Hank Marvin
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-->Hank B. Marvin (born Brian Robson Rankin, October 28 1941, Newcastle upon Tyne, England) is the lead guitarist of the (mainly) instrumental group The Shadows, formed initially as a backing band for Cliff Richard.
The Shadows inspired guitarists like Eric Clapton, David Gilmour, Brian May, George Harrison, Mark Knopfler, Neil Young and Pete Townshend and are therefore considered to be Britain's most influential band before the era of The Beatles.
As a youngster, he played the banjo and the piano. Hearing one of Buddy Holly's songs made him switch to the guitar, although he occasionally played both instruments in recordings. At the age of 16, he travelled with his friend Bruce Welch to London, where he met Johnny Foster (Cliff Richard's manager) at the Two Is Coffee Bar (pronounced: "two eyes") in Soho. Foster was looking for a guitarist for Richard's imminent tour of the UK, and Hank agreed to join as long as there was also a vacancy for his Newcastle band-mate, Bruce. Foster had actually been looking for guitarist Tony Sheridan at the Two Is and so had encountered the 16-yr-old Hank by the merest chance. Hank and Bruce both joined The Drifters (as Cliff's group was then known). This started their careers as professional guitar players. They actually met Cliff for the first time at a nearby Soho tailor's shop (Cliff was having a fitting for a pink stage jacket) and had their first rehearsal with him after travelling with him to his parents' home in Cheshunt, Herts, by Green Line bus.
Hank Marvin was the user of what is thought to have been the first Fender Stratocaster in the UK, serial number 34,346, finished in a Coral Pink shade of Fiesta Red, sometimes referred to as 'Salmon Pink' and this guitar with its tremolo arm contributed to the Shadows' distinctive sound. The guitar was imported from America by Cliff Richard for Hank to use.
Hank's original sound was achieved by the use of a Stratocaster, a Vox amplifier (AC15 and AC30 models) and a tape echo machine, his first being a MEAZZI ECHOMATIC echo. He later used a Vox and then a Binson (Drum) Echo Machine. Currently he is using "Echoes from the Past (EFTP)".
Hank Marvin and Cliff Richard looked through a Fender catalogue to find the guitar played by James Burton, Ricky Nelson's lead guitarist. They assumed that it would be the a Stratocaster. Burton however played the Telecaster as the Stratocaster was a relatively new product. Although Hank used that guitar between 1959 and 1961, it remained Cliff's property and was returned to him when the importers of Fender guitars outfitted the whole group with new matching red guitars. The instrument is now owned by Bruce Welch - a gift from Cliff Richard in the 1970s in gratitude for his production work on several of Cliff's hit albums.
Hank worked in conjunction with Jim Burns in the early 1960s to produce his own signature model called the 'Burns Marvin'. A 12 string version called the 'Double Six' was also produced. In 1967 Baldwin took over Burns and the 1600 original Burns made Marvins are now highly sought after. Burns made a limited reissue of 2004 signature guitars with a personally signed certificate of authenticity by Hank which he promoted on the 2004 Final Tour. In the 1960s Vox also made a Hank Marvin signature Fender styled guitar. Unfortunately Hank's guitars were stolen in 1970 and never appeared again.
Although neither Hank Marvin nor the Shadows were ever well known in the United States, despite several appearances on the Ed Sullivan Show, Marvin is nonetheless listed by Frank Zappa as an early influence on the first Mothers of Invention album, and Afrikaa Bambaataa cited the group's first UK number one single "Apache" as a big influence.
As well as playing with The Shadows, Hank Marvin has enjoyed a successful solo career as a performer and a recording artist. He has been willing to experiment with styles and material, doing some purely instrumental albums, some with only vocals (e.g. All Alone With Friends), one with only acoustic guitars, and one with a guitar orchestra (The Hank Marvin Guitar Syndicate).
As a songwriter he was responsible for "Geronimo" for The Shadows and "The Day I Met Marie", and as co-writer with Bruce Welch, Brian Bennett and John Rostill he penned other hits mainly for Cliff Richard such as on "I Could Easily Fall in Love with You" and "In the Country".
In 1988 Hank Marvin had a guest role at a concert by Jean-Michel Jarre in front of the industrial backdrop of London's East End Docklands, in a concert entitled Destination Docklands.
Hank Marvin has lived in Perth, Western Australia since 1986. Hank became a Jehovah's Witnesses and currently serves as an elder in a congregation in Australia.
After thirteen years away from the Shadows, Hank Marvin and the Shadows reformed for a 2004 Final Tour, which was so successful that a 2005 tour was also organised.
See also
- List of bands/musicians from North East England
| The Shadows |
|---|
| Hank Marvin | Bruce Welch | Brian Bennett Jet Harris | Tony Meehan | Brian Locking | John Rostill |
| Production |
| Norrie Paramor | Peter Vince | Warren Bennett | Abbey Road Studios |
| Related articles |
| Cliff Richard | 1960s |
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