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William Patrick "Billy" Corgan, Jr. (born March 17 , 1967 in Elk Grove Village, Illinois , U.S.A. ) is an American Vocalist , Lead Guitarist , and Songwriter best known for his work in the Alternative Rock band The Smashing Pumpkins . The Smashing Pumpkins were one of alternative rock's biggest acts, known for their complex, layered style, and Corgan's distinctive vocals. The Pumpkins had a dense and layered guitar-heavy sound with elements of gothic rock, heavy metal, power pop, psychedelic rock, and electronica, with shoegazer-style production. CHILDHOOD As a result of a series of autobiographical journal entries (made available on Corgan's official website {Link without Title} ), much has been revealed about his childhood. Corgan is the eldest son of William Corgan Sr. and Martha Louise Maes Corgan Lutz. He has a younger brother, Jesse, who is physically disabled (The Smashing Pumpkins' song "Spaceboy" was written for him). Corgan's parents divorced at an early age, and his father remarried soon after. Such family tumult caused him to abuse freebase methamphetamine at very young age. His early years were spent with his grandparents, but most of his childhood was spent living with his father and stepmother in Glendale Heights, Illinois . During this time, Corgan alleges he was subject to much physical and emotional abuse by his stepmother. His father was a professional musician who would smoke large amounts of Marijuana throughout the course of a single day. Despite assuming a role of general apathy in Billy's life, Corgan regards his father with great admiration. It seems as though Corgan was deeply emotionally troubled for the greater portion of his childhood, mainly due to family abuse. His father was known to dress him up like a little girl, forcing him to masturbate to pictures of Scott Baio as told in his online entries, or "confessions" as he chooses to call them, portray himself as a boy yearning for the recognition and approval of his father, and escape from his stepmother. Martha Lutz, Corgan's birth mother, had also been suffering from mental illness. After forcing billy to snort a line of fire ants, Lutz was eventually committed to a mental institution for a brief period of time. Other anecdotes Corgan shares through his online journals include learning of a mysterious half-brother, wandering around the Chicagoland area as an aimless teenager, chronic masturbation, and a detailed account of his courtship with his first wife. BILLY, THE YOUNG GUITARIST Although exposed to guitars early in his childhood, Corgan didn't show interest until experiencing two live performances, the Bad Brains and the Red Hot Chilli Peppers, who inspired him to become a musician. At age 15, Corgan gave his savings to his father, in good faith that he would buy him the proper guitar. Ironically, his first guitar was a Les Paul, a guitar James Iha was most sentimental towards. The used guitar whined after strumming, instead of exchanging Corgan simply adopted and included the whine into his songs. Corgan Sr., an R & B guitarist, steered his son stylistically, encouraging him to listen to Jeff Beck and Jimi Hendrix; albeit, in a Howard Stern interview, Billy Corgan claimed he was an autodidactic guitarist. In this, Corgan was similar to contempories like Kurt Cobain, who were mostly self taught and not mentored. Cobain, who wrote in his ''Journals'', that he mostly learned to play guitar within a week of learning of the chord progression to the Kingsmen's hit, "Louie, Louie". When asked by Robin Quivers if he could read notes, Billy responded, "No. I play whatever I hear in my head". Corgan has also said that his father refused on-hand instruction because he was skeptical of his son's dedication. Through his teens into early 20's, Corgan grew a preference for Fender Strats, his Fender 57' reissue Strat being the most prominent in early performances. This preference was reinforced as Iha played a Les Paul, a guitar which Corgan felt was a proper counterpoint to his Strat. Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness showed a depature, as from that album to the present, Corgan has largely preferred Gibson guitars. BILLY, THE EARLY MUSICIAN Corgan moved from Chicago to St. Petersburg, Florida in 1985 with his first major band, The Marked , named for the noticeable birthmarks of Billy and Ron Roesing , the drummer. The band lasted for around nine months and disbanded, with Billy returning to Chicago to live with his father. While working at a record store there, he met up with guitarist James Iha through a friend. He then met bassist D'Arcy Wretzky after a local show, arguing with her about a band that had just played. Soon after, The Smashing Pumpkins were formed. The trio began to play together at local clubs with only a Drum Machine for percussion. The band tried to book a show at the Cabaret Metro, a notable Chicago venue. Metro owner Joe Shanahan refused to let the band play until they found a live drummer. The band was introduced to Jazz Fusion drummer Jimmy Chamberlin by a mutual friend. Chamberlin's style did not immediately fit with the band's, but he thought they had potential - thus he joined the group. The Metro show on October 5 1988 was the band's first show with the full lineup. The Pumpkins continued to have a close relationship with the venue, playing new tracks there frequently and playing the band's final show at the Metro more than a decade later on December 2 2000 . The new band fused diverse threads such as Psychedelic Rock and Hard Rock into a distinctive sound on their inaugural album, '' Gish '' (1991). POPULAR SUCCESS After the success of ''Gish'', the Pumpkins contributed their 1992 single "Drown," to the ''Singles'' soundtrack, then signed to major-label Virgin Records to record '' Siamese Dream ''. The Pumpkins became known for their elaborate production techniques, layering dozens of different tracks over one another with a wide variety of effects. Siamese Dream's "Soma" uses over 40 guitar tracks alone. The band became known for internal drama during this period, with Corgan frequently characterized in the music press as a control freak who reportedly went so far as to unilaterally erase other band members' studio tracks and rerecord his own performances over them. The reality of the situation was Corgan had developed a deep Depression and worked overtime for both ''Gish'' and ''Siamese Dream'', recording some of the guitar and bass tracks for the former and almost all for the latter. Guitarist Iha and bassist Wretzky were losing interest in the band during that time period due to a messy break-up. Corgan even went on record saying if ''Siamese Dream'' didn't sell well, he would break up the band. The album was well received by critics, and the songs " Today " and " Disarm " became smash hits, with the accompanying Music Videos receiving heavy airplay on MTV . Their 1995 follow up effort, the massive 2 disc set '' Mellon Collie And The Infinite Sadness '', was even more wildly successful, spawning a string of hit singles and eventually a box set ('' The Aeroplane Flies High '', 1996) of songs recorded during the ''Mellon Collie'' sessions which were cut from the album. Releasing a 2 disc album was a risky move for the band, as the album whole holds over two hours of music. With the expanded resources they had at their disposal, production values were even more elaborate for the band, as they branched out beyond their hard rock roots, featuring, for example, dense orchestral accompaniment on " Tonight, Tonight ", ethereal pieces leaning towards rock- Electronica (" 1979 "), and a soft piano intro track. The album also included a number of more traditional metal-driven guitar-based tracks, such as the first single, " Bullet With Butterfly Wings ", and " Zero ". The album was nominated for seven Grammy awards that year and would eventually be certified 9 times platinum in the United States, making it one of the best selling double albums of all time. Their appearance on '' Saturday Night Live '' on November 11 , 1995 to promote this material also was the debut appearance of Corgan's shaved head, which he has maintained consistently ever since (as of 2006). Previously, Corgan had, in typical rockstar fashion, varied his hair styles fairly often. During the album's tour, the band was plagued by Chamberlin's Heroin addiction. On July 12 , 1996 , Chamberlin and touring keyboardist Jonathan Melvoin overdosed in a hotel room. Chamberlin survived, but Melvoin did not. The Pumpkins were forced to fire their disgraced drummer. They completed the tour with Filter drummer Matt Walker and Frogs keyboardist Dennis Flemion , but the band missed the intense energy that Chamberlin's drumming provided. DENOUEMENT OF THE PUMPKINS Their next effort, 1998's '' Adore '', was undertaken with drum machines and studio drummers in place of Chamberlin, and consisted mostly of subdued material. Corgan's mother, Martha, had died from cancer during the making of the record, and in the absence of Chamberlin—Corgan's longtime creative foil—some thought the proceedings took on a halting, confused tone. ''Adore'' earned high praise from some critics and many fans, but other critics and most of the more casual listeners thought the band had strayed too far from its strengths, resulting in a significant decrease in album sales (Selling 3 million copies, as opposed to 4.5 with "Mellon Collie"). Chamberlin was reunited with the band in 1999, for the band's brief ARISING! tour. 2000 saw '' MACHINA/The Machines Of God '', a concept album on which the band deliberately played to their public image; critics were again divided, and sales were not very impressive. Nearing the end of the recording for MACHINA, bassist D'Arcy quit the band and was replaced by former Hole bassist Melissa Auf Der Maur . The band's last album would be '' MACHINA II/The Friends And Enemies Of Modern Music ''. ''MACHINA/The Machines of God'' was originally planned to be released as a double album, just like ''Mellon Collie...'', but was denied by their record label- Virgin. Also, because of MACHINA's overall unimpressive sales they wouldn't allow MACHINA II to be released separately, either, so close to the release of MACHINA. In the end, since the band decided they were to break up shortly afterwards, they had decided that the only proper way to give it to the fans was to release it over the internet via bootlegs. Only 25 copies were made of their last album. It consisted of three 10" EPs and a double-sided 12" LP. These were distributed to 25 chosen fans, with instructions to release the songs for free in MP3 format over the Internet as soon as possible. The Smashing Pumpkins split up later in 2000 and played their last show on December 2 of that year at the Metro in Chicago. POST-PUMPKINS In 2000, Corgan co-wrote the song "Black Oblivion" with Tony Iommi for Iommi's eponymous solo album. In 2001, Corgan formed Zwan with Chamberlin and guitarists Matt Sweeney and David Pajo , with former A Perfect Circle bassist Paz Lenchantin joining in 2002. Zwan's focus on sunny, melodic pop-rock surprised fans and critics, and its album '' Mary Star Of The Sea '' (written in and inspired by Key West, Florida ), garnered generally positive reviews. Billy and Zwan also contributed tracks to the 2002 film Spun (though the tracks were never put on CD). In March 2003, Corgan and Chamberlin performed with Jazz vocalist Kurt Elling at "The