Thin Lizzy are an Irish hard rock band formed in Dublin in 1969. The two founding members, drummer Brian Downey and bass guitarist/vocalist Phil Lynott met while still in school. Lynott assumed the role of frontman and led them throughout their recording career of thirteen studio albums. Thin Lizzy are best known for their songs "Whiskey in the Jar", "Jailbreak" and "The Boys Are Back in Town", all major international hits still played regularly on hard rock and classic rock radio stations. After Lynott's death in 1986, various incarnations of the band have emerged over the years based around guitarists Scott Gorham and John Sykes, though Sykes left the band in 2009.

Thin Lizzy's ''de facto'' leader, Lynott was composer or co-composer of almost all of the band's songs. He was one of the few black musicians to achieve commercial success in hard rock, and the first black Irishman to do so. Thin Lizzy boasted some of the most critically acclaimed guitarists throughout their history, with founders Downey and Lynott as the rhythm section, on the drums and bass guitar. As well as being multiracial, the band drew their members not only from both sides of the Irish border but also from both the Catholic and Protestant communities during The Troubles. Their music reflects a wide range of influences, including country music, psychedelic rock, and traditional Irish folk music, but is generally classified as hard rock or sometimes heavy metal. ''Rolling Stone'' magazine describes the band as distinctly hard rock, "far apart from the braying mid-70s metal pack".

Allmusic critic John Dougan has written that "As the band's creative force, Lynott was a more insightful and intelligent writer than many of his ilk, preferring slice-of-life working-class dramas of love and hate influenced by Bob Dylan, Van Morrison, Bruce Springsteen, and virtually all of the Irish literary tradition." Van Morrison, Jeff Beck and Jimi Hendrix were major influences during the early days of the band, and later influences included American artists Little Feat and Bob Seger.

History

Early years (1969–1974)

In July 1970, Thin Lizzy released a single, "The Farmer"/"I Need You", on EMI with the B-side written by John D'ardis, who owned Trend Studios where the single was recorded. The single only sold 283 copies and is now a collectors' item. Wrixon left the band before the single's release, meaning there was a greater share of income for the three remaining members. He moved to Europe before returning to Belfast, rejoining his old band, Them. By the end of the year, Thin Lizzy were signed to Decca Records, and they travelled to London in January 1971 to record their debut album, ''Thin Lizzy''. The album sold moderately well but did not chart in the UK despite airplay and support from influential DJs John Peel and Kid Jensen.

Around March 1971, the band permanently relocated to London, before the release of the unsuccessful "New Day" EP in August. Despite poor sales, Decca agreed to finance the band's second album ''Shades of a Blue Orphanage'', released in March 1972. Like the previous LP, the songs were filled with Lynott's personal anecdotes and references to his life in Dublin and the people he knew there. Musically the style was Celtic, with little warning of the hard rock direction that the band were to take in the future. Again, the album did not chart in the UK.

In mid-1972, Thin Lizzy were asked to record an album of Deep Purple covers, which was released under the title ''Funky Junction Play a Tribute to Deep Purple''. No mention was made of Thin Lizzy on the record. Vocals and keyboards were handled by members of another band, ''Elmer Fudd'', and a few instrumental tracks composed by the band were also included on the album. The album was released in January 1973.

"Whiskey in the Jar"

The band's next album, ''Vagabonds of the Western World'' was released in September 1973 to positive reviews, but again failed to chart. The accompanying single "The Rocker" again only charted in Ireland, and the momentum gained from their hit single was lost.

Eric Bell suddenly left the band on New Year's Eve 1973 after a gig at Queen's University Belfast, due to increasing ill-health and disillusionment with the music industry, and young ex-Skid Row guitarist Gary Moore was recruited to help finish the tour. Moore only lasted until April 1974, but the band recorded three songs with him, including the version of "Still in Love with You" that was included on the fourth album ''Nightlife''.

With the departure of Moore, Thin Lizzy had to recruit two temporary guitarists to complete a tour of Germany, ex-Atomic Rooster guitarist John Cann, and Berliner Andy Gee, who had played with Peter Bardens and Ellis. Neither were considered as permanent members, and Lynott and Cann did not get on well personally. After the tour, and with the contract with Decca coming to an end, a disillusioned Downey quit the band and had to be begged to return.

