Chris Rainbow
| Chris Rainbow | |
|---|---|
| Birth name | Christopher James Harley |
| Also known as | Christopher Rainbow |
| Born |
18 November 1946 Glasgow, Scotland |
| Died |
22 February 2015 (aged 68) Isle of Skye, Scotland |
| Genres | Pop rock, ambient music |
| Occupation(s) | Singer, record producer, songwriter |
| Years active | 1971–2015 |
| Labels | EMI, Polydor, Vital Spark Music |
| Associated acts | Alan Parsons Project, Runrig, Camel |
22 February 2015 (aged 68)
Christopher James Harley, known by the stage name Chris Rainbow (18 November 1946 – 22 February 2015), was a Scottish rock singer and musician who had two hit songs, "Give Me What I Cry For" and "Solid State Brain" in the 1970s.
In addition to his solo career he was a very highly regarded vocalist and vocal arranger who sang with many rock, pop & progressive bands as well as solo artists. Latterly, he owned his own studio and worked as a respected producer.
He was born the son of James Harley and Pamela Clapham. He adopted the stage name "Rainbow" to avoid confusion with Steve Harley, saying:
"Steve Harley was at his peak and I didn't want any confusion. The name Rainbow was found one evening as me and some friends were watching TV and the reporter's name flashed on the screen as 'Christopher Rainbow', so that was that."
Rainbow had a severe stutter which disappeared when he sang.
Between 1972-73, Rainbow was involved in a band called Hopestreet. Following this, he recorded first as Christopher Rainbow, then Chris Rainbow, and released three solo albums Home of the Brave in 1975, Looking Over My Shoulder in 1977, and White Trails in 1979. Tracks from the latter two albums are collected on The Best of Chris Rainbow, 1972–1980, which has appeared in single and double CD sets and includes radio spots, and rare and unreleased material.
At this time Rainbow received much wider recognition for his music through the support of Kenny Everett, then on Capital Radio in London, who featured his music extensively. Some of the jingles that Rainbow made for Capital at this time were later released on an album of out-takes, demos and unreleased material.
Rainbow wrote, produced and recorded jingles for Capital Radio 95.8FM 1973 to 1984 for Kenny Everett, Mike Aspel, Tommy Vance, David Symonds and others. The jingles were arranged for broadcast by Tommy Vance and Terence Dackombe.
Rainbow made frequent vocal contributions to The Alan Parsons Project, starting on their 1979 album Eve through to their 1987 album Gaudi, and Eric Woolfson's Freudiana (1990) (an APP album in all but name).
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