James Cregan (born 9 March 1946) is an English rock guitarist and bassist, best known for his associations with

Family Family (from ) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). It forms the basis for social order. Ideally, families offer predictabili ...

, Steve Harley & Cockney Rebel, and

Rod Stewart Sir Roderick David Stewart (born 10 January 1945) is a British singer and songwriter. Known for his distinctive raspy singing voice, Stewart is among the List of best-selling music artists, best-selling music artists of all time, having sold ...

. Cregan is a former husband of the singer Linda Lewis and worked with her as a record producer. He has also worked with The Quireboys, Glass Tiger, Katie Melua and formed Farm Dogs with

Bernie Taupin Bernard John Taupin (born 22 May 1950) is an English lyricist and visual artist. He is best known for his songwriting partnership with Elton John, recognised as one of the most successful partnerships of its kind in history. Taupin co-wrote th ...

Career

Cregan was born in

Yeovil Yeovil () is a town and civil parishes in England, civil parish in Somerset, England. It is close to Somerset's southern border with Dorset, west of London, south of Bristol, west of Sherborne and east of Taunton. The population of the bui ...

, Somerset, to Irish parents. When he was 14, he joined The Falcons, formed whilst he was at

Poole Grammar School Poole Grammar School (commonly abbreviated to PGS) is an 11–18 selective boys grammar school and academy in the coastal town of Poole in Dorset, in the south of England. The school is twinned with Parkstone Grammar School. It is a member of t ...

. After developing his next band ''The Disastisfied Blues Band'', Cregan briefly joined with future

Traffic Traffic is the movement of vehicles and pedestrians along land routes. Traffic laws govern and regulate traffic, while rules of the road include traffic laws and informal rules that may have developed over time to facilitate the orderly an ...

frontman

Dave Mason David Thomas Mason (born 10 May 1946) is an English singer-songwriter and guitarist from Worcester, who came to prominence in 1967 as a founding member of the rock band Traffic. While with Traffic, he wrote and sang lead vocals on two of the b ...

, in ''Julian Covay and the Machine'' in 1967 and moved on to join the rock and soul band ''The Ingoes'' as a vocalist and guitarist. This band soon morphed into the psychedelic Blossom Toes the same year, who later turned to guitar-led rock. After recording

Julie Driscoll Julie Driscoll Tippett (born 8 June 1947) is an English singer and actress, known for her work with Brian Auger and her husband, Keith Tippett. Career Driscoll is known for her 1960s versions of Bob Dylan and Rick Danko's " This Wheel's on F ...

's solo album '' 1969,'' Cregan joined the soft rock band Stud. The group featured Cregan, John Weider from

, and also John Wilson and Richard McCracken, the rhythm section from

Taste The gustatory system or sense of taste is the sensory system that is partially responsible for the perception of taste. Taste is the perception stimulated when a substance in the mouth biochemistry, reacts chemically with taste receptor cells l ...

(best known as

Rory Gallagher William Rory Gallagher ( ; 2 March 1948 – 14 June 1995) was an Irish musician, singer, and songwriter. Regarded as "Ireland's first rock star", he is known for his virtuosic style of guitar playing and live performances. He has sometim ...

's pre-solo power trio). Stud dissolved when Cregan moved to Family in September 1972, after

recording A record, recording or records may refer to: An item or collection of data Computing * Record (computer science), a data structure ** Record, or row (database), a set of fields in a database related to one entity ** Boot sector or boot record, re ...

two albums which were released in Germany, where they had their largest audience. He joined Charlie Whitney and

Roger Chapman Roger Maxwell Chapman (born 8 April 1942 in Leicester), also known as Chappo, is an English Rock music, rock vocalist. He is best known as a member of the progressive rock band Family (band), Family, which he joined along with Charlie Whitney ...

, replacing bassist

John Wetton John Kenneth Wetton (12 June 1949 – 31 January 2017) was an English musician, singer, and songwriter. Although he was left-handed, he was known for his skilled right-handed bass playing as well as his booming baritone voice. He was a member ...

, adapting from rhythm guitar to bass guitar. He toured North America with the band, as the support act for

Elton John Sir Elton Hercules John (born Reginald Kenneth Dwight; 25 March 1947) is a British singer, songwriter and pianist. His music and showmanship have had a significant, lasting impact on the music industry, and his songwriting partnership with l ...

