Martin Gordon (born 3 May 1954) is an English musician who plays

bass guitar The bass guitar (), also known as the electric bass guitar, electric bass, or simply the bass, is the lowest-pitched member of the guitar family. It is similar in appearance and construction to an Electric guitar, electric but with a longer nec ...

double bass The double bass (), also known as the upright bass, the acoustic bass, the bull fiddle, or simply the bass, is the largest and lowest-pitched string instrument, chordophone in the modern orchestra, symphony orchestra (excluding rare additions ...

, and piano. After a long period as band member and session musician, he embarked on a solo career in 2004. His most recent album release was in 2024.

Biography

Martin Gordon was born in Ipswich, and grew up in

Hitchin Hitchin () is a market town in the North Hertfordshire Districts of England, district of Hertfordshire, England. The town dates from at least the 7th century. It lies in the valley of the River Hiz at the north-eastern end of the Chiltern Hills ...

, Hertfordshire. He studied piano and classical guitar as a child and attended summer schools hosted by the British National Jazz Youth Orchestra, where he took lessons from Nucleus bassist Jeff Clyne. Gordon began his musical career in the 1970s with the Californian pop

brothers A brother (: brothers or brethren) is a man or boy who shares one or more parents with another; a male sibling. The female counterpart is a sister. Although the term typically refers to a familial relationship, it is sometimes used endearingl ...

Ron Mael Ronald David Mael (born August 12, 1945) is an American musician, songwriter, composer and record producer. He is the keyboard player and principal songwriter in the band Sparks (band), Sparks, which he founded with vocalist, occasional songwrit ...

and

Russell Mael Russell Craig Mael (born October 5, 1948) is an American singer best known as the lead singer for the band Sparks (band), Sparks, which he formed in 1971 with his elder brother Ron Mael. Mael is known for his wide vocal range, in particular his f ...

in Sparks, who were seeking a bassist after their relocation to the UK. Gordon played with Sparks on the album '' Kimono My House'', which featured his trademark

Rickenbacker 4001 The Rickenbacker 4001 is an bass guitar, electric bass that was manufactured by Rickenbacker as a two-Pickup (music technology), pickup "deluxe" version of their first production bass, the single-pickup model 4000. This design, created by Roger ...

bass. " This Town Ain't Big Enough for the Both of Us" and "'Amateur Hour" were UK

hits Hits or H.I.T.S. may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Music * '' H.I.T.S.'', 1991 album by New Kids on the Block * ''...Hits'' (Phil Collins album), 1998 * ''Hits'' (compilation series), 1984–2006; 2014, a British compilation album s ...

from that album. "This Town..." made No. 2 in the UK Singles Chart but, after one album, Gordon and Sparks parted company. He then formed Jet (described by

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All-Music Guide and AMG) is an American online database, online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on Musical artist, musicians and Mus ...

as "the first supergroup of

glam Glam is a shortened form of the word glamour. Glam or GLAM may also refer to: Film * ''Glam'' (film), a 1997 experimental drama film Institutions * University of Glamorgan, founded in 1913 and merged into the University of South Wales in 2013 ...

") and then

Radio Stars Radio Stars are an English punk rock band formed in early 1977. They released two albums and had one UK Singles Chart, UK Top 40 single. Career Radio Stars were formed by Sparks (band), Sparks exile Martin Gordon (bass, songwriter) and also i ...

. Both bands featured singer Andy Ellison, drummer Chris Townson, and guitarist Ian Macleod. Jet's eponymous album was produced by

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 ...

producer Roy Thomas Baker. Between the demise of Jet and its reincarnation as Radio Stars in 1976, he performed briefly with pioneer of American punk Ian North; along with drummer

Paul Simon Paul Frederic Simon (born October 13, 1941) is an American singer-songwriter known for his solo work and his collaborations with Art Garfunkel. He and Garfunkel, whom he met in elementary school in 1953, came to prominence in the 1960s as Sim ...

, Gordon played a handful of dates with Ian's Radio before rejoining members of Jet to form Radio Stars. Radio Stars achieved a modicum of success with a single "Nervous Wreck" (which charted at No. 38 in the UK Singles Chart) and two critically well-received albums ''Songs for Swinging Lovers'' and '' Holiday Album''. The band has been anthologised with ''Two Minutes Mr Smith'' (Moonlight Records) and ''Somewhere There's a Place For Us'' ( Ace Records). Ace Records re-released the Radio Stars catalogue on CD in 2003. In 2008, Radio Stars reformed for a gig at London's Blow Up Metro Club, to promote the release of live recordings from the 1970s entitled ''Something for the Weekend''. The performance featured original members Martin Gordon, Andy Ellison and Ian Macleod accompanied by drummer Steve Budney who performed on Gordon's 2007 solo debut in

Boston Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...

Massachusetts Massachusetts ( ; ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Maine to its east, Connecticut and Rhode ...

, United States. The band also performed one-off gigs at the Rebellion Festival in London (13 December 2008) and at London's

100 Club The 100 Club is a music venue located at 100 Oxford Street, London, England, where it has been hosting live music since 24 October 1942. It was originally called the Feldman Swing Club, but changed its name when the father of the current owner ...

