Anthony Moore (born Aug. 13, 1948) is an English musician and songwriter from London who recorded three minimalist albums in 1972 for Polydor. He then formed Slapp Happy, an art-pop trio that made two albums and merged with Henry Cow for the 1975 albums Desperate Straights and In Praise of Learning. Moore resumed his solo […]
Paul Brett (June 20, 1947 – January 31, 2024) was an English folk-psych guitarist and composer from Fulham, Greater London, who briefly played in the bands Tintern Abbey and Velvet Opera during the late 1960s. Between 1970 and 1972, he fronted the folk-rock combo Sage for three albums on Pye and Dawn. As a solo […]
Eric Clapton (born March 30, 1945) is an English guitarist, singer, and songwriter who initially courted fame as the original soloist in the R&B/beat combo The Yardbirds. He played with the band between late 1963 and early 1965 before handing the slot to fellow rising star Jeff Beck. In 1966, Clapton was the featured performer […]
Ann Odell is an English keyboardist, vocalist, songwriter, and arranger who played on albums by Shawn Phillips, Roger Glover, Murray Head, Jorge Ben, Bryan Ferry, Japan, and Pete Townshend during the 1970s and early 1980s. As a solo artist, she released the album A Little Taste on DJM in 1973. In 1975, she teamed with […]
Cliff Richard (born Oct. 14, 1940) is an English pop vocalist with a career that has spanned more than 60 years, starting in the late 1950s amid the U.K.’s initial wave of home-grown rock performers. Between 1958 and 1963, he enjoyed teen-idol fame and a series of hits with his backing band The Shadows. In […]
Johnny Warman is an English vocalist and songwriter who cut the 1975 Bellaphon single “Rock Star” with hard-rockers Bearded Lady, which recorded an album that was ultimately released in 2004 by archivists Angel Air Records. As a solo artist, Warman made the 1978 RCA album Hour Glass, followed by the 1981/82 albums Walking Into Mirrors […]
Peter Banks (1947–2013) was an English rock guitarist who co-founded Yes and played on their first two albums: Yes (1969) and Time and a Word (1970). He then formed Flash, which released the 1972/73 albums Flash, In the Can, and Out of Our Hands on Sovereign. In 1973, he collaborated with Focus guitarist Jan Akkerman […]
Nick Garrie (born June 22, 1949) is an English folk-psych singer/songwriter from Yorkshire who released the 1968 album The Nightmare of J. B. Stanislas on the French label Disc’ AZ. Background Nick Garrie was born Nicholas Miansarow on June 22, 1949, in Ripon, Yorkshire, England. His father, Vladimir Miansarow, was a Russian filmmaker; his Scottish […]
Mick Greenwood (born Feb. 13, 1951) is an English singer/songwriter from Potters Bar, Hertfordshire, who made the 1971/72 MCA albums Living Game and …To Friends, followed by the 1974 Warner release Midnight Dreamer. Background Mick Greenwood was born Michael Vernon Greenwood on Feb. 13, 1951, at the family home in Potters Bar, Hertfordshire, England. His […]
Mandy More (born Sept. 10, 1945) is an English singer/songwriter from Leeds who released the 1972 album But That Is Me, followed by three singles through 1975 on Philips and Fresh Air. Background Mandy More was born Amanda Campbell-Moore on Sept. 10, 1945, in Leeds, England. More sang with sextet the Soul Survivors and then […]
Lynsey de Paul (June 11, 1948 — Oct. 1, 2014) was an English pop singer and songwriter who emerged with the 1973 album Surprise on MAM Records, followed by the 1974/75 Jet titles Taste Me … Don’t Waste Me and Love Bomb and the 1979 Polydor release Tigers and Fireflies. She landed UK hits with […]
Lindsay Cooper (March 3, 1951 — Sept. 18, 2013) was an English bassoonist, oboist, and composer. In 1974, she replaced reedist Geoff Leigh in Henry Cow for their second album Unrest. She imprinted their 1975 Slapp Happy merger discs Desperate Straights and In Praise of Learning and composed the “Day by Day” half of their […]