Auditions were held for new members, and Lynott and Downey eventually settled on the 18 year old Scottish guitarist Brian Robertson, and Californian Scott Gorham. The new line-up gelled quickly, dropped most of the old songs when they played live, and secured a new record deal with Phonogram, but the resulting album ''Nightlife'' was a disappointment for the band due to its soft production and underdeveloped style. Robertson described Ron Nevison's production as "pretty naff" and Gorham said the record was "ridiculously tame". Like the previous three albums, it failed to chart.

"The Boys Are Back in Town" (1975–1977)

In early 1975, Thin Lizzy toured the USA for the first time, in support of Bob Seger and Bachman–Turner Overdrive. When BTO toured Europe later in the year to support their hit single "You Ain't Seen Nothing Yet", Thin Lizzy again accompanied them on what was a very high-profile tour. They then recorded the ''Fighting'' album, which became the first Thin Lizzy album to chart in the UK, reaching no. 60, although the singles still did not chart. It showed the first real evidence of the twin guitar sound that would lead the band towards their greatest successes, particularly with the dual harmonies of "Wild One" and both guitarists' soloing on "Suicide".

After a successful multi-band tour in support of Status Quo, the band recorded the album ''Jailbreak'', which proved to be their breakthrough record. Released on 26 March 1976, it featured the worldwide hit "The Boys Are Back in Town" which reached no. 8 in the UK, and no. 12 in the US, their first charting record in that country. The twin guitar sound had been fully developed by this time and was in evidence throughout the album, particularly on the hit single, and other tracks such as "Emerald" and "Warriors". The album also charted well on both sides of the Atlantic, and the follow-up single, "Jailbreak", also performed well. Thin Lizzy toured the US in support of various bands such as Aerosmith, Rush and REO Speedwagon, and they planned to tour there again in June 1976, this time with Rainbow. However, Lynott fell ill with hepatitis and the tour was cancelled, which set them back a few months.

While Lynott was ill, he wrote most of the following album, ''Johnny the Fox''. The album was recorded in August 1976 and the sessions began to reveal tensions between Lynott and Robertson; for example, there was disagreement over the composition credits of the hit single "Don't Believe a Word". Lynott was still drawing on Celtic mythology and his own personal experiences for lyric ideas, which dominated ''Johnny the Fox'' and the other albums of Thin Lizzy's successful mid-1970s period. The tour to support the album was very successful and there were further high-profile TV appearances, such as the ''Rod Stewart BBC TV Special''.

A further tour of the USA was planned for December 1976, but it had to be cancelled when, on 26 November, Brian Robertson suffered a hand injury when trying to protect Scottish singer and friend Frankie Miller in a fracas at the Speakeasy Club in London. Miller had been jamming onstage with the reggae band Gonzalez, but had been drunk, offending Gonzalez guitarist Gordon Hunte. Hunte attacked Miller with a bottle in the dressing room, and Robertson intervened, suffering artery and nerve damage to his hand. Robertson subsequently broke Hunte's leg, broke the collarbone of another man, and headbutted another, before being hit on the head with a bottle, rendering him unconscious.

Robertson maintains that, contrary to reports at the time, he was not drunk and had only gone to the venue for a meal. Lynott was angry and replaced Robertson with Gary Moore for another tour of the States, this time supporting Queen. The tour was a success and Lynott asked Moore to stay on, but he returned to his previous band, Colosseum II. Robertson had not been sacked but was unsure of his position and made plans to start another band with Jimmy Bain of Rainbow.

Thin Lizzy flew to Canada in May 1977 as a trio to record ''Bad Reputation'', with Gorham handling all the guitar parts. A month into the sessions Robertson joined them, in his own words, "as a session player" and in Lynott's words, "as a guest". Robertson added lead guitar tracks to two songs, and was officially reinstated later in the year. The album was released in September and sold well, reaching no. 4 in the UK, after a successful single, "Dancing in the Moonlight (It's Caught Me in Its Spotlight)". Also in 1977, Thin Lizzy headlined the Leeds Festival.

