ALEX HARVEY
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Alexander James "Alex" Harvey was a Scottish blues/rock musician. Although Harvey's career spanned almost three decades he is best remembered as the frontman of The Sensational Alex Harvey Band, with whom he built a reputation as an exciting live performer during the era of glam rock in the 1970s. He first began performing in skiffle groups in 1954. On Friday, 20 May 1960, at the Town Hall, Alloa, Clackmannanshire, Scotland, Alex Harvey and his Big Beat Band opened for Johnny Gentle and His Group, "His Group" being the Beatles (John, Paul, George, Stuart Sutcliffe and Tommy Moore), on this the opening night – and biggest audience – of the Beatles' seven-date tour of Scotland with Gentle. His musical roots were in Dixieland jazz and skiffle music, which enjoyed considerable popularity in Britain during the late 1950s. From 1958 until 1965, he was the leader of Alex Harvey's Big Soul Band, playing blues and rock and roll songs and spending considerable time touring in the United Kingdom and Germany. After leaving the Big Soul Band, he briefly tried for a solo career but with little success. By 1967, he found a positive direction for his career, when he became a member of the pit band in the London stage production of the musical Hair. Harvey remained with Hair for five years. In 1972, Harvey formed The Sensational Alex Harvey Band, they produced a succession of highly regarded albums and tours throughout the 1970s. The band never achieved acclaim in the United States the way it did in Great Britain, but it had a cult following in certain US cities, especially Cleveland, where the group first played at the Agora Ballroom in December 1974. The Sensational Alex Harvey Band had Top 40 hits in Britain with the single "Delilah", a cover version of the Tom Jones hit, which reached number seven in 1975. After Harvey left the group later that year, the other members continued as "SAHB… without Alex". Harvey re-joined the group for 1978's Rock Drill, but they disbanded shortly afterwards. On 4 February 1982, a day short of his 47th birthday, Harvey suffered a massive heart attack while waiting to take a ferry from Zeebrugge, Belgium back to England after performing a Belgian gig with his new band, the Electric Cowboys. He suffered a fatal second attack in an ambulance on the way to hospital. He left his second wife, Trudy, and two sons. The Sensational Alex Harvey Band were voted the fifth greatest Scottish band of all time in a 2005 survey
MEMBERS (& His Soul Band):
Alex Harvey Vocals
Ricky Barnes Saxophone and Vocals
Isobel Bond Vocals
Gibson Kemp Drums
Ian Hinds Organ
Bill Patrick replaced by Les Harvey Guitar
Bobby Thompson Bass
MEMBERS (The Sensational Alex Harvey Band ):
Alex Harvey Vocals
Zal Cleminson Guitar
Chris Glen Bass
Hugh McKenna replaced by Tommy Eyre Keyboards
Ted McKenna Drums
BEST LINK:
This page is part of www.7inchrecords.com
The official The Sensational Alex Harvey Band website
Sergeant Fury
Gang Bang
Spain
Vertigo 6059 106
Value: 20 €
Shakin' All Over
Wake Up Davis
France
RCA PB 5199
Value: 5 €
The Sunday Song
Horizon's
Germany
Decca DL 25 303
Value: 50 €
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