Roxy Music

Roxy Music biography

Roxy Music are an English art rock band formed in 1971 by Bryan Ferry, who became the group's lead vocalist and chief songwriter, and bassist Graham Simpson. The other members are Phil Manzanera (guitar), Andy Mackay (saxophone and oboe) and Paul Thompson (drums and percussion). Former members include Brian Eno (synthesizer and "treatments"), and Eddie Jobson (synthesizer and violin). Although the band took a break from group activities in 1976 and again in 1983, they reunited for a concert tour in 2001, and have toured together intermittently since that time.

Roxy Music attained popular and critical success in Europe and Australia during the 1970s and early 1980s, beginning with their debut album, Roxy Music (1972). They also provided a model for many New Wave acts and the experimental electronic groups of the early 1980s. The group is distinguished by their visual and musical sophistication and their preoccupation with style and glamour. Ferry and co-founding member Eno have also had influential solo careers, the latter becoming one of the most significant record producers and collaborators of the late 20th century. Rolling Stone magazine ranked Roxy Music #98 on its "The Immortals – 100 The Greatest Artists of All Time" list.

Their music was influenced by other British artists of the time such as Ferry's favorite band The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, The Kinks, The Who, The Pretty Things, Pink Floyd, The Creation, The Move, Traffic, David Bowie, King Crimson, and Elton John. Eno's "treatments" were influenced by the experimental sound of The Velvet Underground.

In 2005 they began recording a new studio album, which would have been their ninth. It would have been Roxy's first record since 1973 with Brian Eno, who wrote two songs for it as well as played keyboards. However, Bryan Ferry eventually confirmed that material from these sessions would be released as a Ferry solo album, with Eno playing on "a couple of tracks," and that he doesn't think they'll record as Roxy Music again. Subsequently, this was confirmed by the announcement of a solo Bryan Ferry album, titled Olympia.

History

Formation and early years (1970-71)

In November 1970, Bryan Ferry, who had recently lost his job teaching ceramics at a girls' school for holding impromptu record listening sessions, advertised for a keyboard player to collaborate with him and Graham Simpson, a bass player he knew from his Newcastle art college band, The Gas Board, and with whom he collaborated on his first songs. In early 1970 Ferry had auditioned as lead singer for King Crimson, who were seeking a replacement for departed vocalist Greg Lake. Although Robert Fripp and Pete Sinfield decided that Ferry's voice was unsuitable for King Crimson's material, they were impressed with his talent and helped the fledgling Roxy Music to obtain a contract with E.G. Records.

Andy Mackay replied to Ferry's advertisement, not as a keyboard player but a saxophonist and oboist, though he did have a VCS3 synthesizer. Mackay had already met Brian Eno during university days, as both were interested in avant-garde and electronic music. Although Eno was a non-musician, he could operate a synthesizer and owned a Revox reel-to-reel tape machine, so Mackay convinced him to join the band as a technical adviser. Before long Eno was a member of the group. When Dexter Lloyd, a classically-trained timpanist, left the band, an advertisement was placed in Melody Maker magazine saying "wonder drummer wanted for an avant rock group". Paul Thompson responded to the advertisement and joined the band in June, 1971. The group's name was partly an homage to the titles of old cinemas and dance halls, and partly a pun on the word rock. Ferry had named the band Roxy originally, but after learning of an American band with the same name he changed the name to Roxy Music.

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