Adrian Gurvitz

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Adrian Gurvitz (born Adrian Curtis, 26 June 1949, in Stoke Newington, London) is an English singer/songwriter.

[edit] Career

Gurvitz is mostly known for the 1982 worldwide hit ballad "Classic". This is in total contrast to his first chart success in 1967, as the lead guitarist / lead singer with the band, The Gun. The Gun's first (and only) UK Singles Chart success was "Race With the Devil", rarely heard today but widely regarded as the "ancestor" of the entire Heavy Metal genre.

Ironically, The Gun was originally billed as a "psychedelic / crossover" band, plus "Race With the Devil" was just a whimsical experiment, with a mixture of orchestration and hard rock and roll. Jimi Hendrix performed the song at the Isle of Wight concert in 1970, but no recordings appear to exist.

Gurvitz was also the lead guitarist in the band Three Man Army, (together with his brother Paul Gurvitz). Their album, Third of a Lifetime (1971), predominantly featured a selection of hard-driven blues tracks such as "Butter Queen", but also featured the melodic instrumental title track. The album is available on remastered CD format.

After Three Man Army split, Gurvitz teamed up with Graeme Edge for two albums for Threshold - Kick Off Your Muddy Boots (1975) and Paradise Ballroom (1977); both albums illustrated by Joe Petagno.

After this Gurvitz and his brother Paul teamed up with Ginger Baker to form The Baker Gurvitz Army - the first two vinyl releases The Baker Gurvitz Army (1975), and Elysian Encounter (1975), again being illustrated by Petagno.