Linda Hoyle (born April 13, 1946) is an English jazz-rock/soul singer who fronted the 1968–70 Affinity lineup and sang on their classic album. In 1971, she cut the Vertigo solo disc Pieces of Me. Background Linda Hoyle was born Linda Hoile on April 13, 1946, in Hammersmith, London, England. Her father, Gordon “Dick” Hoile, worked […]
Kim Wilde (born Nov. 18, 1960) is an English pop and dance singer who shot to fame with “Kids in America” from her debut album, followed by the 1982/83 RAK discs Select and Catch as Catch Can. She is the daughter of Fifties rock sensation Marty Wilde and the sister of musician, songwriter, and producer […]
Paul Korda (1948 – March 11, 2020) was an English singer, songwriter, and producer who issued a string of ’60s-era singles, including the 1969 ecological number “Seagull,” also recorded by Love Sculpture. In 1970, he co-fronted the brass-rock big band Dada for one album on Atco. His first solo album, Passing Stranger, appeared in 1971 […]
Jon Lord (1941–2012) was an English organist and composer, best known as a mainstay of hard-rockers Deep Purple. An early proponent of orchestral rock, he composed the band’s three-movement Gemini Suite, recorded in 1970 with the Orchestra of the Light Music Society. Lord first emerged in The Artwoods, an R&B/beat group with drummer Keef Hartley […]
Jimmy Campbell (1944–2007) was an English singer-songwriter from Liverpool who started in the 1960s beat group The Kirkbys, which morphed into psych-pop legends The 23rd Turnoff. As a solo artist, he released the albums Son of Anastasia (Fontana, 1969), Half Baked (Vertigo, 1970), and Jimmy Campbell’s Album (Philips, 1972). His partnership with bassist Bill Kinsley […]
Dave Mason is an English singer-songwriter who emerged as the guitarist of Traffic during the late 1960s. He wrote 10 songs for the band, including “Hole In My Shoe,” “Feelin’ Alright,” and “Vagabond Virgin.” As a solo artist, he released three albums on Blues Thumb and six on Columbia between 1970 and 1980. His 1977 […]
Jess Roden (born Dec. 28, 1947) is an English soul-rock singer from Kidderminster, Worcestershire, who served as the vocalist in the Alan Bown Set circa 1967/68, followed by a two-album stint with Bronco during the early 1970s. After cutting an album with transatlantic hard-rockers the Butts Band, Roden released four albums and a live disc […]
Jane Kennaway is an English new wave singer and songwriter who released four shortplayers between 1979 and 1983, starting with a four-song EP on Dinsong, followed by two singles on Deram circa 1980/81, including one with her band Strange Behaviour. Thirty years later, her complete recordings from this era appeared on the CD IOU, courtesy […]
Colin Scot (1941–1999) was an English–Canadian singer–songwriter who released a self-titled album in 1971 on United Artists, recorded with members of Yes, Genesis, King Crimson, and Van Der Graaf Generator. On Warner Bros., he released the 1973/74 albums Just Another Clown and Out of the Blue. Background Scot was born Colin Thistlethwaite on March 17, […]
Jackie Lomax (May 10, 1944 — Sept. 15, 2013) was an English singer, guitarist, and songwriter who led the Merseybeat bands The Undertakers, The Lost Souls, and Lomax Alliance. In 1969, he released the album Is This What You Want? on Apple Records, followed by a one-off with blues-rockers Heavy Jelly. On Warner Bros., he […]
Keith Christmas is an English singer-songwriter who debuted with the 1969 album Stimulus on RCA. That same year, he played guitar on the second self-titled album by David Bowie. During 1970/71, Christmas released the albums Fable of the Wings and Pigmy on B & C. Both contain a mix of tender chamber pop, finger-picking folk […]
Peter Bardens (June 19, 1945 — Jan. 22, 2002) was an English keyboardist, composer, and singer, best known as the co-mastermind of Camel. Bardens first emerged during the mid-’60s beat era as a member of Van Morrison‘s Them. As a solo artist, he released two 1970/71 albums on Transatlantic. He formed Camel in 1972 and […]
