Wikipedia

Roxy Music

This article is about the English rock band. For their self-titled debut album, seeRoxy Music (album).

Roxy Musicare an Englishrockband formed in 1970 by lead vocalist and principal songwriterBryan Ferryand bassistGraham Simpson.By the time the band recorded theirfirst albumin 1972, Ferry and Simpson were joined by saxophonist and oboistAndy Mackay,guitaristPhil Manzanera,drummerPaul Thompsonand synthesizer playerBrian Eno.Other members over the years include keyboardist and violinistEddie Jobsonand bassistJohn Gustafson.The band split in 1976, reformed in 1978 and split again in 1983. In 2001, Ferry, Mackay, Manzanera and Thompson reunited for a concert tour and have toured together intermittently ever since, most recently in 2022 to celebrate the 50th anniversary of their first album.[1]Ferry has also frequently enlisted band members as backing musicians during his solo career.

Roxy Music
Roxy Music on TopPop in 1974. Left to right: Eddie Jobson, Paul Thompson, Phil Manzanera, Bryan Ferry, Sal Maida, Andy Mackay
Roxy Music onTopPopin 1974. Left to right:Eddie Jobson,Paul Thompson,Phil Manzanera,Bryan Ferry,Sal Maida,Andy Mackay
Background information
OriginNewcastle upon Tyne/London, England
Genres
DiscographyRoxy Music discography
Years active
  • 1970–1976
  • 1978–1983
  • 2001–2011
  • 2022
Labels
Spinoffs
  • The Explorers
  • 801
Members
Past members
Websiteroxymusic.co.uk

Roxy Music became a successful act in Europe and Australia during the 1970s. This success began with their first album in 1972.[2]The band pioneered more musically sophisticated elements ofglam rockwhile significantly influencing early Englishpunkmusic,[3]and provided a model for manynew waveacts while innovating elements ofelectroniccomposition. The group also conveyed their distinctive brand of visual and musical sophistication with their focus on glamorous fashions.[4]Roxy Music's final studio album wasAvalon(1982), which was certifiedPlatinumin the United States, where the band had spent their first ten years as a moderately successful cult band.[5]

Outside of the band, Ferry and Eno have had influential solo careers, with Eno also becoming one of the most significant British record producers of the late 20th century. In 2019, Roxy Music were inducted into theRock and Roll Hall of Fame.[6][7]

History

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Formation and early years (1970–1971)

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In November 1970, Bryan Ferry, who had just lost his job teaching ceramics at a girls' school for holding impromptu record-listening sessions,[8]advertised for a keyboardist to collaborate with him andGraham Simpson,a bassist he knew from hisNewcastle Universityformed band, the Gas Board, and with whom he collaborated on his first songs.Andy Mackayreplied to Ferry's advertisement. Although more proficient on saxophone and oboe, Mackay owned anEMS VCS 3synthesizer. He had metBrian Enoduring university days, as both were interested inavant-gardeandelectronic music.Although Eno was a non-musician, he could operate a synthesizer and owned aRevoxreel-to-reel tape machine, so Mackay convinced him to join the band as a technical adviser. Before long Eno was an official member of the group. Rounding out the original sextet were guitarist Roger Bunn (who had issued the well-regarded solo studio albumPiece of Mindearlier in 1970)[9]and drummer Dexter Lloyd, a classically trainedtimpanist.The group's name was derived from Ferry and Mackay making a list of old cinemas, and Ferry picking Roxy because it had a "resonance", some "faded glamour", and "didn't really mean anything".[10]After learning of anAmerican band with the name Roxy,Ferry changed the name to Roxy Music, a play on "rock music".[10]

At some time during late 1970/early 1971, Ferry auditioned as lead vocalist forKing Crimson,who were seeking a replacement forGordon Haskell.WhileRobert FrippandPeter Sinfielddecided Ferry's voice was unsuitable for King Crimson's material, they were impressed with his talent and helped the fledgling Roxy Music to obtain arecording contractwithE.G. Records.

In 1971, Roxy recorded ademo tapeof some early compositions. In the spring of that year, Lloyd left the band, and an advertisement was placed inMelody Makersaying "wonder drummer wanted for anavant rockgroup ".[11]Paul Thompsonresponded to the advertisement and joined the band in June 1971.

