Armand "Mandy" Meyer (born 29 August 1960) is a Swiss guitarist best known for being a member of the hard rock band Gotthard, the progressive rock band Asia, and the heavy metal band Krokus. Meyer has also worked with Cobra, Stealin' Horses, Katmandu and Unisonic.
Mandy Meyer
Meyer with Unisonic at Skogsröjet festival, Rejmyre, Sweden, 2012
Meyer was born on 29 August 1960 in the town of Balcarres, Saskatchewan, Canada. The son of a Swiss dairy farmer and a Canadian mother, Meyer spent his first three years in Canada. After his parents were divorced his father took him back to Switzerland where he grew up in the house of his grandparents in Küssnacht am Rigi.[1]
Meyer started to play his first instrument, the marching drums, at the age of 9 becoming a member of the local marching drum club for the next seven years. At age 12, he began to study classical guitar and at the age of 15 formed his first local band Quarry performing at parties and local clubs. By 1978, Meyer was the lead vocalist and guitarist for Swiss group BM-Smith who issued the "Chaincy Fever" b/w "Silver City" 7" single that same year and made an appearance on Swiss national TV in 1980 performing the punk rock laced "Do You Wanna Dance", now fronted by female vocalist Vera Kaa.[1]
International careeredit
In 1980, Meyer was approached by Chris von Rohr, founding member and bass player of Krokus, about joining the band following the departure of Tommy Kiefer. He accepted the offer and toured Europe and the United States for the next two years in support of Krokus's Hardware album.[1] At the end of the touring cycle, Meyer decided to move on and began looking for musicians for his own project, teaming up with two members of Lucerne, Switzerland band Roxane, vocalist Tommy Andris and bassist Tommy Keiser. The trio set off for Memphis, Tennessee in 1982 where Andris was soon replaced by former Target vocalist, Jimi Jamison. Rounding out the line-up were guitarist/keyboardist Jack Holder (ex-Black Oak Arkansas) and drummer Jeff Klaven. Managed by Butch Stone, who was also handling Krokus and Black Oak Arkansas and had managed Target, the fledgling new group, named Cobra, quickly became a fixture on the local Memphis scene and scored a record deal with Epic Records. Cobra would issue their one and only album, the Tom Allom produced First Strike, in 1983.[1] Only a moderate commercial success and plagued by management problems, the band went their separate ways in 1984, with members going on to join Survivor, Krokus, and, in Meyer's case, Asia. An unreleased Cobra song, "I'm A Fighter", would find its way onto Van Zant's self-titled 1985 album and became the theme song for WWF wrestler Paul Orndorff, aka "Mr. Wonderful".
After getting a call from Asia's manager, Brian Lane, upon a recommendation by Geffen Records A&R man, John Kalodner, Meyer agreed to travel to London, England for an audition as the band were looking for a replacement for Steve Howe.[1] The parties hit if off well and Meyer was invited to join the group and take part in the recording of Asia's third album, Astra, issued in late 1985. Not as commercially successful as the first two albums, although the single "Go" was an MTV hit, the record label cancelled the projected tour because of lack of interest. In 1986, Asia folded, bringing the group to an end for the time being, with Meyer moving to Los Angeles, California in 1987. There he began working with the likes of Mark Ashton, Stealin Horses,[1] Nelson, John Waite[2], and House of Lords, co-writing the latter's lead-off single, "I Wanna Be Loved", off their eponymous 1988 debut album.[1] He would make a lead guitar guest appearance on the band's sophomore album, Sahara, in 1990. Meyer also formed his own band, Katmandü, with Irishman Dave King (ex-Fastway) on lead vocals.[1] The group released a self-titled album on Epic Records in 1991 and did some limited touring before disbanding in the wake of the early 1990s grunge rock avalanche.
