Lita Ford

Recruited by the all-girl band The Runaways at the age of 16, London-born guitarist/singer Lita Ford went on to become one of the leading lights at the vanguard of a new era of uncompromising female rock stars with a hard edge that matched their male counterparts.

Born to an English father and Italian mother, she moved with her family to California at a young age, taking up the guitar aged eleven after being consumed by the playing of stars like Ritchie Blackmore and Jimmy Page. She was selected by producer Kim Fowley to be part of The Runaways, shaping them into a unique act full of sexy intrigue and strutting attitude, which helped establish Ford's reputation as the mother of heavy metal. With Ford's fiery guitar playing at its heart, The Runaways became a groundbreaking recording and touring act through the 1970s until they split in '79 and Ford launched her solo career with the album 'Out for Blood' in 1983. She had her first top ten solo hit with 'Fire in My Heart' from the album 'Dancin' On the Edge', followed by the even bigger hit 'Gotta Let Go'. She subsequently adopted a less aggressive, poppier style, resulting in her most successful album 'Lita', producing the hits 'Kiss Me Dead', 'Back to the Cave', 'Closing My Eyes Forever' and 'Falling in and Out of Love'.

By the 1990s her popularity had waned and she devoted herself to bringing up a family, returning in 1995 with 'Black, but she waited another 14 years before making a determined comeback with a new band and the 'Wicked Wonderland' album in 2009 before resurrecting her old blazing metal approach on 'Living Like a Runaway' in 2012. She was back again in 2016 with the album 'Time Capsule' - a collection of newly discovered, previously unreleased analogue recordings that featured Gene Simmons and Billy Sheehan, among others. She also published her autobiography 'Living Like a Runaway: A Memoir', which lifted the lid off her heavy metal lifestyle and her relationship with Black Sabbath's Tony Iommi.