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John Gustafson (musician)
John Frederick "Johnny" Gustafson (8 August 1942 – 12 September 2014) was an English bass guitar player and singer, who had a lengthy recording and live performance career. During his career, he was a member of the bands The Big Three, The Merseybeats, Quatermass, Roxy Music, The Pirates and Ian Gillan Band. [1] CareerBorn in Liverpool to a father of Swedish descent and mother of Irish descent,[2] he is known for his work with 1960s bands The Big Three and The Merseybeats, and for singing on the original recording of Jesus Christ Superstar as Simon Zealotes. He made an appearance on Roger Glover's The Butterfly Ball and the Grasshopper's Feast album track, "Watch Out for the Bat", as a vocalist. He is best known for playing bass guitar for several incarnations of the Ian Gillan Band and for his earlier participation in the progressive rock band, Quatermass. He also re-formed The Pirates, originally the backing band for Johnny Kidd.[3] Gustafson performed on three studio albums for Roxy Music in the period from 1973 through 1975. He was frequently not with the band on live dates, getting replaced by John Wetton or Sal Maida. His last record with the band, Siren, included their only American top 40 hit single, "Love Is the Drug".[4] Front man Bryan Ferry later called Gustafson a "wonderful player", adding, "“Love Is the Drug” wouldn’t have been anything without the bass playing. It really bought that track alive."[5] He was bassist on several tracks for Flamenco guitarist Juan Martin's 1981", "The Aficionado" and "Girls of Algiers". Also played on Kevin Ayers' album The Confessions of Dr Dream, released in 1974. In 1983, he was in the group Rowdy, which included Ray Fenwick and Billy Bremner. Married to Anne for over thirty years, Gustafson died on 12 September 2014 from cancer.[6] Discography
As contributor
Solo album
References
External links
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