Foreigner

         It was 1976 and Mick Jones was thinking about packing it in. He had been in several bands by this time and had never really made it big in any of them. It was time to make it or break it, so he figured he'd write a few songs and maybe form one last band. He never realized what was about to happen.That "one last band" would turn out to be one of the best bands ever to be formed. That band would be Foreigner.
          Broke and disgusted with the music industry, Mick finished writing some new songs and was now ready to look for some guys to play in his new band. The first one he recruitted was former King Crimson guitarist Ian McDonald. The next one he approached was a young singer in a Rochester New York band which was going nowhere. His name, was Lou Grammatico. Mick had listened to Lou's band Black Sheep and was very impressed with his voice. To round out the band were Al Greenwood on keyboards, Dennis Elliot on drums, and Ed gagliardi on bass.
     Their self titled debut album went platinum as did the next five. Foreigner was on a roll. However, with the success that Foreigner was experiencing, there were storm clouds on the horizon. The band seemed to take a different turn musically with Agent Provocateur. Lou wasn't completely happy with the sound and began a solo career while still with the band. He eventually left Foreigner in 1990 and formed his own band, Shadow King. Ironically, he asked former Black Sheep and future Foreigner bassist Bruce Turgon to play in his new band.
          Meanwhile back at the Foreigner camp, Mick decided not to end the band. He and Lou had become very bitter towards each other and many thought Foreigner would be better off if they had disbanded. Mick had other ideas. He found a young singer by the name of Johnny Edwards. He was no Lou Gramm, but Mick wanted to continue with Foreigner. It was a matter of Mick's pride at this point and Foreigner did not have the success it once enjoyed.
          In stepped Mick's Brother Kevin to try to mend the broken relationship between the two estranged band members. Eventually, Lou and Mick met in a hotel room in LA during the riots and settled their differences. A new tour and album was discussed and Foreigner was back in business.
          The new tour was very successfull. Both Mick and Lou did not want this to be just a "reunion" tour and pledged to each other that Foreigner would rise again. A new album, Mr Moonlight was recorded and a new tour was done. Unfortunately, many fans were unreceptive to Mr. Moonlight as it didn't seem to pack the rocking sound of previous Foreigner material.
          Plans were made to record another album and take Foreigner on a world tour. Lou had been complaining about severe headaches and memory loss. On the eve of their trip to Japan, Foreigner was told that Lou had a brain tumor the size of a golf ball and required dangerous surgery. The surgery was a success and Foreigner was put on the shelf.
          Lou was in recovery for over a year. He had recovered to the point that he decided he wanted to sing with Foreigner once again. He had gained a fair amount of weight due to the medication he was on and was concerned about his appearance in front of the fans. The fears were put away as Foreigner embarked on a new tour in '98. They also toured in '99 and 2000 to the cheers of devoted fans. In between shows, they would work on a new cd.
          Foreigner is a special band for me. As Iv'e stated before, they sang our wedding song, "Until the End of Time " to us which was such a thrill. They are a wonderful bunch of guys and are very loyal to their fans. Truly, FOREIGNER ROCKS!!!!!