Andy Fairweather Low

Andrew Fairweather Low (born 2 August 1948) is a Welsh guitarist and singer. He was a founding member and lead singer of 1960s pop band Amen Corner, and in recent years has toured extensively with Roger Waters, Eric Clapton and Bill Wyman's Rhythm Kings.
Fairweather Low was born in Ystrad Mynach, Wales, to working-class parents. The family, including his two brothers, lived in an "unheated council house" on an estate; his father, a road sweeper, was unable to afford a car. Fairweather Low's first opportunity to play guitar came when he took a Saturday job at a music shop in Cardiff. He achieved fame as a founding member of the pop group Amen Corner in the late 1960s. They had four successive top-ten hits on the UK Singles Chart, including the number-one single "(If Paradise Is) Half as Nice" in 1969. In the description of AllMusic critic William Ruhlmann, the band's overnight success and Fairweather Low's teen idol looks "put his attractive face on the bedroom walls of teenage girls all over Britain".
Amen Corner split in two in 1970, with Fairweather Low leading Dennis Bryon (drums), Blue Weaver (organ), Clive Taylor (bass) and Neil Jones (guitar) into a new band, Fair Weather. The band's "Natural Sinner" peaked at No. 6 in the UK in July 1970, but their albums, Beginning From An End and Let Your Mind Roll On, failed to chart. After twelve months, Fairweather Low left to pursue a solo career. He released four albums up to 1980 on A&M and Warner Bros. These spawned further single chart success with "Reggae Tune" (1974), and "Wide Eyed and Legless", a No. 6 Christmas-time hit in 1975. Welsh group Budgie covered "I Ain't No Mountain" off Fairweather Low's 1974 album Spider Jivingon their 1975 release Bandolier.
(read more on Wikipedia)
==Links to Peel==
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Peel was aware of Andy's band, Amen Corner, where he famously mentioned forgetting the band's name when presenting his debut appearance on Top Of The Pops in 1968. He kept interest in Andy's solo music career and praised his single, 'Reggae Tune', in Singles Reviews, published in Sounds on 7th September 1974, as a pleasant song and he believed in the same article that Andy was on his way back into the charts. The song indeed went into the charts peaking at number 10.
In his columns for Sounds, Peel recalled being given a lift by the musician in 1976 and discovering he was a fellow fan of Jimmy Reed, as well as listing his 1977 session among the early highlights of a "bang-on year".
Andy did two sessions for Peel's shows and his records were played by the DJ until the early 80's. After the early 80's, Fairweather concentrated more on being a session musician, performing as a backing vocalist and guitarist on albums by Roy Wood, Leo Sayer, Albion Band, Gerry Rafferty, Helen Watson, and Richard and Linda Thompson.
After Peel's death in 2004, it was later found out that he several albums from the singer including his band, Fair Weather, in his Record Collection: F.
In 2017, Andy Fairweather Low was interviewed about his sessions for John Peel for the radio documentary, John Peel's Welsh Sessions, broadcast on BBC Radio Wales.
==Sessions==
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1. Recorded: 1975-10-21. First Broadcast: 17 November 1975. Repeated: 12 January 1976
*If Ever I Get Lucky / Inner City Highwayman / Jump Up And Turn Around / Wide-Eyed And Legless
2. Recorded: 1977-01-31. First Broadcast: 07 February 1977. Repeated: 02 June 1977
*Checking Out The Checker / Lightin' U / Ain't No Fun / Be-Bop 'N' Holla / Shimme Doo Wah Sae
==Other Shows Played==
;1976
*03 February 1976: Champagne Melody (7") A&M
*31 August 1976: If I Ever Get Lucky (7" - Travellin' Light) A&M
;thumb|220x220px1980
*16 June 1980: Night Time Djuking (LP – Mega-Shebang) Warner Bros
*17 June 1980: Whole Lotta Someday (LP – Mega-Shebang) Warner Bros
*19 June 1980: A Fool 4 Some (LP – Mega-Shebang) Warner
*25 June 1980: Night Time Djuking (LP - Mega-Shebang) Warner Bros
*12 August 1980: Night Time Djuking (LP - Mega-Shebang) Warner Bros
==External Links==
*Wikipedia
*Discogs
*Official Website
Category:Artists