About Cinderella's Tom Keifer
Carl Thomas Keifer is an American musician. He is the lead singer, primary songwriter, and one of the guitarists for the hard rock band Cinderella.
Tom Keifer is a native of Springfield, Pennsylvania. He grew up in a musical family and began playing guitar at a young age. He soon fell in love with the blues and was heavily influenced by this kind of music.
Keifer joined his first rock band while attending Springfield High School. He soon learned to play the electric guitar. The young musician struggled with drug and alcohol abuse in high school, and considered dropping out of school to pursue a music career. However, his mother Adrienne bribed her son to stay in school by promising him a Gibson Les Paul guitar upon graduation. Keifer graduated and received the coveted instrument.
Soon, Keifer conquered his addictions, and began to focus on a career as a musician. He had started writing original material. He also found financial support by walking race horses at tracks and delivering film to developing outlets. For a time was a member of the Central Pa band Telepath. Keifer came closer to his dream of being a successful artist by forming the hard rock band Cinderella with good friend and bassist Eric Brittingham. Despite being shy, Keifer took on the role of lead singer because they could not find anyone they liked to sing for the band. In articles, Keifer has said, "I don't feel comfortable when I'm up there singing and not playing guitar. I feel naked when it's just me and the microphone."
Cinderella was discovered initially by Gene Simmons of Kiss who unsuccessfully attempted to get the band signed.
It was then Jon Bon Jovi in 1985, at the Empire Rock Club in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, that convinced his Mercury A&R manager Derek Schulman to sign the band. Bon Jovi has been quoted as saying "I saw Tommy Keifer onstage delivering some pretty nifty, growling vocals. Then he whipped out this Les Paul and proceeded to lay into some astounding sounds. This guy struck me as a star right then and there."
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