Person · Male

Warren Zevon

From: Chicago, United States
Active: 1947–2003
Releases: 56

rock
piano rock
pop rock
alternative rock
blues
blues rock
comedy rock
country

About

Warren William Zevon (; January 24, 1947 – September 7, 2003) was an American rock singer and songwriter. His most famous compositions include "Werewolves of London", "Lawyers, Guns and Money" and "Roland the Headless Thompson Gunner". All three songs appear on his third album, Excitable Boy (1978), whose title track is also well known. He also wrote major hits that were recorded by other artists, including "Poor Poor Pitiful Me", "Mohammed's Radio", "Carmelita" and "Hasten Down the Wind". Per The New York Times, "Mr. Zevon had a pulp-fiction imagination" which yielded "terse, action-packed, gallows-humored tales that could sketch an entire screenplay in four minutes and often had death as a punchline. But there was also vulnerability and longing in Mr. Zevon's ballads, like 'Mutineer,' 'Accidentally Like a Martyr' and 'Hasten Down the Wind'."

Zevon had early success in the music industry as a session musician, jingle composer, songwriter, touring musician, musical coordinator, and bandleader. However, he struggled to break through with a solo career until Linda Ronstadt recorded his song "Hasten Down the Wind" on her 1976 album of the same title. It launched a cult following that lasted 25 years, with Zevon making occasional returns to album and single charts until his death from mesothelioma in 2003. He briefly found a new audience by teaming up with members of R.E.M. in the blues rock outfit Hindu Love Gods for a 1990 album release. In 2025, Zevon was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in the Musical Influence Award category.
Known for his dry wit and acerbic lyrics, he was a frequent guest on Late Night with David Letterman and the Late Show with David Letterman. On Zevon's last appearance, Letterman asked him if he had learned anything about matters of life and death. Zevon said he'd learned to "...enjoy every sandwich."

From Warren Zevon on Wikipedia, under CC BY-SA 4.0.