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Steve Gibbons | |
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.jpg) Gibbons at the "Bardentreffen" Festival in 2009 atNuremberg, Germany | |
| Background information | |
| Born | (1941-07-13)13 July 1941 (age 84) Harborne,Birmingham, England |
| Genres | Rock |
| Occupations |
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| Instruments |
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| Years active | 1960s–present |
| Labels | |
| Formerly of | |
| Website | stevegibbonsband |
Steve Gibbons (born 13 July 1941) is an English singer-songwriter, guitarist and bandleader. His music career spans more than 50 years.
Steve Gibbons started his professional life as a plumber's apprentice inHarborne. He joined the Dominettes in 1958,[1] to replace Colin Smith, who had left to joinJimmy Powell's backing group. Colin Smith later changed his name to Carl Barron and became the singer with The Cheetahs. AnElvis Presleyfan, Gibbons' first performance with The Dominettes was at The Californiapublic house nearWeoley Castle.
Regularmusic venues for The Dominettes in the early 1960s were the Grotto Club on Bromsgrove Street, and The Sicilia Coffee Bar in Edgbaston. The group by this time included many R&B numbers into their set and this style of music suited Gibbons' gritty vocals. Although the Dominettes had a rougher image than most groups at that time, and were sometimes hired to back strippers at some of the more seedy establishments, they attracted quite a following. Another regular venue for the Dominettes was the Firebird Jazz Club on Carrs Lane in central Birmingham and the group posted advertisements which read "anything considered".
By 1963, The Dominettes were renamed The Ugly's.[1][2] The Ugly's secured arecording contract withPye Records. The first release from the group in 1965 was an original song entitled "Wake Up My Mind", composed by Burnet, Holden and Gibbons. The single featured some socially conscious lyrics, very unlike the kind of material produced by most pop groups of the period. Therecord did not sell well in the United Kingdom, but was a big hit on the national Australianchart, reaching No. 14.[3] John Gordon left in 1965, and was replaced by Jimmy O'Neill from a local band called The Yamps (he had also spent some time withThe Walker Brothers). A second Ugly's single released the same year was "It's Alright". This one featured prominent use of aharpsichord, as played by O'Neill. The record fell short of theUK Singles Chart, despite the group's appearance on the television program,Ready Steady Go! to promote it.
Other Ugly's singles were released between 1965 and 1967, including acover version of "End of the Season", a song composed byRay Davies. This represented a departure from the Ugly's' previous records, as they had all been group compositions up to that point.
During this period, there were many personnel changes in the Ugly's line-up, including the departure of Bob Burnett and John Hustwayte. Bass guitaristDave Pegg joined for a year before leaving to join the Ian Campbell Group. He was replaced byDave Morgan from a local band called Blaises, and had also been a former member of Danny King's Mayfair Set. Dave Pegg was later in a local group called The Exception and from there, he joinedFairport Convention. Dave Morgan also composed the song "Something" which ended up as theb-side ofThe Move's chart-topping "Blackberry Way" single. Jimmy O'Neill left the Ugly's in 1968 to joinThe Mindbenders and founding member Jim Holden also departed later that year.[4]
Former Brumbeats guitarist Roger Hill (1 January 1945,Erdington, Birmingham – 8 November 2011,Good Hope Hospital,Sutton Coldfield) joined the Ugly's and stayed for almost a year, before leaving to join Dave Pegg in The Exception. Roger Hill was replaced by Will Hammond (from The Yamps), who stayed in the Ugly's line-up until the end. Jim Holden was replaced by drummer Keith Smart from Danny King's Mayfair Set. Keyboard playerRichard Tandy, who also played on the Move's "Blackberry Way", joined in 1968 and eventually joined theElectric Light Orchestra.
By the end of 1968, Gibbons was the only remaining original member of The Ugly's. This final line-up also included Will Hammond, Dave Morgan, Keith Smart, and Richard Tandy. They recorded a projected single "I've Seen The Light" which was never released.[4]
Gibbons teamed up with guitaristTrevor Burton from The Move in 1969 and, by April of that year, they had formed a new group calledBalls, along with singer/guitaristDenny Laine and Ugly's' drummer Keith Smart.[1] The project was relatively short lived and after recording a solo album, Gibbons left the band in February 1971.[5]
After the breakup of Balls, Gibbons returned to Birmingham from London to joinThe Idle Race for three months in 1971.[1] This band rapidly evolved into the Steve Gibbons Band.[1]
The first line-up comprised Gibbons together with Dave Carroll and Bob Wilson on guitars, Bob Griffin on bass (who was replaced in 1972 by Trevor Burton), and Bob Lamb on drums.[1] The new band worked the pub and club circuits until 1975 when they were spotted byPeter Meaden, former manager ofthe Who. This led to the Steve Gibbons Band joining the Who's management stable and recording their firstPolydor albumAny Road Up in 1975 (WithJohn Entwistle of the Who playing on a few tracks). This was followed in 1976 by a tour with the Who in the UK, Europe and the United States. Playing the concert arenas, they shared the stage withLittle Feat,Lynyrd Skynyrd,Electric Light Orchestra,The J. Geils Band,Rufus, andNils Lofgren. In 1977 their second album,Rollin' On included their biggest hit single, "Tulane", a cover of aChuck Berry song, and was produced byKenny Laguna.[6][1] "Tulane" reached No. 12 in theUK Singles Chart and spent eight weeks in the Top 40. They performed the song live on Show 4, ofMarc Bolan'sTV seriesMarc, broadcast on 14 September., 1977.[7] 1977 also saw the release of the live albumCaught in the Act. This band lineup made one further studio album with Polydor,Down in the Bunker (1978), produced byTony Visconti. Gibbons made his last album with PolydorStreet Parade (1980). This had a different band lineup after the breakup of the original band. Only Burton remained from the original lineup, with Robbie Blunt on guitar and Harry Rix on drums.[8]
In 1981, after a further change in personnel, the Steve Gibbons Band had Burton now on guitar, PJ Wright on guitar, Derek Wood on bass and Alan "Sticky" Wickett on drums. They recordedSaints & Sinners for RCA,[1] and later responded to an invitation from theGerman Democratic Republic to become one of the first western rock bands to tour the major cities of East Germany in 1982. Gibbons played at theBirmingham Heart Beat Charity Concert 1986, which featuredGeorge Harrison. Nine more albums were released in the 1980s and 1990s, and the touring continued.
Gibbons formed the Dylan Project in the late 1990s. The trio coveredBob Dylan songs and played material by Gibbons.
Gibbons continues to tour with his band, and is also a member of the hit UK show 'Brum Rocks Live', along withBev Bevan (The Move, Electric Light Orchestra), Burton, Danny King, and writer Laurie Hornsby. The show toured the UK, and was produced and promoted by Brian Yeates Associates.
Gibbons lives with his wife Suzie inEdgbaston, Birmingham. They have two sons and a daughter.[9]
Gibbons played in concert for the Newlife Foundation for Disabled Children in February 2011.
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