Alkatrazz

History

Before they were Alkatrazz, Bob Jenner and Nicko Parsons played together in the jazz fusion outfit Interface. Their manager, Tony Tullett, convinced them to shift toward a rock sound. Bassist Gary Bevan came on board, and the lineup expanded to include a second guitarist, Dave Saunders. Drummer Craig Stevens answered an ad in Melody Maker to join. Naming themselves Alkatrazz, the band played local gigs for roughly half a year before landing a deal with RCA Records, which came after they performed on the BBC Radio Kent Rock Show.

Their first album, Young Blood, was cut at Magritte and Regents Park Studios in London and came out in May 1981. A month earlier, they had released the single "Rockin' High." To promote the record, they hit the road with fellow NWOBHM acts Magnum, Tygers of Pan Tang, and Samson. Following that tour, Alkatrazz went back into the studio for a second album, Radio 5, which steered their sound toward American AOR. Guests on the record included Toni Childs and Mel Collins.

Not long after Radio 5 dropped, RCA dropped the band. Around the same time, Bevan was let go—Stevens called it a frustrated knee-jerk decision—and sound engineer Phillip Tame took over on bass. Despite persistent rumors that Parsons was replaced in 1983 by ex-Iron Maiden drummer Clive Burr, that never happened; Burr actually joined the American group Alcatrazz. Bevan later said he found the mix-up amusing and had no clue where it started. Soon after, Alkatrazz called it quits.