Derek John "Blue" Weaver (born 11 March 1947) is a Welsh rock keyboardist,

session musician A session musician (also known as studio musician or backing musician) is a musician hired to perform in a recording session or a live performance. The term sideman is also used in the case of live performances, such as accompanying a reco ...

, songwriter and

record producer A record producer or music producer is a music creating project's overall supervisor whose responsibilities can involve a range of creative and technical leadership roles. Typically the job involves hands-on oversight of recording sessions; ensu ...

Career

Weaver's career as a musician began as a co-founding member of 1960s Welsh rock band Amen Corner and its successor Fair Weather. In 1971, Weaver joined

Strawbs The Strawbs are an English rock band founded in 1964 as the Strawberry Hill Boys. The band started out as a bluegrass group, but eventually moved on to other styles such as folk rock and progressive rock. They are best known for their hi ...

after keyboardist Rick Wakeman departed to join Yes, contributing notable keyboard and

Mellotron The Mellotron is an electro-mechanical musical instrument developed in Birmingham, England, in 1963. It is played by pressing its keys, each of which causes a length of magnetic tape to contact a Capstan (tape recorder), capstan, which pulls i ...

parts on '' Grave New World'' and '' Bursting at the Seams'', the bands' most successful and critically-acclaimed albums. Weaver left Strawbs in 1973 and toured with Mott the Hoople on their US tour with supporting act

Queen Queen most commonly refers to: * Queen regnant, a female monarch of a kingdom * Queen consort, the wife of a reigning king * Queen (band), a British rock band Queen or QUEEN may also refer to: Monarchy * Queen dowager, the widow of a king * Q ...

. The following year, he toured with Streetwalkers. In 1975, former Amen Corner bandmate Dennis Bryon, who had begun playing drums in The Bee Gees backing band the year before, suggested Weaver as a replacement keyboardist for the band following the departure of Geoff Westley. The three-piece backing band of Weaver, Bryon and the perennial Bee Gees sideman, Alan Kendall, played on the Bee Gees' albums ''

Main Course A main course is the featured or primary dish in a meal consisting of several courses. It usually follows the entrée () course. Usage In the United States and Canada (except Quebec), the main course is traditionally called an "entrée". En ...

'' (1975), '' Children of the World'' (1976), '' Here at Last... Bee Gees... Live'' (1977), and '' Spirits Having Flown'' (1979), as well as the band's famous contributions on the '' Saturday Night Fever''

soundtrack A soundtrack is a recorded audio signal accompanying and synchronised to the images of a book, drama, motion picture, radio program, television show, television program, or video game; colloquially, a commercially released soundtrack album of m ...

, including songs like "

Jive Talkin' "Jive Talkin" is a song by the Bee Gees, released as a single in May 1975 by RSO Records. This was the lead single from the album ''Main Course'' (as well as a song on the 1977 ''Saturday Night Fever (soundtrack), Saturday Night Fever'' soundt ...

" and " You Should Be Dancing". As a songwriter and composer, Weaver was credited as a co-composer on Andy Gibb's hit song, " (Our Love) Don't Throw It All Away", as well as songs for

Jimmy Ruffin Jimmy Lee RuffinRibowsky, Mark (2010), ''Ain't Too Proud to Beg: The Troubled Lives and Enduring Soul of the Temptations'', Hoboken, New Jersey: John Wiley & Sons, p. 89. . (May 7, 1936 – November 17, 2014) was an American soul singer, and ...

's 1980 album ''Sunrise'' with Robin Gibb as lyricist, including the top 10 hit single, "Hold On To My Love”. Weaver composed the soundtrack for the film ''

Times Square Times Square is a major commercial intersection, tourist destination, entertainment hub, and Neighborhoods in New York City, neighborhood in the Midtown Manhattan section of New York City. It is formed by the junction of Broadway (Manhattan), ...

'', again collaborating with Robin Gibb on Gibb's duet with Marcy Levy, "Help Me". In the 1980s, Weaver worked as a session player for the

Pet Shop Boys Pet Shop Boys are an English synth-pop duo formed in London in 1981. Consisting of vocalist Neil Tennant and keyboardist Chris Lowe, they have sold more than 100 million records worldwide and were listed as the most successful duo in UK music h ...

. As of 2009, Weaver was a director and supporter of the Music Producers Guild.

References

External links

Official websiteOfficial blog & BluTubeThe Music Producers Guild
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Weaver, Blue 1947 births Living people Musicians from Cardiff Welsh keyboardists Welsh record producers Welsh session musicians Welsh male songwriters Bee Gees members Immediate Records artists Strawbs members Mott the Hoople members Streetwalkers members