Tom Keifer

I was into jazz most of the 1980’s. While many were listening to Van Halen, Kiss, Poison, or Aerosmith, I was listening to John Coltrane. I had never heard of Cinderella or Tom Keifer. A readers’ poll in Rolling Stone magazine listed the top ten greatest hair metal songs of all time. I didn’t know any of them. I do remember the songs Love of a Lifetime by Firehouse, The Final Countdown by Europe, and Sister Christian by Night Ranger. That’s about it. Did I miss out?

I now know about the different bands but only because I sell pinups, posters, and magazines in my eBay store. I’m aware of the various bands from that time period and their heartthrob. (Most bands had a member who stuck out and was the favorite, most often the lead singer.) There was Slaughter, Warrant, Guns ‘N Roses, Winger, Motley Crue, Poison, Twisted Sister, Europe, Bon Jovi, Def Leppard, Firehouse, Van Halen, Kiss, Aerosmith, Quiet Riot, Night Ranger, and a bunch more. I never knew anything about Cinderella, but I guess Tom Keifer was the heartthrob from that band.

The Beginning

Carl Thomas Keifer was born in Springfield, Pennsylvania on January 26, 1961. He grew up in a musical family and joined his first rock band while still in junior high school. He struggled with alcohol and drugs early on and was going to drop out of high school to focus on being a rocker. Mom Adrienne bribed him with a Gibson Les Paul guitar when/if he graduated. I guess that’s cool. Young Mr. Keifer did get his diploma. I hope mom made good on her promise.

Tom Keifer and buddy Eric Brittingham formed Cinderella in 1982. Keifer claims that Gene Simmons (Kiss) was interested in the band and tried to get them a record deal. Jon Bon Jovi saw Cinderella perform in 1985 and ended up getting them signed with a record label.

Cinderella

Cinderella was very successful with their first two albums, Night Songs and Long Cold Winter. The year 1990 brought their third album called Heartbreak Station.  Tom Keifer lost his voice the following year due to vocal cord paresis. He went through six surgeries to repair a vocal cyst and hemorrhage.  A fourth album released in 1994 did not do well.  They were dropped from their label and the band broke up in 1995.

Tom Keifer battled depression during his multiple surgeries on his vocal cords. He had to learn how to sing again, his mom died, and he and his wife divorced. Life sucked for Mr. Keifer. In better news, Tom Keifer is now married again. He and his wife have a child who was born in 2004. I’m not sure what he’s doing now, but Tom Keifer said about Cinderella in November 2017: “There won’t be any reunion.”