Peter Hammill (born Nov. 5, 1948) is an English singer–songwriter and multi-instrumentalist whose musical career dates back to the late 1960s. He first rose to prominence as the frontman of Van der Graaf Generator, which he co-founded at Manchester University in 1967. Over the next eleven years, he recorded eight studio albums with the band. […]
Matthew Fisher is an English keyboardist and composer who played on the first three albums by Procol Harum. As a solo artist, he issued the 1973/74 albums Journey’s End and I’ll Be There on RCA Victor, followed in 1979–81 with a second pair of albums on Mercury. Fisher was born on March 7, 1946, in Croydon, […]
Chris Youlden is an English blues-rock singer who sang in the second lineup of Savoy Brown from 1968 to 1970. As a solo artist, he issued the 1973/74 Deram albums Nowhere Road and City Child. Youlden was born in 1943 in Dagenham, Essex. In 1967, he replaced Brice Portius as the vocalist in blues rockers […]
Keith Tippett (Aug. 25, 1947 — June 14, 2020) was an English free-jazz pianist and bandleader who was active for five decades, starting in the late 1960s. He led the experimental big band Centipede and played on the 1970 King Crimson albums In the Wake of Poseidon and Lizard. During the next two decades, he […]
Brian Short (1948 – 2014) was an English singer who emerged as the frontman of Black Cat Bones. His solo album, Anything for a Laugh, appeared in 1971 on Transatlantic Records. He later wrote songs for Jeff Beck and Hummingbird. Background Short first fronted The Sect, a Newcastle beat group that played numerous Tyneside venues […]
Tony Hazzard (born Oct. 31, 1943) is an English singer/songwriter from Liverpool who released a 1969 album of covers and originals on CBS, followed by the 1971–73 Bronze albums Loudwater House and Was That Alright Then? In 1976, he collaborated with pop vocalist Richard Barnes for a Warner album. During the 1960s, his songs were […]
Tony Banks — aka Anthony George Banks (born March 27, 1950) — is an English keyboardist and composer from East Hoathly, best known as the chief musical mastermind of Genesis, a band he co-founded in 1967 and steered through a 32-year, 15-album run. As a solo artist, he premiered with the 1979 Charisma album A […]
Dave Davies (born Feb. 3, 1947) is an English guitarist, songwriter, and singer who played in The Kinks with older brother Ray Davies between 1963 and 1995. During the late 1960s, Dave issued a string of singles on Pye that were alternately credited to the band. A solo album was planned during this period but […]
Dana Gillespie is an English singer and actress who made the 1968 album Foolish Seasons on London Records, followed by the 1969 Decca release Box of Surprises. After four years in theater, she partnered with David Bowie and Mick Ronson, who co-produced her 1973 album Weren’t Born a Man for RCA. During the 1980s, she […]
Robert Calvert (1945–1988) was a poet, singer, and songwriter, best known for his stints in the English space-rock band Hawkwind. He first joined as their performance poet on the 1972/73 releases “Silver Machine,” Doremi Fasol Latido, and Space Ritual. As a solo artist, he issued the 1974/75 UA albums Captain Lockheed and the Starfighters and […]
Bill Nelson is an English multi-instrumentalist, vocalist, composer, producer, and photographer who rose to prominence as the guitarist–singer of Be-Bop Deluxe, which released five albums between 1974 and 1978 on EMI. He then formed the new wave band Red Noise for the 1979 album Sound-on-Sound. Since 1980, he’s issued vocal and instrumental titles on various […]
Duncan Mackay is an English keyboardist and composer, known for his stints in Steve Harley & Cockney Rebel (1975–77), 10cc (1978–81), and for his work on albums by the Alan Parsons Project, Camel, Cliff Richard, Elkie Brooks, and Kate Bush. As a solo artist, he debuted with the 1974 album Chimera on Vertigo. During his time […]
