted from the site. Prior to this, in his own words, "countless abusive, obscene, defamatory, racist, homophobic and threatening comments" had been posted on the site since the "comments" feature was implemented in early 2002.^[3]

Traffic[link]

Blabbermouth.net is visited by more than 1.2 million unique users each month, and it has an average of 80,000 unique visitors per day, according to Google Analytics (as of August 2011). The busiest day so far was 298,000 unique visitors in a single 24-hour period, which occurred on the day of Ronnie James Dio's passing (May 16, 2010). The second-busiest day was more than 200,000 unique visitors in a single 24-hour period, which happened the day after the death of Type O Negative frontman Peter Steele -- April 15, 2010.

Busiest days in Blabbermouth.net's history—as measured in "Absolute Unique Visitors" (Google Analytics):

• Sunday, May 16, 2010: 298,378 (the day Ronnie James Dio died)
• Thursday, April 15, 2010: 206,183 (the day after Peter Steele died)
• Monday, May 17, 2010: 170,905 (the day after Ronnie James Dio died)
• Monday, May 24, 2010: 154,969 (the day Paul Gray was found dead)
• Thursday, December 9, 2004: 154,000 (the day after "Dimebag" Darrell Abbott was murdered)

Each of the figures above represents the number of "Absolute Unique Visitors" (Google Analytics) that visited Blabbermouth.net in a single 24-hour period. The figures were provided by Google Analytics except for the December 9, 2004 number of unique visitors, which came from WebTrends.

Blabbermouth.net's busiest month so far was May 2010, with 1,675,645 "Absolute Unique Visitors," according to Google Analytics -- primarily driven by extra traffic caused by the deaths of Ronnie James Dio and Slipknot bassist Paul Gray.

Blabbermouth.net is ranked as the 29,897 most trafficked Web sites according to Alexa.^[4] However, this number is misleading as it only covers the visits to www.blabbermouth.net, which is a small portion of the web site's traffic (since the actual web site hosted by Roadrunner Records and is located at www.roadrunnerrecords.com/blabbermouth.net, which is not included separately in the Alexa rankings).

Blabbermouth.net has more 101,000 registered users (users who are registered to post comments on the site) as of August 2011.

Recognition[link]

Blabbermouth.net, described by the London Free Press as a "reliable industry and fan site",^[1] is widely recognized as an authority on heavy metal and hard rock. It has been cited as a source by the London Free Press,^[1] New Musical Express,^[5][6] MTV.com,^[7][8] the Toronto Sun,^[9][10] the Baltic News Service,^[11] the St. Petersburg Times,^[12] News.com.au,^[13] and OC Weekly.^[14]

References[link]

External links[link]

• Blabbermouth.net

Look up NET, net, .NET, .net, or net- in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.

NET or Net may refer to:

• Net (device), fibers woven in a grid-like structure
• Net (textile), any textile in which the warp and weft yarns are looped or knotted at their intersections
• New Jersey Nets, a basketball team
• The Net (1995 film), a film starring Sandra Bullock
• Cricket nets a safe netted environment for practicing cricket
• Fishing net, a net used for fishing

In computing and communication:

• Computer network, collection of computers and devices
• Telecommunications network, collections of terminals, links, and nodes to facilitate telecommunication
• Internet, global system of interconnected computer networks
• Network: Computation In Neural Systems, scientific journal
• An electronic network connection in a netlist, which shows the connectivity of an electronic design

In business and finance as an antonym of gross:

• Net (economics), the amount remaining after deductions
• Net worth, total assets minus total liabilities
• Net metering, electricity policy
• Net flux, proportional amount to the concentration difference across a membrane, the surface area of the membrane, and the membrane permeability constant
• Net 30, form of trade credit
• Net profit, gross profit minus overhead and interest
• Net weight, weight of a product, not counting packaging
• Net pay, salary after deductions

NET as an acronym may refer to:

In broadcast and media:

• National Educational Television, predecessor of PBS in the United States
• Nebraska Educational Telecommunications, Nebraska
• New Evangelization Television, New York
• National Empowerment Television, a defunct politically conservative cable network from the 1990s, also called America's Voice
• NET S.A., Cable television operator in Latin America
• New Hellenic Television, Greece
• Never Ending Tour, musician Bob Dylan's tour since 1988
• North East Tonight (or North East Today), a British regional news programme
• NET Television (Malta), a Maltese television station
• Nihon Educational Television, the former name of TV Asahi, Japan

In science and psychology:

• Neuroendocrine tumor, cancers of the interface between the endocrine and nervous system
• N-Ethyltryptamine, psychedelic drug
• Neutrophil Extracellular Traps, extracellular fibers
• Neuro Electric Therapy, treatment for anxiety
• Neuro Emotional Technique, holistic medicine
• Norepinephrine transporter, neurotransmitter transporter
• Non-equilibrium thermodynamics, branch of study

In mathematics:

• Net (mathematics), a generalization of a sequence similar to a filter
• Net (polyhedron), an arrangement of polygons that can be folded up to form a polyhedron
• ε-nets in probability theory, computational geometry, and metric spaces.
• Net, a linear system of divisors of dimension 2
• Local net of operator algebras in quantum field theory

In other uses:

• National Education Trust, English non-profit
• National Eligibility Test, Indian entrance examination
• New Earth Time, alternative naming system for time of day
• New English Translation of the Bible
• Nottingham Express Transit, British tramway
• Noise-equivalent target, detection system
• NET Act, No Electronic Theft Act in the United States

.net or .NET may refer to:

• .net, an Internet top-level domain
• .net (magazine), British monthly periodical
• .NET Framework, software framework for Microsoft Windows
• .NET Messenger Service, instant messaging system
• .NET Passport, an old name for Windows Live ID

See also[link]

• Nett, a municipality in the Federated States of Micronesia
• NETS (disambiguation)

This disambiguation page lists articles associated with the same title. If an internal link led you here, you may wish to change the link to point directly to the intended article.

