Luther James Grosvenor (born 23 December 1946) is an English
rock
Rock most often refers to:
* Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids
* Rock music, a genre of popular music
Rock or Rocks may also refer to:
Places United Kingdom
* Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wales ...
musician, who played guitar in
Spooky Tooth
Spooky Tooth were an English rock band originally formed in Carlisle in 1967. Principally active between 1967 and 1974, the band re-formed several times in later years.
History
Prior to Spooky Tooth, four of the band's five founding members h ...
, briefly in
Stealers Wheel
Stealers Wheel were a Scottish folk rock/rock band formed in 1972 in Paisley, Scotland, by former school friends Joe Egan and Gerry Rafferty. Their best-known hit is " Stuck in the Middle with You". The band broke up in 1975 and re-formed bri ...
and, under the pseudonym Ariel Bender, in
Mott the Hoople
Mott the Hoople were an English rock band formed in Herefordshire. Originally known as the Doc Thomas Group, the group changed their name after signing with Island Records in 1969. The band released albums throughout the early 1970s but fail ...
and
Widowmaker.
Grosvenor was born in
Evesham
Evesham () is a market town and parish in the Wychavon district of Worcestershire, in the West Midlands region of England. It is located roughly equidistant between Worcester, Cheltenham and Stratford-upon-Avon. It lies within the Vale of Evesha ...
,
Worcestershire
Worcestershire ( , ; written abbreviation: Worcs) is a county in the West Midlands of England. The area that is now Worcestershire was absorbed into the unified Kingdom of England in 927, at which time it was constituted as a county (see His ...
, England,
where he first began playing in local
bands. He met
Jim Capaldi
Nicola James Capaldi (2 August 1944 – 28 January 2005) was an English singer-songwriter and drummer. His musical career spanned more than four decades. He co-founded the progressive rock band Traffic in 1967 with Steve Winwood with whom he co ...
, who later played with
Traffic
Traffic comprises pedestrians, vehicles, ridden or herded animals, trains, and other conveyances that use public ways (roads) for travel and transportation.
Traffic laws govern and regulate traffic, while rules of the road include traffic ...
, with whom he formed a group called Deep Feeling.
Later he joined a group called
The V.I.P.'s, in which
Keith Emerson
Keith Noel Emerson (2 November 1944 – 11 March 2016) was an English keyboardist, songwriter, and record producer. He played keyboards in a number of bands before finding his first commercial success with the Nice in the late 1960s. He became ...
played for some time. The V.I.P.'s were renamed Art and later became
Spooky Tooth
Spooky Tooth were an English rock band originally formed in Carlisle in 1967. Principally active between 1967 and 1974, the band re-formed several times in later years.
History
Prior to Spooky Tooth, four of the band's five founding members h ...
. After leaving Spooky Tooth, he released a solo album, ''Under Open Skies'' (Island Records, 1971).
For contractual reasons, he changed his name to Ariel Bender, at the suggestion of singer-songwriter
Lynsey de Paul, for his stint with the Mott the Hoople.
According to Mott's lead singer
Ian Hunter, interviewed in the documentary ''The Ballad of Mott the Hoople'', the band were in Germany with Lynsey de Paul for the TV show, ''Hits-a-Go-Go'' in Germany on 24 June 1973 when lead guitarist
Mick Ralphs
Michael Geoffrey Ralphs (born 31 March 1944, Herefordshire) is an English musician, vocalist and songwriter, who was a founding member of rock bands Mott the Hoople and Bad Company.
Career
Ralphs began his career as a teenager, playing with b ...
walked down a street bending a succession of car aerials in frustration. De Paul came out with the phrase "aerial bender", which Hunter later suggested to Grosvenor as a stage name. Grosvenor joined the band in 1973, replacing Ralphs.
Grosvenor toured with Mott in 1973 and 1974 and performed on the band's seventh album, ''
The Hoople
''The Hoople'' is the seventh studio album by British rock band Mott the Hoople. The album peaked in the UK Albums Chart at No. 11, whilst its highest chart rating in the US was No. 28. A remastered and expanded version was released by Sony BMG ...
'' (1974).
The years with Spooky Tooth (1967 to 1970), Stealers Wheel (1973) and Mott the Hoople (1973 to 1974) were the most successful years in Grosvenor's musical career.
After leaving Mott in 1974 - he was replaced by
Mick Ronson
Michael Ronson (26 May 1946 – 29 April 1993) was an English musician, songwriter, arranger, and producer. He achieved critical and commercial success working with David Bowie as the guitarist of the Spiders from Mars. He was a session music ...
- Grosvenor published a few solo albums, and formed
Widowmaker,
releasing ''
Widowmaker'' in 1976 and ''
Too Late to Cry'' in 1977.
In 1995, he recorded two tracks for Viceroy Music's tribute to
Peter Green along with former Spooky Tooth drummer Mike Kellie.
These songs led to Grosvenor signing a deal with the New York City based Brilliant Recording Company and produced the ''Floodgates'' album.
It was released on 15 August 1996.
The album again featured Mike Kellie on drums and featured Jess Roden singing vocals on two tracks, Grosvenor did the vocals on the rest of the album. The album was produced by Grosvenor and Mick Dolan.
In 1999, Grosvenor returned in a Spooky Tooth reunion (without Gary Wright), and recorded ''Cross Purpose'' again for the Brilliant Recording Company. In 2005, he revived his pseudonym, forming the Ariel Bender Band. In 2007 and 2008, he performed under the name Ariel Bender's Mott The Hoople, performing both Spooky Tooth and Mott The Hoople songs, as well as cover songs.
In 2009, he worked with London act, The Winter Olympics, recording guitar parts for their song, "The Great Outdoors", which was released in August 2010.
In June 2018, performing as Ariel Bender, Grosvenor played three Mott The Hoople reunion shows with Hunter and 1974 Mott pianist Morgan Fisher, backed by Hunter's Rant Band. The shows were at festivals in Spain and the United Kingdom and a concert in Norway. In April 2019, performing as Ariel Bender, Grosvenor played 14 Mott the Hoople reunion shows – eight in the U.S., six in the U.K. – with Hunter and 1974 Mott pianist Morgan Fisher, backed by Hunter's Rant Band. Later in 2019, a planned MTH 74 11-city swing largely through the southern U.S. was canceled because of Hunter's bout with
tinnitus
Tinnitus is the perception of sound when no corresponding external sound is present. Nearly everyone experiences a faint "normal tinnitus" in a completely quiet room; but it is of concern only if it is bothersome, interferes with normal hearin ...
.
Media depictions
Grosvenor is featured along with Spooky Tooth in the 1970 documentary ''Groupies''.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Grosvenor, Luther
1946 births
Living people
English rock guitarists
English male guitarists
Island Records artists
People from Evesham
Mott the Hoople members
Musicians from Worcestershire
Glam rock musicians
Spooky Tooth members
Widowmaker (U.K. band) members
Ruf Records artists