Rick Price (bassist)

Rick Price
Birth nameRichard Gordon Price
Born(1944-06-10)10 June 1944
Birmingham, Warwickshire, England
Died17 May 2022(2022-05-17) (aged 77)
GenresRock music
Occupation(s)Musician
Instrument(s)Bass, vocals, pedal steel guitar
Years active1960–2022

Richard Gordon Price (10 June 1944 – 17 May 2022)[1] was an English bassist who played with various Birmingham-based rock bands, most notably Sight and Sound, the Move (1969–1971), and Wizzard (1972–1975).[2][3]

Life and career

Price was born and raised in Birmingham, Warwickshire, on 10 June 1944.[4] His first band were the Cimarrons, who were inspired by the Shadows.[1][5] He then moved on to the Sombreros, who later changed their name to Sight & Sound and moved in a more psychedelic direction.[5] He began collaborating with Mike Sheridan as a songwriting partnership.[5] Price joined the Move in 1969, staying with the group for two years, including an unsuccessful tour of the United States.[5] He also contributed bass tracks to the early sessions for the debut album of ELO, but for reasons that are unclear, none of his bass parts ended up in the final mix of the album when it was released in 1971.[6]

After leaving the Move he signed a contract with Gemini Records; he then recorded (with Sheridan) the album This Is To Certify That, released in 1970, and a solo album, Talking To The Flowers, in 1971.[5][7] He then joined former Move colleague Carl Wayne in Light Fantastic,[1] before forming Mongrel with future Wizzard drummers Charlie Grima and Keith Smart.[5][8]

He joined up again with Roy Wood in the latter's new band, Wizzard, with whom he had two British number one hit singles, "See My Baby Jive" and "Angel Fingers", as well as the No. 4 Christmas classic "I Wish It Could Be Christmas Everyday" (all 1973).[5]

After Wizzard split up, he joined the Wizzo Band on pedal steel guitar in 1975, but they broke up in 1978.[5] Price was also a member of The Rockin' Berries from 1990 until his death.

Price worked with the 1970s duo Peters and Lee beginning in 1976,[9] eventually marrying Lee and working with her as a performing duo.[10][5]

Price died on 17 May 2022, at the age of 77.[6]

References

  1. ^ a b c "Rick Price tribute". Brumbeat. Archived from the original on 16 September 2022. Retrieved 16 September 2022.
  2. ^ Kutner, Jon & Leigh, Spencer (2013) 1,000 UK Number One Hits, Omnibus Press, ISBN 978-1844492831
  3. ^ "Special Merit Picks", Billboard, 5 June 1971, p. 40. Retrieved 12 June 2014
  4. ^ Strong, Martin C. (2000). The Great Rock Discography (5th ed.). Edinburgh: Mojo Books. pp. 673–675. ISBN 1-84195-017-3.
  5. ^ a b c d e f g h i Eder, Bruce. "Rick Price Biography". Allmusic. Archived from the original on 16 September 2022. Retrieved 12 July 2014.
  6. ^ a b "Rick Price 1944/2022". ELO España. 18 May 2022. Retrieved 19 May 2022.
  7. ^ Eder, Bruce. "This Is to Certify: Gemini Anthology Review". Allmusic. Archived from the original on 18 April 2022. Retrieved 12 July 2014.
  8. ^ Auslander, Philip (2006) Performing Glam Rock: Gender and Theatricality in Popular Music, University of Michigan Press, ISBN 978-0472068685, p. 177
  9. ^ "Rick Price - A Brief History". Cherry Blossom Clinic. Archived from the original on 31 July 2021. Retrieved 16 September 2022.
  10. ^ British Hit Singles and Albums, Guinness, 2005, p. 140

External links