This article may be written from a fan's point of view, rather than a neutral point of view. Please clean it up to conform to a higher standard of quality, and to make it neutral in tone. (February 2012)

Tony Iommi
Background information
Birth name	Anthony Frank Iommi
Born	(1948-02-19) 19 February 1948 (age 64) Birmingham, United Kingdom
Genres	Heavy metal, blues rock, hard rock
Occupations	Musician, songwriter, producer
Instruments	Guitar
Years active	1964–present
Labels	Warner Bros., I.R.S., Rhino
Associated acts	Mythology, Velvett Fogg, Black Sabbath, Jethro Tull, Glenn Hughes, Heaven & Hell
Website	Official website
Notable instruments
Tony Iommi Signature SG

Anthony Frank "Tony" Iommi^[1][2] (born 19 February 1948, Heathfield Road Hospital, Handsworth, Birmingham, England, United Kingdom) is an English guitarist and songwriter, best known as the founding member of pioneering heavy metal band Black Sabbath, its main composer and sole continual member through multiple personnel changes. Iommi is widely recognised as one of the most important and influential guitarists in heavy metal music. According to Allmusic, "Iommi is one of only two guitarists (the other being Led Zeppelin's Jimmy Page) that can take full credit for pioneering the mammoth riffs of heavy metal."^[3]

In 2004, Iommi was ranked number one on Guitar World's "100 Greatest Metal Guitarists of All Time",^[4] and in 2011, ranked 25th in Rolling Stone magazine's list of the "100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time".^[5] On 13 October (Europe) and 1 November (United States) 2011 Iommi's autobiography was published, entitled Iron Man: My Journey Through Heaven and Hell with Black Sabbath.^[6] On 9 January 2012, it was announced that Iommi had been diagnosed with early stage lymphoma.^[7]

Career[link]

Early history[link]

The son of first generation British Italians, Tony Iommi originally wanted to play the drums, but due to the noise they produce he picked up the guitar as a teenager, after being inspired by the likes of Hank Marvin and The Shadows.^[8] He plays guitar left-handed. In an industrial accident at the age of 17 on his last day of work in a sheet metal factory, he lost the tips of the middle and ring finger of his right hand.^[9]

After the injury Iommi contemplated abandoning the guitar. However, his manager encouraged Iommi to pursue music by playing a recording of famed jazz guitarist Django Reinhardt. As Iommi would later write:^[10]

My friend said, "Listen to this guy play," and I went, "No way! Listening to someone play the guitar is the very last thing I want to do right now!" But he kept insisting and he ended up playing the record for me. I told him I thought it was really good and then he said, "You know, the guy's only playing with two fingers on his fretboard hand because of an injury he sustained in a terrible fire." I was totally knocked back by this revelation and was so impressed by what I had just heard that I suddenly became inspired to start trying to play again.

To compensate for his injury Iommi attempted to learn to play right-handed,^[11] but eventually returned to left-handed playing and strung his guitars with lighter strings and made thimbles to extend his fingers.^[12]

Pre-Black Sabbath[link]

Iommi had played in several blues/rock bands, the earliest of which was The Rockin' Chevrolets from 1964 to 1965. The band had regular bookings and when they were offered work in Germany, Iommi decided to leave his factory job to take up the opportunity. From 1966 to 1967 Iommi played in a band named The Rest. This was the first time Iommi played with future Black Sabbath drummer Bill Ward.

From January 1968 until July 1968 Iommi was guitarist in Mythology, with Ward joining a month later in mid-February. In May 1968 police raided the group's practice flat and found cannabis resin, which resulted in a £15 fine and a two-year conditional discharge for Iommi, Ward, Smith and Marshall. Mythology split up after a gig in Silloth on 13 July 1968.

In August 1968 at the same time as the breakup of Mythology, a band called Rare Breed also broke up. Rare Breed vocalist John "Ozzy" Osbourne and rhythm guitarist Terry "Geezer" Butler joined with Iommi and Ward from Mythology and also slide guitarist Jimmy Phillips and saxophonist Alan "Aker" Clarke. The six-piece band, now with Butler as bassist, were named the Polka Tulk Blues Company. After just two gigs (the last of which was at the Banklands Youth Club in Workington), Phillips and Clarke were dismissed from the band, which soon after shortened its name to Polka Tulk.

Earth and Jethro Tull[link]

Iommi, Butler, Ward and Osbourne renamed the band Earth in September 1968. They carried on under this moniker until December 1968 when Iommi briefly departed to join Jethro Tull. However after only one performance (an appearance on "The Rolling Stones Rock & Roll Circus" in which the band mimed "A Song for Jeffrey", which Ian Anderson sang live), Iommi was back with Earth once more.