Bunn left the group at the end of the summer of 1971, and in October, Roxy advertised inMelody Makerseeking the "Perfect Guitarist". The successful applicant wasDavid O'List,former guitarist withthe Nice.[12]Phil Manzanera—soon to become a group member—was one of about twenty other players who also auditioned. Although he did not initially make the band as a guitarist, the group were impressed enough with Manzanera that he was invited to become Roxy Music'sroadie,an offer which he accepted. In December 1971, after a year of writing and rehearsing, Roxy Music began playing live, with their first show at the Friends of theTate GalleryChristmas show inLondon.[13]

The band's fortunes were greatly increased by the support of broadcasterJohn PeelandMelody MakerjournalistRichard Williams.Williams became an enthusiastic fan after meeting Ferry and being given a demonstration tape during mid-1971, and wrote the first major article on the band, featured onMelody Maker's "Horizons" page in the edition of 7 August 1971. This line-up of Roxy Music (Ferry/Mackay/Eno/Simpson/Thompson/O'List) recorded aBBCsession shortly thereafter.

First two studio albums (1972–1973)

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In early February 1972, guitarist O'List quit the group abruptly after an altercation with Paul Thompson, which took place at their audition for David Enthoven ofE.G. Management.When O'List did not show up for the next rehearsal, Manzanera was asked to come along, on the pretext of becoming the band's sound mixer. When he arrived he was invited to play guitar and quickly realised that it was an informal audition. Unbeknownst to the rest of the group, Manzanera had learned their entire repertoire and as a result, he was immediately hired as O'List's permanent replacement, joining on 14 February 1972. Manzanera, the son of anEnglishfather and aColombianmother, had spent a considerable amount of time inSouth AmericaandCubaas a child, and although he did not have the same art school background as Ferry, Mackay and Eno, he was perhaps the most proficient member of the band, with an interest in a wide variety of music. Manzanera also knew other well-known musicians, such asPink Floyd'sDavid Gilmour,who was a friend of his elder brother, andSoft Machine'sRobert Wyatt.Two weeks after Manzanera joined the band, Roxy Music signed with E.G. Management.[14]

E.G. Management financed the recording of the tracks for their debut album,Roxy Music,recorded in March–April 1972 and produced by King Crimson lyricistPeter Sinfield.[10]Both the album and its famous cover artwork by photographer Karl Stoecker were apparently completed before the group signed withIsland Records.A&R staffer Tim Clark later stated that although he argued strongly that Island should contract them, company bossChris Blackwellat first seemed unimpressed and Clark assumed he was not interested. A few days later, however, Clark and Enthoven were standing in the hallway of the Island offices examining cover images for the album when Blackwell walked past, glanced at the artwork and said "Looks great! Have we got them signed yet?"[15]The band signed with Island Records a few days later. The album was released in June to good reviews and became a major success, reaching No. 10 on theUK Albums Chartin September 1972.[2]Manzanera said in an interview in 2024 that the band received five percent of the profits, to be divided between six musicians.[16]

During the first half of 1972, bassist Graham Simpson became increasingly withdrawn and uncommunicative, which led to his leaving the band almost immediately after the recording of the debut album. He was replaced by Rik Kenton.[17]

To bring more attention to their studio album, Roxy Music decided to record and release a single. Their debut single was "Virginia Plain",which scored No. 4 on theUK singles chart.The band's eclectic visual image, captured in their debut performance on the BBC'sTop of the Pops,became a cornerstone for theglamtrend in theUK.The success of the single caused a renewed interest in the album.

Rik Kenton left the band in January 1973 and was replaced byJohn Porter.Roxy Music's second album,For Your Pleasure,was released in March 1973. It marked the beginning of the band's long, successful collaboration with producerChris Thomas,who worked on all of the group's classic albums and singles in the 1970s. The album was promoted with the non-album single "Pyjamarama";no album track was released as a single. At the time Ferry was dating French modelAmanda Lear;she was photographed with a blackjaguarfor the front cover of the album, while Ferry appears on the back cover as a dapper chauffeur standing behind alimousine.

Stranded,Country Life,Siren,and solo projects (1973–1977)

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Brian Eno in 1974, shortly after leaving Roxy Music

Soon after the tour to promoteFor Your Pleasureended, Brian Eno left Roxy Music amidst increasing differences with Ferry.[18][19]He was replaced by 18-year-old multi-instrumentalistEddie Jobson,formerly ofprogressive rockersCurved Air,who played keyboards and electric violin. Although some fans lamented the loss of the experimental attitude and camp aesthetic that Eno had brought to the band, the classically trained Jobson was an accomplished musician. John Porter also left at this time, and for the next three years Roxy would undergo several more changes in bassist, withJohn Gustafson,Sal Maida,John WettonandRick Willsall passing in and out of the band during this period.