The return of Gary Moore (1978–1979)

Lynott replaced Robertson with Gary Moore again, and around this time the band loosely joined forces with Steve Jones and Paul Cook of the Sex Pistols, and also Chris Spedding and Jimmy Bain, to form The Greedy Bastards, who played a small number of gigs playing a varied selection of songs. In this way Lynott was able to align his band with the punk movement and avoid being tagged as a 'dinosaur' as many other 1970s rock bands had been.

In August the band began another tour of the USA, followed by a trip to Australia and New Zealand. Brian Downey did not accompany them, citing exhaustion and preferring to spend some time in Ireland with his sick son. He was replaced for the tour by American drummer Mark Nauseef. On their return, Downey rejoined the band and at the beginning of 1979 they recorded ''Black Rose: A Rock Legend'' in Paris. The sessions were marked by the increasing drug habits of Lynott and Gorham, and the general presence of drugs around the band. This also showed in the subject matter on the album, in songs such as "Got to Give It Up". Celtic influences remained, however, particularly in the album closer "Róisín Dubh", a seven-minute medley of traditional Irish songs given a twin guitar rock veneer. Two singles, "Waiting for an Alibi" and "Do Anything You Want To", were successful, and the album reached no. 2 in the UK. A third, moderately successful single, "Sarah" was Lynott's ode to his new-born daughter.

However, in July 1979, Gary Moore abruptly left Thin Lizzy in the middle of another tour of the USA. Years later, Moore said he had no regrets about walking out, "but maybe it was wrong the way I did it. I could've done it differently, I suppose. But I just had to leave." Gary Moore died of a heart attack in Estepona, Spain on 6 February 2011, aged 58.

After Moore's departure, Thin Lizzy continued the tour for a few nights as a trio before Lynott brought in Midge Ure to replace him on a temporary basis. Ure had prior plans to join Ultravox, but had co-written a song, "Get Out of Here", with Lynott on ''Black Rose: A Rock Legend'', and agreed to help Thin Lizzy complete their touring commitments. The band headlined the Leeds Festival for the second time in 1979.

Before a tour of Japan beginning in September, Lynott decided to bring in another guitarist, Dave Flett, who had played with Manfred Mann's Earth Band, to enable Ure to switch to playing keyboards where necessary. The tour was completed successfully, but the line-up now contained two temporary members, and Lynott was spending a lot of time on projects outside Thin Lizzy, including composing and producing material for other bands, as well as putting together his first solo album, "Solo in Soho". Lynott also reactivated The Greedy Bastards, who released a one-off Christmas single, "A Merry Jingle", in December 1979 as simply The Greedies. With the group now composed of Lynott, Gorham and Downey with Sex Pistols Jones and Cook, the single reached no. 28 in the UK.

Later years and break-up (1980–1983)

''Chinatown'' was finally released in October 1980, and reached no. 7 in the UK, but by this time Thin Lizzy albums were not even reaching the top 100 in the USA. After a successful tour of Japan and Australia, the band undertook what was to be their final tour of the USA in late 1980. At the beginning of 1981, Lynott began work on his second solo album, using Thin Lizzy members among a large group of backing musicians. Around the same time, the band were recording material for the next Thin Lizzy album, and as before, the sessions seemed to merge to the extent that musicians were not always sure which album they were working on. Producer for the Thin Lizzy sessions, Chris Tsangarides, stated, "The feeling of confusion was in the air in that sometimes nobody knew if they were working on a Phil solo record or a Lizzy album." Snowy White had previously felt that, as a member of Thin Lizzy, he should have been paid as a session player to appear on Lynott's solo recordings.

In April 1981, the band's first 'greatest hits' album was released, and ''The Adventures of Thin Lizzy'' reached no. 6 in the UK. But a stand-alone single, "Trouble Boys", only reached no. 53, the band's worst chart placing since 1975. According to White and Wharton, Lynott was the only person who wanted to release it, and nobody else liked the song. "Trouble Boys" had even been pencilled in as the title for the new album, but the single's chart failure resulted in the song being dropped from the album and the title changed to ''Renegade''. One highlight for the band at this time was headlining the first-ever Slane Castle concert on 16 August, with support from Kirsty McColl, Hazel O'Connor and U2.

