List of James Gang members

James Gang was an American hard rock band from Cleveland, Ohio. Formed in 1966, the group originally consisted of vocalist and keyboardist Phil Giallombardo, lead guitarist Greg Grandillo, rhythm guitarist Ronnie Silverman, bassist Tom Kriss, and drummer Jimmy Fox. When the band broke up in early 1977, the lineup featured constant member Fox and Giallombardo (who rejoined in 1976 after leaving in 1968), alongside bassist Dale Peters (who joined in 1969) and guitarist Bob Webb (who joined in 1976). Following their disbandment, the classic lineup of vocalist and guitarist Joe Walsh alongside Peters and Fox have reunited on several occasions for one-off live performances and occasional tours.

A reunited James Gang performing in 2022

History

James Gang was formed in 1966 by Phil Giallombardo, Ronnie Silverman, Tom Kriss and Jimmy Fox, who worked with a succession of lead guitarists. Before the end of 1966, Glenn Schwartz had taken over lead guitar duties.^[1] The next summer, Silverman left to join the army and was replaced in the group by Bill Jeric.^[2] At the end of 1967, Schwartz left to relocate to Los Angeles, California where he formed Pacific Gas & Electric.^[3] Schwartz was replaced in the new year by Joe Walsh.^[4] On the eve of a show supporting Cream in June, Silverman left and the group became a trio, with Walsh taking over on lead vocals.^[5]

Joe Walsh took over as James Gang's vocalist in 1968 for their first three studio albums.

The lineup of Walsh, Kriss and Fox released James Gang's debut, Yer' Album, in March 1969.^[6] Just before recording the follow-up James Gang Rides Again that November, Kriss was replaced by Dale Peters.^[7] James Gang Rides Again was followed by Thirds and the band's first live album Live in Concert in 1971, before Walsh left at the end of the year to pursue new projects, later claiming that "I was frustrated just being the only melodic instrument [in the band] ... I wanted to expand and try something else."^[8] Early the next year, Peters and Fox were joined by two new members – vocalist Roy Kenner and guitarist Domenic Troiano, both formerly of Mandala and Bush.^[9]

After releasing Straight Shooter and Passin' Thru in 1972, Troiano left James Gang in August 1973.^[10] He was replaced immediately by Tommy Bolin, who debuted quickly on the band's next album Bang.^[11] After releasing the follow-up Miami in the summer of 1974, Kenner left the group that September to return to his native Toronto.^[12] He was followed the next month by Bolin.^[11] After a brief hiatus, Peters and Fox formed a new incarnation of James Gang in early 1975 with vocalist Robert "Bubba" Keith and guitarist Richard Shack, who recorded Newborn.^[7] By the end of the year, Keith had been replaced by original frontman Phil Giallombardo, while Shack had made way for Bob Webb, both of whom performed on the 1976 album Jesse Come Home.^[13] After a final period of touring, James Gang finally disbanded in early 1977.^[14]

Since their original breakup, James Gang's classic lineup of Joe Walsh, Dale Peters and Jimmy Fox have temporarily reunited on several occasions. The first time was in July 1991, when they performed "Funk #49" during a Walsh solo show.^[15] Next, the group played at an election rally for Bill Clinton in November 1996,^[7] followed by a performance on The Drew Carey Show in 1998.^[16] In February 2001, the trio (joined by keyboardist Mark Avsec) played three shows at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Allen Theatre in Cleveland.^[17] During August and September 2006, the band performed its longest reunion tour to date in the US.^[18] For the shows, the core trio were joined by keyboardist Bill Appleberry, plus backing vocalists Gia Ciambotti, Robbyn Kirmsse and Stacy Michelle.^[19] The band performed at the Taylor Hawkins Tribute Concerts at Wembley Stadium and the Kia Forum in September 2022.^[20] On November 13, 2022, supported by Mark Avsec and a vocal trio, and joined on their encore by Dave Grohl on drums, the group performed at the VetsAid concert in Columbus, Ohio. While this was billed as "One Last Ride" for the James Gang,^[21] Joe Walsh later raised the possibility of more James Gang performances.^[22]

Members

Latest

Image	Name	Years active	Instruments	Release contributions
	Jimmy Fox	1966–1977 2001 2005 2006 (plus one-off reunions in 1991, 1996, 1998 and 2022)	drums percussion keyboards occasional guitar backing vocals	all James Gang releases
	Joe Walsh	1968–1971 2001 2005 2006 (plus one-off reunions in 1991, 1996, 1998 and 2022)	lead vocals lead and rhythm guitars keyboards	all James Gang releases from Yer Album (1969) to Live in Concert (1971)
	Dale Peters	1969–1977 2001 2005 2006 (plus one-off reunions in 1991, 1996, 1998 and 2022)	bass percussion backing and lead vocals	all James Gang releases from James Gang Rides Again (1970) onwards