Roxy Music perform onTopPopin 1974. Left to right: Jobson, Manzanera (back), Ferry (front), Thompson, Maida, Mackay

Rolling Stonereferred to the band's next two albums,Stranded(1973) andCountry Life(1974), as marking "the zenith of contemporary Britishart rock".[20]The songs on these albums also cemented Ferry's persona as the epitome of the suave, jaded Euro-sophisticate. Although this persona undoubtedly began as a deliberately ironic device, during the mid-1970s it seemed to merge with Ferry's real life, as the working-class miner's son from the north ofEnglandbecame an international rock star and an icon of male style.

On the first two Roxy albums, all songs were written solely by Bryan Ferry. Beginning withStranded,Mackay and Manzanera began to co-write some material. Gradually, their songwriting and musicianship became more integrated into the band's sound, although Ferry remained the dominant songwriter; throughout their career, all but one of Roxy's singles were written either wholly or jointly by Ferry (Manzanera, Mackay and Thompson did individually write a few of the band's B-sides).Strandedwas released in November 1973, and produced the Top 10 single "Street Life".

Roxy Music performing in 1974

The fourth album,Country Life,was released in 1974, and was the first Roxy Music album to enter theUSTop 40 of theBillboard200,albeit at No. 37.Country Lifewas met with widespread critical acclaim, withRolling Stonereferring to it "as if Ferry ran a cabaret for psychotics, featuring chanteurs in a state of shock".[20]Roxy's fifth albumSiren(1975) contained their only US Top 40 hit on theBillboardHot 100,"Love Is the Drug",while Jobson received his only writing credit in Roxy Music on the song" She Sells ", a co-write with Ferry. The album cover featured American modelJerry Hall,who became Ferry's girlfriend and eventual fiancé before leaving him forMick Jaggerofthe Rolling Stonesin 1977.

After the concert tours in support ofSirenin 1976, Roxy Music disbanded. Their live albumViva!was released in August 1976. In 1976, Manzanera reunited with Eno on the critically acclaimed one-off801 Livealbum.

Final studio albums and hiatus (1978–1983)

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Roxy Music reunited during 1978 to record a new studio album,Manifesto,but with a reshuffled line-up. Jobson was reportedly not contacted for the reunion; at the time, he was touring and recording with his own band,U.K.,alongside fellow ex-Roxy member John Wetton. In place of Jobson,Paul Carracknow played keyboards for Roxy Music, while bass duties were split betweenAlan SpennerandGary Tibbs.On the subsequent tour, the core band of Ferry, Mackay, Manzanera and Thompson were augmented by Tibbs and keyboardist Dave Skinner.

Three singles were issued fromManifesto,including the major UK hits "Angel Eyes"(UK No. 4), and"Dance Away"(UK No. 2). Both these tracks are significantly different from the album versions, as" Dance Away "was remixed for single release, and" Angel Eyes "was entirely re-recorded.

After the tour and before the recording of the next album,Flesh + Blood(1980), Thompson broke his thumb in a motorcycle mishap and took a leave from the band. After Ferry, Mackay and Manzanera completed the album with several session drummers, Thompson rejoined them, briefly, in the spring of 1980 and made some television appearances as part of the album's early promotion. By the time theFlesh + Bloodtour properly began, Thompson had left again due to musical differences with Ferry.[21]

At this point, the band officially became a core trio of Ferry, Mackay and Manzanera, augmented by a variety of musicians over the next few years including Alan Spenner, Gary Tibbs, Paul Carrack, drummerAndy Newmarkand guitaristNeil Hubbard.Flesh + Blood(1980) became a huge commercial success in their homeland, as the album went to No. 1 on the UK charts, and spun off three UK hits: "Oh Yeah"(UK No. 5),"Over You"(UK No. 5), and"Same Old Scene"(UK No. 12).

