Dean Fasano (January 16, 1955 – December 8, 2009)
was the lead singer of the bands
Message
A message is a discrete unit of communication intended by the source for consumption by some recipient or group of recipients. A message may be delivered by various means, including courier, telegraphy, carrier pigeon and electronic bus.
A ...
and
Prophet
In religion, a prophet or prophetess is an individual who is regarded as being in contact with a divine being and is said to speak on behalf of that being, serving as an intermediary with humanity by delivering messages or teachings from the s ...
.
Early years
Fasano grew up in
New Jersey
New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delaware ...
, United States, and in his youth he got interested in music and singing. His special and emotional voice was long known as one of the most distinctive voices on the New Jersey music scene. In 1973, Dean Fasano was a founding member and lead singer for, what became a world-renowned, progressive rock band, Mirthrandir, Throughout the late 70s he played in various bands with future
Bon Jovi
Bon Jovi is an American Rock music, rock band formed in 1983 in Sayreville, New Jersey. It consists of singer Jon Bon Jovi, keyboardist David Bryan, drummer Tico Torres, guitarist Phil X, and bassist Hugh McDonald (American musician), Hugh McD ...
guitarist,
Richie Sambora
Richard Stephen Sambora (born July 11, 1959) is an American rock guitarist, singer, songwriter and producer, best known as the lead guitarist of the rock band Bon Jovi from 1983 to 2013. He and lead singer Jon Bon Jovi formed the main songwri ...
. Fasano was usually the lead vocalist in these bands. He got a record deal with Led Zeppelin's Swan Song label, however, before they got to put out an album,
Led Zeppelin
Led Zeppelin were an English rock band formed in London in 1968. The group comprised vocalist Robert Plant, guitarist Jimmy Page, bassist/keyboardist John Paul Jones, and drummer John Bonham. With a heavy, guitar-driven sound, they are ci ...
's drummer,
John Bonham
John Henry Bonham (31 May 1948 – 25 September 1980) was an English musician, best known as the drummer for the rock band Led Zeppelin. Esteemed for his speed, power, fast single-footed kick drumming, distinctive sound, and feel for groove,J ...
died, and the label disbanded, as would the band later.
1980s
In 1980, Fasano decided to put a band together; he brought in Richie Sambora, former Phantom's Opera bassist
Alec John Such
Alec John Such (November 14, 1951 – June 5, 2022) was an American musician. He was best known as a founding member of the rock band Bon Jovi. As their bass player from 1983 to 1994, he played on their first five albums.
Such started his ...
, drummer Andy Rubbo of the circuit band Flossie, and Simon Gannett, keyboard player of Mirthrandir and the New Jersey club band Rivendell. Bruce Foster, who had worked a lot with Richie Sambora, and who had also appeared on the debut KISS album, also came to play keyboard on some songs. They decided to call the band
Message
A message is a discrete unit of communication intended by the source for consumption by some recipient or group of recipients. A message may be delivered by various means, including courier, telegraphy, carrier pigeon and electronic bus.
A ...
. They had their own company, their own publishing deal. Therefore, they weren't capable of putting out many records. Their first album was self-titled, they pressed about 1800 copies and they sold it out of the trunk of their car.
In 1982, the band managed to get some concert dates as an opening act for
Joe Cocker
John Robert "Joe" Cocker (20 May 1944 – 22 December 2014) was an English singer known for his gritty, bluesy voice and dynamic stage performances that featured expressive body movements. Most of his best known singles were recordings of son ...
, who was doing a small scale tour. The band got a great reception; however, they had to quit touring, due to the fact that the money ran out. They went back to
Sayreville
Sayreville is a borough in Middlesex County, New Jersey, United States. Sayreville is within the heart of the Raritan Valley region, located on the south banks of the Raritan River, and also located on the Raritan Bay. As of the 2010 United Sta ...