Lynott's second solo album, ''The Philip Lynott Album'', was delayed until 1982 while ''Renegade'' was completed and released in November 1981. The album was not successful, only reaching no. 38 in the UK and no. 157 in the US. A single, "Hollywood (Down on Your Luck)", also flopped. Despite only two songs from the album being written solely by Lynott, and other members of the band contributing more to the compositions, both Gorham and Wharton have since stated their dissatisfaction with some of the songs, such as "Angel of Death", "Fats" and "Mexican Blood". Wharton's photo was omitted from the band photos on the back of the record sleeve, despite the fact that he was by this time a permanent member of the band. "It hurt me a great deal", he said.

"Thunder and Lightning"

The beginning of 1982 was marred by both Downey and Gorham having to take breaks from touring to recover from personal problems. Downey was beaten up at a nightclub in Denmark, and Gorham was suffering from drug-induced exhaustion. Later in the year, Lynott went on a solo tour and released his second solo album, which did not sell particularly well. Snowy White left the band in August 1982, having tired of the disorganised schedules and Lynott's drug problems, although by his own admission he was too restrained and quiet to fit in well with his more raucous bandmates. White went on to achieve top ten chart success in the UK with his single "Bird of Paradise" in 1983. Long-time co-manager Chris O'Donnell also left at this time, later stating, "A once-brilliant band was turning to crap before my very eyes."

Lynott wanted to find a replacement for White before starting to record the next album, which would turn out to be the band's last. By September 1982, he had settled on John Sykes who had been a member of Tygers of Pan Tang, and he co-wrote the first single from the album, "Cold Sweat", although the rest of the album had already been written. ''Thunder and Lightning'' was released in March 1983, and was much more successful than its predecessor, reaching no. 4 in the UK. Sykes' presence had rejuvenated the band musically, the composing credits were evenly shared, and the style had grown much heavier, veering towards heavy metal.

The tour to support the album was to be a farewell tour, although Lynott was not convinced that this would be the end of the band. Sykes wanted to continue, although Gorham had had enough. The tour was successful, and some concerts were recorded to compile a live album. Partway into the tour, many of Thin Lizzy's past guitarists were invited onstage to contribute to some of the songs they had originally recorded, the only exception being Snowy White. The album was released in October 1983 as ''Life'' and reached no. 29 in the UK. The tour continued while two more singles were released, the last of them, "The Sun Goes Down", only reaching no. 52 in August. Lynott also undertook another solo tour, accompanied by Downey and Sykes, under the name of The Three Musketeers.

After a difficult leg of the tour in Japan, where some members of the band had difficulty obtaining heroin, Thin Lizzy played their final UK concert before their break-up at the Reading Festival on 28 August 1983, which was eventually released in 1992 as their ''BBC Radio One Live in Concert'' album. The last concert came in Nuremberg on 4 September, at the Monsters of Rock festival, after which the band went their separate ways.

Post-Thin Lizzy projects and tributes (1985–1996)

Before his death, Lynott was planning a third solo album, and had spoken to Downey about a possible reformation of Thin Lizzy around March 1986, with Gorham and Sykes, and had booked studio time for January of that year. However, he died in hospital in Salisbury, Wiltshire, on 4 January 1986, aged 36, having suffered from internal abscesses, pneumonia and septicaemia, brought on by his drug dependency, which led to multiple organ failure.

On 17 May, Thin Lizzy reformed for the Self Aid concert, with a line-up of Gary Moore, Downey, Gorham, Wharton and Bob Daisley on bass. Bob Geldof and Moore handled most lead vocals, though various singers got onstage for "Whiskey In The Jar". A compilation album, ''Soldier of Fortune'', was released in 1987, and also that year, the "Vibe for Philo" tribute concert in Lynott's memory was organised by Dublin DJ and promoter Smiley Bolger, which continues on an annual basis on the anniversary of Lynott's death.