Former

Image	Name	Years active	Instruments	Release contributions
	Tom Kriss	1966–1969 (died 2013)	bass backing vocals	Yer' Album (1969)
	Phil Giallombardo	1966–1968 1975–1977	lead vocals keyboards	Jesse Come Home (1976)
	Ronnie Silverman	1966–1967 1968	rhythm guitar	none
	Greg Grandillo	1966	lead guitar
	Dennis Chandler
	John "Mouse" Michalski
	Glenn Schwartz	1966–1967 (died 2018)
	Bill Jeric	1967–1968	rhythm guitar
	Roy Kenner	1972–1974	lead vocals percussion harmonica	all James Gang releases from Straight Shooter (1972) to Miami (1974)
	Domenic Troiano	1972–1973 (died 2005)	lead and rhythm guitars backing and lead vocals	Straight Shooter (1972) Passin' Thru (1972)
	Tommy Bolin	1973–1974 (died 1976)	lead and rhythm guitars synthesizers backing and lead vocals	Bang (1973) Miami (1974)
	Robert "Bubba" Keith	1975	lead vocals rhythm guitar	Newborn (1975)
	Richard Shack		lead guitar backing vocals
	Bob Webb	1975–1977	lead and rhythm guitars backing and lead vocals	Thirds (1971) – guest appearance on one track Jesse Come Home (1976)

Touring

Image	Name	Years active	Instruments	Details
	Mark Avsec	2001 2005	keyboards	Avsec joined Walsh, Peters and Fox for three shows in February 2001 and two in June 2005.[17]
	Bill Appleberry	2006	keyboards synthesizers	Appleberry, Ciambotti, Kirmsse and Michelle completed the James Gang tour in summer 2006.[19]
	Gia Ciambotti		backing vocals
	Robbyn Kirmsse
	Stacy Michelle

Timeline

Lineups

Period	Members	Releases
1966	Phil Giallombardo – lead vocals, keyboards Greg Grandillo – lead guitar Ronnie Silverman – rhythm guitar Tom Kriss – bass, backing vocals Jimmy Fox – drums, keyboards, percussion, backing vocals	none
1966	Phil Giallombardo – lead vocals, keyboards Dennis Chandler – lead guitar Ronnie Silverman – rhythm guitar Tom Kriss – bass, backing vocals Jimmy Fox – drums, keyboards, percussion, backing vocals
1966	Phil Giallombardo – lead vocals, keyboards John Michalski – lead guitar Ronnie Silverman – rhythm guitar Tom Kriss – bass, backing vocals Jimmy Fox – drums, keyboards, percussion, backing vocals
1966–1967	Phil Giallombardo – lead vocals, keyboards Glenn Schwartz – lead guitar Ronnie Silverman – rhythm guitar Tom Kriss – bass, backing vocals Jimmy Fox – drums, keyboards, percussion, backing vocals
June – December 1967	Phil Giallombardo – lead vocals, keyboards Glenn Schwartz – lead guitar Bill Jeric – rhythm guitar Tom Kriss – bass, backing vocals Jimmy Fox – drums, keyboards, percussion, backing vocals
January – May 1968	Phil Giallombardo – lead vocals, keyboards Joe Walsh – lead guitar, backing vocals Bill Jeric – rhythm guitar Tom Kriss – bass, backing vocals Jimmy Fox – drums, keyboards, percussion, backing vocals
May – June 1968	Joe Walsh – lead vocals, lead guitar, keyboards Ronnie Silverman – rhythm guitar Tom Kriss – bass, backing vocals Jimmy Fox – drums, keyboards, percussion, backing vocals
June 1968 – October 1969	Joe Walsh – lead vocals, guitar, keyboards Tom Kriss – bass, backing vocals Jimmy Fox – drums, keyboards, percussion, backing vocals	Yer' Album (1969)
October 1969 – December 1971	Joe Walsh – lead vocals, guitar, keyboards Dale Peters – bass, percussion, backing vocals Jimmy Fox – drums, keyboards, percussion, backing vocals	James Gang Rides Again (1970) Thirds (1971) Live in Concert (1971)
January 1972 – August 1973	Roy Kenner – lead vocals, harmonica, percussion Domenic Troiano – guitar, backing vocals Dale Peters – bass, percussion, backing vocals Jimmy Fox – drums, keyboards, percussion, backing vocals	Straight Shooter (1972) Passin' Thru (1972)
August 1973 – September 1974	Roy Kenner – lead vocals, harmonica, percussion Tommy Bolin – guitar, synthesizers, vocals Dale Peters – bass, percussion, backing vocals Jimmy Fox – drums, keyboards, percussion, backing vocals	Bang (1973) Miami (1974)
Early – late 1975	Bubba Keith – lead vocals, rhythm guitar Richard Shack – lead guitar, backing vocals Dale Peters – bass, percussion, backing vocals Jimmy Fox – drums, keyboards, percussion, backing vocals	Newborn (1975)
Late 1975 – early 1977	Phil Giallombardo – lead vocals, keyboards Bob Webb – guitar, backing vocals Dale Peters – bass, percussion, backing vocals Jimmy Fox – drums, keyboards, percussion, backing vocals	Jesse Come Home (1976)
Band inactive 1977–1991
July 1991 November 1996 August 1998	Joe Walsh – lead vocals, guitar Dale Peters – bass, backing vocals Jimmy Fox – drums, backing vocals	none – live performances only
February 2001 June 2005	Joe Walsh – lead vocals, guitar Dale Peters – bass, backing vocals Jimmy Fox – drums, backing vocals Mark Avsec – keyboards (touring)
August – September 2006	Joe Walsh – lead vocals, guitar Dale Peters – bass, backing vocals Jimmy Fox – drums, backing vocals Bill Appleberry – keyboards (touring) Gia Ciambotti – backing vocals (touring) Robbyn Kirmsse – backing vocals (touring) Stacy Michelle – backing vocals (touring)

