Tommy McClendon, also known by his stage name, Atomik Tommy M, is a Japanese-born American guitarist, best known for his work with rock band
UFO from 1984 to 1988.
Early life
McClendon was born in Yokohama, Japan, and moved to
Stockton, California
Stockton is a city in and the county seat of San Joaquin County, California, San Joaquin County in the Central Valley (California), Central Valley of the U.S. state of California. It is the most populous city in the county, the List of municipal ...
when he was 10. He began learning violin at the age of 5, piano at 10, and guitar at 13.
McClendon's first band was formed when he was 15 with his brother, Dan. He graduated from Stockton's
Lincoln High School in 1972.
McClendon performed in multiple different bands before becoming a member of UFO. The members of the group were Deep Water, Thunderwing, and Boy Wonder, the latter of which inspired his "Atomik Tommy M" stage name.
His early musical influences include
The Beatles
The Beatles were an English Rock music, rock band formed in Liverpool in 1960. The core lineup of the band comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are widely regarded as the Cultural impact of the Beatle ...
,
The Lovin' Spoonful
The Lovin' Spoonful is a Canadian-American folk-rock band formed in Greenwich Village, New York City, in 1964. The band were among the most popular groups in the United States for a short period in the mid-1960s and their music and image influ ...
,
Mance Lipscomb, and
Paul Butterfield
Paul Vaughn Butterfield (December 17, 1942May 4, 1987) was an American blues harmonica player, singer, and bandleader. After early training as a Western concert flute, classical flautist, he developed an interest in blues harmonica. He explored ...
.
Career
With UFO
Before McClendon joined UFO, the band disbanded after its unsuccessful tour supporting ''
Making Contact''.
Phil Mogg
Phillip John Mogg (born 15 April 1948, Wood Green, London) is an English singer. He was the lead singer and frontman of the hard rock band UFO, which he co-founded with longtime friends Pete Way, Andy Parker and Mick Bolton in 1968.Buckley, ...
spent time in Los Angeles, where he contacted, through
Mike Varney, McClendon, asking him to be in a new band. This new band later ended up staying as UFO, and they released
Misdemeanor
A misdemeanor (American English, spelled misdemeanour elsewhere) is any "lesser" criminal act in some common law legal systems. Misdemeanors are generally punished less severely than more serious felonies, but theoretically more so than admi ...
in 1985. They also released
Ain't Misbehavin' in 1988 with McClendon.
After UFO
McClendon was the guitarist for ex-
Tesla bassist
Brian Wheat
Tesla is an American rock band from Sacramento, California. In late 1981, bassist Brian Wheat and guitarist Frank Hannon formed a band named City Kidd, which evolved into Tesla. By 1984, vocalist Jeff Keith, guitarist Tommy Skeoch, and drummer ...
's band Soulmotor, appearing on their first three releases. More recently, he was in the group When We Become Kings, which broke up in 2017. McClendon gives guitar lessons at The Music Box in
Lodi, California
Lodi ( ) is a city in San Joaquin County, California, United States, in the center portion of California's Central Valley (California), Central Valley. The population was 66,348 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census.
History
When a gro ...
.
Bands
*SoulMotor (1999) – guitars
*Revolution Wheel (2002) – guitars, keyboards
*UFO – As Atomik Tommy M (1984–1988) – guitars
References
Living people
Year of birth missing (living people)
{{US-musician-stub