The remaining members of Thin Lizzy did not work together until the recording of the single "Dedication" in October 1990, when a rough demo of Lynott's was worked into a finished song to commemorate the fifth anniversary of his death. The song dated from the Grand Slam days and had been originally written with guitarist Laurence Archer. Modern recording techniques were used to replace the guitar and drum tracks with new work by Downey and Gorham. Gary Moore had agreed to participate as well, but ultimately did not do so. The song charted in the UK at no. 35 during early 1991, and no. 2 in Ireland, and featured on another greatest hits compilation album, ''Dedication: The Very Best of Thin Lizzy'', released in February of that year, which reached no. 8 in the UK album chart. However, a follow-up reissue of "The Boys Are Back in Town" only reached no. 63 in the UK, although it peaked at no. 16 in Ireland.

Following this, numerous small reunion projects began to appear. In 1991, a line-up featuring Robertson and Downey performed with Bobby Tench on lead vocals, ex-Grand Slam member Doish Nagle on guitar and Doug Brockie on bass. They toured Ireland briefly with a series of "An Evening of Thin Lizzy" concerts. In August 1994, Downey, Bell, Robertson and Wharton held a tribute concert in Wolverhampton, together with tribute bands Limehouse Lizzy, Ain't Lizzy and Bad Habitz. Another version of Thin Lizzy was formed later that year by John Sykes (now also performing lead vocals) with Downey, Gorham and Wharton, and with bass parts played by Marco Mendoza, who had played with Sykes in Blue Murder from 1991–1993. The tour was advertised as a tribute to Phil Lynott. This line-up also played at the Vibe for Philo gig on 4 January 1996, with a number of other notable musicians including Eric Bell, Midge Ure, Henry Rollins, Therapy? and Joe Elliott and Rick Savage from Def Leppard.

In 1994, a collection of Thin Lizzy tracks from the BBC Radio 1 Peel Sessions was released, and yet another compilation album was brought out in 1996, called ''Wild One: The Very Best Of Thin Lizzy''. This was successful, although strangely it did not feature the title track, "Wild One".

On 20 August 1996, Rude Awakening bassist Robert Ryder held "A Celebration of the Life of Philip Lynott" at the Palace in Hollywood, California at the request of Lynott's mother, Philomena, to commemorate both Phil Lynott's birthday and the tenth year of his passing. Philomena Lynott, her partner Dennis Keeley, and Smiley Bolger (Ireland's Vibe For Philo promoter) were flown to Los Angeles by Ryder to make a personal appearance at the show. It featured concert performances by Rude Awakening, Billy Sheehan, Rudy Sarzo, John Norum, Carmine Appice, Phantom Blue, Soma, producer Roy Z and his band the Tribe of Gypsies, Mark Ferrari, Oslo, Bang Tango, Stash, Iron Cross and Ireland's own Mark Dignam.

Thin Lizzy without Lynott (1996–present)

In 1997, Tommy Aldridge filled in on drums when Brian Downey was unable to, and became a full member when Downey left shortly thereafter. This line-up remained stable through to 2000, when the group recorded a live album, ''One Night Only''. The band went on to tour the US playing clubs in early 2001, but Wharton had already left the band by the time of the tour. Sykes released two solo albums in the gap in between 2002–03, while Gorham worked with his band 21 Guns.

Wharton later stated that Thin Lizzy would have been better suited to playing fewer concerts, in bigger venues. He also felt that after the experience of fronting his own band Dare, it was not satisfying enough to play keyboards behind Gorham and Sykes. Sykes has said that all the previous Thin Lizzy members were welcome to play with Thin Lizzy at any time.

In 2004, Thin Lizzy worked together again, with Sykes and Gorham bringing in ex-Angel bassist Randy Gregg, and drummer Michael Lee, who had played with Robert Plant and The Cult among others. They toured in North America in both the winter and then the summer as special guests of Deep Purple. This line-up proved temporary however, with Mendoza returning in 2005, and Aldridge returning in 2007. There were no plans for a new album though Thin Lizzy continued to tour. At the London Hammersmith Apollo concert of 13 December 2007, the line-up was Sykes, Gorham, Aldridge and Francesco DiCosmo on bass.

Sykes stated that Thin Lizzy was now "more of a tribute thing" and that it would be wrong to record new material under that name. He added that while the existing band members might record together, it would not be as Thin Lizzy. In 2007, Gorham said that Lynott still receives the biggest cheer of the night at concerts, and that the current Thin Lizzy is not active simply for money. "We'd stop if we thought we were just going through the motions... I think that has a lot to do with the songs – if they were inferior, then maybe we would have got tired of it all. But they're not and we haven't," he said.

