Badlands

B

est known as the band featuring former Ozzy Osbourne guitarist Jake E. Lee, Badlands showed plenty of promise but their run was short-lived. Hard rock bands of the 80s and early 90s often were labelled as 'hair metal', and Badlands were often mis-categorized as such, as they never went for the glam image of their compatriots. They debuted with a self-titled effort in 1989 under the membership of Ray Gillen (R.I.P.: December 1, 1993 of AIDS; vocals), Jake E. Lee (ex-Ozzy Osbourne; guitars), Greg Chaisson (ex-Die Happy; bass) and Eric Singer (drums). That debut was considered a fine one, with Lee's tasteful bluesy riffs combined with Ray Gillen's Led Zeppelin-inspired vocals.

The debut got good reviews, some MTV airplay, and decent sales, but they didn't quite make the impact that they, or the record company, hoped for. Two years later came the follow-up, Voodoo Highway with Jeff Martin ex-Michael Schenker Group/ex-Racer X) now on drums, but it was a commercial failure, and by this time infighting between Gillen and Lee were threatening to break the band apart. It came to a head when, Gillen quit (or was fired depending on your POV) before a planned UK tour, only to be recruited temporarily back to complete those concerts, where naturally the tensions between the two were at full force. Following Gillen's final exit, the band soldiered on for a time with new vocalist John West (later to be seen in Artension and Royal Hunt), but this didn't last long and the band was soon put to rest. Lee disappeared from the public scene for many years afterward, while Gillen died in late 1993.

** This article is also available on our official app.