Early days (1978–1983) The Tygers of Pan Tang were formed by guitarist Robb Weir (born Robert Mortimer Weir, 1958), Richard "Rocky" Laws (bass), Jess Cox (vocals) and Brian Dick (drums). and were first signed by local independent label
Neat Records before
MCA gave them a major record deal.
Reformation (1985–1987) In 1985, Jon Deverill and Brian Dick reformed the band with Steve Lamb (formerly of Sergeant) on guitar, Neil Sheppard on guitar, and ex-Warrior, ex-Satan member Colin Irwin on bass. Dave Donaldson later replaced Colin Irwin. Meanwhile, Robb Weir and Jess Cox formed the spin-off band Tyger-Tyger.
Latter days (1999–present) During the 1999
Wacken Open Air festival, Jess Cox joined on stage with
Blitzkrieg, playing three Tygers songs. The audience's response was positive, and a year later, to celebrate the 20th anniversary of Tygers of Pan Tang and the 10th Wacken Open Air, the band was invited to play on the main stage. Brian Dick and Rocky were unable to join the band, but the Tygers (now Jess Cox and Robb Weir, backed up by Blitzkrieg guitarist Glenn S Howes, bassist Gavin Gray, and drummer Chris Percy) did perform. Jon Deverill went on to work as an actor under the name of Jon De Ville, and as of October 2007 was performing in
The Sound of Music at the
London Palladium with television star
Connie Fisher. In October 2007, the band issued a limited edition five track
EP titled
Back and Beyond, which featured reworkings of three Tygers songs from the early 1980s, along with two new tracks taken from their forthcoming album.
Animal Instinct was released on 19 May 2008, the first with vocalist Jacopo Meille. On 2011 bassist Gavin Gray return in the band to replace Brian West. On 15 July 2011 it was announced that Tygers Of Pan Tang have signed an agreement with Rocksector Records for the worldwide release of their next studio album, with a current working title of "Ambush", provisionally planned for February/March 2012. The album came out on 24 September. In 2013, guitarist Dean Robertson was replaced by Micky Crystal. In 2015, Jess Cox formed "Jess Cox's Tygers of Pan Tang" and made festival appearances across Europe, as well as a tour of South America. 2016 saw the band release the self-titled album
Tygers of Pan Tang which featured the track "Only The Brave". This was followed up in 2019 with the album
Ritual. In 2020, Micky Crystal left the band. Crystal stated in an interview that he had left due to poor management also claiming Robb Weir had little, to no involvement, in the band's 2019 album,
Ritual. It was noted that John Sykes had expressed similar feelings in a
Kerrang! interview from 1984. On 28 May 2021, the band released the compilation
Majors & Minors. In 2021, bassist Gav Gray left the band and was replaced by Huw Holding.
Bloodlines was released in 2023 featuring their two new members, followed by the live album,
Live Blood in 2024, showcasing songs from across the band's career. Recent gigs have shown a significant upturn in attendances and the Tygers returned to their original stomping ground in November 2024 for a show at the
Whitley Bay Playhouse. ==Members==