Blue Murder were an English rock band led by guitarist-vocalist John Sykes. The group was formed in 1987 following Sykes's dismissal from

Whitesnake Whitesnake are an English hard rock band formed in London in 1978. The group was originally put together as the backing band for singer David Coverdale, who had recently left Deep Purple. Though the band quickly developed into their own en ...

. The initial line-up was rounded out by bassist Tony Franklin and drummer

Carmine Appice Carmine Appice ( , born December 15, 1946) is an American rock drummer. He is best known for his associations with Vanilla Fudge; Cactus; the power trio Beck, Bogert & Appice; Rod Stewart; King Kobra; and Blue Murder. He is also Vinny Appice's ...

. In its nascent stage, vocalist

Ray Gillen Raymond Arthur Gillen (May 12, 1959 – December 1, 1993) was an American rock singer. He is best known for his work with Badlands, in addition to his stint with Black Sabbath in the mid-1980s and recording most of the vocals on Phenomena's '' ...

and drummer

Cozy Powell Cozy Powell (born Colin Trevor Flooks; 29 December 1947 – 5 April 1998) was an English rock drummer who made his name with major rock bands and artists such as The Jeff Beck Group, Rainbow, Michael Schenker Group, Gary Moore, Robert Plant, B ...

were attached to the project. In 1989, Blue Murder released their self-titled debut album, which cracked the ''Billboard'' 200 chart and spawned a minor hit with "Jelly Roll". By the early 1990s, however, Blue Murder's music had fallen out of fashion with the popularity of grunge. Franklin and Appice left the band, while Sykes put together a new line-up and released '' Nothin' But Trouble'' in 1993. After a live album the following year, Blue Murder were dropped by their record label and broke-up. Since then there have been numerous attempts to reunite the band to no avail.

History

Formation and debut album (1987–1990)

In 1986, guitarist John Sykes was fired from the English hard rock group

by vocalist David Coverdale. Sykes had just finished recording the band's eponymous album, which would go on to achieve multi-platinum status. He returned to his home in Blackpool, England, where he began writing songs again. In February 1987, he started putting together a new group. Drummer

was the first to join, having played with Sykes in Whitesnake from 1984 to 1985. Next came bassist Tony Franklin, formerly of The Firm, and lastly vocalist

, who had previously fronted

Black Sabbath Black Sabbath were an English rock music, rock band formed in Birmingham in 1968 by guitarist Tony Iommi, drummer Bill Ward (musician), Bill Ward, bassist Geezer Butler and vocalist Ozzy Osbourne. They are often cited as pioneers of heavy met ...

for a short time. After solidifying their initial line-up, the band recorded some demos and sent them to

Geffen Records Geffen Records is an American record label established by David Geffen and owned by Universal Music Group through its Interscope Geffen A&M Records imprint. Founded in 1980, Geffen Records has been a part of Interscope Geffen A&M since 1999 and h ...

with whom Sykes had previously worked with as a member of Whitesnake. Prior to this, Sykes had sent Geffen his first demo recordings, which featured him on lead vocals. As it happened, Geffen's A&R executive

John Kalodner John David Kalodner is a retired American A&R (artists and repertoire) executive. History John David Kalodner was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and was a writer and photographer at ''Concert'' magazine. He went on to be a photographer for v ...

preferred Sykes's vocals to Gillen's, who were having disagreements over the songs' musical and vocal approach. Eventually, Gillen left after only a few months in the band. In mid-1987, the group signed with Geffen Records, but as they began searching for a new lead singer, Cozy Powell abruptly left to join Black Sabbath, having grown frustrated with the band's slow progress. They were then approached by drummer

, who had previously played with Rod Stewart,

Vanilla Fudge Vanilla Fudge is an American rock band known predominantly for their slow extended heavy rock arrangements of contemporary hit songs, such as their hit cover of The Supremes' " You Keep Me Hangin' On". The band's original line–up—vocalist ...

and

King Kobra King Kobra is an American heavy metal band founded by drummer Carmine Appice after his tenure with Ozzy Osbourne from 1983 to 1984. History For their first two albums, the band consisted of four relatively unknown musicians: vocalist Marcie F ...

, among others. Also in the running was former

Journey Journey or journeying may refer to: * Travel, the movement of people between distant geographical locations ** Day's journey, a measurement of distance ** Road trip, a long-distance journey on the road Animals * Journey (horse), a thoroughbred ra ...

drummer and Sykes's ex-Whitesnake bandmate Aynsley Dunbar, but ultimately the job went to Appice. By early 1988, former Black Sabbath vocalist Tony Martin had been chosen as the band's new lead singer, but as they were about leave for

Vancouver Vancouver ( ) is a major city in western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the ...

to record their debut album, Martin pulled out. The rest of the group decided to soldier on, figuring they could always find a singer later. In February 1988, the band began recording their debut album with producer

Bob Rock Robert Jens Rock (born April 19, 1954) is a Canadian record producer, sound engineer and musician, best known for producing rock bands and music artists such as Metallica, Mötley Crüe, Bon Jovi, Aerosmith, The Tragically Hip, the Cult, ...

