Gary Numan | Artist

Gary Anthony James Webb, aka Gary Numan, is an English singer, musician, songwriter, composer, and record producer born 1958 in Hammersmith, London. Numan is considered a pioneer of electronic music, with his signature sound consisting of heavy synthesiser hooks fed through guitar effects pedals. He is also known for his distinctive voice and "android" persona. In 1977 he formed Tubeway Army with his uncle, Jess Lidyard (drums) and Paul Gardiner (bass, vocals). Numan, under the moniker "Valerian", was lead vocalist and played guitar and synthesizer, and song composer. Tubeway Army's self-titled debut album was released in 1978 and Replicas was released the following year. Both albums introduced Numan's fascination with dystopian science fiction and synthesisers. The single "Are Friends Electric?" and the Replicas album both reached No.1 in the charts. The 1979 release of his excellent solo album The Pleasure Principle, saw Numan focus on solo works, with only a few exceptions, for the remainder of his career. The single "Cars" from the album was a huge hit worldwide. The album reached number-one in the UK, and a sell-out tour (The Touring Principle) followed. The concert video it spawned is often cited as the first full-length commercial music video release. The Pleasure Principle was a rock album with no guitars, Numan used synthesisers fed through guitar effects pedals to achieve a distorted, phased, metallic tone. To-date, Numan has released 26 albums including several film soundtracks. Standout albums include the two Tubeway Army releases, and the solo albums The Pleasure Principle, Telekon, Sacrifice, Pure, Hybrid, and Living Ornaments live. The 2019 archival re-releases of Replicas and The Pleasure Principle are also highly recommended.

Artist Website: garynuman.com

Featured Albums: Gary Numan

Related Artists: Tubeway Army