Len Garry
Len Garry | |
|---|---|
 Garry live on stage with The Quarrymen in 2011. | |
| Background information | |
| Born | 6 January 1942 Wavertree, Liverpool, England, U.K. |
| Genres | Skiffle, rock |
| Occupation(s) | Musician |
| Instrument(s) |
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| Years active | 1957-present |
| Member of | The Quarrymen |
Len Garry (born 6 January 1942[1][2]) is an English musician, best known for being a member of The Quarrymen, a band that would later evolve into The Beatles.
Childhood[edit]
Garry was born in Wavertree, Liverpool. His father, Henry, worked as a compositor at the Liverpool Daily Post, and his mother, Phyllis, was a housewife.[1] His older brother, Walter, was born three years earlier.[1] Garry attended Mosspits Lane Primary School, which included future Quarrymen members Pete Shotton and Nigel Walley, and briefly, John Lennon.[1] Len learned how to play the piano as a child.
The Quarrymen[edit]
1957-1958[edit]
In 1953, Garry was attending Liverpool Institute High School for Boys, when he met Ivan Vaughan. Vaughan would introduce Garry to Paul McCartney.[1] The two briefly knew each other, as they were in the same German class. Two years later, Garry met John Lennon.[1] In 1956, The Quarrymen was formed. The Quarrymen's original tea-chest bassist, Bill Smith, stopped showing up for practices shortly after, and so, Len stepped in as the new tea-chest bassist for the Quarrymen.[1] The group, consisting of John Lennon, Eric Griffiths, Pete Shotton, Garry, Colin Hanton, and Rod Davis, formed the first stable line-up of the group.
Garry performed with the group at two of their most historical performances, on Rosebery Street, on 22 June 1957, and at their first performance at The Cavern Club.[1] Len remained for a few months, when he had to back out after falling severely ill with Tubercular meningitis.[1] Garry, however, would not return to the group after returning:[1][3]
In 1955 I finally met John Lennon when Ivan Vaughan invited him to Woolton, where I bumped into Lennon, Shotton, Ivan and Nigel walking along Vale Road. I soon became "one of the gang" who would hang around Calderstones Park. In 1956 a lad called George Lee, a friend of Eric Griffiths and John Lennon at Quarry Bank School, suggested to John that he form his own group. This was at the height of the skiffle craze, and sure enough in the autumn of 1956 the band that was to become the Quarrymen took shape, with another Quarry Bank lad called Bill Smith on tea chest bass. Bill however, never turned up for practices and so I soon stepped into his shoes and became a permanent member of the band, staying with the group until August 1958 when I fell seriously ill with tubercular meningitis, spending some 7 months in hospital.
A few months after Len's departure, the band recorded their first singles; That'll Be the Day and In Spite of All the Danger. Garry was one of two members of the Quarrymen, who didn't attend Quarry Bank High School[2] (the latter of which the band was named after), the other being Nigel Walley. Garry was in the same room as John Lennon, when he and McCartney first met on 6 July 1957:[4]
I remember Paul coming along that night at St Peter's Church Hall, picking up a guitar – I didn't even know he was left-handed – and playing a couple of chords. I think he was trying to audition for us. John always wanted someone to support him, no matter what he did, and Paul came along at the right time. It wasn't just about playing guitar together or singing, it was about composing as well.
1994-present[edit]
In 1997, Garry reunited with the then-surviving members of The Quarrymen to perform a concert, to commemorate 40 years since the group's formation.[5] Shortly after, they embarked on a tour which took place in the United Kingdom, United States, Germany, and Japan, among many others. Garry has participated on all Quarrymen releases since; including their three albums; Get Back – Together (1997), Songs We Remember (2004), and Grey Album (2012). Their recent material primarily consists of rock and roll and skiffle songs from the 1950s.
Garry was portrayed by actor Frazer Bird in the 2009 biopic Nowhere Boy.[6]
The Quarrymen performed in New York City, for what would have been Lennon's 70th birthday in 2010.[5]
As of 2016, Garry still tours with founding member Colin Hanton and Rod Davis.
Later life[edit]
As a young adult, Garry worked as in Architecture in Liverpool, and got married. In 1971, he and his wife migrated south to Chard, Somerset.[1] During his time in Somerset, he fronted a rock gospel group called "Come Together", and both of his daughters were born there.[1] In 1987, he and his family migrated to New Zealand, although after a few months, they moved back to England, this time, they moved back to Liverpool, where he still lives today.[1]
Discography[edit]
With The Quarrymen[edit]
Studio Albums[edit]
| Title | Year |
|---|---|
| Get Back – Together | 1997 |
| Songs We Remember | 2004 |
| Grey Album | 2012 |
Live Albums[edit]
| Title | Year |
|---|---|
| Live At The Halfmoon Pub Putney | 2005 |
| The Quarrymen Live! In Penny Lane | 2020 |
References[edit]
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m "Len". www.originalquarrymen.co.uk. Retrieved 2023-04-07.
- ^ a b "Len Garry". McCartney Times. 2016-11-05. Retrieved 2023-04-07.
- ^ Spitz, Bob (2005). The Beatles : the biography. Internet Archive. New York : Little, Brown. ISBN 978-0-316-80352-6.
- ^ "Paul McCartney's old Quarrymen bandmate reveals touching phone call after John Lennon death". Gold. Retrieved 2023-04-07.
- ^ a b "Best Fest 12". www.fergusonwebconsultants.co.uk. Retrieved 2023-04-08.
- ^ Nowhere Boy (2009) - IMDb, retrieved 2023-04-08
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