, in the autumn of 1972. Family recorded two singles and a final album '' It's Only a Movie'' (1973). A tour of the UK in the autumn of the same year preceded the demise of the band. Cregan was then briefly reunited with Chapman and Whitney on Chapman Whitney Streetwalkers (1974). He went on to work with British soul singer Linda Lewis, whom he would later marry. Cregan appears on four of her albums, also assuming a production role on ''Lark'' (1972), ''Fathoms deep'' (1973) and ''Not A Little Girl Anymore'' (1975), which gave him the opportunity to work with the

Tower of Power Tower of Power is an American R&B and funk based band and horn section, originating in Oakland, California, that has been performing since 1968. The band has had a number of lead vocalists, the best-known being Lenny Williams, who fronted ...

horn section. In October 1974 Cregan was recruited as a guitarist by

Steve Harley Stephen Malcolm Ronald Nice (27 February 1951 – 17 March 2024), known by his stage name Steve Harley, was an English singer-songwriter and frontman of the rock music, rock group Steve Harley & Cockney Rebel, Cockney Rebel. The band achieved ...

, as a member of a re-formed

Cockney Rebel Steve Harley & Cockney Rebel were an English rock band who formed in the early 1970s in London. Their music covered a range of styles from pop to progressive rock. Over the years, they have had five albums on the UK Albums Chart and twelve s ...

. Harley and his new Cockney Rebel line-up recorded " Make Me Smile (Come Up and See Me)" (1975) at

Abbey Road Studios Abbey Road Studios (formerly EMI Recording Studios) is a music recording studio at 3 Abbey Road, London, Abbey Road, St John's Wood, City of Westminster, London. It was established in November 1931 by the Gramophone Company, a predecessor of ...

. The song rose to No. 1 in the UK Singles Chart during 1975. It eventually rose to No. 1 in Europe and Australia as well and featured a guitar break by Cregan, widely believed to have been recorded during a

soundcheck A soundcheck is the preparation that takes place before a concert, speech, or similar performance to adjust the sound on the venue's sound reinforcement or public address system. The performer and the audio engineers run through a small po ...

. However Cregan's acoustic guitar break was recorded late at night in

in several takes. In 1976 he joined Rod Stewart's band and became Stewart's musical director, co-producer and co-writer. Cregan co-wrote many hits with Stewart, including "Passion" and "Tonight I'm Yours (Don't Hurt Me)", winning the

American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers The American Society of Composers, Authors, and Publishers (ASCAP) () is an American not-for-profit performance-rights organization (PRO) that collectively licenses the public performance rights of its members' musical works to venues, broadc ...

(ASCAP) award for outstanding songwriting, with each. Cregan was awarded a third ASCAP "outstanding songwriting" award for his co-writing of the song " Forever Young" (1988) and Stewart was awarded a

Grammy Award The Grammy Awards, stylized as GRAMMY, and often referred to as The Grammys, are awards presented by The Recording Academy of the United States to recognize outstanding achievements in music. They are regarded by many as the most prestigious ...

for his performance of this song. He stayed with Stewart until 1995 after twelve years working together. Cregan has received thirteen multi-

platinum Platinum is a chemical element; it has Symbol (chemistry), symbol Pt and atomic number 78. It is a density, dense, malleable, ductility, ductile, highly unreactive, precious metal, precious, silverish-white transition metal. Its name origina ...

awards for his work with Stewart and together they have thirty recorded songs to their joint credit. In 1990 he spent time writing and producing heavy rock band The Quireboys's '' A Bit of What You Fancy'' (1990) which gave him singles chart success and Canadian rockers Glass Tiger, who achieved international success and platinum selling albums. They were also awarded three

Juno Award The Juno Awards (stylized as JUNOS), or simply known as the Junos, are awards presented by Canadian Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences, the Canadian Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences to recognize outstanding achievements in Canada's mu ...

s, received in Canada. In 1993 Cregan was reunited with Stewart to record '' Unplugged...and Seated'' which was also filmed by

MTV MTV (an initialism of Music Television) is an American cable television television channel, channel and the flagship property of the MTV Entertainment Group sub-division of the Paramount Media Networks division of Paramount Global. Launched on ...

and featured a guest appearance by

Ronnie Wood Ronald David Wood (born 1 June 1947) is an English rock musician, best known as a member of the Rolling Stones since 1975, and a member of Faces and the Jeff Beck Group. Wood began his career in 1964, playing lead guitar with several Brit ...

. This recording became Platinum three times in both USA and Canada. In the same year Cregan recorded

Van Morrison Sir George Ivan "Van" Morrison (born 31 August 1945) is a Northern Irish singer-songwriter and musician whose recording career started in the 1960s. Morrison's albums have performed well in the UK and Ireland, with more than 40 reaching the UK ...

's song " Have I Told You Lately" (1993) with Stewart, which became a number 1 hit in UK and had top twenty success elsewhere. Cregan's biggest concert appearance with Stewart was on 31 December 1994 at Copacabanain

Rio de Janeiro Rio de Janeiro, or simply Rio, is the capital of the Rio de Janeiro (state), state of Rio de Janeiro. It is the List of cities in Brazil by population, second-most-populous city in Brazil (after São Paulo) and the Largest cities in the America ...

