Gryphon
Originally called Spellthorn, Gryphon were formed in 1971 by Royal College of Music students Richard Harvey (b. 25 September 1953, Enfield, Middlesex, England; keyboards/woodwinds/mandolin) and Brian Gulland (b. 30 April 1951, Maidstone, Kent, England; renaissance wind instruments/bassoon/keyboards/vocals). Harvey had eschewed an offer to join the London Philharmonia Orchestra in order to pursue his vision of a blend of medieval music and progressive rock. The group had also comprised Graeme Taylor (b. 2 February 1954, Stockwell, London, England; guitar/keyboards/recorder) and David Oberlé (b. 9 January 1953, Farnborough, Kent, England; drums/percussion/flageolet/vocals). Gryphon started their career playing folk clubs, moving on to the usual rock venues and colleges, in addition to performing at special events such as the Victoria & Albert Museum. Their style made the group unique on the UK rock scene in the early '70s, with Gulland's Crumhorn solos making a refreshing change from the usually guitar sound of the day. By 1973 they were performing a mixture of minstrel airs and Beatles songs, and even a version of Chattanooga Choo Choo. With the addition of a bassist, Philip Nestor (b. 1952, Epsom, Surrey, England), Gryphon were, by the time of MIDNIGHT MUSHRUMPS, performing a lengthy composition, commissioned by Peter Hall of the London National Theatre, and moving into a more traditional rock style. By 1975 the group had joined Yes on a tour of the USA and Gryphon's line-up began to suffered various personnel changes. Taylor had left the group that year (later to join Home Service) and was replaced by Bob Foster; Alex Baird, formally of Contraband, was added as a drummer; and Malcolm Bennett, who had replaced Nestor was, in turn supplanted by Jonathan Davie. Very soon the group had begun to lose its sense of originality, becoming just another rock band and subsequently broke up in the face of the emerging punk rock explosion. Richard Harvey moved into the very lucrative field of commercial jingles and television soundtracks, most notably with the collaboration with Elvis Costello for Alan Bleasdale's G.B.H. television play