. At the same time, they continued to audition singers, among them

David Glen Eisley David Glen Eisley (born September 5, 1952) is an American musician, singer, songwriter, and actor. Personal life Eisley was born in Los Angeles, California and is the son of actor Anthony Eisley and Judith Tubbs Eisley. While in high school, he pl ...

and Derek St. Holmes. Unable to find a singer that satisfied all parties, the band and John Kalodner persuaded Sykes to sing lead vocals. At Franklin's suggestion, the band were dubbed Blue Murder, after the British idiom "scream blue murder". Their debut album, eponymously titled '' Blue Murder'', was released on 24 April 1989. It debuted at number 172 on the ''Billboard'' 200 chart, eventually peaking at number 69 in June 1989. On the

UK Albums Chart The Official Albums Chart is a list of albums ranked by physical and digital sales and (from March 2015) audio streaming in the United Kingdom. It was published for the first time on 22 July 1956 and is compiled every week by the Official Charts ...

, it reached number 45. The record received positive reviews, with ''

Raw Raw is an adjective usually describing: * Raw materials, basic materials from which products are manufactured or made * Raw food, uncooked food Raw or RAW may also refer to: Computing and electronics * .RAW, a proprietary mass spectrometry dat ...

''s Paul Suter giving it a ten out of ten rating and calling it one of "the finest records in an age". The single "Jelly Roll" also proved to be a minor hit, reaching number fifteen on the Album Rock Tracks chart. In support of their debut album, Blue Murder toured America supporting Bon Jovi and Billy Squier, with additional headline dates in America and Japan. While their debut album would go on to sell an estimated 500,000 copies by Sykes's account, Blue Murder's success fell short of expectations. Carmine Appice stated that the decision to release "Valley of the Kings" as the band's first music video was a mistake, as it was deemed too long and not "commercial enough" for MTV. The song was also not available for purchase as a single, something Franklin felt hurt its success on MTV. Due to the failure of "Valley of the Kings", MTV refused to play the follow-up video "Jelly Roll", which Franklin felt prevented it from becoming a

crossover hit Crossover is a term applied to musical works or performers who appeal to different types of audience. This can be seen, for example, (especially in the United States) when a song appears on two or more of the record charts which track differ ...

. Sykes felt that Geffen did not properly promote the band, stating: "I think they were trying to get me and David

overdale Overdale was a small residential district in downtown Montreal that became a famous symbol of the struggle between urban conservationists and land developers. In the mid-1980s, two developers, Robert Landau and Douglas Cohen, operating under an a ...

back together. They wanted me to get back with the 'winning formula'. But the wounds were too fresh. I stayed with the same label. In hindsight, I would have done better with a different label."

Decline and dissolution (1991–1994)

According to Appice and Franklin, Sykes was deeply affected by the failure of Blue Murder's debut album, which led to a long period of inactivity. By 1991, grunge had become popular in the mainstream, leaving groups such as Blue Murder "out of vogue". Though Sykes did eventually start work on a new album, progress was still slow. This was partly due to Sykes producing the record himself for which he built an entirely new home studio. Appice grew tired of waiting and left the group in early 1991. He was briefly replaced by Anders Johansson. In August 1991, Franklin announced his departure from Blue Murder. Sykes then recruited bassist

Marco Mendoza Marco Mendoza is an American rock musician who has worked in diverse genres. He became a professional rock musician in 1989 and debuted on Black Sabbath drummer Bill Ward's solo album '' Along the Way''. He has performed on a number of nota ...

and drummer Tommy O'Steen to the group, while keyboardist Nik Green was promoted to a full-time member, having already played on the band's debut album. However, Franklin had already laid down tracks for Blue Murder's second album, while Carmine Appice was brought back briefly as a session drummer. Sykes also recruited former

Baton Rouge Baton Rouge ( ; ) is a city in and the capital of the U.S. state of Louisiana Louisiana , group=pronunciation (French: ''La Louisiane'') is a state in the Deep South and South Central regions of the United States. It is the 20th-sma ...

vocalist-guitarist

Kelly Keeling Kelly Keeling was born on June 25, 1966, and is an American musician and songwriter. Keeling started playing at the age of 14 and began his career as the lead singer of the American heavy metal band Baton Rouge. Throughout his career Keeling ...

