Average White Band
Biography
The Average White Band (AWB) is a Scottish soul and funk band formed in London in 1972. The band consists of Cliff Lyons on alto sax, keyboards, and vocals, Rob Aries on keyboard and bass, Onnie McIntrye on guitar and vocals, Brent Carter on lead vocals, Alan Gorrie on lead vocals, bass, and guitar, Rocky Bryant on drums, and Fred "Freddy V" Vigdor on tenor sax, keyboards, and vocals.
Known for their instrumental hit "Pick Up the Pieces," the bands strength lies in their consistently accomplished songwriting, stretching across several gold-selling albums and multi-Grammy nominations for Atlantic Records. Despite their Scottish roots, the six-piece band developed their own "authentic" sound influenced by R and B heroes such as Marvin Gaye, James Brown, and Donny Hathaway, which was eagerly adopted by black audiences in the US and elsewhere.
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Many of the bands cuts, such as "Cut The Cake" and "Lets Go Round Again," attracted chart action as hit singles, while album tracks like "Schoolboy Crush" and "Person to Person" became much-sampled "rare" grooves. Other tunes like "Cloudy," "A Love Of Your Own," and "Nothing You Can Do" stand alongside some of the finest soul album tracks ever recorded.
The current lineup of the band, with noted US musicians alongside founding members Alan Gorrie and Onnie McIntyre, continues to delight audiences and critics alike in its wide-ranging touring. The musical energy and trademark sound are remarkably true to the original, and with constant revisitation and re-workings of AWBs, and others classics in the mix, it is no surprise that the Average White Band is now a multi-generational attraction and a perennial fixture with many of the top music venues. Read more on Last.fm. User-contributed text is available under the Creative Commons By-SA License; additional terms may apply.
Biography text from Last.fm, available under CC BY-SA.
