Adrian Gurvitz

b. Adrian Curtis, 26 June 1949, London, England. Also known to have worked under the name of Adrian Curtis, this accomplished guitarist began his career backing 60s pop singer Crispian St. Peters for whom his father Sam Curtis was road manager. Spells with Billie Davis and Screaming Lord Sutch followed before Gurvitz joined Rupert’s People, a band enjoying a sizeable hit in Europe with ‘Reflections Of Charles Brown’ (1967). He formed Gun with brother Paul the following year, which in turn evolved into Three Man Army. The siblings also made numerous session appearances before teaming with drummer Ginger Baker in the Baker Gurvitz Army, following which Adrian embarked on a solo career. 1979’s Sweet Vendetta included contributions by US studio musicians Jeff, Joe and Steve Porcaro and David Paich, all later of Toto, but neither it nor Il Assassino made a commercial impression. However, in 1982 Gurvitz scored a surprise UK Top 10 hit with ‘Classic’. This soft rock masterpiece contained the immortal line; ‘Gonna write a classic, gonna write it in my attic’. Sadly, subsequent appearances by this artist have now greatly lessened. By the 90s, he had turned his hand to a more jazz-influenced direction.