Andy Parker (drummer)

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Andy Parker (2007)

Andrew Maynard "Andy" Parker (born March 21, 1952 in Cheshunt , Hertfordshire , England ) is an English drummer . He is a founding member of the British rock band UFO .

Career

Parker began attending the children's choir in his elementary school called Holy Trinity C of E. When his voice broke off during a solo, however, he stopped. He started playing drums at the age of seven. At the Cheshunt Grammar School , which he attended for the first time when he was eleven, he says he began to devote himself more to playing the drums. In 1965 he bought his first own kit for £ 35. His parents had offered him either to pay for a school trip to Paris or to give him the money. In 1968 he moved to the East Herts College of Further Education and began to study mathematics and physics. Every Monday he visited the Blues Club there to listen to music and discuss things over cigarettes and coffee. In 1969 he founded the blues band Aurora Borealis with his friend Steve Casey . A short time later met Parker in The Golden Lion in Hoddesdon on Phil Mogg , Pete Way and Mick. They were looking for a drummer as they kicked out their old one because of its fishy smell. Steve Casey, who was also there, knew a school friend of Pete Way's and that's how we started talking. When he heard that it was the band Hocus Pocus (then UFO's name), he immediately tried to get a foreplay. He knew the band had expensive equipment and a manager.

UFO (1969–1983)

So finally in 1969 UFO were founded. In 1970 the debut album UFO 1 was released . Parker had to wait until he was 18 because his parents refused to sign the record deal for him. The band had its heyday under the German guitarist Michael Schenker . After Pete Way left the band in 1982 and Michael Schenker had not been with the band since 1978, the group broke up in 1983.

Waysted & retreat to Los Angeles

In 1984 Parker played with his former bandmate Pete Way in his solo project Waysted . In 1984, the album of the same name, Waysted , was released with this group , but it is called an EP due to its only five songs . Stylistically, the band can be classified in Glam Metal . Parker soon left the group, however, as he had to fight a custody battle in his adopted home of Los Angeles . There he passed the state examination as a master builder so that he could take better care of his private life. According to his own statements, his clients from this time include Tina Louise , Lynn Redgrave and Sharon Stone . He also worked with the Nelson twins and helped them get a record deal. With his friend Bobby Barth ( Blackfoot ) he bought a small recording studio in Burbank , California , which they operated until 1992.

UFO reunification (1993–1995)

In 1993 there was the final UFO reunification in the Schenker occupation. After touring Germany in December with Quiet Riot and Doc Holliday , there were several concerts in Japan in 1994. From December 1994 the band recorded the album Walk on Water with producer Ron Nevison . When recording, however, Parker realized that the differences with some of the band members were still irreconcilable and decided to return to England after the album tour.

Another withdrawal

He then opened his own shop. Today he describes this work as stressful and unfulfilling. However, he sometimes jammed with old friends Mick Bolton, Steve Casey, and Colin Poppleton. He also played a few months with the cover band Jack of Herts , because their drummer fell ill.

Another UFO reunion (since 2005)

Andy Parker has been a member of UFO again since 2005. At first he was only asked to help out at the Piorno Rock Festival as Jason Bonham joined Foreigner and was therefore unavailable. Andy Parker, who was about to give up his life in England and return to the USA, accepted. After the gig went well, he stayed in the band. Together they released the album The Monkey Puzzle in 2006 , the album The Visitor in 2009 , the album The Seven Deadly in 2012 and the album A Conspiracy Of Stars in 2015 .

family

Andy Parker has a daughter named Lindsay who was born in 1980. She is now a children's author and has published her first book, Fiona Von Finnigan - Fairy Tale Fixer . After leaving UFO, he had to fight for her custody. His second wife, Jo, whom he married in the eighties, is an actress and, according to her own account, showed him "the jet-set life of Los Angeles". His wife has been fighting breast cancer since 2014 . It is not known whether this marriage resulted in children.

Discography

UFO

Studio albums

  • 1970: UFO 1
  • 1971: UFO 2 Flying
  • 1974: Phenomenon
  • 1975: Force It
  • 1976: No Heavy Petting
  • 1977: Lights Out
  • 1978: obsession
  • 1980: No Place to Run
  • 1981: The Wild, the Willing and the Innocent
  • 1982: Mechanix
  • 1983: Making Contact
  • 1995: Walk on Water
  • 2006: The Monkey Puzzle
  • 2009: The Visitor
  • 2012: Seven Deadly
  • 2015: A Conspiracy Of Stars

Waysted

  • 1984: Waysted (EP)

Web links

Commons : Andy Parker  - Collection of Images
personal data
SURNAME Parker, Andy
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Parker, Andrew Maynard
BRIEF DESCRIPTION English drummer
DATE OF BIRTH March 21, 1952
PLACE OF BIRTH Cheshunt , Hertfordshire , England