Robert William Huxley, known as Robb Huxley (born 4 December 1945) is a British vocalist, guitarist and musician. He is widely regarded as a pioneer of
Israeli rock Israeli rock ( he, רוק ישראלי, ''Rok Yisra'eli'') is rock music created by Israeli bands and singers.
History
1960s
Israel's initial attitude toward rock music was extremely negative. Israeli musicians of the time believed that it was a ...
due to his work in Israel in the 1960s and 1970s with his band,
The Churchills, and with prominent Israeli artists such as
Arik Einstein
Arieh Lieb "Arik" Einstein ( he, אָרִיק אַייְנְשְׁטֵייְן, ; 3 January 1939 – 26 November 2013) was an Israeli singer, actor, comedian and screenwriter. He was a pioneer of Israeli rock music and was named "the voice of Is ...
.
Early life
Huxley was born in
Gloucester
Gloucester ( ) is a cathedral city and the county town of Gloucestershire in the South West of England. Gloucester lies on the River Severn, between the Cotswolds to the east and the Forest of Dean to the west, east of Monmouth and east ...
,
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...
and educated at
Sir Thomas Rich’s Grammar School. After leaving school in 1962, he joined a local band, the Vendettas, as vocalist in 1963.
Professional career
After the Vendettas, Huxley moved on to join the Whirlwinds as lead singer under the name "Robb Gayle".
After a recording audition with
Joe Meek
Robert George "Joe" Meek (5 April 1929 – 3 February 1967) was an English record producer, sound engineer and songwriter who pioneered space age and experimental pop music. He also assisted in the development of recording practices like over ...
, the Whirlwinds changed their name to the Saxons and dyed their hair blond. While still semi-pro they released a single through Joe Meek in 1965; an instrumental written by Pete Holder and Robb Huxley titled "Saxon Warcry".
In December 1965, Joe Meek summoned the Saxons to
London
London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...
to work professionally as his house band, renamed
The Tornados
The Tornados (The Tornadoes in North America) were an English instrumental rock group of the 1960s that acted as backing group for many of record producer Joe Meek's productions and also for singer Billy Fury. They enjoyed several chart hits ...
. They were also known as the New Tornados. During their short association with Joe Meek, they put out two singles. “Pop-Art Goes Mozart” / “Too Much in Love to Hear” and “Is that a Ship I Hear” / “Do You Come Here Often”. Both singles were released in 1966. Nowadays “Do you Come Here Often” is recognized as being the first ever openly “gay” song to be released on record.
Almost a year after Joe Meek’s death in a shooting incident at his
Holloway Road
Holloway Road is a road in London, in length. It is one of the main shopping streets in North London, and carries the A1 road as it passes through Holloway, in the London Borough of Islington. The road starts in Archway, near Archway Under ...
studio, with only Robb Huxley and Dave Watts remaining from the original line up, the Tornados left for a tour of
Israel
Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...
.
Early in February 1968 in
Tel-Aviv
Tel Aviv-Yafo ( he, תֵּל־אָבִיב-יָפוֹ, translit=Tēl-ʾĀvīv-Yāfō ; ar, تَلّ أَبِيب – يَافَا, translit=Tall ʾAbīb-Yāfā, links=no), often referred to as just Tel Aviv, is the most populous city in the G ...
, the Tornados disbanded, which ended Joe Meek’s succession of Tornados.
In Israel
Huxley remained in Israel and played with a three piece group called Purple Ass Baboon for a short time. The group was probably the first ever “
punk
Punk or punks may refer to:
Genres, subculture, and related aspects
* Punk rock, a music genre originating in the 1970s associated with various subgenres
* Punk subculture, a subculture associated with punk rock, or aspects of the subculture s ...
” style band to play in Israel.
Huxley met up with Stan Solomon,
Canadian
Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...
singer with the Israeli band
The Churchills and was invited to join the band when two members were subscripted into the
Israeli army
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF; he, צְבָא הַהֲגָנָה לְיִשְׂרָאֵל , ), alternatively referred to by the Hebrew-language acronym (), is the national military of the State of Israel. It consists of three service branc ...
.
Huxley and Solomon went on to write the music for the Churchills’ only album, which was written in part for the Israeli film, ''A Woman’s Case''. The vinyl album is acclaimed today to be the rarest psychedelic record in the world, and is also recognized for its musical content.
Huxley went on to write for Israeli singers, the most prominent being
Arik Einstein
Arieh Lieb "Arik" Einstein ( he, אָרִיק אַייְנְשְׁטֵייְן, ; 3 January 1939 – 26 November 2013) was an Israeli singer, actor, comedian and screenwriter. He was a pioneer of Israeli rock music and was named "the voice of Is ...
who had a hit “Akhinoam Lo Yoda'at" ("''Akhinoam Doesn't Know''", ''eng.'' "When You’re Gone") which Huxley had written for the Churchills.
Huxley and Einstein collaborated on an album of children’s songs, with melodies written by Huxley and lyrics by Einstein.
After Stan Solomon quit the Churchills in 1969, the band became Arik Einstein’s backing band. They were also joined by singer Danny Shoshan, a former bass player and vocalist from the Lions.
In 1970, they recorded an album,
Junkies, Monkeys and Donkeys' at Red Bus Records in London, with music written by Huxley and Shoshan and changed their name to Jericho Jones. They went on to record a second album under the name of Jericho, again with Huxley / Shoshan compositions.
In 1972, bass player Miki Gavrielov and drummer Ami Trebich returned to Israel. Shoshan took over the bass with Huxley and
Haim Romano on guitars. They took on British drummer Chris Perry. They put out two singles, but after a tour of South Africa in 1973, Jericho disbanded due to management, personal and record label problems.
Huxley's work in Israel, particularly with the Churchills and with Einstein, made him become widely regarded as one of the pioneers of
Israeli rock Israeli rock ( he, רוק ישראלי, ''Rok Yisra'eli'') is rock music created by Israeli bands and singers.
History
1960s
Israel's initial attitude toward rock music was extremely negative. Israeli musicians of the time believed that it was a ...
.
Huxley moved to
Miami
Miami ( ), officially the City of Miami, known as "the 305", "The Magic City", and "Gateway to the Americas", is a East Coast of the United States, coastal metropolis and the County seat, county seat of Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade C ...
in 1974, where he still lives with his Israeli wife.
External links
Official Site
{{DEFAULTSORT:Huxley, Robb
1945 births
Living people
English male singers
People from Gloucester
Beat musicians
The Tornados members