| Kirby Gregory | |
|---|---|
| Birth name | Graham Gregory |
| Born | 11 March 1953 |
| Origin | Berkshire |
| Genres | Rock, blues |
| Instruments | Guitar |
| Years active | 1969– |
| Labels | Warner Bros. Anchor Hot Wax Repertoire |
| Associated acts | Curved Air Stretch |
Graham "Kirby" Gregory, often credited simply as Kirby (born 11 March 1953 in Berkshire) is a British musician best known for playing with rock bands Curved Air and Stretch.
Gregory began playing guitar aged seven, and moved to London in 1969 with bass guitarist Steve Emery. They formed a band called Armada, and recruited vocalist Elmer Gantry before breaking up.[1] Gregory then joined progressive rock band Curved Air, and played on the 1973 album, Air Cut. He also played on one track on the archival release, Lovechild.[2]
After leaving Curved Air, Gregory and Gantry became part of a group of musicians assembled by Fleetwood Mac manager Clifford Davis and drummer Mick Fleetwood in order to impersonate Fleetwood Mac on a tour of the United States in 1974. Problems between the members of that band had resulted in them being unable to fulfil their concert obligations.[3] After Fleetwood abandoned the idea, audiences quickly realised that this hastily-assembled group was not the band they had paid to see, and the tour collapsed after a few weeks. However, Gregory and the other band members stayed together and formed Stretch later that year.
Gregory wrote the hit single "Why Did You Do It?" about the bogus Fleetwood Mac episode, and it reached No. 16 in the UK in November 1975.[1] Stretch recorded several albums before splitting up in 1979.
Gregory recorded a solo album Composition on the Hot Wax label in 1978, and subsequently played on ex-Fleetwood Mac guitarist Danny Kirwan's final album Hello There Big Boy! in 1979. He also took part in a recording session with Thin Lizzy vocalist Phil Lynott.[4]
In 2007, Gregory and Gantry reformed Stretch and toured in support of the greatest hits album, Why Did You Do It: The Best of Stretch.
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