Geoff Everett
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Geoff Everett is a lead rock/blues guitarist and lead vocalist/frontman based in the South East of England. He has long been known in the music industry for his unique mastery of the Electric guitar bringing with it highly advanced and emotive styles of on the spot improvisation (soloing). (He also plays slide guitar, harmonica and mandolin on his live and recorded performances).
Works with other artists
Everett has worked with: Screaming Lord Sutch in Screaming Lord Sutch and the Savages[1][2], (replacing such notables as Jeff Beck and Jimmy Page) Alan Lancaster (Status Quo), David Knopfler (Dire Straits), Bob Henrit (The Kinks/Argent), Sam Kelly (Gary Moore), Jim Russell (Stretch/Scotty Moore), Carl Palmer (ELP and Atomic Rooster), Gerry McAvoy and Brendan O'Neill (Rory Gallagher/Nine Below Zero), Jim Leverton (Steve Marriott/Savoy Brown), Kim Beacon (String Driven Thing), Ian Paice (Deep Purple), Gordon Huntley (Matthew's Southern Comfort) and Bobby Miller (Supertramp). He has written songs for Nine Below Zero such as 'Satellite Blues' from the 1992 Album 'Off The Hook',[3] and wrote some numbers on "The Other Side" by The Herbs - a rare sought after album featuring John Keeble from Spandau Ballet and Dean Howard from T'Pau (band).
The early era
Everett started playing guitar and singing when he was 13. and started gigging straight away at parties, local dances, etc. with his first group, The Reminiscents ,formed with school mates, Gary Pantry and Lee Abbott (now with international folk rock outfit Magna Carta (band)). In 1967, Everett joined the Chicago Line Blues Band - a semi pro band (nurtured under the auspices of Blue Horizon's Mike Vernon (producer) and Dick Vernon) and played prestigious clubs such as the Eel Pie Island blues venue in Twickenham, London supporting and sometimes jamming with the likes of Keef Hartley, Art Wood (Ronnie's brother), Ritchie Blackmore, etc.
A band from Earls Court came next in 1969 with Colin Solman on drums (coincidentally later with Screaming Lord Sutch) but their lack of ambition caused Everett to split and try a project with Alan Lancaster from Status Quo. Quo had a sudden change in fortune when they switched from pop to rock and Alan was whisked off. The rest of the band were taken under the wing of George Young (rock musician) and Harry Vander from The Easybeats. George and Harry's time and energy, though, had to be consumed by a band formed by George's brothers - Angus and Malcolm, now a household name – AC/DC.
The Intermediate era
During the early 1970s Country music filled the musical gap, and in order to survive, Everett traveled the UK and abroad with several country bands. When at home he taught classical guitar privately and at adult education classes. Unfulfilled, he formed a funk blues outfit called Blind Eye in 1978 with Tony Ellis - who was also with Everett with Screaming Lord Sutch. In the early 1980s more UK and Scandinavian tours followed and Everett was asked by Tony Ellis to join The Cafe Racers, led by Dave Knopfler and Mark Knopfler, Mark having recently left to form Dire Straits).
Tony's involvement with the Knopfler brothers is outlined in the Mark Knopfler biography by Myles Palmer. Later during Everett's busy sessions he met Gerry McAvoy and Brendan O'Neill who, when they were not playing with Rory Gallagher, joined Everett in a three-piece band called The Mosquitoes playing pubs and clubs in and around London.
Recent times
The early 1990s saw Everett forming a rock, funk outfit called The Absolute who gathered a large following at their performances and the late 1990s saw Everett touring with a band called 'A Band Named Sioux', The Cruising Mooses and The Rob King Band. It was not long until Everett returned to fronting his rock and blues with the return of The Mosquitoes under the moniker The Fabulous Mosquitoes. The current incarnation of Everett's rock and blues outfit is 'The Geoff Everett Band'[4] with bassist Kevin Dore and various high profile drummers such as Paul McCartney's drummer Paul Robinson and Sam Kelly from The Gary Moore Band. On their website you will find the following quote:
Geoff Everett is a guitarist and vocalist with stunning style. His playing is aggressive and beautiful with imaginative dynamics and articulate grammatical soloing. His performance is gutsy and very exciting. In addition to powerful vocals, Geoff also offers up stunningly exciting slide guitar work as well as mandolin, keyboard and harmonica. He writes and records in his own professional studio. Geoff is widely regarded in Europe and the UK as one of the finest performers and most innovative blues guitarists around today.
Everett can be found on Kent County Council's Kent TV [5] where Everett's unique soloing can be seen. Kent TV also broadcasted a sample of an early Geoff Everett Band international gig in Meteor, Greece.[6] His band are also heard from time to time on America’s Texas Blues Café radio station and their podcast website.[7] Currently (2009–2010), The Geoff Everett Band perform in the UK, Greece, France and Holland.
Instruments
Everett is well known for playing the Fender Stratocaster guitar; a rare pre CBS 1964 version, and two eighties versions, one of which he uses for Slide Guitar and the other is the 'Heavy Metal' model. He also plays a 1964 Gibson SG Junior and various other electric guitars from the 1950s onwards. His main amplification is an early 1980s Music Man (company) electric guitar amp.