Sad news for music fans as Blackie Onassis, the talented drummer of Urge Overkill, has passed away. Onassis played on the band’s hit “Sister Havana” and the iconic remake of Neil Diamond’s “Girl, You’ll Be a Woman Soon” that was featured in Quentin Tarantino’s masterpiece, Pulp Fiction. The cause and date of his death are unknown at this time.
Born John Rowan, Onassis joined Urge Overkill in the early 1990s and played with the group as they opened for Nirvana’s Nevermind tour in late 1991. This led to the band being signed by Geffen Records, and Onassis drummed and sang on three of the group’s ’90s albums. While the latter two sets only dented the Billboard 200, “Sister Havana” reached the Top 10 of the Modern Rock and Mainstream Rock tallies.
However, the band’s biggest success came with their remake of “Girl, You’ll Be a Woman Soon.” The track played a pivotal role in Pulp Fiction and helped fuel the album to No. 21 on the Billboard charts. Onassis left the band after the release of Exit the Dragon, and the remaining members took an extended break.
Kato released a solo disc in 2000 that featured about half of its songs co-penned with Onassis. Roeser returned in 2004, and Urge Overkill went on without Onassis. Kato and Roeser eventually lost touch with Onassis, and he would not return to the public spotlight. Blackie Onassis will be missed, but his music will live on.