Iommi on his brief working relationship with Jethro Tull vocalist Ian Anderson:

I learned quite a lot from him, I must say. I learned that you have got to work at it. You have to rehearse. When I came back and I got the band (Earth) back together, I made sure that everybody was up early in the morning and rehearsing. I used to go and pick them up. I was the only one at the time that could drive. I used to have to drive the bloody van and get them up at quarter to nine every morning; which was, believe me, early for us then. I said to them, "This is how we have got to do it because this is how Jethro Tull did it." They had a schedule and they knew that they were going to work from this time till that time. I tried that with our band and we got into doing it. It worked. Instead of just strolling in at any hour, it made it more like we were saying, "Let’s do it!"

Black Sabbath[link]

Black Sabbath: Iommi (left) with Ozzy Osbourne in 1973

In August 1969, following the confusion with another group named Earth (who had minor success in England), the group renamed themselves Black Sabbath. His aforementioned factory accident affected the Black Sabbath sound later on, as Iommi detuned his guitar from E to C# (a minor third down), in order to ease the tension on his fingers; Black Sabbath bassist Geezer Butler did the same to match Iommi. Sabbath were among the first bands to detune, and the technique became a mainstay of heavy metal music. The first two Black Sabbath albums are actually in E tuning, however, as Iommi didn't start tuning down to C# until 1971's Master of Reality. Iommi combined blues-like guitar solos and dark, minor-key riffing with a revolutionary high-gain, heavily distorted tone with his use of a modified treble-boosting effect-pedal and a Gibson SG, as well as plugging his guitar into his amp's bass input.

By the mid-1970s, incessant drug usage, managerial problems and constant touring had taken its toll on the band and Ozzy Osbourne was fired in 1979 by Iommi. Osbourne was replaced with Ronnie James Dio, the former vocalist for Rainbow (a band formed by former Deep Purple guitarist Ritchie Blackmore). With Dio Black Sabbath produced Heaven and Hell, prior to replacing Bill Ward with Vinny Appice. With Iommi and Geezer Butler the only original members, this line-up produced Mob Rules. During the '80s and '90s Iommi rebuilt the band with many lineup changes with vocalists including Ian Gillan (formerly of Deep Purple), Glenn Hughes, Tony Martin and Ray Gillen. After Ian Gillan departed the band in 1984 Iommi recorded his first solo album, entitled Seventh Star. The album featured Glenn Hughes (formerly of Deep Purple) on vocals, but due to label pressures, it was billed as a release by "Black Sabbath featuring Tony Iommi."

In 1992 Iommi appeared at the Freddie Mercury Tribute Concert, playing four songs with the remaining members of Queen and other guest artists. In the following year Iommi teamed up with fellow Black Country band Diamond Head and co-wrote the song "Starcrossed (Lovers in the Night)" for their 1993 Death and Progress album. At Ozzy's "farewell" concert at Costa Mesa in 1992, Dio refused to perform and abruptly left the band. As a result Rob Halford was recruited to perform as the vocalist for two gigs (Halford also sang at one of the dates on the 2004 Ozzfest tour, when Ozzy couldn't perform due to bronchitis). Following Osbourne's solo set, the show concluded with Ozzy bringing out the other members of the original Black Sabbath line-up for a 4-song reunion.

Black Sabbath went on to record two further albums with Tony Martin before the original line-up reunited as a touring band in 1997. While Bill Ward played at the two initial reunion shows at Birmingham NEC in December 1997, he was not present for the following two reunion tours, his second absence due to a heart attack. Ward was replaced by Mike Bordin and then Vinny Appice.

Rob Halford, vocalist for Judas Priest, when filling in for Ozzy Osbourne during an August 2004 concert in Philadelphia, introduced Tony Iommi to the audience as "The man who invented the heavy metal riff".

On 11/11/11, the original band members announced that they were reuniting and recording a new album.^[13] The band are scheduled to play at Download Festival in 2012, followed by a world tour.^[14]

Solo career[link]

In 2000 Iommi released his first legitimate solo album, titled Iommi. The album featured several guest vocalists including Ian Astbury, Henry Rollins, Serj Tankian, Dave Grohl, Billy Corgan, Phil Anselmo, Peter Steele and Ozzy Osbourne. Also in the vocal mix was Skin (of Skunk Anansie). In late 2004 Iommi's second solo album was released, entitled The 1996 DEP Sessions. This album was originally recorded in 1996 but was never officially released. However, a copy with a drum track by Dave Holland was available as a bootleg called Eighth Star. Glenn Hughes performed vocals on the album and he furthered his collaboration with Hughes with the release of his third solo album, Fused. Released on 12 July 2005, John Mellencamp drummer Kenny Aronoff completed the trio on the album.

Iommi has signed with Mike Fleiss's movie production company Next Films to score a series of horror films entitled Black Sabbath.^[15]

Heaven & Hell[link]

Star on Birmingham Walk of Stars

In October 2006 it was reported that Iommi would tour with Bill Ward, Geezer Butler and Ronnie James Dio again, but under the moniker Heaven & Hell. Later it was announced that Ward had decided not to participate and Vinny Appice was hired as his replacement.^[16] Rhino Records released "The Dio Years" (under the 'Black Sabbath' moniker) album on 3 April 2007. The album showcased older tracks with Dio and also included three brand new songs recorded with Dio and Appice.

