Gerry Rafferty
Gerry Rafferty (born Gerald Rafferty, 16 April 1947, in Paisley) is a Scottish singer and songwriter. He is the son of a Scottish mother and an Irish father.[1]
Career
In his early years, Gerry Rafferty earned money by the formerly illegal practice of busking on the London Underground. Poetically, his biggest hit "Baker Street" was about busking at a tube station. After working with Billy Connolly (now better known as a comedian) in a band called the Humblebums, he recorded a first solo album, Can I Have My Money Back. In 1972 Rafferty and his old school friend Joe Egan formed Stealers Wheel, a group beset by legal wranglings but which did have a huge hit "Stuck in the Middle With You" (made famous for a new generation in the movie Reservoir Dogs) and the smaller top 40 hit "Star" ten months later. The duo disbanded in 1975.[2]
In 1978, Rafferty cut a solo album, City to City, which included the song with which he remains most identified, "Baker Street". The single reached No. 3 in the UK and No. 2 in the U.S. The album sold over 5.5 million copies, toppling the Saturday Night Fever soundtrack in the U.S. on 8 July 1978, while "Baker Street" remains a mainstay of radio airplay. A cover version by Undercover also made the Top 3 in the UK singles chart in 1992. Another song from the City to City album, "Right Down the Line", also continues to receive copious radio airplay. "Home and Dry" managed a top 30 spot. One of the more obscure tracks from that time is "Big Change in the Weather" (the B-side of "Baker Street").
His next album, Night Owl, also did well, and the title track was a UK No. 5 hit in 1979. "Days Gone Down" reached #17 in the U.S. The follow-up single "Get It Right Next Time" made the UK and US Top 40.
Subsequent albums, such as Snakes and Ladders (1980), Sleepwalking (1982), and North and South (1988), all fared less well, due partly to Rafferty's general reluctance to perform live. "Don't Give Up On Me", from his 1992 collection On A Wing and a Prayer, is a much-featured oldie on BBC Radio 2. That album reunited him with Stealers Wheel partner Joe Egan on several tracks. Rafferty redid his own "Her Father Didn't Like Me Anyway" on the album Over My Head (1994). His latest effort was Another World, released in 2000 and was originally available only through direct order from his no longer active website, but is now on general release through the Hypertension label. Another World featured an album cover painting by J. Patrick Byrne, who also painted the covers for City to City, Night Owl, and Snakes and Ladders.
Rafferty also sings on the soundtrack to the film, Local Hero - "The Way it Always Starts" (1983), and co-produced The Proclaimers first UK hit single Letter From America in 1987 along with Hugh Murphy.
Trivia
- A much repeated rumour, originating in the New Musical Express, has it that the sax on "Baker Street" was played by the UK TV quiz (Blockbusters) host, Bob Holness. The saxophonist was actually Raphael Ravenscroft.
- In the 1990s, The Simpsons featured an episode where the character Lisa Simpson plays a saxophone cover of "Baker Street".
- In the 1990s, The Foo Fighters recorded a hard rock cover of "Baker Street".
- He has a singing brother, Jim Rafferty, who sang a song called "The Bogeyman" in 1980 released on Charisma Records.
- He also has a singing nephew, Mark Rafferty, who released an album of funny songs mostly regarding Scottish football (Mr. Mark).
- According to Billy Connolly, Rafferty is an expert at prank telephone calls.
- Rafferty currently lives alone in London.
- Rafferty ran his own website from 2000 until the end of 2006.
Discography
- (1972) Can I Have My Money Back
- (1978) City to City #1 US Platinum
- (1979) Night Owl Top 10 UK, Top 10 US Gold
- (1980) Snakes and Ladders #15 UK Silver, #50 US
- (1982) Sleepwalking
- (1988) North and South
- (1991) Right Down The Line: The Very Best of Gerry Rafferty
- (1992) On a Wing and a Prayer
- (1994) Over My Head
- (2000) Another World
- (2006) Days Gone Down- The Anthology: 1970-1982
External links
- General biographical information