Tigertailz
Encyclopedia
Tigertailz are a glam metal
band hailing from Cardiff
, Wales
. They are most famous for their 1990 album, Bezerk
, which made the Top 40 in the UK Albums Chart
, and spawned a couple of successful singles
. The band have recently reformed to considerable popular acclaim.
scene in the late 1980s, Tigertailz first line-up issued their debut album, Young And Crazy
, in 1987. The album featured vocalist Steevi Jaimz
, guitarist Jay Pepper, bassist Pepsi Tate
and drummer Ace Finchum. The debut album also provided their first single, "Livin' Without You".
As the band toured, vocalist Steevi Jaimz was not fully committed to the band, and several instances of fighting were recorded. The band recruited Kim Hooker to replace Jaimz in time for follow-up album, Bezerk which was released in 1990 on the Music For Nations
label
.
, the band re-recorded "Livin Without' You" with Hooker as vocalist, and released it as a single. Bezerk saw the band breakthrough as a headline act, and delivering three singles, "Love Bomb Baby
", "Noise Level Critical" and "Heaven". The album peaked at #36 in the UK Albums Chart
.
They released Banzai!
, a collection of B-sides
and re-recorded tracks, in 1991 in Japan
. They also issued Wazbones in 1995, by which time the Hooker-Pepper-Tate-Finchum line-up had fragmented, and was replaced by the formidable Hooker-Danahar-Tate-Skinner line up. Touring proved successful, but there was insufficient record label interest to sustain the band.
.
They completed a short reunion tour of the UK, culminating in some festival dates in Sweden and Spain, playing to over 70,000 people with Whitesnake
and Twisted Sister
. Kerrang!
magazine wrote in praise of the reunion; journalist Steve Beebee
describing it as "persistently entertaining, with monstrous melodies that reach delirious peaks".
Bezerk 2.0 was released through Demolition Records on 7 August 2006.
Bass player Pepsi Tate was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in 2007. The band signed a new recording contract
with Sanctuary Records
, and released Thrill Pistol on 27 August 2007, barely a year after their previous album release. This release was a double album
, packaged with the original 1992 version of the Wazbones album, that had never been officially released. Beebee again wrote in praise of the album in Kerrang!
, calling on fans to "kindly hail this rejuvenated band for the time-defying devils they are".
Following Tate's death in September 2007, Tigertailz continued to tour with former City Kidds and current WarDance lead guitarist, Glenn 'Nailz' Quinn, playing bass. As well as numerous European festival shows, they supported ex-Kiss
guitarist Ace Frehley
in the UK, and performed at the UK's Hard Rock Hell
Festival in both 2008 and 2009.
After playing a show at the Fuel Rock Club in Cardiff on 17 April to raise money for the Amser Justin Time charity set up in Pepsi Tate's memory, the band headlined the Stockholm Rock Out Festival in Sweden.
Following further 'Bezerk Live' dates, Tigertailz replaced drummer Matt Blakout with former Rachel Stamp
sticksman Robin Guy. Tigertailz headlined the first night of 2010's Hard Rock Hell
and released Bezerk Live - Burnin' Fuel on 6 December. In June 2011, it was announced, via the band's website, that Ace Finchum had re-joined the band.
They were expected to record their next studio album in 2011, but on November 23 in an interview with Queens Of Steel webzine [ Queens Of Steel - Tigertailz interview ] Jay Pepper cast doubt on the future of the band, stating that it was "facing a crossroads as to its survival. I don't know if we can survive the latest troubles." Suggesting that Tigertailz might still continue "with a different line-up" he expressed regret at replacing previous bassist Glenn Quinn: "with hindsight we should have never made the change".
Glam metal
Glam metal is a subgenre of hard rock and heavy metal that arose in the late 1970s and early 1980s in the United States, particularly on the Los Angeles Sunset Strip music scene...
band hailing from Cardiff
Cardiff
Cardiff is the capital, largest city and most populous county of Wales and the 10th largest city in the United Kingdom. The city is Wales' chief commercial centre, the base for most national cultural and sporting institutions, the Welsh national media, and the seat of the National Assembly for...
, Wales
Wales
Wales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain, bordered by England to its east and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It has a population of three million, and a total area of 20,779 km²...