It had been announced that Thin Lizzy, along with The Answer, were to support AC/DC at stadium shows in England, Ireland and Scotland at the end of June 2009, but these appearances were cancelled after drummer Aldridge broke his collarbone in an accident. On 30 June, the band's website announced that Sykes had left Thin Lizzy and all shows for the rest of 2009 were cancelled or postponed. Gorham stated that he would announce Thin Lizzy's future plans shortly. In a statement, he said, "It's been a very tough time of late for myself and the band, firstly with drummer Tommy Aldridge's injury and now the subsequent decision for John and the rest of the group to go their separate ways. I can only apologise to everyone who has supported us over the years, but we will be back up to full speed soon."

In September 2009, Scott Gorham began to assemble the latest version of Thin Lizzy. In May 2010, after months of work and preparation, a new line-up was announced. Joining Gorham was original drummer Brian Downey, long-standing keyboardist Darren Wharton, Def Leppard guitarist Vivian Campbell, and singer Ricky Warwick from The Almighty, while Marco Mendoza returned to fill the bass guitar role. In addition to a full UK and European tour kicking off in January 2011, the band initially announced a concert for 4 January at the O2 Arena in Dublin, which would be in conflict with the "Vibe for Philo". The tour itself started on 6 January at the Music Hall Aberdeen in the UK, with the band finishing the tour in The Olympia Dublin on 17 February 2011. In March 2011, Gorham told Billboard.com that Thin Lizzy may record a new album in the future, saying "That's the No. 1 question we're getting from people – are we gonna record some new material? The fans seem to trust this line-up, and I don't blame them. We've kind of jumped this emotional hurdle together. Ricky's writing some fucking killer lyrics, and with the kind of talent that's in Thin Lizzy now I think we can pull off a really cool set of tunes. At least it's something that we can think about now, where before it wasn't on the table."

It was announced in April that Vivian Campbell would have to leave Thin Lizzy to rejoin Def Leppard after one final gig on 28 May. He was replaced by Guns N' Roses guitarist Richard Fortus. On 28 August, it was announced that Damon Johnson of Alice Cooper's band would be replacing Fortus for Thin Lizzy's tour of the US with Judas Priest. Fortus returns to tour with Guns N' Roses for the rest of the year.

Other Thin Lizzy releases and tributes

On 19 August 2005, Gary Moore staged a concert at the Point Theatre, Dublin, promoted as "The Boy Is Back in Town". The concert was staged to mark the unveiling of a bronze statue of Lynott on Dublin's Harry Street in the city centre. The performance also featured Brian Downey, Eric Bell, Brian Robertson and Scott Gorham. A DVD of the concert was released as ''One Night in Dublin: A Tribute to Phil Lynott''.

On 8 September 2008, a 15-track album ''UK Tour '75'' was released featuring the band performing at Derby College on 21 November 1975. The album includes a 20-page booklet of previously-unseen photos, liner notes written by Brian Downey and extra material of the band jamming during their soundcheck.

In March 2009, VH1 Classic Records issued the band-authorised ''Still Dangerous: Live At The Tower Theatre Philadelphia, 1977'', a live CD recorded on the Bad Reputation tour. It was produced by Gorham and Glyn Johns, and Johns also mixed the record. It reached No. 98 in the UK chart. Gorham has suggested there will be further archival releases in the future.

On 24 January 2011, Universal Music issued remastered and expanded editions of ''Jailbreak'', ''Johnny the Fox'' and ''Live and Dangerous''. ''Jailbreak'' and ''Johnny the Fox'' are double CD editions with the second disc containing outtakes, BBC session recordings and newly remixed versions of two of that particular album's tracks. ''Live and Dangerous'' also comes as a double CD set, with two bonus tracks which are both unused live recordings. Previous CD editions of ''Live and Dangerous'' were single discs.

Origin of the band name

Biography

Ketèlbey held a number of positions, including organist at St John's, Wimbledon, before being appointed musical director of London's Vaudeville Theatre, where he met his future wife Charlotte (Lottie) Siegenberg. Whilst at the Vaudeville he continued writing diverse vocal and instrumental music. Later, he became famous for composing lightweight, popular music, much of which was used as accompaniments to silent films, and as mood music at tea dances. Success enabled him to relinquish his London appointments.

