Lemmy

... or, to give him his full title: Lemmy ou' o' Mo'ör'ead (Lemmy out of Motörhead).

Ian Fraser Kilminster (to give him his actual, real name) was born in Burslem, Stoke–on–Trent, on Christmas Eve 1945; his father (an ex–Royal Air Force chaplain and concert pianist) left home three months later. His mother remarried in 1956, and the family (including two step–siblings, with whom Lemmy didn't get on) moved to Anglesey. It was while at school there that he took to playing the guitar (because he realised that it drew attention from "the chicks") and acquired the nickname Lemmy. He claimed that he couldn't remember how the nickname arose, but the word is that he was in the habit of asking his friends to "Lemmy a quid 'til Friday."

At the age of 17, Lemmy met a girl from Stockport, who was holidaying on Anglesey, and followed her home. He played in local bands in the Manchester area, and in 1967 he moved to London where he shared a flat with Noel Redding, the bass guitarist in the Jimi Hendrix Experience. He worked briefly as a roadie for the band.

In 1971, after playing in more bands but without success, he joined Hawkwind. They'd just released their second album, In Search of Space, but bass player Dave Anderson (who himself had only joined earlier the same year) had left before its release because of personal differences with other band members. Lemmy sang and played on Silver Machine – Hawkwind's only real hit single, reaching No. 3 in July 1972.

In May 1975, while on tour in North America, Lemmy was caught in possession of amphetamine when crossing the border from the USA into Canada. The police mistook the substance for cocaine and he was jailed for two nights, forcing the band to cancel some shows. Fed up with the erratic behaviour of their bass player, the band dismissed him.

Lemmy then formed a band with guitarist Larry Wallis (formerly of the Pink Fairies). They named it Bastard. When their manager pointed out that a band with that name would never get onto Top of the Pops, they changed it to Motörhead – after the last song that Lemmy had written for Hawkwind.

Wallis was soon replaced by guitarist "Fast" Eddie Clarke, and drummer Lucas Fox by Phil "Philthy Animal" Taylor. Clarke, like Lemmy a few years earlier, had played with various bands but without success; Taylor had never played professionally before, but was a personal friend of Lemmy's.

The band's first album was rejected by their label, United Artists. They recorded a single for Stiff Records, but this too failed to see the light of day (until a couple of years later, after the band began to gain a following). A second, self–titled album was released on Chiswick Records in August 1977, and peaked at No. 43 in the UK charts. Motörhead then returned to the management of Douglas Smith (the one who'd recommended the name change), who arranged a recording contract with Bronze Records, a John Peel session on Radio 1, and an appearance on Top of the Pops with a version of the rock 'n' roll standard Louie, Louie.

Motörhead enjoyed their greatest success in the UK in the early 1980s, with three consecutive Top Ten albums: Ace of Spades, No Sleep 'til Hammersmith, and Iron Fist. The second of these reached No. 1 and spent 21 weeks on the chart. They also – finally – began to be noticed in the USA, making their first headlining tour there in 1982.

By 1990 Lemmy was living in Los Angeles. His consumption of drugs and alcohol had long been legendary, but it gradually declined over the ensuing years as health issues began to take their toll. He continued to tour and record with Motörhead until 2015, when he died of prostate cancer and heart failure. The end came just four days after his 70th birthday; according to the band's announcement, the cancer had been diagnosed just two days earlier (which would have been on the day known in Great Britain as Boxing Day).

The final word on Lemmy must rest with Dave Grohl, the bass guitarist with Nirvana and frontman of the Foo Fighters – described by one YouTuber as "the nicest guy in rock" (and quoted by Wikipedia):

"[Forget] Elvis and Keith Richards, Lemmy's the king of rock 'n' roll ... Lemmy's a living, breathing, drinking and snorting f***ing legend. No one else comes close."