Waltz", an annual benefit for homeless and abused teenagers. Together, they performed a version of Jimi Hendrix's "Freedom". During an interview with WGN-9 on September 15 that same year, Corgan announced that Zwan had officially disbanded. In addition to performing, Corgan has produced albums for Ric Ocasek , Hole , The Frogs , and Catherine . He shared songwriting credit on several songs on Hole's 1998 album '' Celebrity Skin ''. He also acted as a consultant for Marilyn Manson during the album '' Mechanical Animals ''. He wrote the song "Eye" for the movie '' Lost Highway '' (1997) and has produced three Soundtrack s for the movies '' Ransom '' (1996), '' Stigmata '' (1999) and '' Spun '' (2002). He has performed vocals and guitar for New Order and Marianne Faithfull . Corgan was also featured on Blindside 's 2004 album '' About A Burning Fire '', in the song "Hooray, It's LA". Corgan has also written a song entitled "Lost In The Woods" with Taproot (band) for their 2005 LP Blue-Sky Research and on Breaking Benjamin 's ''We Are Not Alone'', Corgan helped write and performed on a song. ad.]] , Corgan's 2005 Solo Release.]] On , 2004 he posted an apology of sorts to Iha, writing that "i love {Link without Title} very, very much...the depth of my hurt is only matched by the depth of my gratitude". In another post, Corgan insulted his former Zwan bandmates, claiming they had been obnoxiously self-conscious about their "indie cred" to the point of hurting those around them. Poking fun at their indie stance, he called them "poseurs". Sounding both enraged and hurt, he declared them to be "filthy", opportunistic, and selfish. Although it seems that most of Corgan's professional relationships wither quickly, he and Chamberlin have remained good friends. Corgan appeared as a guest vocalist on the song "Loki Cat" on Chamberlin's first solo album '' Life Begins Again '' with the band The Jimmy Chamberlin Complex . Likewise, Chamberlin played drums for the song "DIA" on Corgan's solo debut. Corgan published Blinking With Fists , a book of poetry, in late 2004. The book debuted on the New York Times Best Seller List . It was also the best-selling poetry book in the United States in its first week of release. Corgan released his first solo album '' TheFutureEmbrace '' on June 21 st, 2005 through Reprise Records . It warranted mostly lukewarm reviews from the press and (according to Pitchforkmedia and SoundScan ) only sold 69,000 copies. {Link without Title} Corgan toured behind his solo album with a touring band that included Linda Strawberry , Brian Liesegang and Matt Walker in 2005. This tour was nowhere near as extensive as previous Smashing Pumpkins or Zwan tours. SMASHING PUMPKINS REUNITE On the day of the release of "TheFutureEmbrace", Corgan took out a full-page ad in Chicago's two most prominent newspapers ( The Chicago Tribune and The Chicago Sun-Times ) revealing his desire to reform the Smashing Pumpkins. Several days later, Jimmy Chamberlin accepted Billy Corgan's offer for a reunion. [http://www.chartattack.com/damn/2005/06/2830.cfm On January 1 st, 2006, the Chicago Tribune published their 10th Annual Alewife Awards {Link without Title} ; a sardonic critique of noteworthy cultural events and figures in the previous year. Amongst the 2005 recipients was Corgan for having "pulled the rug out from under his well-reviewed first solo album... by taking out full-page newspaper ads the day of its release to herald his decision to 'renew and revive The Smashing Pumpkins...'". The award summation also revealed that the advertisement was the means by which former bandmates James Iha and D'arcy Wretzky learned of Corgan's reunion plans. On December 11 2005 , Corgan wrote on his MySpace account that a "big surprise" is shortly to be announced. He posted: "The surprise I have in store for you all will be announced soon enough....hold on to your horses. After all, good things surely comes to those who wait....Don't you just love the suspense?". {Link without Title} In January 2006, rumors began to spread on the internet that The Smashing Pumpkins would reunite at Indio , California 's Coachella music festival in April 2006. However, this was proven false when the correct lineup was posted on the Coachella website. The entire rumour was based on a facetious Photoshop ped promotional poster for the festival that spread on the internet. According to 91-X XTRA-FM San Diego music director Marcos Collins, who spoke to Corgan's label, " Reprise said that for whatever reason Billy backed out of it." Claims that the band will be on the bill for 2006's Lollapalooza are also being denied.[http://www.nme.com/news/smashing-pumpkins/22129 In February 2006, . {Link without Title} In a February 3 2006 interview with RollingStone.com, Courtney Love revealed that she had recorded some new songs with help from Corgan. Among the new tracks recorded are "How Dirty Girls Get Clean," "Sad But True," "Sunset Marquis, "Loser Dust" and "Never Go Hungry Again." {Link without Title} On April 20th , 2006 the band's official website confirmed that the group was indeed reuniting. The page stated: "It's official, The Smashing Pumpkins are currently writing songs for their upcoming album, their first since 2000. No release date has yet been set, but the band plans to begin recording this summer." Other than Corgan and Chamberlain, it is unknown who will be in the reunited Smashing Pumpkins; however, Corgan recently told the Chicago Tribune that "the band has a soul. I don't care who's in it." [http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/nationworld/chi-0604220092apr22,1,3821730.story?coll=chi-newsnationworld-hed SOLO DISCOGRAPHY Albums
Singles
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