Glenn Danzig Informations

Glenn Danzig (born Glenn Allen Anzalone; June 23, 1955) is an American singer, songwriter, musician, and record producer from Lodi, New Jersey. He is the founder of the bands Misfits, Samhain and Danzig. He owns the Evilive record label as well as Verotik, an adult-oriented comic book publishing company.

Beginning in the mid-1970s, Danzig's musical career has encompassed a number of genres through the years, including punk rock, heavy metal, industrial, blues and classical music. He has also written songs for other musicians, most notably Johnny Cash and Roy Orbison.

As a singer, he is noted for his baritone voice and tenor vocal range; his style has been compared to those of Elvis Presley, Jim Morrison, and Howlin' Wolf. Danzig has also cited Bill Medley as a vocal influence.

Danzig was born Glenn Allen Anzalone, the third of four sons, to a Protestant family of Italian, German, and Scottish heritage in Lodi, New Jersey. His father was a television repairman and a United States Marine Corps veteran of World War II and the Korean War. His mother worked at a record store. Danzig and his family also spent some time living in Revere, Massachusetts. Danzig began listening to heavy music at an early age, and has described Black Sabbath, The Ramones, Blue Cheer, and The Doors as being among his early musical influences.

At age 11, Danzig began to use drugs and alcohol, leading him into frequent fights and trouble with the law. He stopped using drugs at age 15.

While growing up, Danzig began reading the works of authors including Charles Baudelaire and Edgar Allan Poe, developing his appreciation for horror. Danzig collected comic books and, frustrated by American comics, he started his own company to produce "crazy, violent, erotic comics."

Danzig graduated from Lodi High School in June 1973, aspiring to become a comic book creator and professional photographer. He attended the Tisch School of the Arts and later the New York Institute of Photography. Danzig formed an adult-oriented comic book company called Verotik in the mid-1990s.

Glenn Danzig's introduction to performing music began when he took piano and clarinet lessons as a child. He later taught himself how to play the guitar. Danzig started in the music business at the age of 11, first as a drum roadie and then playing in local garage bands. He had never taken vocal lessons, but his self-taught vocal prowess gained him attention in the local scene. Throughout his teenage years he sang for several local bands, such as Talus and Koo-Dot-N-Boo-Jang, most of which played half original songs and half Black Sabbath songs.

In the mid-1970s, Danzig started the Misfits, releasing the band's records through his own label, (originally known as Blank, then later as Plan 9). Danzig had attempted to get the Misfits signed to several record labels, only to be told that he would never have a career in music. The impetus for the band's name comes from Marilyn Monroe's last film, combined with Danzig considering himself to be a "social misfit." In October 1983, after releasing several singles and three albums, and gaining a small underground following, Danzig disbanded the Misfits due to increasing animosity among the band members and his dissatisfaction with their musical abilities. Danzig explained his decision: "It was difficult for me to work with those guys, because they weren't prepared to put in the hours practicing. I wanted to move things forward, and they didn't seem to have the same outlook. So it was time for me to move on."

After the Misfits, he began work on a new band project, Samhain. The origins of Samhain began when Danzig started rehearsing with Eerie Von, formerly of Rosemary's Babies. Danzig took the name of the band from the ancient Celtic New Year, which influenced the evolution of the modern Halloween. Initially Samhain was conceived as a punk rock "super group". The band briefly featured members of Minor Threat and Reagan Youth, who contributed to Samhain's 1984 debut, Initium. The band then settled with a lineup consisting of Eerie Von on bass, Damien on guitar, and Steve Zing on drums (later replaced by London May). In 1985 the Unholy Passion EP was released, followed by November-Coming-Fire in 1986.

Samhain eventually began to attract the interest of major labels including Epic and Elektra.Rick Rubin, music producer and head of the Def American label, would see the band perform at the 1986 New Music Seminar, on the advice of then-Metallica bassist Cliff Burton. Danzig has credited both Burton and Metallica frontman James Hetfield with helping to raise awareness about his music: "I first met them at a Black Flag gig, and then we became kinda friends. We'd often bump into each other on the road...James and Cliff helped to spread the word about me, and I was very grateful to them."

In 1987, after two albums and an EP, Samhain was signed to a major label by Rubin and the name of the band was changed to Danzig to allow the band to retain its name in the event of line-up changes. Danzig discussed the reasoning behind the name change: "Rick [Rubin] convinced me it was the way to go, and would also provide me with a lot more artistic freedom. After all, I was now in charge of where we were going musically, so if I didn't want to do something, it was a lot easier to say so."

Danzig's intention at the time was for each album he recorded to consist of a different recording line-up, allowing him to keep working with different musicians. The original band consisted of guitarist John Christ, bassist Eerie Von, and former Circle Jerks–DOA–Black Flag drummer Chuck Biscuits.

In 1987, Danzig, owing to his association with Rubin, was asked to write a song for Roy Orbison. The result was "Life Fades Away", featured in the 1987 movie Less than Zero. Danzig also contributed to the film's soundtrack with "You and Me (Less than Zero)". Danzig had originally been asked to write the song for a female vocalist, but when Rubin could not find a suitable singer Danzig recorded the vocals himself. The song is credited to "Glenn Danzig and the Power and Fury Orchestra", which featured the same membership as the initial lineup of Danzig, with the exception of Eerie Von. Since Von did not like the way producer Rubin wanted the bass played on the song, George Drakoulias played the bass instead.

In 1988, the newly formed band Danzig released their eponymous debut. Its sound showed a progression from the gothic–deathrock sound of Samhain, to a slower, heavier, more blues-based heavy metal sound.

In 1990, the band's sophomore effort Danzig II: Lucifuge marked an immediate change in musical direction. The album's overall bluesier tone and somewhat milder approach were departures from Danzig, featuring a 50s-style ballad ("Blood and Tears") and a full-on acoustic blues ("I'm the One".)

Other projects in 1990 included the final Samhain album Final Descent. The album was started under the title Samhain Grim several years prior. The album contained previously unreleased studio recordings, at least some of which had been intended for the Samhain Grim album before it was aborted.

In 1992, Danzig once again changed musical direction, releasing the darker Danzig III: How the Gods Kill. Several songs would feature a more textured, slower sound in between fast, dominant guitar riffs.

Also in 1992, Danzig tried his hand at composing classical music with Black Aria. The album debuted at number 1 on the Billboard classical music chart.

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