Return to Switzerlandedit
Burnt out after seven years in L.A., Meyer decided to move back home to Switzerland in the mid-1990s where he immediately started writing songs and meeting people, including old Krokus bandmate, Chris von Rohr, who had just signed up as producer for Swiss outfit Gotthard. After Gotthard covered an old song of his, Cobra's "Travelin' Man", for their sophomore album, Dial Hard, Meyer joined the group in early 1996 for their "G Spot Tour" in support of the G. album. He would stay on for the next eight years for what would be Gotthard's most commercially successful era, earning numerous gold and platinum awards in Switzerland and expanding the band's fanbase internationally. Gotthard would also record yet another one of Meyer's old Cobra tunes, "Looking At You", for inclusion on 2002's One Life One Soul - Best of Ballads album.
Meyer decided to leave Gotthard in early 2004 due to disagreements with management and at them same time reaching a point where he felt the need to start something new. After contemplating a solo album,[2] he was back with Krokus in 2005, replacing founding member Fernando von Arb on lead guitar,[3] and played on the band's 2006 release, Hellraiser. However, Meyer was out of the line-up again when Krokus' Headhunter era line-up reunited in the spring of 2008.
In 2011, Meyer teamed up with German vocalist Hagen Grohe, who had featured on Joe Perry's 2009 solo album, Have Guitar, Will Travel, under the name Katmandü, with former Krokus drummer Patrick Aeby, bassist François Mohr, and keyboardist Alan Guy rounding out the line-up. On 4 August 2011 they performed at the Rock Oz'Arènes festival in Avenches, Switzerland playing Katmandü material and other songs from the Meyer catalogue previously recorded by Cobra, Van Zant, House of Lords, and Gotthard as well as a cover of Krokus' "Fire".
In 2012, Meyer rejoined Krokus as their official sixth member,[5] with the band now featuring a three-guitar line-up which made its studio debut on 2013's Dirty Dynamite.
In March 2020, Meyer announced the formation of a new band named Gotus - half Gotthard, half Krokus in name - featuring one-time Krokus rhythm section, Tony Castell and Patrick Aeby, keyboardist Alain Guy, and Croatian guest vocalist Dino Jelusick. In September 2020, the group released a video for the song "Souls Alive"[3], originally recorded by Meyer with Unisonic on their eponymous 2012 debut album. Gotus made their live debut on the Swiss Rock Cruise one month later, with the setlist consisting of songs co-written by Meyer throughout his career.
Cobra one-off reunionedit
On 25 October 2015 the 3 surviving members of Cobra, Mandy Meyer, Tommy Keiser and Jeff Klaven, reunited for the first time in over 30 years to help pay tribute to their former lead vocalist, the late Jimi Jamison, as part of the star-studded "Jam for Jimi Jamison" at the Hard Rock Cafe in Memphis, TN.[6] They were joined by Jamison's son-in-law, Todd Poole (ex-Roxy Blue, Saliva), Jeffery Wade Caughron and Kory Myers for the occasion, performing songs off the First Strike album as well as a cover of Krokus' "Screaming in the Night".
^"Krokus Part Ways With Guitarist Fernando Von Arb, Announce Replacement". Blabbermouth.net. March 5, 2005.
^"Unisonic - Mandy Meyer And Kosta Zafiriou Discuss Songwriting Process For New Album". BraveWords.com. January 14, 2014.
^"Krokus Rejoined By Guitarist Mandy Meyer". Blabbermouth.net. December 8, 2012.
^"Jam for Jimi Jamison at Hard Rock Memphis". Examiner.com. October 5, 2015.