However, the changed cast reflected a distinct change in Roxy's musical style. Gone were the unpredictable elements of the group's sound, giving way to smoother musical arrangements.Rolling StonepannedManifesto( "Roxy Music has not gonedisco.Roxy Music has not particularly gone anywhere else either. ")[22]as well asFlesh + Blood( "such a shockingly bad Roxy Music record that it provokes a certain fascination" ),[23]while other sources praised the reunion.Melody Makersaid, ofManifesto,"...reservations aside, this may be the first such return bout ever attempted with any degree of genuine success: a technical knockout against the odds."[24]

In 1981, Roxy Music recorded the non-album single "Jealous Guy".Acover versionof a song written and originally recorded byJohn Lennon,Roxy Music recorded "Jealous Guy" as a tribute to Lennon after his1980 murder.The song topped the UK Singles Chart for two weeks in March 1981, becoming the band's only No. 1 single.

Later, with more sombre and carefully sculpted soundscapes, the band's eighth—and final—studio album,Avalon(1982), recorded atChris Blackwell'sCompass Point Studios,was a major commercial success and restored the group's critical reputation[25]and contained the successful single "More Than This".The album also included several Roxy Music classics, such as"Avalon","The Main Thing "," The Space Between "," True to Life ", and" To Turn You On ". Ferry, Mackay and Manzanera (augmented by several additional players) toured extensively from August 1982 to May 1983,[26]with theAvalontour being documented on the band's second live albumThe High Road,released in March 1983. A home video was also released titledThe High Road,capturing an August 1982 show atFréjuswhere Roxy co-headlined with King Crimson (whose set from the same show was released on home video asThe Noise). A further live album from this tour,Heart Still Beating,was released in 1990, whileThe High Roadhome video was released on DVD in 2001.

After completion of theAvalontour, Roxy Music dissolved. For the next eighteen years Ferry, Mackay and Manzanera all devoted themselves full-time to solo careers.

Reunions (2001–2011, 2019, 2022)

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Ferry, Manzanera, Mackay and Thompson re-formed in 2001 to celebrate the 30th anniversary of the band, and toured extensively. A festival performance inPortugaland a short tour of the United States followed. Absent was Brian Eno, who criticised the motives of the band's reunion, saying, "I just don't like the idea. It leaves a bad taste".[27]Later Eno remarked that his comment had been taken out of context. Manzanera and Thompson recorded and toured with Ferry on his eleventh solo studio albumFrantic(2002). Eno also contributed toFranticon the track "I Thought".

During 2002,Image Entertainment, Inc.,released the concert DVDRoxy Music Live at theApollofeaturing performances of 20 songs plus interviews and rehearsal footage.

In 2004,Rolling Stonemagazine ranked the group No. 98 onits list of the 100 Greatest Artists of All Time.[28]

Roxy Music gave a live performance at theIsle of Wight Festival 2005on 11 June 2005, their first UK concert since the 2001–2002 world tour. On 2 July 2005, the band played "Jealous Guy", "Do the Strand", and "Love is the Drug" at theBerlincontribution toLive 8;"Do the Strand" is available on the four-disc DVD collection, and "Love Is the Drug" can be found on theLive 8 BerlinDVD.

In March 2005, it was announced on Phil Manzanera's official site[29]that the band, including Brian Eno, had decided to record an album of new material. The project would mark the first time Eno worked with Roxy Music since 1973'sFor Your Pleasure.After a number of denials that he would be involved with any Roxy Music reunion, on 19 May 2006 Eno revealed that he had contributed two songs to the new album as well as playing keyboards on other tracks. He did, however, rule out touring with the band.[30]Ferry eventually announced that the material from these sessions would instead be released as a Ferry solo studio album, with Eno playing on "a couple of tracks".[31]Had the record been released as a Roxy Music album, it would have been the first album sinceManifestoon which original drummer Paul Thompson performed. The album was released in 2010 as the Ferry solo studio albumOlympia.It featured contributions from Eno, Manzanera, and Mackay (amongst many other session players).

Roxy Music on stage during concert at London'sExCeL Exhibition Centre,July 2006

During early 2006 a classic Roxy track, "The Main Thing", was remixed by Malcolm Green and used as the soundtrack to a pan-European television commercial for theOpel Vectrafeaturing celebrated football refereePierluigi Collina.In July that year, the band touredEurope.They concentrated mostly on places they had never visited before, such asSerbiaandNorth Macedonia.Drummer Andy Newmark, who had been one of the many additional musicians Roxy worked with during the 1979–1983 period, performed during the tour, as Thompson withdrew due to health issues, andOliver Thompson(guitar) made his first appearance with the band.

