List of Accept band members

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List of Accept band members

Accept is a German heavy metal band from Solingen. Formed in 1976, the group originally featured lead guitarist Wolf Hoffmann, bassist Peter Baltes, lead vocalist Udo Dirkschneider, drummer Frank Friedrich and rhythm guitarist Gerhard Wahl. The band's current lineup includes Hoffmann, lead vocalist Mark Tornillo (since 2009), rhythm guitarist Uwe Lulis, drummer Christopher Williams (both since 2015), bassist Martin Motnik and third guitarist Philip Shouse (both since 2019).

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Three line-ups of Accept performing in 2013, 2017, and 2022.

History

Summarize
Perspective

1976–1994

Accept evolved from an earlier group called Band X, formed in 1968 by Udo Dirkschneider (vocals, Accept, U.D.O), Michael Wagener (guitar, later producer /engineer of Dokken, Mötley Crue and many others), with drummer Birke Hoe.[1]

In 1972 after Dirkschneider and Wagener had completed their military service, Dirkschneider assembled the first line-up using the name Accept, with Hansi Heitzer and Gerhard "Watu" Wahl (guitars), Frank Friedrich (drums) and Dieter "Rubi" Rubach" (later in the band Bad Steve with future Accept guitarist Jan Koemmet) on bass.[2]

In 1975 Wolf Hoffmann replaced Heitzer on guitar and the following year Peter Baltes replaced Rubach on bass.[1] Finally Wahl was replaced by Jörg Fischer in 1977.[3] After the recording of the group's self-titled debut album, Friedrich left Accept and was replaced by Stefan Kaufmann.[3] Fischer was fired by the band[4] after wrapping up the Breaker tour in 1982.[3] He was replaced briefly by Jan Koemmet,[5] followed by Herman Frank shortly before the release of Restless and Wild.[6] Dirkscheider left and returned during the recording of Balls to the Wall in 1983,[7] and Fischer returned to replace Frank shortly after the release of Balls to the Wall.[3]

In 1987, Dirkschneider was fired from Accept and subsequently pursued a solo career under the moniker U.D.O.[8] He was replaced by a succession of temporary vocalists including Michael White and Baby Tuckoo frontman Rob Armitage, before the band settled on David Reece and released Eat the Heat in 1989.[9] Fischer left again before the recording of the album.[3] Jim Stacey joined on rhythm guitar for the album's promotional tour, which also saw Ken Mary take over from Kaufmann after the regular drummer suffered a back injury.[3] Accept subsequently decided to disband, after increasing differences with Reece and Kaufmann's injury.[3] By 1992, the band had returned with a lineup of Dirkschneider, Hoffmann, Baltes and Kaufmann, releasing Objection Overruled the next year.[10] Arjen Lucassen of Vengeance was involved at the time, he was supposed to be the touring guitarist but left before the tour started.[4] Kaufmann was forced to leave again after the release of Death Row, with Stefan Schwarzmann taking his place.[11]

Since 1994

After the Death Row touring cycle, Schwarzmann was replaced by Michael Cartellone, who performed on 1996's Predator.[12] The group disbanded for a second time in 1997.[3] In 2005, Accept returned for a short run of shows in Europe and Japan, with Dirkschneider, Hoffmann and Baltes joined by Frank and Schwarzmann.[13] The tour ended in August, after which Hoffmann claimed that Dirkschneider was preventing a longer reunion for the band.[14] Members returned to other projects until 2009, when a new lineup of Accept was unveiled with vocalist Mark Tornillo in place of Dirkschneider.[15] The group's lineup remained stable until 2014, when Frank and Schwarzmann were fired.[16] Their places were taken in April 2015 by Uwe Lulis and Christopher Williams, respectively.[17] Baltes quit the band in November 2018.[18]

For tour dates in early 2019, Baltes was replaced by Danny Silvestri, who had previously played with the group in 2017.[19] In April, the band brought in Martin Motnik as their new full-time bassist.[20] On 1 November, the band announced that Philip Shouse, previously a touring member, had joined them as their third guitarist, thus making them a sextet.[21]

Members

Current

More information Image, Name ...
Image Name Years active Instruments Release contributions
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Wolf Hoffmann
  • 1976–1989
  • 1992–1997
  • 2005