External linksedit
Official website
January 01, 1970
mandy, meyer, armand, mandy, meyer, born, august, 1960, swiss, guitarist, best, known, being, member, hard, rock, band, gotthard, progressive, rock, band, asia, heavy, metal, band, krokus, meyer, also, worked, with, cobra, stealin, horses, katmandu, unisonic, . Armand Mandy Meyer born 29 August 1960 is a Swiss guitarist best known for being a member of the hard rock band Gotthard the progressive rock band Asia and the heavy metal band Krokus Meyer has also worked with Cobra Stealin Horses Katmandu and Unisonic Mandy MeyerMeyer with Unisonic at Skogsrojet festival Rejmyre Sweden 2012Background informationBirth nameArmand MeyerBorn 1960 08 29 29 August 1960 age 63 Balcarres Saskatchewan CanadaOriginSwitzerlandGenresHard rock heavy metal progressive rock power metalOccupation s GuitaristInstrument s GuitarYears active1978 presentWebsitewww wbr mandymeyer wbr ch Contents 1 Early years 2 International career 3 Return to Switzerland 4 Current projects 5 Cobra one off reunion 6 Discography 6 1 Cobra 6 2 Asia 6 3 Stealin Horses 6 4 Ashton 6 5 Katmandu 6 6 Gotthard 6 7 Krokus 6 8 Unisonic 7 References 8 External linksEarly years editMeyer was born on 29 August 1960 in the town of Balcarres Saskatchewan Canada The son of a Swiss dairy farmer and a Canadian mother Meyer spent his first three years in Canada After his parents were divorced his father took him back to Switzerland where he grew up in the house of his grandparents in Kussnacht am Rigi 1 nbsp Meyer started to play his first instrument the marching drums at the age of 9 becoming a member of the local marching drum club for the next seven years At age 12 he began to study classical guitar and at the age of 15 formed his first local band Quarry performing at parties and local clubs By 1978 Meyer was the lead vocalist and guitarist for Swiss group BM Smith who issued the Chaincy Fever b w Silver City 7 single that same year and made an appearance on Swiss national TV in 1980 performing the punk rock laced Do You Wanna Dance now fronted by female vocalist Vera Kaa 1 International career editIn 1980 Meyer was approached by Chris von Rohr founding member and bass player of Krokus about joining the band following the departure of Tommy Kiefer He accepted the offer and toured Europe and the United States for the next two years in support of Krokus s Hardware album 1 At the end of the touring cycle Meyer decided to move on and began looking for musicians for his own project teaming up with two members of Lucerne Switzerland band Roxane vocalist Tommy Andris and bassist Tommy Keiser The trio set off for Memphis Tennessee in 1982 where Andris was soon replaced by former Target vocalist Jimi Jamison Rounding out the line up were guitarist keyboardist Jack Holder ex Black Oak Arkansas and drummer Jeff Klaven Managed by Butch Stone who was also handling Krokus and Black Oak Arkansas and had managed Target the fledgling new group named Cobra quickly became a fixture on the local Memphis scene and scored a record deal with Epic Records Cobra would issue their one and only album the Tom Allom produced First Strike in 1983 1 Only a moderate commercial success and plagued by management problems the band went their separate ways in 1984 with members going on to join Survivor Krokus and in Meyer s case Asia An unreleased Cobra song I m A Fighter would find its way onto Van Zant s self titled 1985 album and became the theme song for WWF wrestler Paul Orndorff aka Mr Wonderful After getting a call from Asia s manager Brian Lane upon a recommendation by Geffen Records A amp R man John Kalodner Meyer agreed to travel to London England for an audition as the band were looking for a replacement for Steve Howe 1 The parties hit if off well and Meyer was invited to join the group and take part in the recording of Asia s third album Astra issued in late 1985 Not as commercially successful as the first two albums although the single Go was an MTV hit the record label cancelled the projected tour because of lack of interest In 1986 Asia folded bringing the group to an end for the time being with Meyer moving to Los Angeles California in 1987 There he began working with the likes of Mark Ashton Stealin Horses 1 Nelson John Waite 2 and House of Lords co writing the latter s lead off single I Wanna Be Loved off their eponymous 1988 debut album 1 He would make a lead guitar guest appearance on the band s sophomore album Sahara in 1990 Meyer also formed his own band Katmandu with Irishman Dave King ex Fastway on lead vocals 1 The group released a self titled album on Epic Records