. They are most famous for their 1990 album, Bezerk
Bezerk (album)
Bezerk is the second album from Welsh glam metal band Tigertailz. It was released on the Music For Nations record label and although it failed to make major impact anywhere in the world it hit the UK top 40 and is still the band's most successful and well known album...
, which made the Top 40 in the UK Albums Chart
UK Albums Chart
The UK Albums Chart is a list of albums ranked by physical and digital sales in the United Kingdom. It is compiled every week by The Official Charts Company and broadcast on a Sunday on BBC Radio 1 , and published in Music Week magazine and on the OCC website .To qualify for the UK albums chart...
, and spawned a couple of successful singles
Single (music)
In music, a single or record single is a type of release, typically a recording of fewer tracks than an LP or a CD. This can be released for sale to the public in a variety of different formats. In most cases, the single is a song that is released separately from an album, but it can still appear...
. The band have recently reformed to considerable popular acclaim.
Early years (1986-1990)
Part of the nascent glam metalGlam metal
Glam metal is a subgenre of hard rock and heavy metal that arose in the late 1970s and early 1980s in the United States, particularly on the Los Angeles Sunset Strip music scene...
scene in the late 1980s, Tigertailz first line-up issued their debut album, Young And Crazy
Young and Crazy
Young and Crazy is a 1987 album by Tigertailz, with artwork by the bands bassist Pepsi Tate. It has a heavier sound than its successor, with less elements of pop metal. The album was released in America on Combat records. The compact disc is now considered a collector's item, and is much sought...
, in 1987. The album featured vocalist Steevi Jaimz
Steevi Jaimz
-Early Career:The first real band he fronted was Treason. It was the tail end of the NWOBHM and Treason were a metal band in the vein of Black Sabbath, Judas Priest, etc...
, guitarist Jay Pepper, bassist Pepsi Tate
Pepsi Tate
Pepsi Tate was the bass guitarist of Welsh Glam Metal band Tigertailz who made the Top 40 in the UK Albums Chart in the early 1990s...
and drummer Ace Finchum. The debut album also provided their first single, "Livin' Without You".
As the band toured, vocalist Steevi Jaimz was not fully committed to the band, and several instances of fighting were recorded. The band recruited Kim Hooker to replace Jaimz in time for follow-up album, Bezerk which was released in 1990 on the Music For Nations
Music For Nations
Music For Nations was a British independent record label focusing mainly on rock and metal. They were a subsidiary of the larger label distributor Zomba Records who in turn is owned by BMG....
label
Record label
In the music industry, a record label is a brand and a trademark associated with the marketing of music recordings and music videos. Most commonly, a record label is the company that manages such brands and trademarks, coordinates the production, manufacture, distribution, marketing and promotion,...
.
Commercial success (1990-1995)
Prior to the release of BezerkBezerk (album)
Bezerk is the second album from Welsh glam metal band Tigertailz. It was released on the Music For Nations record label and although it failed to make major impact anywhere in the world it hit the UK top 40 and is still the band's most successful and well known album...
, the band re-recorded "Livin Without' You" with Hooker as vocalist, and released it as a single. Bezerk saw the band breakthrough as a headline act, and delivering three singles, "Love Bomb Baby
Love Bomb Baby
Love Bomb Baby was the first song from Bezerk, the 1990 album released on Music For Nations by British Glam metal band Tigertailz. It made major waves in charts across the world and the music video was a constant staple on Headbanger's Ball and MTV....
", "Noise Level Critical" and "Heaven". The album peaked at #36 in the UK Albums Chart
UK Albums Chart
The UK Albums Chart is a list of albums ranked by physical and digital sales in the United Kingdom. It is compiled every week by The Official Charts Company and broadcast on a Sunday on BBC Radio 1 , and published in Music Week magazine and on the OCC website .To qualify for the UK albums chart...
.
They released Banzai!
Banzai! (Tigertailz Album)
Banzai! is a 1991 album by Tigertailz. It is a collection of B sides and singles originally for Japan only.It includes a remake version of "Livin' without you", and a live version of "She'z too hot" from their first album Young and Crazy, and two covers: "Creeping Death" by Metallica and "Peace...
