One of the first American-bred hard rock groups to challenge British supremacy in the early '70s,
are remembered as, if not the most successful, then certainly one of the most influential bands of the era. In fact, many of the personalities responsible for the group's legendary, self-titled debut (producer
) would later become instrumental players in the formative and latter-day career of the mighty
. And to his credit, though he ultimately lacked the focus and leadership skills to consistently guide his band's career, guitarist
was a true original on the instrument. His superlative playing aside, the avid big-game hunter lived the guitar-playing gunslinger lifestyle long before
After cutting his teeth as a session musician with the likes of
Van Morrison and
the Edgar Winter Group,
Ronnie Montrose decided to form his own, self-named band in 1973. Enlisting the help of fellow session pros
Bill Church (bass),
Denny Carmassi (drums), and a talented up-and-coming Californian singer named
Sammy Hagar,
Montrose soon released their eponymous first album in November of that year. Although it never broke the Billboard Top 100,
Montrose eventually went platinum and was arguably the first full-fledged heavy metal album by an American band (early proto-metal efforts by
Blue Cheer and
Steppenwolf notwithstanding). With classics like "Space Station No. 5" and "Bad Motor Scooter" leading the charge to the nation's airwaves, it is still considered one of the finest, most influential releases of the decade to boot. But trouble was already looming, as
Church quit the group soon after and was replaced by bassist/keyboard player
Alan Fitzgerald for the ensuing tour. Released less than a year after their debut, the erratic
Paper Money proved to be a surprisingly diverse but unfocused follow-up that failed to match its predecessor's consistency or popularity. Making things worse, escalating tensions between
Ronnie Montrose and
Hagar soon led to the latter's departure following the
Paper Money tour. (
Hagar went on to an increasingly successful solo career and eventually, of course,
Van Halen.)
Hagar's replacement was relative newcomer
Bob James, but it was new full-time keyboardist
Jim Alcivar who quickly placed his stamp on the group's appropriately titled third album,
Warner Bros. Presents Montrose! Released at the tail end of 1975 and produced by
Ronnie himself, its pedestrian songwriting and generally plodding, tepid sound alienated what was left of the band's remaining faithful and led to
Fitzgerald's departure soon after (he later became a member of
Night Ranger). New bassist
Randy Jo Hobbs performed on
Montrose's last-ditch effort, 1976's
Jack Douglas-produced
Jump on It. Also poorly received and boasting a ridiculously ill-conceived album cover to match, it never had a chance and the musicians soon went their separate ways.
Carmassi joined
Hagar's solo band (also featuring
Bill Church by then) and later played with
Heart and many others. As for committed outdoorsman
Ronnie Montrose, the guitarist took some time off to enjoy his other hobbies before releasing three albums with new band
Gamma in the early '80s. He recorded under the
Montrose name once again for 1987's
Mean, a one-off affair featuring singer
Johnny Edwards (later, briefly of
Foreigner), bassist
Glenn Letsch, and drummer
James Kottak (soon to form
Kingdom Come, and eventually a member of
the Scorpions).
In early 2002,
Ronnie Montrose formed a new
Montrose lineup with bassist
Chuck Wright (
Quiet Riot), drummer
Pat Torpey (
Mr. Big), and singer Keith St. John (
Burning Rain). They played West Coast dates throughout the year in support of their Rhino compilation
The Very Best of Montrose.
Ronnie Montrose continued production and session work during the following years, and also toured regularly, before losing a long battle with prostate cancer and succumbing to the disease on March 3, 2012 at the age of 64.
–
Eduardo Rivadavia, Rovi