April Lawton (July 30, 1948 – November 23, 2006) was a guitarist and composer who rose to some prominence in the early to mid-1970s as a member of the band Ramatam, which also included at one time former Iron Butterfly guitarist Mike Pinera and the former Jimi Hendrix drummer Mitch Mitchell, as well as Russ Smith (bass, vocals), and Tommy Sullivan (keyboards, reeds, vocals). Her playing style was a mix of Jeff Beck, Hendrix, and Allan Holdsworth. Lawton gave no interviews, refused to discuss her past, and she was rumoured to be transgender—rumours confirmed by her friend, Fanny guitarist June Millington, in a 2010 interview for GuitarGearHeads.[1] Singer Dee Snider claims Lawton was still male while in the band Johnny Maestro and the Brooklyn Bridge.[2]
Mike Pinera, former bandmate, made a statement in Guitar Player magazine regarding Lawton's gender: "I can attest to her being a woman," declares Pinera. "When I asked her about the rumors, she took my hand and gave me a 'first base' account. I know they have technology for that now, but, back then, no way!"[3]Gender reassignment surgery has been practised since the 1930s, and available in the United States from 1965.[4] Social Security Administration Applications and Claims documents provided by Ancestry.com confirm that April Lawton was born Gregory R. Ferrara, male, on 30 July 1948 in Brooklyn, New York, and used this name for Social Security purposes through 1977. Subsequent Social Security records indicate a name change to April Trewhala, from 15 Feb 1978 through mid-2002. From 31 July 2002 through her death on 06 Dec 2006, Social Security records indicate she used the name April Lawton.
Lawton stayed with Ramatam for two studio albums, their self-titled debut (1972, Atlantic) and In April Came the Dawning of the Red Suns. The group was not commercially successful, and Lawton left after the second album, forming a short-lived solo project called the April Lawton Band, which dissolved in the late 1970s. Lawton then left the music scene to concentrate on painting and graphic design. Her personal life remained very private until her death from heart failure at her home on November 23, 2006, aged 58.
During the 1990s she recorded demos for a future album, and the material remains unreleased. Some brief excerpts are available at the April Lawton tribute website.[1]
Referencesedit
^Seetoo, John (2010). . GuitarGearHeads. Archived from the original on 4 May 2014. Retrieved 9 May 2012.
^Snider, Dee (2012). Shut Up and Give Me the Mic. New York: Simon and Schuster. p. 281. ISBN978-1451637397. Retrieved 2 October 2014.
april, lawton, july, 1948, november, 2006, guitarist, composer, rose, some, prominence, early, 1970s, member, band, ramatam, which, also, included, time, former, iron, butterfly, guitarist, mike, pinera, former, jimi, hendrix, drummer, mitch, mitchell, well, r. April Lawton July 30 1948 November 23 2006 was a guitarist and composer who rose to some prominence in the early to mid 1970s as a member of the band Ramatam which also included at one time former Iron Butterfly guitarist Mike Pinera and the former Jimi Hendrix drummer Mitch Mitchell as well as Russ Smith bass vocals and Tommy Sullivan keyboards reeds vocals Her playing style was a mix of Jeff Beck Hendrix and Allan Holdsworth Lawton gave no interviews refused to discuss her past and she was rumoured to be transgender rumours confirmed by her friend Fanny guitarist June Millington in a 2010 interview for GuitarGearHeads 1 Singer Dee Snider claims Lawton was still male while in the band Johnny Maestro and the Brooklyn Bridge 2 April LawtonGenresRock psychedelic rock hard rock jazz fusionInstrument s Guitar vocalsYears active1972 2006 Mike Pinera former bandmate made a statement in Guitar Player magazine regarding Lawton s gender I can attest to her being a woman declares Pinera When I asked her about the rumors she took my hand and gave me a first base account I know they have technology for that now but back then no way 3 Gender reassignment surgery has been practised since the 1930s and available in the United States from 1965 4 Social Security Administration Applications and Claims documents provided by Ancestry com confirm that April Lawton was born Gregory R Ferrara male on 30 July 1948 in Brooklyn New York and used this name for Social Security purposes through 1977 Subsequent Social Security records indicate a name change to April Trewhala from 15 Feb 1978 through mid 2002 From 31 July 2002 through her death on 06 Dec 2006 Social Security records indicate she used the name April Lawton Lawton stayed with Ramatam for two studio albums their self titled debut 1972 Atlantic and In April Came the Dawning of the Red Suns The group was not commercially successful and Lawton left after the second album forming a short lived solo project called the April Lawton Band which dissolved in the late 1970s Lawton then left the music scene to concentrate on painting and graphic design Her personal life remained very private until her death from heart failure at her home on November 23 2006 aged 58 During the 1990s she recorded demos for a future album and the material remains unreleased Some brief excerpts are available at the April Lawton tribute website 1 References edit Seetoo John 2010 GGH Exclusive Interview June Millington GuitarGearHeads Archived from the original on 4 May 2014 Retrieved 9 May 2012 Snider Dee 2012 Shut Up and Give Me the Mic New York Simon and Schuster p 281 ISBN 978 1451637397 Retrieved 2 October 2014 Guitar Player Sept 2008 Wexler Laura 2007 Identity Crisis Baltimore Style Archived from the original on 19 February 2012 Retrieved 2 October 2014 External links edithttp www aprillawton com https web archive org web 20070302203732 http www reesho com htm april htm Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title April Lawton amp oldid 1195456036, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