, a collection of B-sides
A-side and B-side
A-side and B-side originally referred to the two sides of gramophone records on which singles were released beginning in the 1950s. The terms have come to refer to the types of song conventionally placed on each side of the record, with the A-side being the featured song , while the B-side, or...
and re-recorded tracks, in 1991 in Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
. They also issued Wazbones in 1995, by which time the Hooker-Pepper-Tate-Finchum line-up had fragmented, and was replaced by the formidable Hooker-Danahar-Tate-Skinner line up. Touring proved successful, but there was insufficient record label interest to sustain the band.
Reunion (2005-2009)
In 2005, the band reformed their classic line-up, with the addition of former City Kidds drummer Matt Blakout, who replaced Andy Skinner. The band won a court order winning ownership of the Tigertailz name from a spin-off band fronted by Steevi Jaimz. This problem resolved, Tigertailz were able to work on Bezerk 2.0Bezerk 2.0
Bezerk 2.0 is a 2006 album by Welsh glam metal band Tigertailz, released on Demolition Records. It is seen as a follow up to the original album Bezerk released on Music For Nations in 1990. It goes back to the more pop metal sound the band had at the time rather than the heavier sound they used on...
.
They completed a short reunion tour of the UK, culminating in some festival dates in Sweden and Spain, playing to over 70,000 people with Whitesnake
Whitesnake
Whitesnake are an English rock band, founded in 1978 by David Coverdale after his departure from his previous band, Deep Purple. The band's early material has been compared by critics to Deep Purple, but by the mid 1980s they had moved to a more commercial hard rock style...
and Twisted Sister
Twisted Sister
Twisted Sister is an American heavy metal band from Long Island. Musically, the band implements elements of traditional heavy metal bands such as Iron Maiden and Judas Priest, along with a style that is similar to early glam metal bands...
. Kerrang!
Kerrang!
Kerrang! is a UK-based magazine devoted to rock music published by Bauer Media Group. It was first published on June 6, 1981 as a one-off supplement in the Sounds newspaper...
magazine wrote in praise of the reunion; journalist Steve Beebee
Steve Beebee
Steve Beebee is a journalist, author and broadcaster, best known for his work with Kerrang! magazine. Beebee is one of the magazine's longest serving writers. He is known for championing bands for their genuine entertainment qualities as opposed to their tendency to fit in with present fashions and...
describing it as "persistently entertaining, with monstrous melodies that reach delirious peaks".
Bezerk 2.0 was released through Demolition Records on 7 August 2006.
Bass player Pepsi Tate was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in 2007. The band signed a new recording contract
Recording contract
A recording contract is a legal agreement between a record label and a recording artist , where the artist makes a record for the label to sell and promote...
with Sanctuary Records
Sanctuary Records
Sanctuary Records Group Limited was a record label based in the United Kingdom and a subsidiary of Universal Music Group. Until June 2007, it was the largest independent record label in the UK and the largest independent music management company in the world...
, and released Thrill Pistol on 27 August 2007, barely a year after their previous album release. This release was a double album
Double album
A double album is an audio album which spans two units of the primary medium in which it is sold, typically records and compact discs....
, packaged with the original 1992 version of the Wazbones album, that had never been officially released. Beebee again wrote in praise of the album in Kerrang!
Kerrang!
Kerrang! is a UK-based magazine devoted to rock music published by Bauer Media Group. It was first published on June 6, 1981 as a one-off supplement in the Sounds newspaper...
, calling on fans to "kindly hail this rejuvenated band for the time-defying devils they are".
Following Tate's death in September 2007, Tigertailz continued to tour with former City Kidds and current WarDance lead guitarist, Glenn 'Nailz' Quinn, playing bass. As well as numerous European festival shows, they supported ex-Kiss
KISS (band)
Kiss is an American rock band formed in New York City in January 1973. Well-known for its members' face paint and flamboyant stage outfits, the group rose to prominence in the mid to late 1970s on the basis of their elaborate live performances, which featured fire breathing, blood spitting,...
guitarist Ace Frehley
Ace Frehley
Paul Daniel "Ace" Frehley is an American musician best known as the lead guitarist of the rock band Kiss. He took on the persona of the "Spaceman" or "Space Ace" when the band adopted costumes and theatrics...
in the UK, and performed at the UK's Hard Rock Hell
Hard Rock Hell
Hard Rock Hell is a three day music festival currently held at Pontin's Holiday Village, Prestatyn, Wales. The idea of holding the festival at in a holiday camp gives the organisers pre-built venues and stages and because of the on-site accommodation allows them to hold a multi day festival over...
