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John McCoy | |
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| Birth name | John Matthew McCoy |
| Born | (1950-03-09)9 March 1950 (age 75) Huddersfield,Yorkshire,England |
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| Years active | 1960s–present |
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John Matthew McCoy (born 9 March 1950) is an Englishbass guitarist, who is best known for his work withIan Gillan andMammoth as well as numerous other bands andsessions since the late 1960s. He also played inBritish rock trioGuy McCoy Tormé with formerGillan/Ozzy guitaristBernie Tormé andBruce Dickinson/Sack Trickdrummer Robin Guy. He is also an accomplishedguitar,drum,trumpet,cello, anddouble bass player. Nearly as well known as his music is his appearance: he is always pictured wearing sunglasses, with the striking contrast of bald head and robust chin beard. Along with guitaristVic Elmes and ZZebra colleagueLiam Genockey on drums, McCoy can also be heard playing in the intro and end titles theme of the 1970s cult TV seriesSpace: 1999.
In the 1960s, when he was 13, whilst still at school, McCoy began playing aslead guitarist with a workingbeat group,The Drovers. In 1966 he responded to an advertisement in theYorkshire Post newspaper for a guitarist to join a band calledMamas Little Children who were about to begin touringGermany. McCoy went to audition only to find they had just given someone else the position, but still needed a bass player. He auditioned on a spare bass that was there and was given the job. In 1968 he was forced to resign from the band because he was working illegally underage. On his return to Britain, he went toLondon where he found work as asession musician with formerDrifters memberClyde McPhatter touring theUK.
In 1974, McCoy was playing with London-based bandScrapyard when they recruited Irish-born lead guitaristBernie Tormé. Although Tormé eventually left to form his ownpunk rock band, the two were later reunited in formerDeep Purple singerIan Gillan's band.
On 18 July 2009, John McCoy performed at the Furnace in Swindon Wiltshire, England Performing in a group G.M.T with Bernie Tormé, Robin Guy (former drummer with Iron Maiden'sBruce Dickinson andFaith No More). More recently John has played withTyla Gang, appearing on a live album recorded in Sweden.
In July 1978, thejazz-rock fusionIan Gillan Band were altering direction, under the influence ofkeyboards playerColin Towns in a return to Ian Gillan'shard rock roots. Towns had begun writing new material, and Gillan gave him the task of recruiting the new line-up. Towns recruited session drummerLiam Genockey, McCoy and guitarist Richard Brampton, who was replaced by Steve Byrd - a former colleague of McCoy's from ZZebra - almost immediately. Within a month of their formation the band had recorded their first album,Gillan, and they made their live debut at theReading Festival on 16 August 1978. They were originally listed there as the Ian Gillan Band but, in a move away from the jazz-rock connotations, they renamed the band, Gillan.
Gillan underwent a further three line-up changes, but McCoy remained as bass player until the band eventually split acrimoniously[1] in 1982.
In late 1986, McCoy recruited session drummer Vinnie "Tubby" Reed, guitarist "Big" Mac Baker and vocalistNicky Moore to form a band initially called Dinosaur. The name was already in use by aCalifornian band, so McCoy renamed his new band Mammoth. The name was also atongue-in-cheek reference to the large size of the band members: McCoy weighed 120 kg (19 st) or 265 pounds, Reed 140 kg (22 st) or 309 pounds, Baker 152 kg (23.9 st) or 355 pounds, and Moore 127 kg (20.0 st) or 280 pounds.
The band toured withWhitesnake andMarillion and were well received by fans. They released three singles, "Fatman", "All The Days" and 'Can't Take The Hurt"; and two albums,Mammoth (1988) andLarger And Live (previously known asXXXL, 1997). In 1988, the entire band appeared in the filmJust Ask For Diamond,[2] playing thehenchmen. Musically, commercial success eluded them however and the band eventually split in 1989, with McCoy becoming an independentproducer.
McCoy usually uses a traditionalfour stringfrettedFender Precision bass and predominantlyMarshallamplification in various configurations. Although he has usedTrace Elliot, he has described it as "...a bit clean for my personal taste..."[3] Currently he uses a Marshall 200w integrated amp driving a 2x15cab and a Marshall 100w lead amp driving4x12 cabs.
Hisplaying style utilises bothpick and fingers, although he plays mostly with picks, preferring Fenderextra heavy large triangles "...for greater precision and attack."[3][4]
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