New Book on Legendary Proto-Metal Power Trio BANG “The BANG Story: From the Basement to the Bright Lights” Now Available!
“The BANG Story: From the Basement to the Bright Lights” by Lawrence Knorr, Frank
Ferrara, Tony Diorio, and Frank Gilcken
Often called America's answer to Black Sabbath, one of the
most unsung bands in the history of US hard rock music, BANG, is back with a
new biography “The BANG Story: From the Basement to the Bright Lights”! With
the heaviness of Black Sabbath and Led Zeppelin, coupled with the groove of
Grand Funk Railroad, BANG released three critically acclaimed albums on Capitol
Records in the early 1970s before disappearing for a number of years. 2017
marks the 45th anniversary of BANG's critically acclaimed debut album and the
band is celebrating with the release of their new book! “The BANG Story: From
the Basement to the Bright Lights” was written by Lawrence Knorr, Frank
Ferrara, Tony Diorio, and Frank Gilcken.
In the summer of 1971, BANG, a trio from the Philadelphia area, decided to take a road trip to Florida to try their
fortune. While buying some rolling papers in the Sunshine
State, they learned about a Small
Faces and Deep Purple concert nearby in Orlando.
They showed up at the venue and brazenly declared they were ready to go on
stage. The concert organizer asked them to set up and play for him. After a
couple songs, he told them they were opening for Rod Stewart and Small Faces. Before
they knew it, BANG was playing with Bachman Turner Overdrive, Deep Purple,
Three Dog Night, Fleetwood Mac, Ike and Tina Turner, The Doobie Brothers, and
even Black Sabbath. Capitol Records signed them, and three LPs were released.
Join Frank Ferrara, Tony Diorio, and Frankie Gilcken, as they recall their
rapid rise to fame, playing with numerous Rock and Roll Hall of Famers.
The 1971 self-titled debut album “BANG” is considered an
important forerunner to the early Doom Metal genre. Undoubtedly one of America's
heaviest 'proto-metal' bands from the period, BANG also had a strong sense of
melodic power. The band's versatility and songwriting skills are second to
none. Highly regarded as a cult act by many for years, it’s now time for this
truly amazing rock band to be enjoyed by a new audience worldwide!
Excerpts from the book:
“Those were the days when everything was experimental,” said
Karl Richardson, the engineer. “We were looking for something more reverberant.
We didn’t want BANG to sound like everybody else. In those days, records were
more like paintings, than photographs. The studio was a palette, and we were
always thinking about art—not just taking a picture.”
OZZY Cheesesteak anecdote … ON WEDNESDAY, MARCH 1, 1972,
BANG was back in Fayetteville,
North Carolina, to play with
Black Sabbath, who was in the midst of their Master of Reality Tour. Wild
Turkey was to open this evening, followed by the boys from Philly. That
afternoon, the band was hanging out with Ozzy Osbourne and Geezer Butler from
Black Sabbath. They offered to introduce them to cheesesteaks, having
discovered a sandwich shop in town that was attempting to replicate their
favorite Philadelphia
cuisine. “I’ve never had a bloody cheesesteak,” admitted Ozzy. And so BANG
introduced the Prince of Darkness to the delicacy. After chomping on a few
bites, he asked, “I have another question for you. What do the fans mean when
they are making the “V” signs with their fingers? For our Churchill, it meant
victory.” “To them it means one of two things,” answered Frankie. “It either
means peace or boogie.” After that, Ozzy would often be seen on stage flashing
dual V-signs to all of his audiences, as captured on the cover of their next
album Vol. 4.
Available in Paperback:
Publisher: Sunbury Press, Inc. - Release date August 15,
2017
To purchase:
Finnish label Svart Records is released BANG's 4 classic
records: “Death of a Country,” “BANG,” “Mother/Bow to the King,” “BANG Music.”
They were re-pressed on both vinyl and CD: http://www.svartrecords.com/
BANG has made available free ringtones! Free Frank Gilcken
guitar solos for iPhones and Androids! http://www.bangmusic.com/ringt ones/
Also, all BANG songs are now available for 99 cents mp3 downloads
http://www.bangmusic.com/shop/ mp3s/ BANG's complete recorded catalog is
available as well through their website, which includes the band's latest CD
releases “Return To Zero” and “The Maze.”
To purchase BANG CD's, Vinyl and Digital Album Downloads:
http://www.bangmusic.com/shop/cds-and-vinyl/
Also the website contains never seen videos of BANG! http://www.bangmusic.com/videos/ including the “BANGstory” video a must see: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uXRHtnBpSBQ
For more information:
Instagram: @bang_the_band
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