, where they appeared in front of a total estimated audience of over 3.5 million. The ''Guinness Book of World Records'' states that this was "the staging of the largest outdoor concert in history". In 1995, he moved on to form Farm Dogs with Elton John's lyricist

and they released two albums. During 1997, Cregan started to work with Windham Hill Records as both a producer and musician. Over the next four years he worked as producer and musician with artists such as

Janis Ian Janis Ian (born Janis Eddy Fink; April 7, 1951) is an American singer-songwriter who was most commercially successful in the 1960s and 1970s. Her signature songs are the 1966/67 hit "Society's Child, Society's Child (Baby I've Been Thinking)" an ...

, Kathleen Keane,

Peabo Bryson Robert Peapo "Peabo" Bryson ( ; born April 13, 1951) is an American singer and songwriter. He is known for singing soul ballads (often as a duet with female singers) including the hit singles " Tonight, I Celebrate My Love", "You're Looking Like ...

Cat Stevens Yusuf Islam (born Steven Demetre Georgiou; ), commonly known by his stage names Cat Stevens, Yusuf, and Yusuf / Cat Stevens, is a British singer-songwriter and musician. He has sold more than 100 million records and has more than two billion st ...

, W.G Snuffy Walden, Grand Drive,

Gaelic Storm Gaelic Storm is an American Celtic music, Celtic band founded in Santa Monica, California, Santa Monica, California, in 1996. Their musical output includes pieces from traditional Music of Ireland, Irish music, Scottish music, and original tune ...

and

Joe Cocker John Robert "Joe" Cocker (20 May 1944 – 22 December 2014) was an English singer known for his gritty, bluesy voice and dynamic stage performances featuring expressive body movements. Most of his best-known singles, such as "Feelin' Alright ...

. His work achieved top five hits in different charts and several more platinum selling records. He recorded two platinum selling albums with Katie Melua, '' Call off the Search'' (2003) and '' Piece By Piece'' (2005), he has also toured extensively with her. Cregan was re-united with

in 2005, at first for live performances and then to produce Chapman's solo album ''One More Time For Peace'' (2007). In 2008, Cregan formed Creative Music Management with music business lawyer Robert W. Allan. Together they managed singer songwriter, Charlie Hole. Hole's first album, ''The Joy of a Caged Bird'', was released in December 2012 on Cocomack Records. In 2011, he formed his own band, Cregan & Co. This gave him the opportunity to perform the songs he had written, recorded and co-produced with Rod Stewart. In January 2013, Roger Chapman reformed Family for two concerts in London at the Shepherd's Bush Empire, coinciding with Family winning ''

Classic Rock Classic rock is a radio format that developed from the album-oriented rock (AOR) format in the early 1980s. In the United States, it comprises rock music ranging generally from the mid-1960s through the early-1990s, primarily focusing on comm ...

'' magazine's "Spirit of Progressive Rock" Award. On 13 September 2015, Cregan joined Rod Stewart on stage at the

BBC Radio 2 BBC Radio 2 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC. It is the List of most-listened-to radio programs, most popular station in the United Kingdom with over 14 million weekly listeners. Since launching in 1967, the sta ...

"Live in

Hyde Park, London Hyde Park is a , historic Listed building#Heritage protection, Grade I-listed urban park in Westminster, Greater London. A Royal Parks of London, Royal Park, it is the largest of the parks and green spaces that form a chain from Kensington P ...

Festival" and joined Family for the group's final shows in late 2016, as part of a line up which only featured Chapman, Poli Palmer and Cregan's work with the band. In 2019, Cregan released his autobiography ''And on Guitar...'' for which Stewart wrote the foreword. Along with broadcaster Alex Dyke and

Spandau Ballet Spandau Ballet ( ) were an English new wave band formed in Islington, London, in 1979. Inspired by the capital's post-punk underground dance scene, they emerged at the start of the 1980s as the house band for the Blitz Kids (New Romantics), ...

singer Tony Hadley, he began a podcast in 2020 called ''Stars Cars Guitars'', which is also hosted on a

YouTube YouTube is an American social media and online video sharing platform owned by Google. YouTube was founded on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim who were three former employees of PayPal. Headquartered in ...

channel.

Discography

With Mike Batt * '' Tarot Suite'' (1979) * ''Waves'' (1980) With Blossom Toes * '' We Are Ever So Clean'' (1967) * '' If Only for a Moment'' (1969) With

* '' One More Time For Peace'' (Mystic, 2007) With

Rita Coolidge Rita Coolidge (born May 1, 1945) is an American recording artist. During the 1970s and 1980s, her songs were on ''Billboard'' magazine's pop, country, adult contemporary, and jazz charts, and she won two Grammy Awards with fellow musician and th ...