He was active in several other fields including being music editor to some well-known publishing houses and for more than twenty years from 1906, served Musical Director of the Columbia Graphophone Company, where over 600 recordings were issued with him conducting the Court Symphony Orchestra, the Silver Stars Band, and other ensembles.

Although not proven, he is frequently quoted as becoming Britain's first millionaire composer. In 1929, he was proclaimed in the "Performing Right Gazette" as "Britain’s greatest living composer", on the basis of the number of performances of his works.

Ketèlbey had a long and happy marriage to an actress and singer, Charlotte Siegenberg (1871–1947). After her death he married Mabel Maud Pritchett. There were no children by either marriage. He died at his home, Rookstone, Egypt Hill in Cowes, where he had moved in order to concentrate on writing and his hobby of playing billiards. His work fell out of favour after the Second World War and at the time of his death he had slipped into obscurity, with only a handful of mourners at his funeral, held at Golders Green crematorium.

Ketèlbey's music is frequently heard on radio. In a 2003 poll by the BBC radio programme ''Your Hundred Best Tunes'', "Bells across the Meadows" was voted thirty-sixth most popular tune of all time.

Works

Connected individuals

Ketèlbey's sister was the historian and author C.D.M Ketelbey. Works included "A History of Modern Times", 1929 and "History Stories to Tell", 1931.

Graham Ovenden, an English painter, fine art photographer, writer and architect, was taught music privately by Albert Ketèlbey.

Ketèlbey was related to Mrs. Maria Eliza Ketelbey Rundell, author of "A New System of Domestic Cookery", the most popular English cookbook of the first half of the nineteenth century.

Legacy

Sources and references

References

External links

Category:1875 births Category:1959 deaths Category:Light music composers Category:People from Birmingham, West Midlands Category:Alumni of the Birmingham School of Music

The third season of ''Frasier'' originally aired between September 1995 and May 1996, beginning on September 19, 1995.

Reception

List of episodes

References

* Category:1995 television seasons Category:1996 television seasons

Robert William Gary Moore (4 April 1952 – 6 February 2011), better known simply as Gary Moore, was a British musician from Belfast, best recognised as a blues rock guitarist and singer.

In a career dating back to the 1960s, Moore played with artists including Phil Lynott and Brian Downey during his teens, leading him to membership with the Irish rock band Thin Lizzy on three separate occasions. Moore shared the stage with such blues and rock luminaries as B.B. King, Albert King, Colosseum II, George Harrison, Greg Lake and Skid Row (not to be confused with the hard rock band of the same name), as well as having a successful solo career. He guested on a number of albums recorded by high profile musicians, including a cameo appearance playing the lead guitar solo on "She's My Baby" from ''Traveling Wilburys Vol. 3''.

Moore died of a heart attack in his hotel room while on holiday in Estepona, Spain, in February 2011.

Early life and career

Moore's greatest influence in the early days was guitarist Peter Green of Fleetwood Mac who was a mentor to Moore when performing in Dublin. Green's continued influence on Moore was later repaid as a tribute to Green on his 1995 album ''Blues for Greeny'', an album consisting entirely of Green compositions. On this tribute album, Moore played Green's 1959 Les Paul Standard guitar which Green had lent to Moore after leaving Fleetwood Mac. Moore ultimately purchased the guitar, at Green's request, so that "it would have a good home".

While less popular in the US, Moore's work "brought substantial acclaim and commercial success in most other parts of the world – especially in Europe". Throughout his career, Moore was recognised as an influence by many notable guitarists including Vivian Campbell, Patrick Rondat, John Norum, Paul Gilbert , Gus G, Joe Bonamassa, Adrian Smith, Zakk Wylde, Randy Rhoads, John Sykes, John Norum and Kirk Hammett

He collaborated with a broad range of artists including George Harrison, Trilok Gurtu, Dr. Strangely Strange, Colosseum II, Travelling Wilburys, Albert Collins, Jimmy Nail, Mo Foster, Ginger Baker, Jack Bruce, Jim Capaldi, B.B. King, Bob Dylan, Vicki Brown, Cozy Powell, Rod Argent, the Beach Boys, Ozzy Osbourne, Paul Rodgers, Keith Emerson, Roger Daltrey, Albert King and together with Colosseum II with Andrew Lloyd Webber on the composer's ''Variations'' album in 1978. He experimented with many musical genres, including rock, jazz, blues, country, electric blues, hard rock and heavy metal.