References

1. Stevenson, Jeff (October 30, 2015). "Glenn Schwartz: The Fall And Salvation Of The White Hendrix". Classic Rock. Retrieved July 3, 2022.
2. Francis, Thomas (December 8, 2004). "Lord of the Strings". Cleveland Scene. Retrieved July 3, 2022.
3. Swanson, Dave (November 3, 2018). "Pacific Gas & Electric Guitarist Glenn Schwartz Dies At 77". Ultimate Classic Rock. Retrieved July 3, 2022.
4. Beacham, Frank (November 20, 2020). "Joe Walsh, musician, songwriter, record producer and actor, is 73 years old today". Frank Beacham's Journal. Retrieved July 3, 2022.
5. Hackett, Bruce (November 2, 2018). "I can remember all the good times, put 'em in a book of memories". Hack's Back Pages. Retrieved July 3, 2022.
6. Vaughan, Andrew (February 2015). The Eagles FAQ: All That's Left to Know About Classic Rock's Superstars. Lanham, Maryland: Rowman & Littlefield (published February 1, 2015). p. 159. ISBN 978-1617136245. Retrieved July 3, 2022.
7. Prato, Greg. "James Gang Biography, Songs, & Albums". AllMusic. Retrieved July 3, 2022.
8. Smith, Rob (June 22, 2018). "How Joe Walsh Barnstormed Through 'The Smoker You Drink...'". Ultimate Classic Rock. Retrieved July 3, 2022.
9. "Dunhill's James Gang Ride Towards Bigger Takes" (PDF). Record World. Vol. 26, no. 1288. New York City, New York: Record World. February 26, 1972. p. 8. Retrieved July 3, 2022.
10. LeBlanc, Larry (September 1, 1973). "Border Lines" (PDF). Record World. Vol. 29, no. 1367. New York City, New York: Record World. p. 20. Retrieved July 3, 2022.
11. Robinson, Simon (August 1994). "The Tommy Bolin Story". The Highway Star. Retrieved July 3, 2022.
12. LeBlanc, Larry (September 21, 1974). "Canada" (PDF). Record World. Vol. 30, no. 1422. New York City, New York: Record World. p. 41. Retrieved July 3, 2022.
13. "The James Gang". Buckeye Beat. Retrieved July 3, 2022.
14. "Watch Joe Walsh Lead James Gang In A Live Performance of "Funk #49"". Rock Pasta. Retrieved July 3, 2022.
15. "Joe Walsh Reunites With James Gang For "Funk #49" After 20 Years". Society of Rock. Retrieved July 3, 2022.
16. "Joe Walsh Anthology". Nysse.com. Retrieved July 3, 2022.
17. Niesel, Jeff (March 1, 2001). "Our Gang". Cleveland Scene. Retrieved July 3, 2022.
18. "James Gang Hitting The Road This Summer". Billboard. April 3, 2006. Retrieved July 3, 2022.
19. "James Gang 2006-08-19 CD Atlantic City Audience". Rockin Concerts. Retrieved July 3, 2022.
20. "Taylor Hawkins Tribute Concert Updates: How to Watch, Artists Added & Charities Announced". September 4, 2024.
21. Young, Alex (August 2022). "Dave Grohl, Nine Inch Nails, The Breeders to Play VetsAid 2022 Concert". Consequence of Sound. Retrieved September 4, 2024.
22. Graff, Gary (November 2022). "Joe Walsh Talks VetsAid 2022 & the Future of James Gang". Billboard. Retrieved September 4, 2024.