Jack Martin Blades is an American rock musician best known for his work with Rubicon, Night Ranger, and Damn Yankees. He has also recorded with Tommy Shaw under the name Shaw Blades, co-founded Revolution Saints with Deen Castronovo (Journey) and Doug Aldrich (Whitesnake), collaborated with Tak Matsumoto Group alongside Eric Martin (Mr. Big), and released solo material.
Personal life:
Born in Palm Desert, California, Blades began playing guitar at age eight when his parents gave him a plastic ukulele. He attended Arcadia High School in Scottsdale, Arizona, then graduated from Indio High School in 1972, where he was senior class president. At College of the Desert, he met saxophonist Pat Rizzo of Sly and the Family Stone, who introduced him to Jerry Martini. Blades later attended San Diego State University as a pre-med student before dropping out in 1975 to pursue music in San Francisco. Martini, Blades, and guitarist Brad Gillis soon formed Rubicon.
Blades has two sons, Colin and James; Colin has co-written and performed songs with him and released solo work.
Career:
Blades has released two solo albums and written or co-written songs for Aerosmith, Cher, Ozzy Osbourne, Alice Cooper, and Roger Daltrey. He has produced or co-produced albums for Night Ranger, Shaw Blades, and others, including Great White and Ted Nugent. He appears on Mötley Crüe’s Dr. Feelgood (1989) and co-wrote several Aerosmith tracks in the 1990s, including “Shut Up and Dance,” “Walk on Water,” and “What Kind of Love Are You On.” In 1998, Ringo Starr invited him to play bass for VH1 Storytellers alongside Joe Walsh and Simon Kirke.
Rubicon:
Formed by Jerry Martini, Rubicon featured Blades on bass and Brad Gillis on guitar. The funk-rock group recorded two albums for 20th Century Fox and scored a hit with “I’m Gonna Take Care of Everything.” They played Cal Jam 2 before 250,000 people and disbanded in 1979, after which Blades formed Stereo with Gillis and drummer Kelly Keagy.
Night Ranger:
In 1980, Blades, Gillis, Keagy, Alan “Fitz” Fitzgerald, and Jeff Watson formed Ranger—renamed Night Ranger before releasing Dawn Patrol (1982). The band achieved multi-platinum success throughout the ’80s with hits like “Sister Christian,” “Don’t Tell Me You Love Me,” and “(You Can Still) Rock in America.” Blades left in 1989 to form Damn Yankees but re-formed Night Ranger in 1996. The band continues to record and tour internationally.
Damn Yankees:
Co-founded in 1989 with Ted Nugent and Tommy Shaw, Damn Yankees produced two platinum albums and the hit single “High Enough.” After Nugent resumed his solo career in 1996, Blades and Shaw continued as Shaw Blades.
Shaw/Blades:
Their debut Hallucination (1995) showcased their melodic rock style, while Influence (2007) paid tribute to songs that inspired them. The duo toured acoustically across the U.S.
TMG (Tak Matsumoto Group):
In 2004, Blades joined guitarist Tak Matsumoto of B’z to form TMG, achieving a No. 1 album (TMG I) and a Top 10 single (“Oh Japan ~Our Time Is Now~”) in Japan. They also recorded “Never Good-Bye” for the 2004 Ultraman film. Blades’ solo albums include Jack Blades (2004) and Rock ’n’ Roll Ride (2012).
Revolution Saints:
In 2014, he co-founded Revolution Saints with Castronovo and Aldrich, appearing on Revolution Saints (2015), Light in the Dark (2017), and Rise (2020).
