John Stax (born John Edward Lee Fullagar, 6 April 1944,

Crayford Crayford is a town and electoral ward in South East London, England, within the London Borough of Bexley. It lies east of Bexleyheath and north west of Dartford. Crayford was in the historic county of Kent until 1965. The settlement deve ...

, Kent) is an English musician best known as original bassist for the Pretty Things. He adopted the name "Stax" because of his fondness for the music produced by Stax Records. He played on all of their charting singles, which included "

Rosalyn Rosalyn may refer to: * "Rosalyn" (song), song by Pretty Things People *Rosalyn Borden (1932–2003), American actress *Rosalynn Carter, wife of former President of the United States Jimmy Carter *Rosalyn Gold-Onwude (born 1987), American basketba ...

," "

Don't Bring Me Down "Don't Bring Me Down" is the ninth and final track on the English rock band the Electric Light Orchestra's 1979 album '' Discovery''. It is their highest-charting hit in the United States to date. History "Don't Bring Me Down" is the band's ...

," " Road Runner," and " Cry to Me." He also frequently contributed backing vocals as well as harmonica performance. He played on the Pretty Things' first three albums: '' The Pretty Things'', '' Get the Picture?'' and '' Emotions'', although his exact contributions to the latter are unknown. He also played on the band's first two EPs, ''The Pretty Things'' and ''Rainin' in My Heart.'' Stax left the band in January 1967, a month after rhythm guitarist Brian Pendleton. Stax emigrated to

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

in 1970 where he currently resides. Stax currently builds and sells cigar box guitars. He rejoined the Pretty Things on their 2012 Australian tour, taking the stage on a couple of songs to play bass guitar and harmonica. Stax also played with Melbourne R&B 'supergroup' Blues Hangover, which featured Dave Hogan (vocals, harp), Warren Rough (guitar) and Ken Farmer (drums; all from The Paramount Trio) plus Peter Wells (Rose Tattoo) and Lucy De Soto. The band's passionate, gritty brand of R&B; was heard to good effect on two albums issued on the Dog Meat label, Blues Hangover (1995) and Roadrunner (1996).McFarlane, 'Peter Wells' entry at the Wayback Machine (archived 15 June 2004). Archived from the original on 15 June 2004. Retrieved 2 July 2014.

References

External links

On AllMusic
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Black Diamond Cigar Box Guitars
1944 births Living people People from Crayford English rock bass guitarists English rock singers British harmonica players Pretty Things members English expatriates in Australia {{UK-bass-guitarist-stub