, New Jersey, to continue to play in clubs and rehearse songs. In one of those clubs, the band ran into a band called "Jon Bon Jovi and the Wild Ones". Because of that meeting,
Jon Bon Jovi
John Francis Bongiovi Jr. (born March 2, 1962), known professionally as Jon Bon Jovi, is an American singer, songwriter, guitarist, and actor. He is best known as the founder and frontman of the rock band Bon Jovi, which was formed in 1983. He ...
would call upon
Richie Sambora
Richard Stephen Sambora (born July 11, 1959) is an American rock guitarist, singer, songwriter and producer, best known as the lead guitarist of the rock band Bon Jovi from 1983 to 2013. He and lead singer Jon Bon Jovi formed the main songwri ...
and
Alec John Such
Alec John Such (November 14, 1951 – June 5, 2022) was an American musician. He was best known as a founding member of the rock band Bon Jovi. As their bass player from 1983 to 1994, he played on their first five albums.
Such started his ...
, who played in
Message
A message is a discrete unit of communication intended by the source for consumption by some recipient or group of recipients. A message may be delivered by various means, including courier, telegraphy, carrier pigeon and electronic bus.
A ...
at that time, in 1983 when he put together a band to support his single "
Runaway".
Message
A message is a discrete unit of communication intended by the source for consumption by some recipient or group of recipients. A message may be delivered by various means, including courier, telegraphy, carrier pigeon and electronic bus.
A ...
disbanded.
Since European labels had great interest in his band, an official release with Message bootlegs was put out shortly after the disbanding of the band. In the first five days, the album sold 8,600 copies, and it hit the charts in some countries.
Shortly after The Message broke up, Fasano got together with a band called "
Prophet
In religion, a prophet or prophetess is an individual who is regarded as being in contact with a divine being and is said to speak on behalf of that being, serving as an intermediary with humanity by delivering messages or teachings from the s ...
". The band featured Fasano (as a lead and backing vocalist), Ken Dubman (guitarist), Scott Metaxas (guitarist and bassist), Mike Brown (bassist) from Phantoms Opera, Joe Zujkowski (keyboard), and
Ted Poley
Ted Poley (born January 5, 1964) is an American singer who is best known as the lead vocalist of the hard rock band Danger Danger.
Biography
Poley joined New Jersey progressive rock band Prophet as a drummer. They released their first album ...
(drummer and lead vocalist). They released a self-titled album in 1985 through the label RCA Record. The album did well in Europe, and they released a single called "Everything You Are to Me" where Fasano sings the lead. They also made a music video to this song. Fasano did not sing lead on all of the songs on "Prophet". He sang lead on "Street Secrets", "Power Play", and "Everything You Are to Me", "Away From You" and "Sail Away". He was replaced by Russel Arcara.
1980s and 1990s
Throughout the 1980s and 1990s, Fasano worked with various musicians, both as a musician and as a producer. He recorded songs with bands like Phantom's Opera and Adrian Dodz. He also started a new company, and he began to work with a new Message album. In 1990, Fasano teamed up with Richie Sambora and Fasano did background vocals on Sambora's first solo album, ''
Stranger in This Town
''Stranger in This Town'' is the first solo studio album by Richie Sambora, the guitarist from the New Jersey band Bon Jovi. The album was released in 1991, while Bon Jovi was on a 17-month hiatus. Jon Bon Jovi also released a solo album, '' Blaz ...
''. He also did background vocals on
Jon Bon Jovi
John Francis Bongiovi Jr. (born March 2, 1962), known professionally as Jon Bon Jovi, is an American singer, songwriter, guitarist, and actor. He is best known as the founder and frontman of the rock band Bon Jovi, which was formed in 1983. He ...
's second solo album, ''
Destination Anywhere
''Destination Anywhere'' is Jon Bon Jovi's second solo studio album released June 16, 1997 and features music from the film ''Destination Anywhere'' released in the same year. It follows his successful 1990 soundtrack '' Blaze of Glory'', from ...
'', which came out in 1997. Two years earlier, the first Message album was re-released throughout Long Island Records. It was released on 31 August 1995, in Germany. This album contained songs like "Any Other Girl" written by Dean Fasano, M. Marconi, M. Terpos & L. Terpos, "Is There Love" written by Richie Sambora and "It Won’t Be Long" written by Dean Fasano.