In a March 2007 interview with theWestern Daily Press,Ferry confirmed that the next Roxy album was definitely being made, but would not be vended for another "year and a half", as he had just released and toured behind his twelfth solo studio album,Dylanesque,consisting ofBob Dylancovers.[32]In June 2007, the band hired aLiverpool-based design agency to develop a website supporting their new album. Early in the year, Manzanera revealed that the band were planning to sign a recording contract. In an October 2007 interview, Ferry said the album would include a collaboration withScissor Sisters.[33]

Over the summer of 2010, Roxy Music headlined various festivals across the world, includingLoveboxat London'sVictoria Park,Electric PicnicinStradbally,County Laois,Ireland,andBestivalon theIsle of Wight.Owing to illness, Thompson was replaced on three dates of the tour byAndy Newmark,but returned for the Bestival set.[34]

Roxy performed seven dates around the UK in January and February 2011, in a tour billed For Your Pleasure, to celebrate the band's 40th anniversary. They touredAustraliaandNew Zealandbetween February and March for a further eight shows.[35]

In 2012,Virgin Recordsreleased abox setentitledRoxy Music: The Complete Studio Recordings 1972–1982,celebrating 40 years since the release of the band's debut in 1972.[36]

In aRolling Stone Magazineinterview on 3 November 2014, Manzanera stated that Roxy had been inactive since 2011 and were unlikely to perform together again.[37]Of a new studio album, he toldClassic Rock,"We all listened to it and thought, 'We can't do this. It's not going to be any good. Let's just bin it.' And so it's just sitting there on our personal computers. Maybe one day it'll get finished. But there's no point in putting it out if it's not great."[38]

On 29 March 2019, Roxy Music were inducted to theRock and Roll Hall of Fame,with Ferry, Mackay, Manzanera and Eddie Jobson performing a six-song set at theBarclays CenterinBrooklyn, New York.[39]

Roxy Music reformed in 2022 for a 50th anniversary tour of the United Kingdom and the United States to be held that autumn.[40]Most North American tour dates featuredSt. Vincentas a supporting act.[41]Nilüfer Yanyawas the UK starter act.[42]

Style

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Roxy Music have been associated with a range of genres includingart rock,[4]glam rock,[43]pop rock,[44]progressive rock,[45]art pop,[46]new wave,[47][48]soft rock,[49]synth-pop[50]andsophisti-pop.[51]The early style and presentation of Roxy Music was influenced by theart schoolbackgrounds of its principal members. Ferry, Mackay and Eno all had studied at prominent UK art colleges during the mid-to-late 1960s, when these institutions were introducing courses that avoided traditional art teaching practice, with its emphasis on painting, and instead focused on more recent developments, most notablypop art,and explored new concepts such ascybernetics.As writerMichael Bracewellnotes in his bookRoxy: The Band that Invented an Era,Roxy Music was created expressly by Ferry, Mackay and Eno as a means of combining their mutual interests in music, modern art and fashion.

Ferry studied atNewcastle Universityin the 1960s under renowned pop artist and educatorRichard Hamilton,and many of Ferry's university friends, classmates and tutors—e.g.Rita DonaghandTim Head—became well-known artists in their own right. Eno studied atWinchester School of Artand although his iconoclastic style became apparent early and caused some conflict with the college establishment, it also resulted in him meeting important artists and musicians includingCornelius CardewandGavin Bryars.His interest inelectronic musicalso resulted in his first meetings with Andy Mackay, who was studying atUniversity of Readingand who had likewise developed a strong interest inavant-gardeand electronic music.

The three eventually joined forces in London during 1970–71 after meeting through mutual friends and decided to form a rock band.

Roxy Music were initially influenced by other artists of the time includingthe Beatles,the Kinks,the Rolling Stones,David Bowie,Elton John,the Animals,Pink Floyd,King Crimson,Jimi Hendrix,the Velvet Undergroundandthe Who,as well as Americanrock and rollacts and genres such asElvis PresleyandMotown.Ferry stated that Roxy Music's unique sound came as a result of the diverse and eclectic musical backgrounds of the band's members; "I had lots of musical influences,Phil Manzanerahad this Latin heritage, being born inSouth America.Saxophone and oboe playerAndy Mackaywas classically trained. Eno with his deep interest in experimental music. They were specialists in their field. Paul Thompson brought a lot, with his very powerful, earthy drumming. "[52][53]

