Bonham (band)

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Bonham were a melodic hard rock outfit founded by drummer Jason Bonham, the son of Led Zeppelin drummer John Bonham.

Overview[edit]

Jason Bonham had previously recorded with rock bands such as Airrace and Virginia Wolf before receiving major public recognition playing at the Atlantic Records 40th Anniversary concert in May 1988. Bonham previously knew guitarist Ian Hatton from Kidderminster (an original member of Robert Plant's The Honeydrippers|Honeydrippers),^[1] and was contemplating organizing a band together with Hatton and former Virginia Wolf frontman Chris Ousey, when he was approached by an executive from WTG Records, Jerry L. Greenberg, for a contract backstage at Madison Square Garden. The album and band however had to wait as Bonham was already committed to Jimmy Page's Outrider album and tours. After those tour dates along with Hatton and Ousey, he recruited John Smithson on bass and keyboards, to form the band that would take his last name as its moniker. Smithson joined on the recommendation of former Led Zeppelin manager Peter Grant. Ousey soon left the project and Canadian Daniel MacMaster joined on vocals. The average age of the band's members was only 20. The band started writing songs after their first meeting at the Rainbow Bar and Grill in Los Angeles, California|Los Angeles.

With a savvy MTV-friendly look, the group arrived on the United States of America music scene with experienced Pink Floyd producer Bob Ezrin guiding their debut album, The Disregard of Timekeeping. It would go on to receive RIAA gold behind the hit singles 'Wait for You' and 'Guilty', and reach number 38 on the Billboard 200 chart in 1989. 'Wait for You' received considerable rotation on MTV, and to this day is still regularly screened on VH1 Classic. But after two-years solid touring promoting the album, life on the road took its toll on the young musicians and tensions appeared. Rumours of problems with dɾugs and alcohol began to surface. Maureen Plant reportedly dated Hatton during 1991. Bonham were initially managed by former Atlantic Records executive Phil Carson, until replaced by Sharon Osbourne to get the band back on track.^[2] Mad Hatter released in 1992, had a minor charting single with 'Change of a Season', but was overall a commercial disappointment compared to the debut, and with teenage music fans now temporarily engaged with 'grunge music', the band needed a rethink on direction and split. Jason Bonham, along with most of the members of Bonham, formed Motherland and also engaged in session work. Former singer Daniel MacMaster formed a short-lived band called Scorcher before pursuing a solo career, with his first solo release even including unreleased Bonham material.

MacMaster died on 28 March 2008 from a Group A streptococcal infection.

In September 2009, Jason Bonham resurrected Bonham with Kelly Keeling, Ian Hatton, Tony Catania, and Francesco Dicosmo, to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the release of The Disregard of Timekeeping. A total of five shows were performed (two in California, and three in Florida).

References[edit]