Chris Eaton (born Sept. 16, 1958) is an English musician and songwriter from Sedgley, Staffordshire, who recorded two CCM albums with the Mark Williamson Band circa 1980/81. As a solo artist, he released the album Vision on Reunion Records in 1986, followed by a further string of discs during the 1990s. As a songwriter, he […]
Roger Hodgson (born March 21, 1950) is an English musician, vocalist, and songwriter from Portsmouth, Hampshire, who cut a single apiece with the 1969 one-offs People Like Us and Argosy, the latter featuring a then-unknown Elton John. That same year, Hodgson began a 14-year, seven-album stint with Supertramp, in which he split most of the […]
Brian Bennett (born Feb. 9, 1940) is an English musican, composer, and producer who served as the longtime drummer for Cliff Richard‘s backing band The Shadows. Apart from the band, Bennett released a series of instrumental/library albums on Bruton Music during the 1970s and 1980s. His 1976 fanfare “Capital City” became the theme for the […]
Ray Russell (born April 4, 1947) is an English jazz-rock guitarist who emerged as a quartet leader with two albums in 1968/69 on CBS. During the early 1970s, he appeared on albums by Bob Downs, Michael Gibbs, and Bill Fay amid a two-album stint with the Scottish brass-rock ensemble Rock Workshop. Between 1972 and 1975, […]
Alan White (1949–2022) was an English drummer and percussionist, best known as a member of Yes from 1972 onward. During their 1975–76 break for solo activity, he recorded Ramshackled with members of his pre-Yes psychedelic band Griffin. Early Life, The Blue Chips White was born on June 14, 1949, in the village of Pelton, County […]
Billy Idol — aka William Broad (Nov. 30, 1955) — is an English vocalist from Stanmore, Middlesex, who emerged in the hard-rock/punk band Generation X during the late 1970s. Discography: Don’t Stop (EP, 1981) Billy Idol (1982) Rebel Yell (1983) Whiplash Smile (1986) Charmed Life (1990) Cyberpunk (1993) Devil’s Playground (2005) Kings & Queens of […]
Michael Chapman (1941–2021) was an English singer-songwriter and guitarist from Leeds who released the 1969–71 Harvest albums Rainmaker, Fully Qualified Survivor, Window, and Wrecked Again. He followed with five albums through 1977 on Decca, Nova, and Gama. Over the next two decades, he issued eight albums on assorted indie labels. His songs have been covered […]
Harvey Andrews is an English singer-songwriter from Birmingham who released the album Places & Faces on Decca in 1970, followed by the 1972/73 albums Writer of Songs and Friends of Mine on Cube Records. In 1976, he returned with Someday on Transatlantic Records. Between 1980 and 1987, he released three albums on self-press Beeswing Records. […]
Adrian Snell (born 1954) is an English singer/songwriter who released four albums on the Christian Dovetail/Dove Records label between 1975 and 1979, followed by albums on Kingsway, Marshall, and Myrrh during the subsequent 15-year period. Since the mid-1990s, he has released more than 15 titles on self-press Serious Music. Background Adrian Snell was born in […]
Howard Riley (born Feb. 16, 1943) is an English jazz pianist and composer from Huddersfield, West Yorkshire, who recorded three albums with a namesake trio for Opportunity and CBS between 1968 and 1970, followed by a string of mostly improvisational discs on Turtle, Incus, Jaguar, and Mosaic during the 1970s. Background John Howard Riley was […]
Alan Skidmore (born April 21, 1942) is an English tenor saxophonist from London who appeared on 1966/67 albums by the Bluesbreakers, Alexis Korner, and Brian Bennett. Between 1968 and 1970, he backed Mike Westbrook, John Surman, Harry Beckett, Graham Collier, Mike Cooper, Michael Gibbs, and The Nice. Skidmore assumed bandleader status with the 1970 Decca/Deram […]