Roxy Music were one of the first rock music groups to create and maintain a carefully crafted look and style, which included their stage presentation,music videos,album and single cover designs, and promotional materials such as posters, handbills, cards and badges. They were assisted in this by a group of friends and associates who helped to sculpt the classic Roxy Music 'look', notably fashion designerAntony Price,hair stylist Keith Mainwaring, photographer Karl Stoecker, the group's "PR consultant" Simon Puxley (a former university friend of Mackay) and Ferry's art school classmateNicholas de Ville.Well-known criticLester Bangswent so far as to say that Roxy represented "the triumph of artifice".[54]Ferry later attributed the band's look to his interest in American music and popular culture icons includingMarilyn Monroe,Motown andStax Recordsartists. He also stated he wanted to create an alternative image to publicity shots of pop and rock groups at the time which would feature artists "in a dreary street, looking rather sullen. Which was the norm."[52]

The band's self-titled debut album, produced byKing Crimson'sPete Sinfield,was the first in a series of albums with increasingly sophisticated covers, with art direction by Ferry in collaboration with his friend Nick De Ville. The album artwork imitated the visual style of classic "girlie"andfashion magazines,featuring high-fashion shots of scantily clad modelsAmanda Lear,Marilyn ColeandJerry Hall,each of whom had romances with Ferry during the time of their contributions, as well as model Kari-Ann Moller who appears on the cover of the first Roxy studio album but who was not otherwise involved with anyone in the band, and who later marriedMick Jagger's brotherChris.[55]The title of the fourth Roxy studio album,Country Life,was intended as a parody of the well-known British rural magazineCountry Life,and the visually punning front cover photo featured two models (two German fans, Constanze Karoli—sister ofCan'sMichael Karoli—and Eveline Grunwald)[56]clad only in semi-transparent lingerie standing against an evergreen hedge. As a result, in many areas of the US the album was sold in an opaque plastic wrapper because retailers refused to display the cover. Later, an alternative cover, featuring just a picture of the forest, was used.

Legacy and influence

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In 2005,Tim de LisleofThe Guardianargued that Roxy Music are the second most influential British band afterthe Beatles.He wrote, "Somehow, in a landscape dominated byLed Zeppelinat one end andthe Osmondsat the other, they managed to reach the Top 10 with a heady mixture of futurism, retro rock'n'roll, camp, funny noises, silly outfits, art techniques, film references and oboe solos. And although their popularity has ebbed and flowed, their influence has been strikingly consistent. "[5]In 2019,The Economistalso described them as "the best British art-rock band since the Beatles", arguing that "among English rock acts of that time, their spirit of adventure and their impact" was "surpassed only" byDavid Bowie.[57]Bowie himself cited Roxy Music as one of his favourite British groups and in a 1975 television interview described Bryan Ferry as "spearheading some of the best music to come out of England."[58]

Roxy Music's sound and visual style have been described as a significant influence on later genres and subcultures such aselectronic music,punk rock,disco,new waveandnew romantic.[59][60][61]Madnessare among the artists that have cited Roxy Music as an influence.[62]They paid tribute to Bryan Ferry in the song "4BF" (the title is a reference to the song "2HB",itself a tribute toHumphrey Bogartfromthe first Roxy Music studio album). Other artists who have cited or been described as influenced by Roxy Music includeNile Rodgers,Siouxsie and the Banshees,Duran Duran,U2,the Smiths,Spandau Ballet,Radiohead,Scissor Sisters,Talking Heads,Imogen Heap,Goldfrapp,Pulp,Sex Pistols,the Human League,Todd TerjeandFranz Ferdinand.[59][60][61]

In 1997, bassistJohn TaylorofDuran Duranproduced the tribute albumDream Home Heartaches... Remaking/Remodeling Roxy Music.The compilation features Taylor as well asDave Gahan(Depeche Mode) andLow Pop Suicide,among others.

