City To City - Album

Gerald "Gerry" Rafferty 16 April 1947 – 4 January 2011 Was A Scottish Singer-Songwriter. In His Early Years Rafferty Earned Money By The Formerly Illegal Practice Of Busking On The London Underground. Poetically His Biggest Hit 1978's "Baker Street" Discusses Busking At A Tube Station And Being A Part Of The Street Life. After Working With Billy Connolly Now Better Known As A Comedian In An Obscure Outfit Known As The Humblebums He Released His First Solo Album Called 'Can I Have My Money Back' In 1971. That Collection Of Folk Inspired Tunes Gained Some Notice For Its Deliberately 'old-Timey' Cover Art. In 1972 Rafferty And His Old School Friend Joe Egan Formed The Outfit Stealers Wheel A Group That Proved Beset By Legal Wranglings Yet Brimming With Talent. They Had A Huge Hit With "Stuck In The Middle With You" A Pop/rock Track Deliberately Aping The Style Of Bob Dylan That Has Had Massive Airplay For Decades. That Song Also Was Immortalized In The Infamous Torture Scene In The Motion Picture 'Reservoir Dogs' The Film's Soundtrack Introducing The Group To A New Generation. Despite Their Knack For The Beatles-Like Melodic Rock Stealers Wheel Disbanded In 1975. Rafferty Spent Quite A While In A Sort Of Forced Legal Limbo Before He Could Record Again Spending His Time Wisely As He Developed His Sound. In 1978 Rafferty Cut A Solo Album 'City To City' Which Would Catapult Him Right Into International Stardom. Earning Praise From Many Music Critics The Release Included The Song With Which He Remains Most Associated "Baker Street". Known For Its Gripping Lyrics And Haunting Saxophone Solo By Raphael Ravenscroft The Single Reached #3 In The U.K. And #2 In The U.S. The Album Itself Also Received A Boost As Another Single "Right Down The Line" Picked Up Major Attention. "Baker Street" Has Remained A Mainstay Of Radio Airplay For Decades And Popped Up Several Times In Popular Culture An Example Being Its Placement In The 'Good Will Hunting' Soundtrack. Notable Cover Versions Include A Release By Undercover That Also Made The Top 3 In The U.K .Singles Chart In 1992. American Rockers Foo Fighters Also Made Their Own Version Swapping The Saxophone Solo For A Guitar Solo. His Next Album Night Owl Also Did Well And The Title Track Was A UK No. 5 Hit In 1979. The Follow-Up Single "Get It Right Next Time" Made The UK Top 40. Subsequent Albums Such As Snakes And Ladders 1980 Sleepwalking 1982 And North And South 1988 All Fared Less Well Due Partly To Rafferty's General Reluctance To Perform Live. "Don't Give Up On Me" From His 1992 Collection On A Wing And A Prayer Is A Much-Featured Oldie On BBC Radio 2. In 2021 A Posthumous Album Rest In Blue Was Released To Positive Reception. DISCOGRAPHY With The Humblebums First Collection Of Merry Melodies 1969 The New Humblebums 1969 Open Up The Door 1970 With Stealers Wheel Stealers Wheel 1973 Ferguslie Park 1974 Right Or Wrong 1975 Solo Can I Have My Money Back? 1971 City To City 1978 Night Owl 1979 Snakes And Ladders 1980 Sleepwalking 1981 North And South 1988 On A Wing And A Prayer 1992 Over My Head 1994 Another World 2000 Rest In Blue 2021 read less