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Tracii Guns (born Tracy Richard Irving Ulrich in Hollywood, California) is an iconic guitarist who has played with numerous well known bands and solo artists.
His signature guitar playing is reminiscent of early Aerosmith and Van Halen but in the last couple of decades he has added his own special flair creating the backbone for an unique and innovative sound, becoming one of the most influential guitarists to emerge out of the 80's Hollywood scene. His creative repertoire is also impressive as he is registered as a composer/songwriter on more than 135 titles.
His first real guitar influence was Jimmy Page. When he was six, he heard "Whole Lotta Love" on the radio in the backseat of his mom's car. He asked what that was, and his mom told him it was Jimmy Page from Led Zeppelin. He then knew what he wanted to do; he wanted to make that sound and he knew he was going to make a special impact in music.
Tracii's uncle (Ron Ulrich) played guitar and he was actually the one who taught him to play. That's where it all started from.
He put his first band together when he was 12 or 13 and played around. Tracii's first real important adventure in music was in 1983 when he formed L.A. Guns with singer Michael Jagosz, bass player Ole Beich and drummer Rob Gardner. When Jagosz had to leave the band soon after, Axl Rose of Hollywood Rose replaced him.
In 1985 Tracii formed a new band with Hollywood Rose frontman Axl Rose. They put the two band names together; Guns 'N' Roses was born, but they both finally went separate ways and Tracii rejoined L.A. Guns.
After some lineup changes, the band finally signed with Polygram Records in 1987 recording their first album titled "L.A. Guns". Over 1,000,000 copies were sold earning the band its first platinum album award. A compilation of the videos made for this first album also earned the band a gold video award.
In 1989 the band went into the studio to record their second album titled "Cocked and Loaded". They sold over 1,000,000 copies earning the band its second platinum record award. The video compilation of this second album earned the band a second gold video award.
Their third album "Hollywood Vampires" was released in 1991. Over 1,000,000 copies were sold earning the band its third platinum album award.
In 1993 Tracii participated in the supergroup Contraband with Michael Schenker (Scorpions, UFO), Bobby Blotzer (Ratt), Share Pedersen (Vixen) and Richard Black (Shark Island). The band released only one self-titled album in 1991.
Tracii Guns also recorded other studio albums with L.A. Guns followed by successful World Tours
In 1993 Tracii released his one and only solo record entitled "Killing Machine". The album was re-released in 1999 by Deadline Records. The album was published in Europe with a different title "All Eyes Are Watching".
In late 2002 Tracii decided to join Mötley Crüe bassist Nikki Sixx to create the project Brides of Destruction, signing on as lead guitarist. The new band embarked on a World Tour in 2004, releasing their first album titled "Here Come the Brides".
In 2005 the second album of the band was released with Scott Sorry replacing Nikki Sixx. It was called "Runaway Brides". After the album's supporting World Tour, Tracii decided to revive the most important band of his life: L.A. Guns.
There have been some lineup changes since then. The band has always been a work in progress without an end in sight continually touring, writing and recording a huge variety of rock and roll sounds. Some people believe that L.A. Guns may be the last true Rock and Roll band that hasn't had to rely on outside writers or the help of corporate funding to have continued success.
The current lineup in L.A. Guns is Tracii Guns (guitar), Danny Nordahl (bass), Chad Stewart (drums and percussion) and Jizzy Pearl (vocals), with whom Tracii recorded the album "Shrinking Violet" back in 1999.
They have now been recruited by Favored Nations (a major label owned by the virtuoso guitarist Steve Vai) and writing new music together in order to release a new studio album in the near future.