Festival in both 2008 and 2009.
Bezerk anniversary (2010)
In January 2010, Tigertailz recruited Sarah Firebrand as their new bass player. They also announced that they would be playing Bezerk, originally released in 1990, in its entirety and in sequence at some subsequent live shows. Some of these performances were recorded for use as a future live album.After playing a show at the Fuel Rock Club in Cardiff on 17 April to raise money for the Amser Justin Time charity set up in Pepsi Tate's memory, the band headlined the Stockholm Rock Out Festival in Sweden.
Following further 'Bezerk Live' dates, Tigertailz replaced drummer Matt Blakout with former Rachel Stamp
Rachel Stamp
Rachel Stamp is a British rock band formed in London, England in 1994. Their debut album, Hymns For Strange Children was released in 2000, followed by Oceans of Venus two years later.-Biography:...
sticksman Robin Guy. Tigertailz headlined the first night of 2010's Hard Rock Hell
Hard Rock Hell
Hard Rock Hell is a three day music festival currently held at Pontin's Holiday Village, Prestatyn, Wales. The idea of holding the festival at in a holiday camp gives the organisers pre-built venues and stages and because of the on-site accommodation allows them to hold a multi day festival over...
and released Bezerk Live - Burnin' Fuel on 6 December. In June 2011, it was announced, via the band's website, that Ace Finchum had re-joined the band.
They were expected to record their next studio album in 2011, but on November 23 in an interview with Queens Of Steel webzine [ Queens Of Steel - Tigertailz interview ] Jay Pepper cast doubt on the future of the band, stating that it was "facing a crossroads as to its survival. I don't know if we can survive the latest troubles." Suggesting that Tigertailz might still continue "with a different line-up" he expressed regret at replacing previous bassist Glenn Quinn: "with hindsight we should have never made the change".
Discography
- Young and CrazyYoung and CrazyYoung and Crazy is a 1987 album by Tigertailz, with artwork by the bands bassist Pepsi Tate. It has a heavier sound than its successor, with less elements of pop metal. The album was released in America on Combat records. The compact disc is now considered a collector's item, and is much sought...
(1987) - BezerkBezerk (album)Bezerk is the second album from Welsh glam metal band Tigertailz. It was released on the Music For Nations record label and although it failed to make major impact anywhere in the world it hit the UK top 40 and is still the band's most successful and well known album...
(1990) UK #36 - Banzai!Banzai! (Tigertailz Album)Banzai! is a 1991 album by Tigertailz. It is a collection of B sides and singles originally for Japan only.It includes a remake version of "Livin' without you", and a live version of "She'z too hot" from their first album Young and Crazy, and two covers: "Creeping Death" by Metallica and "Peace...
(1991) - Wazbones!Wazbones!Wazbones is a 1995 album by Tigertailz. Originally recorded in 1994, with line-up consisting in Kim Hooker , Pepsi Tate , Jay Pepper and Andy Skinner , replacing Ace Finchum who quit in 1993. They were signed to Amuse America, but the company dropped them. Pepper left, being replaced by Cy Dahnar...
(1995) - You Lookin' At Me? (1996) (live)
- Bezerk 2.0Bezerk 2.0Bezerk 2.0 is a 2006 album by Welsh glam metal band Tigertailz, released on Demolition Records. It is seen as a follow up to the original album Bezerk released on Music For Nations in 1990. It goes back to the more pop metal sound the band had at the time rather than the heavier sound they used on...
(2006) - Thrill Pistol (2007)
- Bezerk Live-Burnin' Fuel (2010)
Music videos
- Livin' Without You
- Love Bomb Baby
- Noise Level Critical
- Heaven
- Dirty Needles
- Belly of the Beast
- Falling Down
- Long Live The New Flesh (unreleased)
- I Believe
Line-ups
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