  • 2009–present
  • lead guitar
  • backing vocals
all Accept releases
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Mark Tornillo 2009–present lead vocals all Accept releases from Blood of the Nations (2010) onwards
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Uwe Lulis 2015–present
  • rhythm guitar
  • backing vocals
all Accept releases from Restless and Live (2017) onwards
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Christopher Williams
  • drums
  • backing vocals
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Martin Motnik 2019–present
  • bass
  • backing vocals
all Accept releases from Too Mean to Die (2021) onwards
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Philip Shouse
  • guitar
  • backing vocals
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Former

More information Image, Name ...
Image Name Years active Instruments Release contributions
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Peter Baltes
  • 1976–1989
  • 1992–1997
  • 2005
  • 2009–2018
  • bass
  • backing and occasional lead vocals
all Accept releases to Symphonic Terror: Live at Wacken 2017 (2018)
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Udo Dirkschneider
  • 1976–1987
  • 1992–1997
  • 2005
lead vocals all Accept releases from Accept (1979) to All Areas: Worldwide (1997), except Eat the Heat (1989)
Frank Friedrich 1976–1979 drums Accept (1979)
Gerhard Wahl 1976–1978 rhythm guitar none
Jörg Fischer
  • 1978–1982
  • 1984–1988
  • rhythm guitar
  • backing vocals
all Accept releases from Accept (1979) to Staying a Life (1990), except Balls to the Wall (1983) and Eat the Heat (1989)
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Stefan Kaufmann
  • 1979–1989
  • 1992–1994
  • drums
  • backing vocals
Jan Koemmet 1982 rhythm guitar none
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Herman Frank
  • 1982–1984
  • 2005
  • 2009–2014
Michael White 1987 lead vocals none
Rob Armitage 1987–1988
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David Reece 1988–1989 Eat the Heat (1989)
Jim Stacey 1989 rhythm guitar none
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Stefan Schwarzmann
  • 1994–1995
  • 2005
  • 2009–2014
drums
  • Death Row (1994) – two tracks only
  • all Accept releases from All Areas: Worldwide (1997) to Blind Rage (2014)
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Michael Cartellone 1995–1997 Predator (1996)
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Touring

More information Image, Name ...
Image Name Years active Instruments Details
Ken Mary
  • 1989
drums Mary was hired to finish the Eat the Heat tour due to Stefan Kauffmann's health problems.
Danny Silvestri
  • 2017
  • 2019
bass Silvestri substituted for Baltes at Wacken Open Air 2017, and rejoined after his departure in late 2018.[19]
Ava-Rebekah Rahman 2019–present violin Rahman joined the touring lineup of Accept for the Symphonic Terror tour starting in April 2019.[20]
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Joel Hoekstra 2024 guitar Hoekstra temporarily filled in for Shouse.[22]
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Timeline