* ''Love Lessons'' (Alfa, 1992) With

* '' 1969'' (1971) With David Essex * ''Cover Shot'' (Polygram, 1993) With

* '' It's Only a Movie'' (1973) With Farm Dogs * '' Last Stand in Open Country'' (1996) * '' Immigrant Sons'' (1998) With

* '' Hobo with a Grin'' (EMI, 1978) * '' Yes You Can'' (CTE, 1992) * '' Uncovered'' (Absolute, 2020) With Steve Harley & Cockney Rebel * ''

The Best Years of Our Lives ''The Best Years of Our Lives'' (also known as ''Glory for Me'' and ''Home Again'') is a 1946 American drama film directed by William Wyler and starring Myrna Loy, Fredric March, Dana Andrews, Teresa Wright, Virginia Mayo and Harold Ru ...

'' (EMI, 1975) * '' Timeless Flight'' (EMI, 1976) * ''

Love's a Prima Donna Love's Travel Stops, doing business as Love's (or stylized as Loves), is an American family-owned and -operated chain of more than 650 truck stops in 42 states in the United States. The company is privately owned and headquartered in Oklahoma ...

'' (EMI, 1976) With Murray Head * ''

Say It Ain't So "Say It Ain't So" is a song by American rock band Weezer. It was released as the third and final single from the band's self-titled 1994 debut album on May 15, 1995. Written by frontman Rivers Cuomo, the song came to be after he had all the mu ...

'' (Island, 1976) * '' Between Us'' (Phillips, 1979) With

* '' God and the FBI'' (Windham Hill, 2000) With Linda Lewis * ''

Lark Larks are passerine birds of the family Alaudidae. Larks have a cosmopolitan distribution with the largest number of species occurring in Africa. Only a single species, the horned lark, occurs in North America, and only Horsfield's bush lark occ ...

'' (1972) * '' Fathoms Deep'' (1973) * '' Not a Little Girl Anymore'' (1975) * '' Woman Overboard'' (1977) With Katie Melua * '' Call off the Search'' (Dramatico, 2003) * '' Piece by Piece'' (Dramatico, 2005) With The Quireboys * '' A Bit of What You Fancy'' (1990) With Bruce Roberts * ''Bruce Roberts'' (1978) With

* '' Foot Loose & Fancy Free'' (Warner Bros., 1977) * ''

Blondes Have More Fun ''Blondes Have More Fun'' is British musician Rod Stewart's ninth studio album, released in November 1978. As was the popular musical trend at the time, it is Stewart's foray into disco music. The album was commercially successful, reaching num ...

'' (Warner Bros., 1978) * '' Foolish Behaviour'' (Riva, 1980) * ''

Tonight I'm Yours ''Tonight I'm Yours'' is the eleventh studio album by Rod Stewart, released in 1981. It features hints of classic rock, pop and new wave. The album had three hit singles, with the title track " Tonight I'm Yours (Don't Hurt Me)" (US ''Billboard ...

'' (Riva, 1981) * '' Body Wishes'' (Warner Bros., 1983) * ''

Camouflage Camouflage is the use of any combination of materials, coloration, or illumination for concealment, either by making animals or objects hard to see, or by disguising them as something else. Examples include the leopard's spotted coat, the b ...

'' (Warner Bros., 1984) * '' Every Beat of My Heart'' (Warner Bros., 1986) * '' Out of Order'' (Warner Bros., 1988) * '' Vagabond Heart'' (Warner Bros., 1991) * ''

A Spanner in the Works '' A Spanner in the Works '' is the seventeenth studio album released by Rod Stewart on 29 May 1995. It ended a four-year gap since his previous studio album, '' Vagabond Heart''. Although he did release the live album '' Unplugged...and Seated' ...

'' (Warner Bros., 1995) * ''

Time Time is the continuous progression of existence that occurs in an apparently irreversible process, irreversible succession from the past, through the present, and into the future. It is a component quantity of various measurements used to sequ ...

'' (Capitol, 2013) With Streetwalkers * '' Chapman Whitney Streetwalkers'' (1974) With Stud * ''September'' (1972) * ''Goodbye Live at Command'' (1973) With Roger Taylor * '' Happiness?'' (Parlophone, 1994) With Glass Tiger * '' Air Time: The Best of Glass Tiger'' (1993) With various artists * ''Tribute to Curtis Mayfield'' with Rod Stewart (1994)

Music videos

Personal life

Cregan was married to Linda Lewis for five years. He later married

Hollywood Hollywood usually refers to: * Hollywood, Los Angeles, a neighborhood in California * Hollywood, a metonym for the cinema of the United States Hollywood may also refer to: Places United States * Hollywood District (disambiguation) * Hollywood ...

model Jane Booke and lived in Los Angeles. On Steve Harley's

show aired in January 2004, he explained that he had grown tired of Los Angeles culture and moved back to the U.K.

References

External links