 In the late 1970s, Forrester joined forces with two former members of Illinois act Roller, guitarist Russ Shirley and bassist/vocalist Kevin Lee, and drummer Jim Schroeder, to form Hitman.The band stayed together for about a year, playing around the Georgia State area.Forrester's big break came while he was with a New York cover band named Rachel, when he successfully auditioned to replace the departing Guy Speranza in Riot.