Pete Briquette

Pete Briquette (born 2 July 1954) is the stage name of Patrick Cusack, an Irish bassist, record producer and composer. He was a member of the Boomtown Rats and currently plays in Bob Geldof's backup band.

Boomtown Rats

He was born in Ballyjamesduff, County Cavan, Ireland). His stage name refers to his upbringing in the rural Irish countryside where peat briquettes were burned for heat instead of coal.

He was the bass guitarist, backing vocalist, occasional songwriter, and sometime keyboardist for The Boomtown Rats, a band that reached worldwide popularity in the late 1970s. His bass lines are evident on such Boomtown Rats songs as "Rat Trap", "Banana Republic" and "Like Clockwork", the last two of which he co-wrote with Bob Geldof. Briquette is the only Rats member that still frequently collaborates with Geldof, playing on some of his biggest hits such as "Great Song of Indifference" and "Love or Something".

Record producer

Briquette now works as a record producer and notably produced of French singer Renaud's 2009 album of Irish ballads Molly Malone - Balade Irlandaise which includes contributions from Terry Woods (The Pogues), Barney McKenns (The Dubliners) and Glen Hanson. Though criticised for the quality of Renaud's voice, the album was commercially successful and reached number one on the French charts.

Personal life

Briquette is a first cousin of Johnny Fingers, the main keyboardist in The Boomtown Rats, as their mothers, Cecilia "Sheila" (Bowles) Moylett and Margaret "Peggy" (Bowles) Cusack, are sisters. He currently lives in Chiswick, London, England.

External links

• A list of some of Briquette's recent projects
• Pete Briquette at the Internet Movie Database
• Pete Briquette discography at Discogs