| Graham Bell | |
|---|---|
| Birth name | Graham Thomas Bell |
| Born | April 17, 1948, Blyth, Northumberland |
| Died | May 2, 2008 (aged 60) |
| Genres | Blues, rock |
| Instruments | Vocals |
| Years active | 1966–2008 |
| Associated acts | Skip Bifferty, Heavy Jelly, Every Which Way, Bell & Arc |
Graham Thomas Bell (17 April 1948, Blyth, Northumberland — 2 May 2008, London) was an English pop and rock singer.
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Bell's father Jimmy, who died in 2010, was a well-known local singer, and his late mother, Leonora Rogers, was in show business prior to marriage after which she was heavily involved in local music and dance. Graham made a solo single in 1966, and a solo album in 1972 with Tim Hinkley, Mel Collins and Ian Wallace. He was a member of Skip Bifferty (later Heavy Jelly), and Every Which Way, a band formed by Brian Davison formerly of the The Nice. Musical style was jazzy progressive rock with guitar from John Hedley (who was later part of Last Exit with Sting) playing call and response with Bell's blues shout vocals.
Bell joined his old mates from Skip Bifferty to form Bell & Arc in July 1971, with John Turnbull, Mick Gallagher, Bud Beadle, Kenny Craddock, Steve Gregory, Tom Duffy and Alan White.
Bell was tempted away as a solo artist to record an album with Bob Johnson who produced Bob Dylan. He then appeared in Tommy. After this it was reported that Pete Townshend produced an album for him but it never saw the light of day. He was featured on the front page of Sounds music paper in the late 1970s as a "the man most likely to" but sadly his profile was affected by the rise of punk and the New Wave. Bell then moved to America where he toured with Long John Baldry among others, before returning to his native North East England in the mid 1980s. He also lived for a while in Cumbria before finally heading for London again and cropping up in Snowy White's Blues Agency in 1989.
He also played on Carol Grimes' Warm Blood in 1974, with Tommy Eyre, Jess Roden, John 'Rabbit' Bundrick and Henry Lowther.