MOTT THE HOOPLE Drummer DALE GRIFFIN Dead At 67

January 18, 2016

Dale Griffin, the drummer and co-founder of the British glam-rock band MOTT THE HOOPLE, has died at the age of 67 after a long battle with Alzheimer's disease. He passed away in his sleep on Sunday night, said Peter Purnell from Dale's record label Angel Air.

Born in Ross-on Wye, Herefordshire, Griffin attended Ross Grammar school and played in a number of local bands with his lifelong friend Overend Watts and it was during this time he gained the nickname "Buffin." Among Dale's bands were THE SILENCE, CHARLES KINGSLEY CREATION and THE DOC THOMAS GROUP. Changes to that lineup occurred in 1968 and keyboard player Verden Allen joined the band and changed its name to THE SHAKEDOWN SOUND. In 1969, they moved to London and came to the attention of record producer Guy Stevens. Ian Hunter was chosen as their lead singer and MOTT THE HOOPLE was formed.

Following the departure of Hunter in 1974, Griffin, along with Watts and Morgan Fisher, formed MOTT with Ray Majors and Nigel Benjamin. In 1976, following the departure of Benjamin, the remaining members regrouped as BRITISH LIONS with former MEDICINE HEAD singer songwriter John Fiddler until their demise in the late '70s when punk hit with a vengeance.

During the '80s, Griffin and Watts formed a production company and produced albums for HANOI ROCKS and THE CULT as well as hit singles such as DEPARTMENT S's "Is Vic There?". Dale then joined the BBC as a producer and produced numerous BBC Radio 1 John Peel sessions from 1981 to 1994, including PULP, SMASHING PUMPKINS, NIRVANA and ORCHESTRAL MANOEUVRES IN THE DARK. In the early 21st century, Dale oversaw the re-release of MOTT THE HOOPLE's entire back catalogue from both Island and CBS period, producing remastered versions and excellent informative sleeve notes.

At the age of 58, Dale was diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease just as he had worked tirelessly over the years to bring about the reformation of his beloved MOTT THE HOOPLE. In 2009, the band reformed for a five-night sellout Hammersmith Apollo 40th-anniversary concerts of the original five founding members. Having been just diagnosed, Dale only performed during the band encores with THE PRETENDERS drummer Martin Chambers, also from Herefordshire, and a friend playing the set and also covering for Dale on the 2013 MOTT THE HOOPLE tour.

Dale is survived by his longterm partner Jean Smith.

Photo provided by Angel Air Records

Find more on Mott the hoople
  • facebook
  • twitter
  • reddit
  • email

Comments Disclaimer And Information

BLABBERMOUTH.NET uses the Facebook Comments plugin to let people comment on content on the site using their Facebook account. The comments reside on Facebook servers and are not stored on BLABBERMOUTH.NET. To comment on a BLABBERMOUTH.NET story or review, you must be logged in to an active personal account on Facebook. Once you're logged in, you will be able to comment. User comments or postings do not reflect the viewpoint of BLABBERMOUTH.NET and BLABBERMOUTH.NET does not endorse, or guarantee the accuracy of, any user comment. To report spam or any abusive, obscene, defamatory, racist, homophobic or threatening comments, or anything that may violate any applicable laws, use the "Report to Facebook" and "Mark as spam" links that appear next to the comments themselves. To do so, click the downward arrow on the top-right corner of the Facebook comment (the arrow is invisible until you roll over it) and select the appropriate action. You can also send an e-mail to blabbermouthinbox(@)gmail.com with pertinent details. BLABBERMOUTH.NET reserves the right to "hide" comments that may be considered offensive, illegal or inappropriate and to "ban" users that violate the site's Terms Of Service. Hidden comments will still appear to the user and to the user's Facebook friends. If a new comment is published from a "banned" user or contains a blacklisted word, this comment will automatically have limited visibility (the "banned" user's comments will only be visible to the user and the user's Facebook friends).