Who was Tommy Bolin?

Thomas Richard "Tommy" Bolin (August 1, 1951 – December 4, 1976) was an American-born guitarist who played with Zephyr (from 1969 to 1971), The James Gang (from 1973 through 1974), and Deep Purple (from 1975 to 1976); in addition to maintaining a notable solo career.
Tommy Bolin was a great guitarrist and his career should be remembered and celebrated. We will better understand the career of this amazing guitarist listening to your music. We prepared a nice compilation of his work. Hope you like it!

Tommy Bolin was born in Sioux City, Iowa and began playing in bands around the city as a youth ("A Patch of Blue" and others) before moving to Boulder, Colorado, in his late teens. He had played in a band called American Standard before joining Ethereal Zephyr, a band named after a train that ran between Denver and Chicago. When record companies became interested, the name was shortened to Zephyr. This band included Bolin on guitar, David Givens on bass, and Givens' wife Candy Givens on vocals. The band had begun to do larger venues, opening for more established acts such as Led Zeppelin. Their second album, entitled Going Back to Colorado, featured a new drummer, Bobby Berge, who would pop up from time to time in musician credits in album liner notes from Bolin's later projects.

Oldscholl, a good friend of Valvulado, suggested to include Zephyr:

Zephyr - Going Back To Colorado - 1971

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The Band:

Candy Givens - vocal

Tommy Bolin - guitarra

Bobby Berge - bateria

David Givens - baixo

John Faris - teclados

In 1972 Bolin, at the age of 20, formed the fusion jazz-rock-blues band Energy. While the band never released an album during Bolin's lifetime, several recordings have been released posthumously. He also played on Billy Cobham's Spectrum album, which included Bolin on guitar, Billy Cobham of Mahavishnu Orchestra on drums, Leland Sklar on bass and Jan Hammer (also of Mahavishnu Orchestra) on keyboards and synthesizers. And at this phase, starts our listening:

Billy Cobham and Tommy Bolin - Spectrum (1973)

1973 found him as Domenic Troiano's replacement, who had replaced Joe Walsh, in the James Gang. He had two records with this band: Bang! in 1973 and Miami in 1974.

James Gang - Bang, 1973

Tommy Bolin - Synthesizer, Guitar, Vocals

Jim Fox - Keyboards, Drums, Vocals 

Roy Kenner - Percussion, Vocals

Dale Peters - Bass, Percussion, Vocals 

James Gang - Miami 1974 

After the Miami tour, Bolin wanted out of the James Gang. He went on to do session work for numerous rock bands and also with a number of jazz artists including Alphonse Mouzon's album Mind Transplant, considered "one of the best fusion recordings of all time" by Allmusic reviewer Robert Taylor. He also toured with Carmine Appice and The Good Rats.

Alphonse Mouzon and Tommy Bolin – Mind Transplant 1975

THE BAND:

Alphonse Mouzon: drums, vocals, keys

Tommy Bolin: guitar

Jay Graydon: guitar

Lee Ritenour: guitar

Jerry Peters: keyboards

Henry Davis: bass

Rocke Grace: keyboards

Stanley Sheldon: bass

Bolin signed with Nemperor records to record a solo album. Bolin decided to do his own vocals on this album as well. Session players on this record included David Foster, David Sanborn, Jan Hammer, Stanley Sheldon, Phil Collins and Glenn Hughes. In the start of 1975, Bolin contributed some studio guitar assistance to Canadian band Moxy during the recording of their debut album. Later in 1975 saw the release of Bolin's first solo record, Teaser, on the Nemperor label.

