Jan Kuehnemund November 15, 1961 – October 10, 2013
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Jan Kuehnemund is perhaps best remembered as the founding lead guitarist for Vixen, an all-female glam metal band who achieved a worldwide fan base during the late ’80s. Originally formed with Kuehnemund was in high school in 1974, the band quickly split up but then reformed in 1980. After settling in Los Angeles, the group – often referred to as “the female Bon Jovi” started building a sizable following throughout the flourishing Sunset Strip scene. In 1987, they appeared in Penelope Spheeris’ acclaimed rock doc, The Decline of Western Civilization II: The Metal Years. That was quickly followed by a recording contract with EMI Records who released their self-titled debut in 1988. The album, which included the Richard Marx-penned hit single “Edge Of A Broken Heart,” rose to #41 on the Billboard charts and was nearly as chart-successful in the UK. Rev It Up followed in 1990, while the band was taking the hair metal world by storm. Throughout those couple of years, the band toured with the likes of Ozzy Osbourne, Bon Jovi, Deep Purple, KISS, and Scorpions. The band split up in the middle of 1991 and then reformed a few times over the next several years with Kuehnemund not coming back to the fold until 2001. A version of the band with just Kuehnemund from the original line up released two albums in 2006. The classic late ’80s/early ’90s edition got together for VH1’s Bands Reunited series in 2004. Jan Kuehnemund passed away following a courageous battle with cancer on October 10, 2013. She was 51.
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George Marino was a much-respected mastering engineer whose talents can be heard on such iconic albums as AC/DC’sHighway To Hell, Stevie Wonder’s Innervisions, Guns N’ Roses Appetite For Destruction, Bon Jovi’s Slippery When Wet, John Lennon & Yoko Ono’sDouble Fantasy, and Whitney Houston’sWhitney. Marino’s began his career as a musician, playing guitar in various bands in New York City. In 1967, he was hired by Capitol Records as a librarian and assistant in their New York studio. After Capitol closed the studio, he went to work at the Record Plant before landing at Sterling Sound in 1973. It was there that he worked on many of the most iconic albums of the rock era. Besides those mentioned above, Marino worked on albums by Metallica, Coldplay, Cyndi Lauper, Motley Crue, Iron Maiden, Ozzy Osbourne, and many more. Throughout his career, he was recognized with three Grammys including Arcade Fire’sSuburbs in 2011. George Marino died of lung cancer on June 4, 2012.
Steve Lee was the founding lead singer of Swiss metal band, Gotthard. Formed in 1992, the band has sold over two million albums and has seen 11 of their releases reach #1 on the Swiss charts. By most accounts, they are one of the most successful rock bands in Switzerland’s history, the other of course, being Krokus. Gotthard’s sound has been compared to that of Whitesnake, Bon Jovi, and Deep Purple, while Lee’s voice was as strong as any ’80s and ’90s power balladeer. While on a holiday motorcycle tour of the United States, Lee and his group pulled off a Nevada highway to change into rain gear. Shortly thereafter, in what was ruled an accident by local authorities, a truck driver lost control of his vehicle which then crashed into one of the parked bikes, sending it direclty into Lee. Steve Lee died from injuries sustained in the accident. He was 47.
Bruce Fairbairn was a Canadian trumpet player, but made a huge mark on popular music as a rock producer. Fairbairn hit his stride in the ’80s producing such albums as Loverboy’s Get Lucky, Bon Jovi’sSlippery When Wet, Aerosmith’sPermanent Vacation, and later, Bon Jovi’sNew Jersey, Aerosmith’s Pump, Poison’sFlesh and Blood, Van Halen’s Balance, AC/DC’sThe Razor’s EdgeKiss’Psycho Circus, and many more. It was while working on Yes’Ladder, in May of 1999 that Jon Anderson discovered Bruce Fairbairn’s body in his home. Cause of death was not immediately released.