Pete Quaife
| Pete Quaife | |
|---|---|
 |
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| Background information | |
| Birth name | Peter Alexander Greenlaw Kinnes |
| Born | 31 December 1943 |
| Origin | , England |
| Died | 23 June 2010 (aged 66) Copenhagen, Denmark |
| Genres | Rock, pop |
| Occupation(s) | Musician |
| Instruments | Bass, guitar, backing vocals |
| Years active | 1962–1971 |
| Labels | Pye |
| Associated acts | The Kinks, Mapleoak |
| Notable instruments | |
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Rickenbacker 4001 Gibson EB-3 |
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Peter Alexander Greenlaw "Pete" Quaife (31 December 1943 – 23 June 2010) was an English musician, artist and author. He was a founding member and the original bass guitarist for The Kinks, from 1963 until 1969. He also sang backing vocals on some of their records.
Quaife founded a group known as The Ravens in 1963 with brothers Ray and Dave Davies. In late 1963 or early 1964, they changed their name to The Kinks, and hired Mick Avory as a drummer. The group scored several major international hits throughout the 1960s. Their early singles, including "You Really Got Me" and "All Day and All of the Night", have been cited as an early influence on the hard rock and heavy metal genres. In the band's early days, Quaife, who was generally regarded as the best-looking member, was often their spokesman. Following a ban from touring the United States in 1965, The Kinks focused their efforts on the UK market. Singles such as "Sunny Afternoon" (1966) and "Waterloo Sunset" (1967) showcased lead singer Ray Davies' observational writing style and became Top Ten hits throughout Europe and the UK. Quaife played an important role on the group's influential album The Kinks Are the Village Green Preservation Society, which featured a strong theme of nostalgia. He departed from The Kinks in 1969 and formed the band Mapleoak, which he left in April 1970.
After retiring from the music business, Quaife resided in Denmark throughout the 1970s. He relocated to Belleville, Ontario in 1980, where he worked as a cartoonist and artist. He was diagnosed with renal failure in 1998 and moved back to Denmark in 2005. Quaife died in June 2010 of kidney failure.
Quaife was born Peter Alexander Greenlaw Kinnes in , to Joan Mary Kilby who became pregnant during the war after an affair with an American serviceman. Joan Mary Kilby returned to London with her son, where she married Stanley Melville Quaife in 1947, who gave his surname to the young Peter. Quaife attended Coldfall Primary School in Muswell Hill and later William Grimshaw School (now Fortismere School where a plaque has been erected to his memory by his brother David Quaife and Penny Toumazou). After a brief period studying commercial art, he formed The Kinks in 1962 along with school friend Ray Davies and subsequently asked Ray's brother Dave Davies to join. The band was originally called The Ravens and performed rhythm and blues at local venues such as the Hornsey Recreation Club at Crouch End Secondary School. The 'Kinks' name came about only upon the signing of a recording contract in late 1963.
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