In 1965, 18-year-old Rafferty met 15-year-old Carla Ventilla, an apprentice hairdresser from an Italian family in Clydebank, at a dancehalla story he later recounted in the song "Shipyard Town" on North and South. Gerry Rafferty is one of the more elusive and enigmatic figures on this increasingly strange roundabout. And thats when the fun started, says Brewer. 2 on the American Billboard charts behind Andy Gibbs Shadow Dancing.). "[55] As the 1980s progressed, Rafferty's growing drinking problem placed his marriage under impossible strain;[38] his wife divorced him in 1990,[61] although they remained close. Subscriptions to Rocks Backpages are available for institutional or personal use. Best Gerry Rafferty Songs: 10 Greats From Scotland's Beloved - Dig! Artists write the best songs when theyre hungry., "Anyway, they gave him five million and he pissed off and bought a house in the Caribbean. [9] In his own stand-up shows, Connolly has often recalled this period, telling how Rafferty made him laugh and describing the crazy things they did while on tour. Bath Gerry Rafferty signed up with Brewer and his production company funded the making of new album, City To City. His girlfriend Enzina Fuschini said she "felt that he was under some sort of evil spell. 12 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart and No. Though it would seem to have struck America like a bolt from the blue, City to City does not depart dramatically from the music Rafferty has recorded over the past decade. "[47] Finally, thanks to the Internet, it seemed Rafferty no longer needed the music industry: technology was allowing him to put his music directly in the hands of an appreciative audience. And as long as it was supported by radio play, who could say that it wasnt a genuine hit? "[35], Based at 16th-century[36] Tye Farm in Hartfield, near the Kent-Sussex border, Rafferty installed electric gates to protect his privacy, built a recording studio, and worked largely by himself[37] or with Murphy. Gerry became someone else, and it was alcohol that took him over. "[25], Ravenscroft went on to play on Rafferty's next two albums. Scottish singer/songwriter Gerry Rafferty, best known for his solo hit "Baker Street" and "Stuck In The . Baker Street has been covered by a wildly diverse set of outfits, most virtuously by Waylon Jennings and the London Symphony Orchestra, most sentimentally by Lisa Simpson, and most blandly by the Foo Fighters and Rick Springfield. The group released the single "Benjamin Day"/"There's Nobody Here" (Columbia 8068), but it was not a commercial success. The career of Gerry Rafferty from folk-roots to multi-million selling success and alcohol-fuelled demise was one of amazing highs and lows. As he explained in a press release heralding the new record in November 2000: "My heart and soul have gone into this album, and by releasing it in this way my creative influence has not been diluted in any way. "[5], In 1995, Rafferty was deeply affected by the death of his older brother Joseph, an event from which family and friends said he never fully recovered. . He said, Ill play you something. The same report claimed that on 1 August 2008, Rafferty had disappeared, leaving his belongings behind, and that the hospital had filed a missing persons report. "And that's when the fun started," says Brewer. At thirty-one, hes clearly overcome much of the anger he felt as a younger man toward both women and the music business. "He said to me, I cant stand the way you live, because you drive a Rolls Royce and you have this house and this and that He hated the music business and everything in it.. [51], On 3 September 2021 Parlophone UK released "Rest In Blue" an album on which Martha Rafferty completed a project started by her father from demos left by Rafferty. More likely, he has simply mellowed with age. The liner notes to the compilation album Right Down the Line, written by Jerry Gilbert with Rafferty's close co-operation, note his consistent refusal to tour the United States and "generally 'play the industry game'. In the same interview, he said that the entire record had been made for approximately 200,000, with half spent on travel, the recording system costing 75,000, and the website and marketing adding 25,000. He has a flight to catch. Its fellow honorees that yearCome Together, Candle in the Wind, and Build Me Up Buttercupdeliver some sense of the songs real reach. Billy Connolly on Gerry Rafferty (Conan O'Brien, 2012) - YouTube In the liner notes to the album, Rafferty's long-time friend and collaborator Rab Noakes commented: "Let's hope [the Baker Street demo] will, at last, silence all who keep on asserting that the saxophone player came up with the melody line. Thats why I especially liked the Everly Brothers.. Before, I was never in control. Stuck In The Middle With You had Joe Egan miming Gerrys lead vocal as he had left the band by the time they shot it. In a blog posting dated 31 March 2004 he wrote: "Let's get back to music: after all that's the only reason that this website has been set up." By registering for free articles you will receive our weekly newsletter, you can change this preference at any time by clicking Unsubscribe in the newsletter. It's much more effective than taking Prozac!" Whatever I do in the future, it's at my own pace, on my own terms. He was an artist through and though., Seemingly alone in its era, Baker Street managed to stand out at the height of punk and new wave and also shined through the summer of Grease and the twilight of discos last saccharine gleaming. "Thats how they regulated the charts. The music itselfthe orchestration, so to speak compliments the lyric in a perfect way. 17 in the US. He may be sitting on top of the world as he gives interviews in his rumpled room at New York Citys Plaza Hotel, yet he regards that world with a Scotsmans dour distrust. In a 2006 interview with The Times, Ravenscroft recalled the episode differently, claiming he was presented with a song that contained "several gaps": "If you're asking me: 'Did Gerry hand me a piece of music to play?' It goes through a little kind of journey, it takes you through a journey and so, in some sense, its a very complete composition, which is unusual for popular music at that time. Before he parted ways with Rafferty, Brewer recalls a visit from saxophone player Raphael Ravenscroft. [13], In September 2011, EMI issued a remastered collector's edition of City to City featuring previously unheard demo versions of "Baker Street", "Mattie's Rag", "City to City", and other tracks from the album. But they were old-school producers. Rafferty came up with the hook. His wife had just given birth to their daughter and he told me that he didnt have any money to buy nappies, says Brewer. [citation needed], Also in 1983, Rafferty announced his intention to take a break and devote more time to his family: "It dawned on me that since Baker Street I had been touring the world, travelling everywhere and seeing nowhere.