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Greg Kihn

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Greg Kihn
Kihn in concert, September 2008
Kihn in concert, September 2008
Background information
Birth nameGregory Stanley Kihn
Born(1949-07-10)July 10, 1949
Baltimore, Maryland, U.S.
DiedAugust 13, 2024(2024-08-13) (aged 75)
GenresRock
Occupations
  • Musician
  • radio personality
  • novelist
Instruments
  • Vocals
  • guitar
Years active1976–2024
Labels
Formerly ofThe Greg Kihn Band
Websitegregkihn.com

Gregory Stanley Kihn (July 10, 1949 – August 13, 2024) was an American rock musician, radio personality, and novelist. He founded and led The Greg Kihn Band, which scored hit songs in the 1980s, and has written several horror novels.

History

Kihn was born in Baltimore, Maryland,[1] to parents Stanley J. Kihn, a city Health Department inspector who fought in the Battle of the Bulge during World War II and Jane (Gregorek) Kihn.[2]

His early influence was The Beatles and their appearance on The Ed Sullivan Show. "Just about every rock and roll musician my age can point to one cultural event that inspired him to take up music in the first place: The Beatles on Ed Sullivan. If you were a shy 14-year-old kid who already had a guitar, it was a life-altering event... In a single weekend everything had changed. I'd come home from school the previous Friday looking like Dion. I went back to class on Monday morning with my hair dry and brushed forward. That's how quickly it happened."[3]

Kihn began his career in his hometown of Baltimore, working in the singer/songwriter mold but switched to straightforward rock & roll when he moved to San Francisco in 1974.[1] He started writing songs and playing coffee houses while still in high school in the Baltimore area. When Kihn was 17, his mother submitted a tape of one of his original songs to the talent contest of the big local Top 40 radio station WCAO, in which he took first prize and won three things that would change his life: a typewriter, a stack of records, and a Vox electric guitar.

After his move to California, Kihn worked at painting houses, singing in the streets, and the counter at Berkeley record store Rather Ripped Records with future bandmate and Earth Quake guitarist Gary Phillips. The next year, he became one of the first artists signed to Matthew King Kaufman's Beserkley Records.[1] Along with Jonathan Richman, Earth Quake, and The Rubinoos, Kihn helped to carve the label's sound—melodic pop with a strong 1960s pop sensibility—an alternative to the prog rock of the time. In 1976, after his debut on the compilation Beserkley Chartbusters, he recorded his first album with his own ensemble, called The Greg Kihn Band consisting of Robbie Dunbar (guitar), Steve Wright (bass), and Larry Lynch (drums).[1] Dunbar, already a member of Earth Quake, was replaced by Dave Carpender in time to record their second album, Greg Kihn Again.[1] Meanwhile, Kihn's old record store pal, Gary Phillips, who had contributed guitars to Kihn's first album, returned as a session musician on the band's Glass House Rock (1980) album and officially joined the band as keyboardist for the follow-up album, Rockihnroll (1981).[1] The lineup of Kihn, Wright, Lynch, Phillips, and Carpender lasted until 1983, when Greg Douglass replaced Dave Carpender.[1]

Through the 1970s, Kihn released an album each year and built a strong cult following through constant touring, becoming Beserkley's biggest seller. In 1981, he earned his first bona-fide hit on The Billboard Hot 100 with the No. 15 single, "The Breakup Song (They Don't Write 'Em)," from the Rockihnroll album.[1] He continued in a more commercial vein through the 1980s with a series of pun-titled albums: Kihntinued (1982), Kihnspiracy (1983), Kihntageous (1984), and Citizen Kihn (1985).

Kihn scored his biggest hit with "Jeopardy" (1983), which reached No. 2 in the Billboard Hot 100, from the Kihnspiracy album.[1] In 1983, the groundbreaking "Jeopardy" video became an MTV favorite. Many of the videos that followed were sequels with connecting story lines. One of the earliest examples of a "concept" video with its Night of the Living Dead theme, "Jeopardy" received heavy airplay on the fledgling cable music channel and spawned countless imitators. "Jeopardy" was spoofed by "Weird Al" Yankovic as "I Lost on Jeopardy", on Yankovic's album "Weird Al" Yankovic in 3-D (1984); Kihn authorized Yankovic to make the spoof under the condition he could participate; which was seen at the end of Yankovic's music video where Yankovic is tossed into a convertible, revealing Kihn to be the driver.

