Leslie Cameron Harvey (13 September 1944 – 3 May 1972) was a Scottish guitarist in several bands of the late 1960s and early 1970s, most notably

Stone the Crows Stone the Crows were a Scottish blues rock band formed in Glasgow in late 1969. They are remembered for the onstage electrocution of guitarist and founding member Les Harvey. History The band were formed after Maggie Bell was introduced to L ...

. He was the brother of Alex Harvey.

Biography

Harvey was born in

Govan Govan ( ; Cumbric?: ''Gwovan'?''; Scots: ''Gouan''; Scottish Gaelic: ''Baile a' Ghobhainn'') is a district, parish, and former burgh now part of south-west City of Glasgow, Scotland. It is situated west of Glasgow city centre, on the south ba ...

Glasgow Glasgow ( ; sco, Glesca or ; gd, Glaschu ) is the most populous city in Scotland and the fourth-most populous city in the United Kingdom, as well as being the 27th largest city by population in Europe. In 2020, it had an estimated popul ...

. In the 1960s, he was asked to join

the Animals The Animals (also billed as Eric Burdon and the Animals) are an English rock band, formed in Newcastle upon Tyne in the early 1960s. The band moved to London upon finding fame in 1964. The Animals were known for their gritty, bluesy sound and ...

by Alan Price but chose to stay with his brother in the Alex Harvey Soul Band. He later joined the Blues Council, another Scottish band. The Blues Council made one record, ''Baby Don't Look Down''. In March 1965, their tour van crashed, killing vocalist Fraser Calder and bassist James Giffen, and the rest of the band went their separate ways. In 1969, Harvey joined Scottish band Cartoone to record some tracks for their second album. He also accompanied Cartoone on their live tour of the United States supporting

Led Zeppelin Led Zeppelin were an English rock band formed in London in 1968. The group comprised vocalist Robert Plant, guitarist Jimmy Page, bassist/keyboardist John Paul Jones, and drummer John Bonham. With a heavy, guitar-driven sound, they are ci ...

. They also supported the US band

Spirit Spirit or spirits may refer to: Liquor and other volatile liquids * Spirits, a.k.a. liquor, distilled alcoholic drinks * Spirit or tincture, an extract of plant or animal material dissolved in ethanol * Volatile (especially flammable) liquids, ...

in 1969. John Lee Hooker, whose songs both Harvey and Cartoone used to cover on their tour of the UK, was their opening act. In December 1969 Harvey played guitar on

Maurice Gibb Maurice Ernest Gibb (; 22 December 1949 – 12 January 2003) was a British musician. He achieved fame as a member of the pop group Bee Gees. Although his elder brother Barry Gibb and fraternal twin brother Robin Gibb were the group's main lea ...

's '' The Loner'' album, but only the single "

Railroad Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport that transfers passengers and goods on wheeled vehicles running on rails, which are incorporated in tracks. In contrast to road transport, where the vehicles run on a pre ...

" was released. Harvey was a co-founder of Stone the Crows in late 1969. While on stage with Stone the Crows at Swansea Top Rank in 1972, he was

electrocuted Electrocution is death or severe injury caused by electric shock from electric current passing through the body. The word is derived from "electro" and "execution", but it is also used for accidental death. The term "electrocution" was coined ...

when he touched a microphone that was not earthed while the fingers of his other hand were holding the strings of his guitar. It has been incorrectly stated that the incident happened "on a rainy day with puddles on the stage", however, Swansea Top Rank was an indoor venue and therefore this was not possible. A

roadie The road crew (or roadies) are the technicians or support personnel who travel with a band on tour, usually in sleeper buses, and handle every part of the concert productions except actually performing the music with the musicians. This ca ...

attempted to unplug the guitar, but was unsuccessful. Harvey died from his injuries, aged 27.

References

Scottish male guitarists 1944 births 1972 deaths Accidental deaths by electrocution Musicians from Glasgow Musicians who died on stage Accidental deaths in Wales Scottish rock guitarists 20th-century Scottish musicians Lead guitarists 20th-century British guitarists 20th-century British male musicians {{UK-guitarist-stub