, but he reportedly left the band a day before shooting a new music video. Blue Murder released '' Nothin' But Trouble'' on 31 August 1993. The record received positive reviews, though it was perceived by critics as a step-down from the band's debut. The single "We All Fall Down" reached number 35 on the Album Rock Tracks chart, but the record itself failed to chart. Sykes once again attributed this to Geffen, whom he felt "didn't do anything" to promote the record. In 1994, the band released the live album '' Screaming Blue Murder: Dedicated to Phil Lynott'', which was recorded in Tokyo. Having fulfilled their contractual obligations to their label, Blue Murder were dropped by Geffen. Sykes signed to

Mercury Records Mercury Records is an American record label owned by Universal Music Group. It had significant success as an independent operation in the 1940s and 1950s. Smash Records and Fontana Records were sub labels of Mercury. In the United States, it is ...

in Japan, taking Mendoza and O'Steen with him to play in his solo band.

Proposed reunion (2000–present)

There have been numerous attempts to reunite Blue Murder over the years. According to Carmine Appice, he made several attempts to reunite the group between 2000 and 2012 to no avail. When asked in a 2001 interview if there will be another Blue Murder album, Sykes responded: "Maybe at some point there will be. I don't know." In 2019, Carmine Appice revealed that the group had rehearsed together, but Sykes wanted the band to tour under the moniker John Sykes & Blue Murder, something Appice was unwilling to do. In 2020, Appice stated that he and Sykes had once again talked about the possibility of a Blue Murder reunion, but nothing came of the conversation.

Musical style and legacy

Blue Murder have been described by music critics as

hard rock Hard rock or heavy rock is a loosely defined subgenre of rock music typified by aggressive vocals and distorted electric guitars. Hard rock began in the mid-1960s with the garage, psychedelic and blues rock movements. Some of the earliest hard ...

, heavy metal, and

glam metal Glam metal (also known as hair metal or pop metal) is a subgenre of heavy metal that features pop-influenced hooks and guitar riffs, upbeat rock anthems, and slow power ballads. It borrows heavily from the fashion and image of 1970s glam r ...

. Sykes described the band's sound in a 1989 interview with ''

'' as a combination of Whitesnake, Thin Lizzy and the

blues Blues is a music genre and musical form which originated in the Deep South of the United States around the 1860s. Blues incorporated spirituals, work songs, field hollers, shouts, chants, and rhymed simple narrative ballads from the Afr ...

. Speaking to ''Metal Shock'', he referred to the group's sound as "heavy

funk Funk is a music genre that originated in African American communities in the mid-1960s when musicians created a rhythmic, danceable new form of music through a mixture of various music genres that were popular among African Americans in the m ...

". With ''Blue Murder'', Sykes sought to create a heavier record than Whitesnake's eponymous album, while still retaining much of the same groove and vibe. He would later speculate that this heaviness might have contributed to the album's low sales. Despite Blue Murder's short lifespan, the band and their first album in particular have gained a small

cult following A cult following refers to a group of fans who are highly dedicated to some person, idea, object, movement, or work, often an artist, in particular a performing artist, or an artwork in some medium. The lattermost is often called a cult classic. ...

. Radio and television personality

Eddie Trunk Edward Scott Trunk (born August 8, 1964) is an American music historian, radio personality, talk show host, and author, best known as the host of several hard rock- and heavy metal-themed radio and television shows. Biography Trunk was born on ...

highlighted the group in his 2011 book ''Eddie Trunk's Essential Hard Rock and Heavy Metal'', while

White Wizzard White Wizzard is an American heavy metal band from Los Angeles, formed in 2007. They have released one EP and four albums: ''Over the Top'' released in 2010, ''Flying Tigers'' released in 2011, '' The Devil's Cut'' released in 2013, and '' Inf ...

's Jon Leon named ''Blue Murder'' one of his favourite obscure heavy metal records of the 1980s. Eduardo Rivadavia of

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databas ...

remarked in his retrospective review of the band's first album how it has "endured far better than most similarly styled heavy metal albums of the era". He also touted the production as one of Bob Rock's best alongside his work with

Metallica Metallica is an American heavy metal band. The band was formed in 1981 in Los Angeles by vocalist/guitarist James Hetfield and drummer Lars Ulrich, and has been based in San Francisco for most of its career. The band's fast tempos, instrume ...

. ''

Ultimate Classic Rock Townsquare Media, Inc. (formerly Regent Communications until 2010) is an American radio network and media company based in Purchase, New York. The company started in radio and expanded into digital media toward the end of the 2000s, starting wit ...

'' ranked ''Blue Murder'' the sixth best album produced by Bob Rock, while

MetalSucks MetalSucks is a heavy metal music-themed news website. The site features reviews, interviews, information on latest metal releases and blog-like posts from the writers, most notably Vince Neilstein and Axl Rosenberg. History The site was foun ...

included it on a list of essential hair metal albums not included on a similar list by ''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first kno ...

''.