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Dennis Elliott

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Dennis Elliott
Elliott performing with Foreigner in 1977
Elliott performing with Foreigner in 1977
Background information
Birth nameDennis Leslie Eliott
Born (1950-08-18) 18 August 1950 (age 74)
Peckham, London, England
InstrumentDrums
Years active1968–present

Dennis Leslie Elliott (born 18 August 1950,[1][2]) is a British musician and artist, who was the original drummer for the rock band, Foreigner. He played with the band from 1976 until leaving between 1991 and 1993. He went on to become a sculptor.

Life and career

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Dennis Leslie Elliott was born in Peckham, London. He played the drums with his family band at age five in shows around London. As a teenager, he joined The Tea Set with his older brother Raymond, who sang and played trumpet. After The Tea Set, he became a member of The Shevelles at age sixteen. At eighteen, he played in the band Ferris Wheel and on their album of the same name. When he was nineteen, Dennis joined the jazz/rock band If and recorded four LPs with the ensemble. They continually toured Europe and the US, where he met and later married Iona Elliott on 2 March 1972. Later that year, Dennis joined The Roy Young Band, touring the UK and Europe and recording four singles with that band over the following year.

Elliott with Maple Burl Wall Sculpture & Vessels.

In 1974, Elliott toured and played on former Mott the Hoople lead singer Ian Hunter's first solo recording, Ian Hunter. After emigrating to the US in April 1975, he became a US Resident Alien.

He was the original drummer for Foreigner when the band started in 1976.[3][4] He officially left in January 1993.

After leaving the music industry, Elliott turned to sculpture, working mainly in the medium of wood.[5] Self-taught, many of his works have been vessels made of burlwood, sculpted wall mirrors, wall sculptures, and orbital sculptures.[6]

On 2 June 1990, Elliott and his wife, Iona, were rescued by the US Coast Guard after jumping from their yacht Charisma III, which had caught fire.[7] Elliott became a US citizen in 1993.[6]

On 9 January 2013, he joined Foreigner on stage at the Hard Rock Live in Hollywood, Florida to perform "Hot Blooded". On 12 January 2015, in Sarasota, Florida, Foreigner were joined on stage by original drummer Elliott and former bassist Rick Wills to play "Hot Blooded". Elliott joined his old mates for two songs at Foreigner's show on 2 August 2017, at MidFlorida Credit Union Amphitheater in Tampa, Florida. A pair of '40th Anniversary Reunion Shows’ took place on 6–7 October 2017, at the Soaring Eagle Casino & Resort in Mount Pleasant, Michigan, where the current Foreigner group played one set and the original members consisting of the Head Games-era line-up: Mick Jones, Lou Gramm, Dennis Elliott, Al Greenwood, Ian McDonald and Rick Wills, played the second set and were rejoined at the end with all members. The concerts were filmed for future release.

On 4 August 2018, Elliott again joined a ‘Reunion Show’ at the Buffalo Chip in Sturgis, South Dakota, where the current Foreigner group played one set and the original members played the second and all joined together for the finale.

In 2024, Elliott was selected for induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, as a member of Foreigner.[8]

Discography

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The Shevells

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  • 1968: "Big City Lights"/"The Coffee Song" (single)

The Ferris Wheel

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  • 1970: Ferris Wheel (album)
  • 1970: "Can't Stop Now"/"I Know You Well" (UK single)
  • 1970: "Ugly Duckling"/"I Know You Well" (US single)

IF

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The Roy Young Band

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Tony Ashton and Jon Lord

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Ian Hunter

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Foreigner

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Ian Lloyd

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  • 1980: Third Wave Civilization

Mick Jones

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  • 1989: "Just Wanna Hold" (single) (#19 US Rock)
  • 1989: Mick Jones (album)

Museum collections

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Special collections

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  • Columbia Pictures, Star Trek Voyager set - Wall Sculpture - Bleached Maple Burl

References

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  1. ^ "Today in history". The New York Times. Associated Press. 18 August 2014. Retrieved 18 August 2014.
  2. ^ "Dennis Elliot". Archived from the original on 28 September 2007. Retrieved 10 July 2007.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link), Ezrock.com
  3. ^ Gloss, Megan (18 May 2012). "They've been 'Juke Box Heroes'". Telegraph Herald. Dubuque, IA. Archived from the original on 16 February 2020.
  4. ^ Stemkovsky, Ilya (1 August 2010). "Jason Sutter". Modern Drummer. Archived from the original on 21 September 2014. Retrieved 18 August 2014.
  5. ^ Pandolfi, Keith (1 November 2003). "After three decades spent banging out songs such as 'Hot Blooded' and 'Urgent,' former Foreigner drummer Dennis Elliott left rock'n'roll to pursue his real passion—woodworking". Art Business News. Archived from the original on 21 September 2014. Retrieved 18 August 2014.
  6. ^ a b "Biography for Dennis Elliott", Askart.com
  7. ^ "Musician, wife go overboard as yacht burns". Chicago Sun-Times. 4 June 1990. Archived from the original on 21 September 2014. Retrieved 18 August 2014.
  8. ^ "2024 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductees". Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. 22 April 2024. Retrieved 22 April 2024.
  9. ^ "Exchange: B2125 Wall Sculpture". exchange.umma.umich.edu. Retrieved 18 September 2020.
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