In 1998, Fasano teamed up with Mike Walsh (guitar, keyboard and bass), Tom DeRossi (guitar), Jeff Thompsen (bass), Steve D'Acurtis (guitar, bass and sitar) and other musicians to release another album with Message. The album came out in 1998 and was released through Escape Music. The album was called ''Fine Line'' (The title track (FINE LINE) was written by Mark Allen Lanoue, and was originally recorded with Dean on vocals in 1989–1990) and consisted of many hard rock ballads.
2000s
In 2000, he released two Message albums. He did another re-release on the first Message album. He called it ''Lessons'' and this release had four bonus songs. All the songs on this album were recorded around 1982–1983. As the previous Message album, this was released through Escape Music. The musicians that appear on this album is Dean Fasano (lead vocals and guitar),
Richie Sambora
Richard Stephen Sambora (born July 11, 1959) is an American rock guitarist, singer, songwriter and producer, best known as the lead guitarist of the rock band Bon Jovi from 1983 to 2013. He and lead singer Jon Bon Jovi formed the main songwri ...
(guitar),
Alec John Such
Alec John Such (November 14, 1951 – June 5, 2022) was an American musician. He was best known as a founding member of the rock band Bon Jovi. As their bass player from 1983 to 1994, he played on their first five albums.
Such started his ...
(bass), Bruce Foster (Acoustic and electric piano and prophet 5), Simon Gannet (organ) and Andy Rubbo (drums).
The other Message album that was released that year was called ''Outside Looking In''. This time, Message consisted of Dean Fasano (lead vocals and keyboards), Tim Hewitt (bass), Aaron Anderson (drums, percussions), Steve Morris (guitar and keyboard), Chris Ousey (harmony and backing vocals) and David Chapman (keyboards). This would be the last Message studio album.
In 2006 Fasano decided to put together a live album. It was released the same year, simply called "Message Live". The musicians that played on this album were Dean Fasano (lead vocals and additional keys), Richie Sambora (guitar and lead vocals), Alec John Such (bass), Dennis Amorusso (keys and saxophone) and Vinnie Sisser (drums). The CD had two bonus studio tracks that were recorded in Elmwood Park NJ at Panetta Studios in 1989-1990 : Just One Step Away & Fine Line (later released on MESSAGE FINE LINE in 1998): Musicians - Dean Fasano - Lead Vocals, Mark Allen Lanoue (Chasing Karma/BILOXI/Persian Risk/Message)- Guitars, Chris Flowers - Drums, Mike Gear - Bass Guitar, Rob Karten - Keyboards.
In 2007, Fasano coached Mark Lanoue on vocals during the recording of BILOXI III "In the Wake of the Storm". He also sang backgrounds on the song "I Pray".
Family
Dean Fasano married Geri Galamb in 1989. They had three children, Jake, Max and Chaz.
Death
He died in
Perth Amboy, New Jersey
Perth Amboy is a city (New Jersey), city in Middlesex County, New Jersey, Middlesex County, New Jersey. Perth Amboy is part of the New York metropolitan area. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 U.S. census, the city's population was 55,4 ...
, of
coronary artery disease
Coronary artery disease (CAD), also called coronary heart disease (CHD), ischemic heart disease (IHD), myocardial ischemia, or simply heart disease, involves the reduction of blood flow to the heart muscle due to build-up of atherosclerotic pla ...
on December 8, 2009, at the age of 54.
Discography
Studio albums
* ''Message'' - around 1980, unknown label
* ''Prophet'' - 1985, Total Experience Records
* ''Message'' - 1995, Long Island Records
* ''Fine Line'' - 1998, Escape Music
* ''Lessons'' - 2000, Escape Music
* ''Outside Looking In'' - 2000, Escape Music
Live albums
*'' Message Live'' - 2006, Two Sun Songs
References
External links
Allmusic.com creditsLegacy.com
{{DEFAULTSORT:Fasano, Dean
1955 births
2009 deaths
American rock songwriters
American rock singers
People from Mountainside, New Jersey
People from Woodbridge Township, New Jersey
Singer-songwriters from New Jersey
20th-century American male singers
20th-century American singers
20th-century American male musicians
American male singer-songwriters
Deaths from coronary artery disease