The band started an American tour in April 2007 with Megadeth and Down as opening acts. The tour finished in November in England with the prospect of an album to follow in 2008. During this period the band's show at the New York Radio City Music Hall was released as both a live DVD and CD with a vinyl release in the UK in 2008. During the summer of 2008 the band embarked on the Metal Masters Tour along with Judas Priest, Motörhead and Testament.^[17] The band's first and only studio album, The Devil You Know, was released on 28 April 2009.^[18]

In November 2008 Iommi had a star revealed on the Birmingham Walk of Stars. Dio died of stomach cancer in May 2010 and on 14 June 2010, Iommi announced that Heaven & Hell would perform a one-off tribute to Ronnie James Dio at the High Voltage Festival, London on 24 July 2010. This was the band's last performance under the name.

Personal life[link]

Iommi has been married four times.^[19]

• During the 1970s Iommi was married to Susan Snowdon, who was related to British Royal photographer Lord Snowdon.^[20] This relationship lasted for some eight years, and Iommi said in a 1991 Guitar World interview that the troubled recording and mixing of Black Sabbath's 1976 album Technical Ecstasy caused the end of his marriage.
• Iommi married an American model named Melinda in 1980. They had a daughter, Toni-Marie Iommi, divorced in the mid-1980s.^[21]
• In 1986-7 Iommi met a Englishwoman named Valery, and after a six year relationship they married. She had a son from a previous relationship named Jay. They divorced in the late 90s.^[21] Iommi confirmed in the same Guitar World interview referenced above (a co-interview with Metallica's James Hetfield) that he has a son. He told Hetfield regarding the band's so-called "Black Album," that "my son gave me a copy of your latest album..."
• In 1999, Iommi married Maria Sjöholm, formerly vocalist for the metal band Drain STH.^[22] He has a daughter from a previous marriage, Toni-Marie, who was the vocalist for the now-defunct band LunarMile.^[23] Mikko "Linde" Lindström, guitarist with Finnish band HIM became engaged to Toni-Marie Iommi in August 2010.^[24]

During the mid-1980s Iommi was romantically involved with, and briefly engaged to, Lita Ford.^[25][26] He co-produced her album The Bride Wore Black, which to date remains unreleased. Ford said in a 1989 Kerrang! interview, "there's a certain amount of bad blood between Tony Iommi and I."

Iommi, along with fellow Sabbath member Geezer Butler, is a passionate supporter of Aston Villa, his home town football club.^[27]

Arrest and Following Lawsuit[link]

Iommi was arrested in November 1992 during the US leg of the 'Dehumanizer' world tour and incarcerated in the Modesto, California, jail for supposed non-payment of child support (again referenced in Cross Purposes' liner notes).^[28][29]

Years later, Ozzy sued Iommi for $75,000, claiming Iommi owed him the bail for this arrest. Iommi denied owing Ozzy any money.^[30] Iommi maintains that bail was posted by his managers Ralph Baker and Ernest Chapman.^[31]

In 2009 Iommi was again sued by bandmate Ozzy Osbourne over ownership of the "Black Sabbath" name.^[32] A Manhattan federal judge ruled in February 2010 that Osbourne could proceed with the suit, but urged both sides to consider resuming mediation.^[33] In June 2010, the legal battle between Osbourne and Iommi over the trademarking of the Black Sabbath name ended, but the terms of the settlement have not been disclosed.^[34]

Illness[link]

In early 2012, Iommi was diagnosed with early stages of lymphoma.^[7]

Equipment[link]

Iommi's deep and heavy sound was partly born out of necessity—his "revolutionary signature sound" being the result of the accident and the subsequent downtuning by three semi-tones. He said that his "extreme volume" was likewise necessary, "because we were fed up with people talking over us while we were playing."^[12]

Guitars[link]

• Jaydee Custom SG's^[36]

Built in Birmingham by luthier John Diggins sometime between 1975 and 1978, the guitar was first used for overdubs on the 'Heaven and Hell' album and later became one of Iommi's main guitars. The guitar is equipped with a 24 fret neck with custom cross inlays, four control knobs (three of which are functional), a disconnected second output jack, a hole for a master volume knob on the pick guard covered up with a black stopper and a highly distressed finish. He had two more built for him. One was made to the same specifications of his first Jaydee SG with a red finish. Another one was made and used during the Born Again era, which can be seen on the music videos for "Trashed" and "Zero the Hero." The differences are the finish, headstock, use of a stoptail brige, and use of rail humbuckers, as opposed to the 18-pole humbuckers on his two other versions.

• Gibson SG, aka "Monkey"^[37]

A 1965 Gibson SG Special in red finish fitted with a Gibson P-90 pickup in the bridge position and a custom-wound John Birch Simplux, a P-90 style single coil in the neck position. The guitar became Iommi's main instrument after his white Stratocaster's neck pickup failed during the recording of Black Sabbath's self-titled album.

• Gibson Custom Shop SG^[38]

The guitar was built by the Gibson Custom Shop in Nashville after Iommi's specifications and finished in 1997. The guitar is one of two made as prototypes for the Gibson Custom Shop Limited Edition Iommi Special SG. The guitar features a neck with 24 frets and four control knobs, of which only two are active (much like his old Jaydee Custom guitar).

On August 11, 2010, Iommi announced on his website that this guitar was stolen from the RJD tribute show that Heaven & Hell performed at High Voltage on July 24, 2010. He is asking that anyone with information or leads let them know. He is offering a reward for its safe return.^[39]

• Epiphone P94 Iommi SG^[40]

A stock Epiphone SG signature model in black finish fitted with P-94 pickups which is a version of the Gibson P-90 pickup designed to fit into existing humbucker housings.