Phil Collins (born Jan. 30, 1951) is an English musician, singer, and songwriter, best known as the frontman and drummer of Genesis and for his string of pop solo hits during the 1980s. He shot to fame in 1981 with “In the Air Tonight” and scored more than 20 transatlantic chart hits over the ensuing […]
Peter Frampton (born April 22, 1950) is an English guitarist and singer who released a string of 1966–68 singles in beat combo The Herd, including the freakbeat rubbles “From the Underworld,” “Mixed Up Minds,” “I Can Fly,” and “Sunshine Cottage.” In 1969, he embarked on a five-album stint in blues-rockers Humble Pie with ex-Small Faces […]
Paul Roland (born Sept. 6, 1959) is an English chamber-pop/psych musician from Kent who headed the combo Midnight Rags on two small-press singles in 1979/80, followed by the Armageddon Records album The Werewolf of London in 1980. In 1985, he reemerged with the album Burnt Orchids on Aftermath Records, followed by Danse Macabre on Bam-Caruso […]
Anne Clark is an English poet, songwriter, and musician from Croydon who released the 1983 album Changing Places on Red Flame, followed by a round of titles on Ten during the mid-to-late 1980s. Background Anne Charlotte Clark was born May 14, 1960, in Croydon, South London, England. Clark left school at sixteen and worked as […]
Mike Absalom is an English singer/songwriter and guitarist behind the 1965 Sportsdisc title …Sings Bathroom Ballads, followed with the 1969 Saydisc release Save the Last Gherkin for Me! In 1971, he cut a self-titled album on the Vertigo “swirl” label with an uncharacteristic cover by Yes/Osibisa/Uriah Heep illustrator Roger Dean. Absalom’s fourth album, Hector and […]
Alison Moyet (June 18, 1961) is an English soul-pop singer from Basildon, Essex, who rose to prominence as the vocal half of synthpop duo Yazoo with keyboardist/songwriter Vince Clarke. As a solo artist, Moyet released two albums on CBS between 1984 and 1987, followed by another pair of titles on Columbia during the early 1990s. […]
Robert Plant (born Aug. 20, 1948) is an English singer and songwriter who shot to global fame as the frontman of hard-rock legends Led Zeppelin, which released eight studio albums between 1969 and 1979 on Atlantic. As a solo artist, Plant debuted with the 1982 album Pictures at Eleven on Zeppelin-imprint Swan Song, followed by […]
Eddie Hardin (1949–2015) was an English keyboardist, singer, and songwriter who replaced Steve Winwood in the Spencer Davis Group and teamed with their drummer, Pete York, in the duo Hardin & York. He cut two albums with Axis Point, a blues-rock supergroup formed by Family–Streetwalkers mainstay Charlie Whitney. Hardin debuted as a solo artist with […]
Adrian Gurvitz — aka Adrian Curtis (born June 26, 1949) — is an English guitarist, vocalist, and songwriter from London who played in the hard-rock bands Gun, Three Man Army, the Baker Gurvitz Army, and the Graeme Edge Band with his bassist brother Paul Gurvitz. Collectively, those projects produced 10 albums between 1968 and 1977. […]
Mike d’Abo is an English singer and songwriter, best known as the second vocalist of Manfred Mann. He fronted the band for three albums and multiple singles, including their 1968 transatlantic hit “Mighty Quinn.” He went solo with the 1970 MCA/Uni release d’Abo, followed by the 1972–74 A&M albums Down at Rachel’s Place and Broken […]
Paul Jones is an English singer and songwriter, best known as the original vocalist of Manfred Mann. He fronted the band for two albums and multiple singles, including their 1964 British Invasion hit “Do Wah Diddy Diddy.” He went solo with a string of late ’60s titles on His Master’s Voice, culminating with the 1971 […]
Chris Farlowe is an English rock singer who surfaced in the R&B–beat boom with five 1962–65 singles on Decca and Columbia–EMI, which issued his 1966 debut album with backing band The Thunderbirds. He cut eleven singles through 1968 on Immediate Records and scored a UK No. 1 with the Rolling Stones song “Out of Time.” […]
