Tags
acute alcohol poisoning, Celebrity, Cyren, drummer, glam metal, Jani Lane, John Kennedy Oswald, John Patrick Oswald, Liberty N Justice, Mitch Dynamite, Plain Jane, Saints of the Underground, Warrant
Jani Lane (February 1, 1964 – August 11, 2011)
Jani Lane was born John Kennedy Oswald, later changed to John Patrick Oswald, in Akron, Ohio. He learned to play guitar, piano and drums by ear by the age of 6. He was playing drums under the name “Mitch Dynamite” by age 11 in clubs. (Mitch Dynamite is listed as drummer in the credits on Warrant’s Latest and Greatest CD.
After graduating high school, Lane joined the band Cyren. After moving to Florida, he joined Plain Jane. In the spring of 1984, the band moved to Los Angeles in the hopes of scoring a record deal. By 1985, Plain Jane was well known in L.A. clubs and opened many shows for Warrant. Lane soon joined the glam metal band. Lane first left Warrant in March 1993 to pursue a solo career. He quickly returned in September 1993. He left again in 2004; returning briefly in 2008 (from January to September). Lane released 8 albums with Warrant, two solo albums, one album with Saints of the Underground and one album and a 2011 single with the band Liberty N Justice.
Lane was married three times and had two daughters with his first two wives. On August 11, 2011, the Los Angeles Police Department announced that Lane had been found dead of acute alcohol poisoning at a Comfort Inn in Woodland Hills, California. Lane was 47 years old.