Lineups

More information Period, Members ...
Period Members Releases
1972 - 1975
  • Udo Dirkschneider – lead vocals
  • Gerhard Wahl – rhythm guitar
  • Hansi Heitzer - guitar
  • Dieter Rubach - bass
  • Frank Friedrich – drums
none
1975
  • Udo Dirkschneider – lead vocals
  • Gerhard Wahl – rhythm guitar
  • Wolf Hoffmann – lead guitar, backing vocals
  • Dieter Rubach - bass
  • Frank Friedrich – drums
none
1976–1977 none
1978 – early 1979
  • Wolf Hoffmann – lead guitar, backing vocals
  • Peter Baltes – bass, backing vocals
  • Udo Dirkschneider – lead vocals
  • Frank Friedrich – drums
  • Jörg Fischer – rhythm guitar, backing vocals
Early 1979 – early 1982
  • Wolf Hoffmann – lead guitar, backing vocals
  • Peter Baltes – bass, backing vocals
  • Udo Dirkschneider – lead vocals
  • Jörg Fischer – rhythm guitar, backing vocals
  • Stefan Kaufmann – drums, backing vocals
Early – mid-1982
  • Wolf Hoffmann – guitars, backing vocals
  • Peter Baltes – bass, backing vocals
  • Udo Dirkschneider – lead vocals
  • Stefan Kaufmann – drums, backing vocals
Mid-1982
  • Wolf Hoffmann – lead guitar, backing vocals
  • Peter Baltes – bass, backing vocals
  • Udo Dirkschneider – lead vocals
  • Stefan Kaufmann – drums, backing vocals
  • Jan Koemmet – rhythm guitar
none
Late 1982 – early 1984
  • Wolf Hoffmann – lead guitar, backing vocals
  • Peter Baltes – bass, backing vocals
  • Udo Dirkschneider – lead vocals
  • Stefan Kaufmann – drums, backing vocals
  • Herman Frank – rhythm guitar
Early 1984 – mid-1987
  • Wolf Hoffmann – lead guitar, backing vocals
  • Peter Baltes – bass, backing vocals
  • Udo Dirkschneider – lead vocals
  • Stefan Kaufmann – drums, backing vocals
  • Jörg Fischer – rhythm guitar, backing vocals
1987
  • Wolf Hoffmann – lead guitar, backing vocals
  • Peter Baltes – bass, backing vocals
  • Stefan Kaufmann – drums, backing vocals
  • Jörg Fischer – rhythm guitar, backing vocals
  • Michael White – lead vocals
none
1987–1988
  • Wolf Hoffmann – lead guitar, backing vocals
  • Peter Baltes – bass, backing vocals
  • Stefan Kaufmann – drums, backing vocals
  • Jörg Fischer – rhythm guitar, backing vocals
  • Rob Armitage – lead vocals
1988
  • Wolf Hoffmann – lead guitar, backing vocals
  • Peter Baltes – bass, backing vocals
  • Stefan Kaufmann – drums, backing vocals
  • Jörg Fischer – rhythm guitar, backing vocals
  • David Reece – lead vocals
1988–1989
  • Wolf Hoffmann – guitars, backing vocals
  • Peter Baltes – bass, backing vocals
  • Stefan Kaufmann – drums, backing vocals
  • David Reece – lead vocals
1989
  • Wolf Hoffmann – lead guitar, backing vocals
  • Peter Baltes – bass, backing vocals
  • Stefan Kaufmann – drums, backing vocals
  • David Reece – lead vocals
  • Jim Stacey – rhythm guitar
none
1989
  • Wolf Hoffmann – lead guitar, backing vocals
  • Peter Baltes – bass, backing vocals
  • David Reece – lead vocals
  • Jim Stacey – rhythm guitar
  • Ken Mary – drums
Band inactive 1989–1992
1992
  • Wolf Hoffmann – guitars, backing vocals
  • Peter Baltes – bass, backing vocals
  • Udo Dirkschneider – lead vocals
  • Stefan Kaufmann – drums, backing vocals
  • Arjen Lucassen - guitars
none
1992–1994
  • Wolf Hoffmann – guitars, backing vocals
  • Peter Baltes – bass, backing vocals
  • Udo Dirkschneider – lead vocals
  • Stefan Kaufmann – drums, backing vocals
1994–1995
  • Wolf Hoffmann – guitars, backing vocals
  • Peter Baltes – bass, backing vocals
  • Udo Dirkschneider – lead vocals
  • Stefan Schwarzmann – drums
1995–1997
  • Wolf Hoffmann – guitars, backing vocals
  • Peter Baltes – bass, backing vocals
  • Udo Dirkschneider – lead vocals
  • Michael Cartellone – drums
Band inactive 1997–2005
2005
  • Wolf Hoffmann – lead guitar, backing vocals
  • Peter Baltes – bass, backing vocals
  • Udo Dirkschneider – lead vocals
  • Herman Frank – rhythm guitar
  • Stefan Schwarzmann – drums
none
Band inactive 2005–2009
May 2009 – December 2014
  • Wolf Hoffmann – lead guitar, backing vocals
  • Peter Baltes – bass, backing vocals
  • Herman Frank – rhythm guitar
  • Stefan Schwarzmann – drums
  • Mark Tornillo – lead vocals
April 2015 – November 2018
  • Wolf Hoffmann – lead guitar, backing vocals
  • Peter Baltes – bass, backing vocals
  • Mark Tornillo – lead vocals
  • Uwe Lulis – rhythm guitar
  • Christopher Williams – drums
November 2018 – April 2019
  • Wolf Hoffmann – lead guitar, backing vocals
  • Mark Tornillo – lead vocals
  • Uwe Lulis – rhythm guitar
  • Christopher Williams – drums
none
April – November 2019
  • Wolf Hoffmann – lead guitar, backing vocals
  • Mark Tornillo – lead vocals
  • Uwe Lulis – rhythm guitar
  • Christopher Williams – drums
  • Martin Motnik – bass, backing vocals
November 2019 – present
  • Wolf Hoffman – lead guitar, backing vocals
  • Mark Tornillo – lead vocals
  • Uwe Lulis – rhythm guitar
  • Christopher Williams – drums
  • Martin Motnik – bass, backing vocals
  • Philip Shouse – rhythm guitar
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References

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