• Gibson SG Standard

A regular left-handed version of the SG fitted with two extra frets to give Iommi the full two octaves which he prefers. The guitar is equipped with his signature pickup. Iommi was the first guitarist to have a signature pickup designed and built by Gibson. He also has another model fitted with a Floyd Rose floating tremolo.^[41]

• Fender Stratocaster^[42]

Iommi played a Fender Stratocaster that was spraypainted white by Iommi and his father during the early days with Black Sabbath. However, the pickup malfunctioned during the recording of their first album so Iommi quickly turned to his backup Gibson SG to finish the record. Currently Iommi owns two Stratocasters, one of which has been modified with his signature pickup in the bridge position.

• BC Rich Ironbird.

Custom built for Iommi by BC Rich. Features include Dimarzio pickups, two built-in preamps,scalloped fretboard and Iommi's trademark cross inlays. This guitar can be seen in Tony's Star Licks Video, for Star Licks Productions along with a left handed BC Rich mockingbird.

• Gibson Barney Kessel^[43]

A rare left-handed version of the jazz guitarist Barney Kessel artist model, built sometime in the first half of the 1960s.

• Epiphone Riviera 12 string^[44]

Originally a regular right-handed version in red finish that was converted by Epiphone to a left-handed version to fit Iommi.

• LaBella custom gauge strings^[45]
• Shure Wireless systems^[46]

Effects[link]

• Tycobrahe Octavia^[47]
• Tycobrahe Wah Pedal^[48][49]
• Korg Rackmount Delay Model SDD1000
• Boss Chorus pedal
• Korg DL8000R multi-tap delay
• Peavey Addverb III
• Boss Octave Divider
• Drawmer LX22 Compressor
• Dallas Rangemaster Treble Booster

Amplifiers[link]

• Laney GH 100 TI Tony Iommi Signature amplifiers:^[50] current main amplifier
• Engl Powerball Amplifiers:^[51] only used in 2009
• Laney 4×12 cabinets^[50]
• Various Marshall amplifiers: from early to mid-1980s to 1993, including 9005 Power Amplifiers and 9001 Preamps, 4×12" speaker cabinets, 2554 Silver Jubilee Combo, 2558 Silver Jubilee Combo, Paul Reed Smith modded JCM800 head.
• Laney Supergroup heads: his main amplifier from 1968 to 1979
• Orange 1972 w/ 4x12 cab
• Laney Klipp: used on Master of Reality (Requires source verification?)
• Mesa Boogie Mark series heads: from the mid-1980s to the early 1990s

Discography[link]

Solo[link]

• Iommi (2000)
• The 1996 DEP Sessions (2004)
• Fused (2005)

with Black Sabbath[link]

with Heaven & Hell[link]

• Live from Radio City Music Hall (2007)
• The Devil You Know (2009)
• Neon Nights: 30 Years of Heaven & Hell (2010)

Guest / other appearances[link]

• Various Artists - Heavy Metal Soundtrack (1981)
• Various Artists - Rock Aid Armenia (1989)
• Various Artists - Guitar Speak II (1990)
• Queen & Various Artists - The Freddie Mercury Tribute Concert (1992)
• Diamond Head - Death and Progress (1993)
• Ozzy Osbourne - Live and Loud (1993)
• Cathedral - The Carnival Bizarre (1995)
• Various Artists - Twang! - A Tribute to Hank Marvin & The Shadows (1996)
• Ozzy Osbourne - The Ozzman Cometh (1997)
• Necromandus - Orexis of Death (1999, recorded 1973)
• Various Artists - Party at the Palace: The Queen’s Concerts, Buckingham Palace (2002)
• Ian Gillan - Gillan's Inn (2006)
• WhoCares - Out of My Mind/Holy Water (2011, charity CD single)

See also[link]

	Book: Black Sabbath
Wikipedia books are collections of articles that can be downloaded or ordered in print.

References[link]

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Tony Iommi

• Official Tony Iommi web site

George Stroumboulopoulos
George Stroumboulopoulos
Born	George Mark Paul Stroumboulopoulos (1972-08-16) August 16, 1972 (age 39) Malton, Ontario, Canada
Other names	Strombo

George Mark Paul Stroumboulopoulos (pronounced /strɒmbəˈlɒpələs/; born August 16, 1972) is a Canadian television and radio personality, best known as the host of CBC Television's George Stroumboulopoulos Tonight (formerly The Hour; a talk show about the world's current events) and being a VJ for Canadian music television channel MuchMusic. Stroumboulopoulos studied Radio Broadcasting at Toronto's Humber College.

Family background[link]

He was born in Malton, Ontario, Canada, to a Greek father from Egypt and a Ukrainian mother who was also part Indian.^[1] He was raised in Toronto primarily by his mother, and a close-knit extended family.^[2]

Career[link]

Radio broadcasting[link]

In the second quarter of 1993, Stroumboulopoulos worked for a rock radio station in Kelowna, B.C., for a few months before getting a job offer at the Toronto radio station Fan 590 AM, working in talk radio for about four years before moving to MuchMusic.^[3]

MuchMusic[link]

From 2000–2004, Stroumboulopoulos worked at MuchMusic as producer and host of The Punk Show, then host of The NewMusic, MuchLOUD and MuchNews.^[4][5]

[edit] The Greatest Canadian

Prior to joining The Hour Stroumboulopoulos was featured on CBC television's The Greatest Canadian series as the advocate for Tommy Douglas. More than 1.2 million votes were cast over six weeks, as each of 10 advocates made their case for the Top 10 nominees. Stroumboulopoulos made a personal and passionate case for Tommy Douglas, Canada's "father of medicare"; Tommy Douglas was later named The Greatest Canadian.