For most of the 1980s Kihn toured constantly, opening arena-sized shows for groups including Journey, the Grateful Dead, and the Rolling Stones. Kihn often appeared on TV during this period on shows such as Solid Gold, American Bandstand, and Saturday Night Live. On May 10, 1981, Kihn and Willie Nile appeared live on the King Biscuit Flower Hour from the Savoy Theater, New York City. In 1985, Kihn broke with Beserkley Records and signed with EMI. Matthew Kaufman continued to produce Kihn's albums. "Lucky" (1985) reached a modest No. 30 on the Hot 100 and spawned a splashy video sequel to the popular "Jeopardy" video. In 1986, Joe Satriani replaced Greg Douglass on lead guitar, Tyler Eng replaced Larry Lynch on drums, and Gary Phillips left with Pat Mosca taking over on keyboards. That is the lineup which recorded the album Love and Rock & Roll (1986).[1]

From 1996 through 2012, Kihn was a morning radio disc jockey for KUFX, a Bay Area classic rock radio station.[4] He also began a literary career in 1996 with the release of his first novel, Horror Show, published by Tor/Forge Books.[1] Horror Show was nominated for the prestigious Bram Stoker Award for Best First Novel. It was followed by Shade of Pale (1997), Big Rock Beat (1998), and Mojo Hand (1999). He published many short stories during this period, some appearing in the Hot Blood series of erotic horror fiction. Kihn was contributing editor to Carved in Rock, a compilation of short fiction by musicians including Pete Townshend, Joan Jett, Ray Davies, and Kinky Friedman. The Greg Kihn Band continues to play with a line-up comprising Kihn's son Ry Kihn on lead guitar, Dave Danza (from Eddie Money) on drums, Dave Medd (from The Tubes) on keyboards, and Robert Berry (from Hush) on bass.[citation needed] Kihn was inducted into San Jose Rocks Hall of Fame in 2007.[5][importance?]

In September 2013, Music Life Radio interviewed Kihn about his music, radio, and writing careers.[6]

Charity work and volunteerism

Kihn has done charity work for “Operation Care and Comfort”, a military support group responsible for sending care packages to hundreds of military units deployed in harm’s way around the world. He was nominated for the 2010 “Man of the Year Award” by the Lymphoma Society and performs for Children’s Hospital in Oakland, California in the fight against cancer.

Personal life and death

Kihn has two children, son Ry, a guitarist; and Lexi, a nurse.[7] Kihn was of Polish descent. He died[8] of complications related to Alzheimer's disease on August 13, 2024, at the age of 75.

Discography

Main article: The Greg Kihn Band § Discography

Author

Kihn has written four horror fiction novels, beginning with Horror Show (1996), which was nominated for the Bram Stoker Award for Best First Novel, followed by Shade of Pale (1997).[9] Big Rock Beat and Mojo Hand were released as sequels to Horror Show.

He released Carved in Rock: Short Stories by Musicians, a collection of short stories written by him and other well-known rock musicians including Pete Townshend, Graham Parker, Joan Jett, and Ray Davies. In 2013, Kihn released Rubber Soul, a murder mystery novel featuring the Beatles.

Bibliography

  • Kihn, Greg (1996). Horror Show. Tom Doherty Assoc Llc. ISBN 978-0-8125-5108-2.
  • Kihn, Greg (1998). Shade of Pale. Tor Books. ISBN 978-0-8125-5109-9.
  • Kihn, Greg (1998). Big Rock Beat. Forge Books. ISBN 978-0-312-86756-0.
  • Kihn, Greg (1999). Mojo Hand. Forge Books. ISBN 978-0-312-87246-5.
  • Kihn, Greg (2003). Carved in Rock: Short Stories by Musicians. Thunder's Mouth Press. ISBN 978-1-56025-453-9.
  • Kihn, Greg (2013). Rubber Soul. Premier Digital Publishing. ISBN 978-1-62467-094-7.
  • Kihn, Greg (2015). Painted Black.

See also

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Colin Larkin, ed. (1997). The Virgin Encyclopedia of Popular Music (Concise ed.). Virgin Books. pp. 706–7. ISBN 978-1-85227-745-1.
  2. ^ "Stanley J. Kihn, 78, health agency inspector". The Baltimore Sun. June 9, 1999. Archived from the original on July 13, 2022. Retrieved September 19, 2021.
  3. ^ Crandall, Bill (February 6, 2014). "10 musicians who saw the Beatles standing there". CBS News.
  4. ^ Harrington, Jim (September 15, 2012). "Greg Kihn parts ways with KFOX". The Mercury News. Retrieved February 19, 2018.
  5. ^ "Greg Kihn − San Jose Rocks". Sanjoserocks.org. January 13, 2021. Retrieved September 19, 2021.
  6. ^ Sauter, Dan (September 30, 2013). "087 – Rubber Soul: Greg Kihn". Music Life Radio.
  7. ^ Freeman, Paul (May 21, 2009). "The Multifaceted Greg Kihn". The Mercury News. Retrieved September 19, 2021.
  8. ^ Baker, Alex (August 15, 2024). "Bay Area rock icon Greg Kihn passes away at 75".
  9. ^ Kihn, Greg. "Horror Show Novel". GregKihn.biz.
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