Tommy Bolin - Teaser (1975)

The Band :

Tommy Bolin (guitarra/vocal)

Stanley Sheldon (baixo)

Paul Stallworth (baixo)

Dave Foster (piano/sintetizadores)

Jan Hammer (sintetizadores/bateria)

Ron Fransen (piano)

David Sanborn (saxofone)

Jeff Porcaro (bateria)

Prairie Prince (bateria)

Michael Walden (bateria)

Bobbie Berge (percussão)

Phil Collins (percussão)

Sammy Figueroa (percussão)

Rafael Cruz (percussão)

Dave Brown (vocal)

Lee Kiefer (vocal)

After Ritchie Blackmore left Deep Purple, the band had a meeting and discussed whether to disband or try and find a replacement, and chose the second option. David Coverdale had been listening to the Billy Cobham LP Spectrum. He decided he wanted Tommy in Deep Purple, and invited him over for a jam. Tommy showed up thin as a rail with his girlfriend in tow wearing a see through mesh mini-skirt. He plugged in to 4 Marshall amps and jammed with the band for 4 hours. The job was his. The band then relocated to Munich, Germany, to begin work on Come Taste the Band. Bolin wrote or co-wrote seven of the record's nine tracks, including the instrumental "Owed to G," which was a tribute to George Gershwin. Come Taste the Band was released in late 1975, and Australian, US and Japanese tours ensued.

Deep Purple - 1975 - Come Taste The Band

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The Band:

Tommy Bolin - guitars, vocals, bass guitar on "Comin' Home"

David Coverdale - lead vocals

Glenn Hughes - bass, vocals 

Jon Lord - keyboards, piano, synthesizer

Ian Paice - drums, percussion

Deep Purple - 1977 - Last Concert in Japan


The Band:
Tommy Bolin - guitar, vocals
David Coverdale - lead vocals
Glenn Hughes - bass, vocals
Jon Lord - keyboards, Hammond organ, backing vocals
Ian Paice - drums, percussion

After Deep Purple disbanded in March, 1976, Bolin was back on the road with his solo band with plans for a second solo record. The band had a rotating cast of players which included Narada Michael Walden, Mark Stein, Norma Jean Bell, Reggie McBride, Jimmy Haslip, Max Carl Gronenthal and eventually Bolin's younger brother Johnnie Bolin on drums.

By mid-1976, CBS signed Bolin and he began to record Private Eyes, his second and last solo record.

Tommy Bolin - Private Eyes (1976)

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The Band:

Tommy Bolin – Guitars, Keyboards, Vocals, Piano

Reggie McBride – Bass, Vocals

Mark Stein – Keyboards, Vocals

Carmine Appice – Drums on "Someday Will Bring Our Love Home"

Bobby Berge – Percussion, Drums

Bobbye Hall – Percussion

Norma Jean Bell – Percussion, Vocals, Saxophone

Del Newman – string arrangements

Bolin's tour for Private Eyes was his last concert date. He opened for Peter Frampton and Jeff Beck. In his final show, he opened for Beck on December 3, 1976, and encored with a rendition of "Post Toastee." He also posed for a photo with Beck after the show. Several hours later, Bolin died from an overdose of heroin and other substances, including alcohol, cocaine and barbiturates. He is buried in Calvary Cemetery, Sioux City, Iowa.

In 2010, several well-known artists gathered to create a tribute album titled Mister Bolin’s Late Night Revival, a compilation of 17 previously unreleased tracks written by the guitar legend. The CD includes works by HiFi Superstar, Doogie White, Eric Martin, Troy Luccketta, Jeff Pilson, Randy Jackson, Rex Carroll, Rachel Barton, Derek St. Holmes, Kimberley Dahme, and The 77’s. A percentage of the proceeds from this project will benefit the Jackson Recovery Centers.

Tommy Bolin Tribute - Mr. Bolin's Late Night Revival What If... (2010)

Producer Greg Hampton (who has previously worked on such archival Bolin releases as Whips and Roses) co-produced (with Gov't Mule leader Warren Haynes) a star-studded tribute to Bolin, Tommy Bolin and Friends: Great Gypsy Soul, which was released in 2012, and featured contributions from Brad Whitford, Nels Cline, John Scofield, Myles Kennedy, Derek Trucks, Steve Morse, and Peter Frampton, among many others.

Tommy Bolin & Friends - Great Gypsy Soul (Tribute 2012)

THANKS A LOT, TOMMY BOLIN - ROCK IN PEACE

More Tommy Bolin:
Tommy Bolin - Fever (15 albuns)

At Only Good Song