[edit] Strombo Show

Stroumboulopoulos has hosted a long-running Sunday night talk radio show, The Strombo Show. Originally aired as a talk show on CFRB in Toronto and CJAD in Montreal, the show moved to the Corus network in November 2007 and the format changed to one of mainly music. The Strombo Show broadcast from 102.1 The Edge's Toronto studio and on other radio stations in the Corus Entertainment network, including CFOX-FM in Vancouver, Power 97 in Winnipeg, FM96 in London and Y108 in Hamilton.

The show moved to CBC Radio 2 on November 8, 2009.

[edit] The Hour / George Stroumboulopoulos Tonight

On January 17, 2005, the first episode of The Hour went to air. Currently in its seventh season, The Hour is a hybrid of news and celebrity and covers everything from politics, pop culture, the environment, human rights, entertainment, sports and more. Airing nationally at 11:00 pm on CBC, The Hour is Canada's only late-night talk show. It has won eight Gemini Awards. Stroumboulopoulos and The Hour have hosted a range of guests from world leaders to celebrities and politicians.^[6]

For the 7th season of the talk show, CBC announced that beginning September 20, 2010, the show was being renamed and shortened into a daily half-hour show called George Stroumboulopoulos Tonight; the revised program is broadcast weeknights at 11:05 pm local time, 11:30 pm in Newfoundland.^[7]

[edit] The One: Making a Music Star

In July 2006, George Stroumboulopoulos hosted an American reality television talent show, The One: Making a Music Star that aired on ABC in the United States, and CBC Television in Canada. It was advertised as a similar show to American Idol and Rock Star but with the twist that contestants would "live together in a fully functioning music academy", with their actions documented similar to the Big Brother format.

Reportedly the most expensive summer series in the history of the ABC network,^[8] its first episode, on July 18, 2006, scored a low audience of 3.08 million viewers.^[9] Subsequent episodes had even fewer viewers. The series was cancelled after just two weeks (four episodes) with the final results undecided on July 27, 2006, with no plans for any further episodes. Stroumboulopoulos returned to The Hour after the failure of the reality television show The One.

Charity and public awareness[link]

George Stroumboulopoulos and The Hour sponsored the "One Million Acts of Green" Internet Website^[10] challenge, calling on Canadians to register environmental acts they've done. The campaign registered over 1.6 million acts on the website. Stroumboulopoulos and his family^[11] have been devoted to this cause also supported by Dr. David Suzuki.

Stroumboulopoulos has also been involved with numerous charitable initiatives, such as hosting the 'HipHop4Africa' Mandela Children's Fund Canada and CapAids February 2006 Toronto benefit. He has traveled to the Arctic for a special on literacy, youth culture and the loss of Inuit identity. He has been to Sudan with War Child Canada, and Zambia for a World AIDS Day special documentary. He also supports Make Poverty History. He joined other prominent Canadians in sharing views on global issues in the March 2010 issue of Upstream Journal magazine.

He was co-host of Canada for Haiti television with Cheryl Hickey and Ben Mulroney to help the humanitarian crisis in Haiti after a devastating earthquake.

Stroumboulopoulos was appointed Ambassador Against Hunger for the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) the world’s largest humanitarian agency in March 2011. He has visited WFP operations in Pakistan and Haiti and has been a strong supporter of Freerice.com and WFP’s WeFeedback campaign which has helped to feed millions of hungry children.

He also presented at Vancouver's EPIC Expo in May 2011 where he showed support for Fair Trade and the work of the non-profit organization, Fair Trade Vancouver.

George showed up to Occupy Toronto to show his support for the movement.

The CBC and Stroumbuolopuolos came under criticism for hosting an apparently extravagant party during the Toronto International Film Festival, at the Hazelton Hotel in Toronto.^[12] The CBC, which is funded by the Canadian government, was criticized by some in the right-wing media over the expenditure for the event.^[13]

Awards[link]

This section's factual accuracy may be compromised due to out-of-date information. Please help improve the article by updating it. There may be additional information on the talk page. (February 2012)

• The Hour has won six Gemini Awards.
  • In 2006 – Viewers Choice Award – Best Host
  • In 2007 – Best Talk Series – Best Host – Best Production/Design
  • In 2008 – Best Host
• Stroumboulopoulos was awarded an honourary Doctor of Laws, from the University of Calgary on November 13, 2007.^[14]
• He was also awarded an honourary degree in Communications from Humber College in June 2009.
• He was selected by the United Nations World Food Programme as an official ambassador in March 2011.
• He was named one of the 192 Young Global Leaders for 2012 by the World Economic Forum in March 2012.^[15]

References[link]

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: George Stroumboulopoulos

• George Stroumboulopoulos on CBC.ca
• George Stroumboulopoulos at the Internet Movie Database
• George Stroumboulopoulos on Myspace
• George Stroumboulopoulos on Twitter

This article needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (March 2012)

Jani Lane (February 1, 1964 – August 11, 2011), born John Kennedy Oswald, later changed to John Patrick Oswald,^[1] was an American recording artist and the lead vocalist, frontman, lyricist and main songwriter for the hard rock band Warrant. From Hollywood, California, the band experienced success from 1989-1996 with five albums reaching international sales of over 10 million. Lane left Warrant in 2004 and again in 2008 after a brief reunion. Lane also released a solo album Back Down to One in 2003 and the album Love the Sin, Hate the Sinner with a new group Saints of the Underground in 2008. Lane contributed his lead vocals and song writing to many various projects through out his career.