In 1968, aged 16, Moore moved to Dublin to join the group Skid Row with Noel Bridgeman and Brendan "Brush" Shiels. It was with this group that he earned a reputation in the music industry, and his association with Phil Lynott began.

Solo career

In 1987, he collaborated on the UK charity record "Let It Be", a cover of the Beatles track. He performed a guitar solo for inclusion on the recording, which was released under the group-name of 'Ferry Aid'. The record raised substantial funds for the survivors of the ''MS Herald of Free Enterprise'' disaster.

In 1993, he was included on a cassette called ''Rock Classics Vol. 1'' with "Run to Your Mama", and "Dark Side of the Moog". After a series of rock records, Moore returned to blues music with ''Still Got the Blues'', with contributions from Albert King, Albert Collins and George Harrison. The album was well received by fans. He stayed with the blues format until 1997, when he decided to experiment with modern dance beats on ''Dark Days in Paradise''; this left many fans, as well as the music press, confused. He also contributed guitar sections to Richard Blackwood's 2000 album, ''You'll Love to Hate This''.

With ''Back to the Blues'', Moore return to his tried and tested blues format in 2001: he continued with this style on ''Power of the Blues'' (2004), ''Old New Ballads Blues'' (2006), ''Close As You Get'' (2007) and ''Bad For You Baby'' (2008).

In January 2005, Moore joined the One World Project, which recorded a song for the 2004 Asian Tsunami relief effort. The group featured Russell Watson, Boy George, Steve Winwood, Barry Gibb, Brian Wilson, Cliff Richard, Dewey Bunnell, Gerry Beckley and Robin Gibb on vocals (in their order of appearance), and featured a guitar solo by Moore. The song, entitled "Grief Never Grows Old", was released in February 2005, reaching #4 on the UK Singles Chart.

In what has been described as "a brave and principled stand", Gary declared his support for the cultural boycott of Israel. At a press conference in Russia he announced that he would not visit the ‘criminal state’ of Israel ‘because of its racist policies against the Palestinian people’.

He also took part in a comedy skit entitled "The Easy Guitar Book Sketch" with comedian Rowland Rivron and fellow musicians Mark Knopfler, Lemmy from Motorhead, Mark King from Level 42, and David Gilmour.

Personal life

Aiming to become a musician he moved to Dublin at the age of 16 and joined Skid Row, a band that then included Phil Lynott. Moore would later join Lynott again in 1973 when he first joined Thin Lizzy, after the departure of founding member Eric Bell and again in 1977. He moved to England in 1970 and remained there, apart from two short periods in America. In 2002 he bought a five-bedroom detached Edwardian house in Hove, just west of Brighton, Sussex, to be near his sons, Jack and Gus, from his former marriage which had lasted from 1985 to 1993. Since 1997 he was living with his partner, an artist named Jo, and their daughter Lily (b. 1999) and Saoirse. His residence was reported to be on Vallance Gardens in Hove, East Sussex.

Death

Legacy

Fans have called for popular magazines such as ''Classic Rock'', ''Guitarist'' and ''Total Guitar'' to do tributes. Twitter was flooded with tributes from fans for several days after the news was revealed.

Discography

Tributes:

References

External links

Category:1952 births Category:2011 deaths Category:Deaths from myocardial infarction Category:People from Belfast Category:Male singers from Northern Ireland Category:Irish musicians Category:Irish songwriters Category:English-language singers Category:Irish rock singers Category:Irish guitarists Category:Irish rock guitarists Category:Rock musicians from Northern Ireland Category:Thin Lizzy members Category:The Gary Moore Band members Category:Lead guitarists Category:Jazz fusion guitarists Category:Guitarists from Northern Ireland Category:Blues rock musicians Category:Electric blues musicians Category:People educated at Ashfield Boys' High School