Sex Pistols guitaristSteve Jonesnamed his first bandthe Strandafter the Roxy Music songDo the Strand.[63]Jones has also described Roxy Music's style as a strong influence on the later punk craze of which he would go on to become a part, and cited their first album as one of his all-time favourites.[64][65]

TheelectronicbandLadytrontook their name from the title of a song from Roxy Music's first album.[66]

The British bandBananaramatook their name, in part, from the Roxy Music song "Pyjamarama".[67]

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Roxy Music's work has been featured in a number of soundtracks for both film and television. The track "If There Is Something"plays a symbolic role in the 2008 drama/coming-of-age movieFlashbacks of a Fooldirected byBaillie Walshand starringDaniel Craig.In the film, the younger version of Craig's character is also shown dressing up as Bryan Ferry during a flashback scene set in the 1970s.[68]Sofia Coppola's 2003 filmLost in TranslationfeaturesBill Murray's character Bob Harris singing an off-key version of "More Than This"in a karaoke club. It was used on aNissanTV advertisement in 1999. "More Than This" also is danced to byToni Collette's character in the 2019 mystery filmKnives Outand was featured in theCold Warset television showThe Americans.[69]The title song "Avalon"of the 1982 studio albumAvalonwas featured in the 2005Nick LovefilmThe Business.Guy Ritchie's 2020 black comedy crime filmThe Gentlemenfeatures "In Every Dream Home a Heartache"during an action sequence.[70]

An antagonist character in theCapcomvideo gameFinal Fightnamed Roxy (a female acrobatic fighter) is named after the band, as are other enemy characters in the game that pay homage to someone or something related to music, like her identical partnerPoison(named for the bandPoison.[71]

In early April 2021, an image of a purported 1971 letter addressed to "Mr B. Ferry" circulated widely on social media. The document appeared to be a rejection note, sent to Ferry by one "Hugh C. Smith", an Artists & Repertoire manager atPolydor Records,in which "Smith" patronisingly critiqued a demo tape that the group had submitted to the label. According to a 4 April 2021 item inTreblee-zine, the letter was in fact anApril Fools' Dayprank which apparently originated from theTwitteraccount of formerTalking HeadsandTom Tom ClubdrummerChris Frantz.In May 2021,Tony Barrell,a British writer and Roxy Music fan, announced that he was the author of the letter.[72]

Members

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Main article:List of Roxy Music members

Current line-up

  • Bryan Ferry– vocals, keyboards, piano, harmonica, occasional rhythm guitar(1970–1976, 1978–1983, 2001–2011, 2022)
  • Andy Mackay– saxophone,oboe,keyboards, backing vocals(1970–1976, 1978–1983, 2001–2011, 2022)
  • Paul Thompson– drums(1971–1976, 1978–1979, 2001–2011, 2022)
  • Phil Manzanera– lead guitar, occasional backing vocals and bass(1972–1976, 1978–1983, 2001–2011, 2022)

Discography

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Main article:Roxy Music discography

Studio albums

Citations

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  1. ^Kreps, Daniel (28 March 2022)."Roxy Music to Reunite for First North American Tour in Nearly 20 Years".Rolling Stone.Retrieved28 March2022.
  2. ^abPrendergast, Mark (2001).The Ambient Century: From Mahler to Trance: The Evolution of Sound in the Electronic Age.Bloomsbury Publishing. p.119.ISBN1-58234-134-6.
  3. ^More Than This: The Story of Roxy Music,Eagle Rock, October 2009.
  4. ^ab"Roxy Music: Biography".Stephen Thomas Erlewine.AllMusic. Accessed 3 March 2010.
  5. ^abde Lisle, Tim (20 May 2005)."Roxy is the drug".The Guardian.London.Retrieved20 November2016.
  6. ^"CLASS OF 2019 NOMINEES".5 October 2018.
  7. ^Sisario, Ben (13 December 2018)."Janet Jackson and Radiohead Lead Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Class of 2019".The New York Times.Retrieved13 December2018.
  8. ^"Bryan Ferry and Roxy Music Chronology".RoxyRama. Archived fromthe originalon 15 December 2010.Retrieved24 May2010.
  9. ^"Roger Bunn - Biography & History - AllMusic".AllMusic.Retrieved7 April2018.
  10. ^abcChapman, Rob (December 1995)."Roxy Music: They Came From Planet Bacofoil".Rob-chapman.com.Archived fromthe originalon 23 January 2021.Retrieved7 April2018.
  11. ^"Paul Thompson Biography".Roxyrama.com. Archived fromthe originalon 6 January 2009.Retrieved20 July2011.
  12. ^Ingham, Jonh (25 September 2013)."Roxy Music: 'Being big is the only way in rock' – a classic interview from the vaults".The Guardian.Retrieved7 April2018.
  13. ^"Roxy Music - Roxy Music Chronology".Vivaroxymusic.com.
  14. ^Michael Bracewell,Roxy: The band that invented an era(Faber and Faber, 2007,ISBN978-0-571-22986-4) pp. 376–377
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