Childhood and youth[link]

Jani Lane was born John Kennedy Oswald^[1] (later changed to John Patrick Oswald) on February 1, 1964 in Akron, Ohio.^[1] The youngest of five children to Robert and Eileen Oswald, John grew up just east of Akron in Brimfield Township along with his older brother (Eric); and three older sisters (Marcy, Michelle, and Victoria). Lane's older brother Eric was an accomplished guitarist; Lane himself learned to play drums at the age of 6 with his brother guiding and teaching him. Lane grew up listening to Cleveland rock station WMMS (100.7 FM, "The Buzzard"), and was introduced to various bands by his family, and parents Bob and Eileen.^[2][3] Lane played drums under the name "Mitch Dynamite" in clubs by age 11 ("Mitch Dynamite" is listed as the drummer in the credits for Warrant's Latest and Greatest CD). Throughout the years, Lane would sometimes jump behind the kit to play with his band, and he had played the drums in various formats and gigs.^[2][3]

By the time Lane was 11, his older siblings had left for college or marriage except Vicky. He graduated from Field High School in 1982.^[4]

Career[link]

Early years[link]

After graduating from high school, Lane joined the band Cyren, featuring vocalist Skip Hammonds, guitarist John Weakland, bassist Don Hoover (and later, Rusty Fohner), with Lane on drums. After making a name for himself and his band in Ohio, he relocated to Florida in 1983, Lane played drums for Dorian Gray, before forming Plain Jane with future Warrant bandmate Steven (Chamberlin) Sweet. It was at this time that Lane adopted the stage name "Jani Lane." Lane got the name by his German grandparents' pronunciation and spelling of Johnny as "Jani." They said it as Yay-nee and that stuck. While playing drums with Dorian Gray, Lane began vocal training with Central Florida vocal coach/trainer Ron Feldman. Feldman introduced Lane to Creative Engineering, Inc. in Orlando where he worked as a programmer of the animatronic character, Dook LaRue, the drummer for the Rock-afire Explosion. His vocal debut was at Fern Park Station in Fern Park, Florida.

Lane and Sweet later relocated to Los Angeles, California, where they took various odd jobs to survive. Struggling to make ends meet as a musician, Lane resorted to working in a pornographic video warehouse.^[5]

By 1986, Plain Jane had become a regular feature in the L.A. club circuit. Erik Turner, who had founded Warrant in July 1984, was impressed by Plain Jane's songwriting and vocal performance, and invited Lane and Sweet to jam with his band at Hollywood's db Sound in September 1986.

Early years with Warrant[link]

After generating notoriety on the club circuit, Warrant began to attract the attention of record labels. Following an abortive deal with A&M records over a contribution to the soundtrack for the motion picture Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure, the band signed with Columbia Records. The Columbia deal came via the partnering of Warrant and manager Tom Hullet (known for working with The Beach Boys, Elvis Presley, and others). Tom became Lane's mentor and friend until his death from cancer in 1993.

As lead vocalist with Warrant, Lane wrote all of the bands material including four Top 40 hit singles: "Down Boys", "Sometimes She Cries", "Big Talk" and the #2 Billboard Hot 100 hit "Heaven" for Warrant's debut double platinum album Dirty Rotten Filthy Stinking Rich in 1989, which peaked at number 10 on The Billboard 200.^[6] Lane also wrote another four Top 40 hit singles: "Cherry Pie," "I Saw Red," "Uncle Tom's Cabin" and "Blind Faith" for the second album, the double platinum Cherry Pie in 1990, which peaked at number 7 on the Billboard 200.^[7] Lane also co-wrote and performed with Warrant the song "The Power" in the 1992 movie Gladiator. The band also released their third album in 1992, the critically acclaimed Gold record Dog Eat Dog which peaked at number 25 on the Billboard 200.^[7]

Later years with Warrant[link]

Lane left Warrant in March 1993 to pursue a solo career but returned to the band in September 1994, helping the band to secure a new record with Tom Lipsky of CMC International. The band then recorded Ultraphobic in 1995, Belly to Belly in 1996, Greatest & Latest in 1999 and a cover album Under the Influence in 2001.

Due to personal and business disagreements, Lane left Warrant in 2004. In January 2008, the band's agent, The William Morris Agency issued a new photograph of the band with Lane prominently featured, confirming his return to the band. It was the first time that all original members had been in the band since 1993. The band's first show with all original members was in May 2008 in Nashville. Warrant then performed a series of shows during the summer of 2008, but by September 2008, Warrant and Lane agreed to move forward separately, due to "too much water under the bridge." Warrant and Lane both continued to perform Lane's compositions live and Lane continued to write for himself and other artists.

Solo career[link]

Lane became involved in acting in the early 1990s. He made a brief appearance in Caged Fear, and also appeared in High Strung in 1991.

