Frank Wollschläger (born 11 March 1962), known professionally as Lenny Wolf, is a retired German singer and musician, best known as the former lead singer of the hard rock band Kingdom Come. In addition to songwriting and lead vocals, he played multiple instruments on various Kingdom Come albums. He also collaborated on the song "Eyes of Time", from The Final Experiment, the debut album by Arjen Anthony Lucassen's project Ayreon. He was also a member of the bands Germany in 1982 featuring Dieter Buttner, Andreas Daniels, Miroslav Supica, and the band Stone Fury between 1984 and 1986 featuring Bruce Gowdy, Rick Wilson Jody Cortez and Vinnie Colaiuta.
Lenny Wolf | |
|---|---|
| Birth name | Frank Wollschläger |
| Born | 11 March 1962 Hamburg, West Germany |
| Genres | Glam metal, heavy metal |
| Occupation(s) | Singer, musician, songwriter |
| Instrument(s) | Vocals, guitar |
| Years active | 1982–2018 |
Early years
editPrior to forming the successful Kingdom Come, Lenny had moved from Germany to Los Angeles in 1983 signing with MCA Records with a band called Stone Fury. Along with Bruce Gowdy, Stone Fury released two critically acclaimed records in 1984 and 1986, but struggled to attract mainstream attention.[1]
Kingdom Come
editIn 1988, Lenny signed a new deal with Polygram and per their request, was asked to put a new band together. It consisted of: lead guitarist Danny Stag, rhythm guitar Rick Steier, bassist Johnny B. Frank, and drummer James Kottak. The band saw immediate success with the release of their eponymous debut album Kingdom Come, shooting to number 12 on the Billboard 200 and reaching sales at approximately 2 million worldwide.[2] The band was also chosen to participate in the Monsters of Rock Tour 1988.[3]
The band came under intense criticism for being a Led Zeppelin-soundalike. Years later, Wolf would say that the comparisons were "unjustified," yet "we took it as a compliment and were excited."[4]
In March 2018, it was reported that Wolf was in the process of reforming the original Kingdom Come lineup for both a new album and tour.[5] However, when the original lineup of Kingdom Come announced a 30th anniversary reunion tour in June 2018, Wolf declined to participate, for personal reasons, and was replaced by Keith St John.[6] In a July 2018 interview, drummer James Kottak revealed that Wolf was "just kind of done. He wants to retire. He's got his life."[7]
Discography
editStudio albums
edit- Lenny Wolf's Germany (1989) [8]
- Lenny Wolf (1999)
with Stone Fury
edit- Burns Like a Star (1984)
- Let Them Talk (1986)
with Kingdom Come
edit- Kingdom Come (1988)
- In Your Face (1989)
- Hands of Time (1991)
- Bad Image (1993)
- Twilight Cruiser (1995)
- Master Seven (1997)
- Too (2000)
- Independent (2002)
- Perpetual (2004)
- Ain't Crying for the Moon (2006)
- Magnified (2009)
- Rendered Waters (2011)
- Outlier (2013)
References
edit- ^ "Stone Fury – discography, line-up, biography, interviews, photos".
- ^ "Kingdom Come - Chart history | Billboard". Billboard. Archived from the original on 10 December 2015.
- ^ "THROWBACK THURSDAY: Monsters of ROCK Comes To Spokane In 1988! - KULR8.com | Local News, Weather & Sports | Billings, MT". Archived from the original on 17 October 2015.
- ^ "KINGDOM COME Singer Says 'LED ZEPPELIN Copy' Accusations Were Unjustified". 23 March 2011.
- ^ "Kingdom Come to Reunite with Original Lineup?".
- ^ "KINGDOM COME To Celebrate Debut Album With 30th-Anniversary Tour". Blabbermouth.net. 26 June 2018. Retrieved 27 June 2018.
- ^ "JAMES KOTTAK Hopes Revamped KINGDOM COME Can Make New Music: 'I Want It To Continue On'". Blabbermouth.net. 15 July 2018. Retrieved 15 July 2018.
- ^ "None".