Lemmy Kilmister

Background

Ian Fraser Kilmister, born on December 24, 1945, in Staffordshire, England, was an English singer whose talents and originality set him apart. As an infant, Kilmister’s parents separated, so he moved with his mother to Madeley. His mother remarried when he was 10 years old, and he attended Ysgol Syr Thomas Jones after moving to the Welsh village of Benllech. Here, Kilmister earned the nickname “Lemmy” and began showing interest in rock and roll.

Kilmister joined several local bands before the Rockin’ Vickers in 1965. The band signed a deal with C.B.S., released three singles, and toured Europe. However, in 1967, he left the band and moved to London. By 1968, Kilmister joined the Sam Gopal psychedelic rock band as Ian Willis. The band recorded the album, “Escalator,” which dropped in 1969. In 1971, Kilmister joined the space rock band Hawkwind as a bassist and vocalist. After he got fired from Hawkwind, Kilmister formed a band called Bastard, later renamed Motorhead. The band saw many members come and go, but Kilmister was always the constant. In October 1980, Motorhead released their chart-topping single, ‘Ace of Spades,’ from the “Ace of Spades” album. This single remained a crowd favorite. The band’s first live album, “No Sleep ‘til Hammersmith,” released in June 1981, peaked at number one on the U.K. album charts. This solidified Motorhead’s place as one of the most influential bands in the heavy metal genre. In December 2015, Kilmister and the band’s final live performance took place at the band’s 40th Anniversary Tour in Berlin, Germany.

At 17, he met a woman named Cathy, and she gave birth to his son, Sean, who was put up for adoption. Kilmister had another son with a woman named Tracy and was plagued with alcohol and substance abuse. During the end of his career, Kilmister suffered from diabetes and hypertension. He was hospitalized with a lung infection in September 2015, dying from prostate cancer, cardiac arrhythmia, and congestive heart failure on December 28, 2015.