in 1991 and did some limited touring before disbanding in the wake of the early 1990s grunge rock avalanche Return to Switzerland editBurnt out after seven years in L A Meyer decided to move back home to Switzerland in the mid 1990s where he immediately started writing songs and meeting people including old Krokus bandmate Chris von Rohr who had just signed up as producer for Swiss outfit Gotthard After Gotthard covered an old song of his Cobra s Travelin Man for their sophomore album Dial Hard Meyer joined the group in early 1996 for their G Spot Tour in support of the G album He would stay on for the next eight years for what would be Gotthard s most commercially successful era earning numerous gold and platinum awards in Switzerland and expanding the band s fanbase internationally Gotthard would also record yet another one of Meyer s old Cobra tunes Looking At You for inclusion on 2002 s One Life One Soul Best of Ballads album Meyer decided to leave Gotthard in early 2004 due to disagreements with management and at them same time reaching a point where he felt the need to start something new After contemplating a solo album 2 he was back with Krokus in 2005 replacing founding member Fernando von Arb on lead guitar 3 and played on the band s 2006 release Hellraiser However Meyer was out of the line up again when Krokus Headhunter era line up reunited in the spring of 2008 Current projects editMeyer is a member of Unisonic formed in 2009 by Pink Cream 69 members Dennis Ward and Kosta Zafiriou and former Helloween vocalist Michael Kiske In 2011 Kiske s old Helloween mate Kai Hansen Gamma Ray was added to the line up The group has released 2 EP s and 2 full length albums so far 4 In 2011 Meyer teamed up with German vocalist Hagen Grohe who had featured on Joe Perry s 2009 solo album Have Guitar Will Travel under the name Katmandu with former Krokus drummer Patrick Aeby bassist Francois Mohr and keyboardist Alan Guy rounding out the line up On 4 August 2011 they performed at the Rock Oz Arenes festival in Avenches Switzerland playing Katmandu material and other songs from the Meyer catalogue previously recorded by Cobra Van Zant House of Lords and Gotthard as well as a cover of Krokus Fire In 2012 Meyer rejoined Krokus as their official sixth member 5 with the band now featuring a three guitar line up which made its studio debut on 2013 s Dirty Dynamite In March 2020 Meyer announced the formation of a new band named Gotus half Gotthard half Krokus in name featuring one time Krokus rhythm section Tony Castell and Patrick Aeby keyboardist Alain Guy and Croatian guest vocalist Dino Jelusick In September 2020 the group released a video for the song Souls Alive 3 originally recorded by Meyer with Unisonic on their eponymous 2012 debut album Gotus made their live debut on the Swiss Rock Cruise one month later with the setlist consisting of songs co written by Meyer throughout his career Cobra one off reunion editOn 25 October 2015 the 3 surviving members of Cobra Mandy Meyer Tommy Keiser and Jeff Klaven reunited for the first time in over 30 years to help pay tribute to their former lead vocalist the late Jimi Jamison as part of the star studded Jam for Jimi Jamison at the Hard Rock Cafe in Memphis TN 6 They were joined by Jamison s son in law Todd Poole ex Roxy Blue Saliva Jeffery Wade Caughron and Kory Myers for the occasion performing songs off the First Strike album as well as a cover of Krokus Screaming in the Night Discography editCobra edit nbsp First Strike 1983 Asia edit Astra 1985 Then and Now 1990 Stealin Horses edit Stealin Horses 1988 Ashton edit Modern Pilgrims 1988 Katmandu edit Katmandu 1991 Gotthard edit D frosted Live album 1997 Open 1999 Homerun 2001 Human Zoo 2003 Krokus edit Hellraiser 2006 Dirty Dynamite 2013 Long Stick Goes Boom Live From Da House of Rust 2014 Big Rocks 2017 Unisonic edit Ignition 2012 EP Unisonic 2012 For the Kingdom 2014 EP Light of Dawn 2014 Live in Wacken 2017 References edit a b c d e f g Syrjala Marko Krokus Guitarist Mandy Meyer Metal Rules com Gotthard A New Team in 2004 MelodicRock net Krokus Part Ways With Guitarist Fernando Von Arb Announce Replacement Blabbermouth net March 5 2005 Unisonic Mandy Meyer And Kosta Zafiriou Discuss Songwriting Process For New Album BraveWords com January 14 2014 Krokus Rejoined By Guitarist Mandy Meyer Blabbermouth net December 8 2012 Jam for Jimi Jamison at Hard Rock Memphis Examiner com October 5 2015 External links editOfficial website Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Mandy Meyer amp oldid 1205950398, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
