Earlier this year Lamb Of God‘s 2004 album “Ashes Of The Wake” was certified gold in the U.S., signifying 500,000 copies ‘sold’. The album was officially certified for that milestone on February 18th, 2016, following revised sales classifications instituted by the RIAA.
Now frontman Randy Blythe is putting up his gold plaque for the album for charity. As you might have read earlier today, Blythe was touched by fan Wayne Ford‘s valiant fight against leukemia and wrote a song about the man called “The Duke“.
That song, as well as another new track and some live cuts will appear on a forthcoming EP due out on December 02nd. In honor of Ford, Blythe will be auctioning off his own gold plaque with the proceeds to benefit the The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society. Blythe explained the matter below:
“The Duke” This is my copy of the Ashes of the Wake gold record- soon it will be available in a charity auction being organized to benefit The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society (WWW.LLS.ORG). This auction will coincide with an EP release later this year- the five song EP of two new tracks & 3 live songs is named “The Duke“, after the title track of the record. I wrote the song “The Duke” in honor of a fan named Wayne Ford that I briefly got to be friends with during the recording sessions for VII: Sturm und Drang.
I had met Wayne a few years previously in AZ- he was battling leukemia. While I was recording our last album, word got to me that Wayne was terminal & would be leaving this world soon. I reached out & we became friends- I found his stoic demeanor in the face of his own imminent death extremely inspiring- he was an amazingly grounded man. When Wayne died, I wrote the lyrics to “The Duke” in his honor.
If you want to know the whole story of “The Duke“, go to our website, WWW.LAMB-OF-GOD.COM, or our Facebook page. More details about the charity auction & how you can own my gold record (& other items donated by the band) will be released soon. Also you can go to WWW.BETHEMATCH.ORG to get on the bone marrow registry- it’s easy, free, & you might save someone’s life.
Thanks for reading. RIP Wayne Ford, 9/30/1981- 02/03/2015. #fuckcancer #ripwayneford”
