Source: Motörhead via Facebook
The world of rock and roll was dealt a mighty blow when Lemmy
Kilmister was pronounced dead in December 2015. The iconic front man of Motörhead
sadly passed away due to a combination of prostate cancer, heart failure and
cardiac arrhythmia. However, the legacy he left behind can still be heard
echoing around the musical universe to this day.
Motörhead are often cited as having the
loudest concerts ever (they even have an album called Everything
Louder Than Everyone Else), and this is a fitting metaphor for how
Lemmy lived his life. The bass-playing Brit was pure rock n’ roll. There
was never too much sex, drugs or rock and roll for his life, and unfortunately
it all came back to haunt him at aged 70. Despite the excessive alcohol consumption,
Lemmy was able to cement his place in rock and roll legacy. Amazingly, Lemmy
and Motörhead do not currently possess a place in the Rock and Roll Hall
of Fame, despite the likes of Metallica’s James Hetfield petitioning for their
induction.
Lemmy was known for his distinctive raspy voice that is completely
unique to the front man. Accompanied by his mutton-chopped face slamming away
on his archetypal Richenbacker bass guitar, the image of the only sole constant
member of Motörhead is one of the most iconic in rock and roll. Throughout
his career, Lemmy had notable collaborations with none other than Ozzy Osbourne
(Ozzy
often cited Lemmy as ‘his hero’), pioneers of punk the Ramones,
and they also admirably covered “Heroes” by the late David Bowie.
However, the legacy of Lemmy and Motörhead goes far beyond
emphatic concerts, musical collaborations and legendary songs. There are the
films, the video games, the ‘Lemmy’ cocktail (quite simply JD
and Coca-Cola), and even a game on live
Blackjack at William Hill, where Motörhead’s unique blend of
deafly grunge continues to influence fans. Interestingly, Motörhead strayed
away from their hardcore fans, and into more mainstream stardom in 2001 when
their song ‘The Game’ (written by Jim Johnston) was instated as
the entrance theme for professional wrestler Triple H.
The opening guitar riff is one of the most well known around,
and it pays tribute to the majesty of Triple H, who often goes by ‘The
King of Kings’. This nickname would not be misplaced when attributed
to Lemmy, who is often named as the
King of Heavy Rock. Motörhead, along with the likes of Black Sabbath
and The Sex Pistols, were pivotal in steering the rather mundane and repetitive
idea of rock and roll into new horizons in the late 70s and early 80s –
taking fans to grungier heights with dirty vocals, punchy
bass tones and electric riffs that were far from the mainstream.
Despite drummer Mikkey Dee claiming Motörhead “are
over” for now, the legacy of Motörhead shows no signs of slowing
down, and their iconic and most famous song “Ace of Spades” will
still be found on every rock and roll compilation album in the high streets.
Their concerts will forever be remembered for all of the ear drums they burst,
and that’s exactly the kind of mark Lemmy would have loved to leave.
