| Lemmy Kilmister |
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Information AboutLemmy Kilmister |
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Lemmy was born in Stoke-on-Trent , Staffordshire and raised in Anglesey , Wales . His father, a clergyman, left the family when Lemmy was three months old; the experience helped to imbue a deep hatred of Religion in Lemmy and this is reflected in a number of his songs. Although the nickname 'Lemmy' is supposed to come from his days as a roadie when he would ask people to 'Lemmy (lend me) a fiver', Kilmister's autobiography maintains that he has been known as Lemmy since he was around ten. Career Lemmy spent the sixties in a number of small-time bands including Opal Butterfly , Sam Gopal's Dream , and the Rocking Vicars as well as working as a Roadie for Jimi Hendrix in 1967 for about six months, and as a roadie for The Nice . In 1971 he joined archetypal Space Rock UK Underground outfit Hawkwind who were centred around the very ''in'' Ladbroke Grove . His distinctive style of bass playing, involving the use of chords rather than the single notes preferred by most players, was a fundamental part of the Hawkwind sound during his tenure. He also provided lead vocals on a number of songs including the band's biggest UK chart single, ''Silver Machine'', which reached No.3 in 1972 . By 1975 Lemmy's forceful personality and propensity for ingesting copious quantities of Amphetamine s were leading to conflict with other members, and this culminated with his sacking after being arrested for drug possession while on tour with the band in Canada . Lemmy went on to form a new band with guitarist Larry Wallis and drummer Lucas Fox . Wallis's former bands included the Pink Fairies , Steve Took 's Shagrat and UFO . Lemmy's connection with Took (formerly of T Rex ) was not limited to Wallis, as they were personal friends and Took was the step-father to Lemmy's son Paul. This new band was originally called Bastard. However, after the band's manager pointed out this name would lose them TV and radio exposure, it was changed to Motörhead - the last song Lemmy wrote for Hawkwind . After a short period both Wallis and Fox were replaced with guitarist "Fast" Eddie Clarke and drummer Phil "Philthy Animal" Taylor , and with this line-up the band began to achieve success. The uncompromisingly intense nature of their sound appealed to both Lemmy's original metal/rock constituency as well as the new Punk fans — intrigued, perhaps, by Lemmy's brief stint in The Damned — and Lemmy's guttural vocals were unique in the world of rock at that time. The band's success peaked between 1980 and 1981 with a number of U.K. chart hits, including the classic single ''Ace Of Spades'' (still a crowd favourite today) and the No. 1 Live Album No Sleep 'til Hammersmith . Motörhead have since gone on to become one of the most influential bands on the heavy metal scene and, although Lemmy is the only constant in a changing line-up, are still performing and releasing records to this day. Despite Motorhead's many member changes over their 30 year history the current lineup of Lemmy, Phil Campbell and Mikkey Dee has remained constant since 1995. Lemmy has also worked with a number of other musicians over his career, and occasionally guests with Hawkwind. He has made a number of appearances in film and television, including the 1990 science fiction film '' Hardware '' and the 1987 comedy '' Eat The Rich '', for which Motörhead also recorded the soundtracks. In the 1994 comedy '' Airheads '' (in which he is credited as "Lemmy von Motorhead"), he shouts (truthfully) about being the editor of his high school newspaper. He has also appeared in several movies from the Troma studio. Having a predilection for self-deprecating parody, he once appeared in an advertisement for Kit Kat chocolate bars, miming a piece of Chamber Music on the Violin , in an upper-class tea-room. Motörhead performed the entrance theme song "The Game" for WWE 's Triple H , as well as " Line In The Sand " for his now defunct wrestling stable, Evolution . Lemmy collects Nazi memorabilia, and has an Iron Cross encrusted on his bass, which has led to accusations of right-wing extremist tendencies. However Lemmy considers himself to be an Anarchist . According to Keith Emerson as written in his autobiography, two of Lemmy's Hitlerjugend knives were gifted to Keith Emerson himself during Lemmy's time spent as a roadie for The Nice. Emerson used these knives many times as "keyholders" during his famous wrestling sessions with the Hammond Organ during the shows with The Nice and Emerson, Lake & Palmer . He published his Autobiography , ''White Line Fever'' in November 2002 . Lemmy the Public Speaker In November 2005 Lemmy, who grew up in Wales, was invited to the Welsh Assembly as a guest speaker by Tory Welsh assembly member William Graham. He was asked to express his views on the detrimental effects of drugs. However he shocked the Assembly Members and Welsh public when he called for the legalisation of Heroin . "I have never had heroin but since I moved to London from north Wales in '67 I have mixed with junkies on a casual and almost daily basis," he said. "I also lived with a young woman who tried heroin just to see what it was like. It killed her three years later. I hate the idea even as I say it, but I do believe the only way to treat heroin is to legalise it." He stated that legalization would eradicate the drug dealer from society: Blabbermouth Article . Sexuality In an article for BraveWords.com , Lemmy claimed to have engaged in Bisexual behaviour. The article was entirely removed from the website shortly after its appearance. It was reportedly a hoax by Blabbermouth.net who say "the article, which credited VH1.com as its original source, is thought to have started in a May 20, 2005 posting on the band's official forum, but regained strength when it was republished on several other sites, including a Dutch metal webzine". Blabbermouth credit themselves with being the informants of the article's inauthenticity: blabbermouth article . This has been proofed a hoax. Lemmy claims not to be bisexual. Appearing in a , 2005 , it was claimed that Lemmy "had bedded" in excess of 2,000 women. In the documentary Lemmy also explained that while in school (at the end of term) he noticed a lad who had brought a guitar to school and had been "surrounded by chicks", Lemmy's mother had a guitar, which he then took to school, even though he could not play, and was himself surrounded by girls, "in those days just having a guitar was enough" and from then on "that was it". Discography
Videography VHS
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Video Game Link Lemmy Koopa, one of the Koopa Kids in the Super Mario gaming series, is speculated to be named after him. 1. References External links
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