Between 1997 and 2000, demos of Lane's solo material began surfacing on the Internet, with some bids on eBay reaching an estimated $US100.00 per copy.^{[citation needed]} The project, titled Jabberwocky, represented a significant musical departure from Lane's previous work. The CD has never been officially released.

Lane lent his vocals to numerous tribute CDs during the beginning years of 2000. Lane also had success with the VH1 Metal Mania Stripped discs where an acoustic version of "I Saw Red" is on disc 1, and an acoustic swinging version of "Cherry Pie" is on disc 2.

Lane's official debut solo album, Back Down to One, was released on June 17, 2003 through Z Records and (2006) in the US on Immortal/Sidewinder Records. It carried a "power pop" sound which was more closely aligned with the sound of Warrant than the unreleased Jabberwocky project. Shortly after the albums release Lane was admitted to a rehab center for alcohol and drug-related exhaustion.^[8]

In August 2004, Lane withdrew from the Bad Boys of Metal tour after only eight shows.

In Fall 2004, Lane contributed the lead vocals for the first ever theme song to a novel, The Devil of Shakespeare, by author, Billy McCarthy, along with JY from Styx, Ron Flynt 20/20, Chip Z'Nuff of Enuff Z'Nuff.

Lane contributed vocals on the track "Bastille Day" and "2112 Overture/Temples Of Syrinx" for the Magna Carta 2005 Rush tribute album Subdivisions.

In 2005, Lane was featured on VH1's Celebrity Fit Club 2. In 2007 Lane released a solo cover album titled Photograph.

Keri Kelli and Lane wrote a song for Alice Cooper, titled, "The One That Got Away." It was recorded by Cooper on his 2008 record, Along Came a Spider. Lane also finished work on his side project, Saints of the Underground. This project also consists of Bobby Blotzer and Robbie Crane (both from Ratt), and Keri Kelli (from Alice Cooper). Their album, Love the Sin, Hate the Sinner was released on April 22, 2008 by, Warrior Records and was mixed by legendary producer/engineer Andy Johns, who worked with such bands as The Rolling Stones and Led Zeppelin, and also featuring additional bass work by Chuck Wright (Quiet Riot, House of Lords) .^[9]

In the Summer 2010, Lane went on tour with Great White, filling in for singer Jack Russell, who was recuperating from surgery after suffering internal complications. Also Lane had plans to make a new solo album and tour to support it, but it all got scrapped in early 2011.

Death[link]

On August 11, 2011, Lane was found dead of acute alcohol poisoning at a Comfort Inn hotel in Woodland Hills, California.^[10] He was 47 years old.^[11][12]

A public memorial concert for the late Jani Lane — with performances by fellow metal rock bands, including Great White, Quiet Riot and L.A. Guns — was held on Monday, August 29, 2011 at the Key Club in Hollywood, California.^[13]

Since his death the hit song Heaven has been used in the soundtrack of the 2012 movie Rock of Ages.

Discography[link]

With Warrant

• 1989 Dirty Rotten Filthy Stinking Rich
• 1990 Cherry Pie
• 1992 Dog Eat Dog
• 1995 Ultraphobic
• 1996 Belly to Belly
• 1997 Warrant Live 86-97
• 1999 Greatest & Latest (New versions)
• 2001 Under the Influence

Solo

• 2002 Back Down to One
• 2007 Photograph (cover album)

With Saints of the Underground

• 2008 Love the Sin, Hate the Sinner

With Liberty N Justice

• 2007 Addiction
• 2011Sin(Single)

Soundtracks

• 1992 Gladiator OST: "We Will Rock You" (Queen cover)
• 1992 Gladiator OST: The Power
• 2001 Bill and Ted's Excellent Adventure OST : "Game Of War"

Songwriting

• 2008 Alice Cooper Along Came a Spider

Other Work

• 1998 Forever Mod: Portrait of a Storyteller - Tribute to Rod Stewart: "I Was Only Joking"
• 1999 Not The Same Old Song And Dance - A Tribute to Aerosmith: "No Surprise"
• 2000 Tribute to Van Halen 2000: "Panama"
• 2000 Cheap Dream: Cheap Trick Tribute: "I Want You to Want Me" (The Mission UK Remix)
• 2000 Leppardmania- A tribute to Def Leppard: "Photograph"
• 2005 Hell Bent Forever - A tribute to Judas Priest: "Electric Eye"
• 2005 Metal Mania Stripped VH1: "I Saw Red"
• 2005 VH1 Classic Metal Mania Stripped 2: Anthems "Cherry Pie"
• 2005 Subdivisions: A Tribute to Rush: "2112 Overture/Temples of Syrinx", "Bastille Day"
• 2006 A Tribute to Bon Jovi: "Lay Your Hands on Me"
• 2007 Monster Ballads Xmas : "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas"
• 2008 Led Box - The Ultimate Led Zeppelin Tribute: "The Ocean"
• 2010 Siam Shade Tribute: "1/3 no Junjou na Kanjou"
• 2011 Sin-Atra: A Metal Tribute To Frank Sinatra: "That's Life"

Singles[link]

As Jani Lane

• 1991 Voices That Care (Various) U.S. #11, U.S. AC #6 CAN #61 non-album song

Music videos[link]

Notes[link]

External links[link]

• Official website
• Saints of the Underground on Myspace
• Jani Lane at the Internet Movie Database
• Jani Lane, Warrant, And The Tribute That Wasn't
• Photos Of Jani Lane
• Jani Lane Interview
• Jani Lane Self Written Bio