(22 January 2010). In 2017, the 4-CD box set ''Thinking Inside the Box'' was released by Cherry Red/Anagram Records, featuring the band's entire recorded output, BBC sessions and rarities.

Session musician

Following the end of Radio Stars in 1979, Gordon moved to Paris, France, where he worked as house producer for Barclay Records, and played bass with the

Rolling Stones The Rolling Stones are an English Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1962. Active for over six decades, they are one of the most popular, influential, and enduring bands of the Album era, rock era. In the early 1960s, the band pione ...

during the recording of '' Emotional Rescue''. He returned to the UK at the beginning of the 1980s, and worked as producer and in other capacities with such musicians as

George Michael George Michael (born Georgios Kyriacos Panayiotou; 25 June 1963 – 25 December 2016) was an English singer-songwriter and record producer. Regarded as a pop culture icon, he is one of the List of best-selling music artists, best-selling rec ...

Boy George George Alan O'Dowd (born 14 June 1961), known professionally as Boy George, is an English singer-songwriter and DJ who rose to fame as the lead singer of the pop band Culture Club. He began his solo career in 1987. Boy George grew up in Eltham a ...

, Blur,

Primal Scream Primal Scream are a Scottish rock music, rock band originally formed in 1982 in Glasgow by Bobby Gillespie (vocals) and Jim Beattie (musician), Jim Beattie (guitar). The band's current lineup consists of Gillespie, Andrew Innes (guitar), Simon ...

Kylie Minogue Kylie Ann Minogue (; born 28 May 1968) is an Australian singer, songwriter, and actress. Frequently referred to as the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Princess of Pop", she has achieved recognition in both the music industry and fas ...

, S'Express, Tiger Lillies and Robert Palmer, as well as with a host of minor talents.

World music

At the beginning of the 1990s,

world music "World music" is an English phrase for styles of music from non-English speaking countries, including quasi-traditional, Cross-cultural communication, intercultural, and traditional music. World music's broad nature and elasticity as a musical ...

took Gordon initially to

Bombay Mumbai ( ; ), also known as Bombay ( ; its official name until 1995), is the capital city of the Indian States and union territories of India, state of Maharashtra. Mumbai is the financial centre, financial capital and the list of cities i ...

with

Asha Bhosle Asha Bhosle (; ; born 8 September 1933) is an Indian playback singer, entrepreneur, actress and television personality who predominantly works in Indian cinema. Known for her versatility, she has been described in the media as one of the ...

and

, and subsequently to

Pakistan Pakistan, officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of over 241.5 million, having the Islam by country# ...

Morocco Morocco, officially the Kingdom of Morocco, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It has coastlines on the Mediterranean Sea to the north and the Atlantic Ocean to the west, and has land borders with Algeria to Algeria–Morocc ...

Egypt Egypt ( , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a country spanning the Northeast Africa, northeast corner of Africa and Western Asia, southwest corner of Asia via the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to northe ...

Ghana Ghana, officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country in West Africa. It is situated along the Gulf of Guinea and the Atlantic Ocean to the south, and shares borders with Côte d’Ivoire to the west, Burkina Faso to the north, and Togo to t ...

and

The Gambia The Gambia, officially the Republic of The Gambia, is a country in West Africa. Geographically, The Gambia is the List of African countries by area, smallest country in continental Africa; it is surrounded by Senegal on all sides except for ...

. After studying

gamelan Gamelan (; ; , ; ) is the traditional musical ensemble, ensemble music of the Javanese people, Javanese, Sundanese people, Sundanese, and Balinese people, Balinese peoples of Indonesia, made up predominantly of percussion instrument, per ...

Bali Bali (English:; Balinese language, Balinese: ) is a Provinces of Indonesia, province of Indonesia and the westernmost of the Lesser Sunda Islands. East of Java and west of Lombok, the province includes the island of Bali and a few smaller o ...

on a Darmasiswa scholarship, he formed the short-live
Mira
ensemble with journalist/musician Peter Culshaw in 1995, releasing an album ''New Hope For the Dead''. They created an elaborate theatrical presentation, which delivered two performances at the Place Theatre, in London and an appearance at the

Montreux Jazz Festival The Montreux Jazz Festival (formerly Festival de Jazz Montreux and Festival International de Jazz Montreux) is a music festival in Switzerland, held annually in early July in Montreux on the Lake Geneva shoreline. It is the second-largest annu ...

in 1997. He was a member of the

SOAS The School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS University of London; ) is a public research university in London, England, and a member institution of the federal University of London. Founded in 1916, SOAS is located in the Bloomsbury area ...

-based (Balinese) Gamelan Kembang Kirang and the South Bank-based (Javanese) New Music Group between 1996 and 1997. Gordon performs with the Berlin-based (Indonesian

group) Lindhu Raras. During 2019, Gordon was musical director/bassist of the Liberation Orchestra, with the participation of members of the Ensemble Modern, Wimme & Rinne and others, culminating with a one-off performance in Banjul, The Gambia, in the context of the AfriCourage festival in December 2019.

Solo

Following the recording of an album in

Istanbul Istanbul is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, largest city in Turkey, constituting the country's economic, cultural, and historical heart. With Demographics of Istanbul, a population over , it is home to 18% of the Demographics ...

with Turkish diva

Sezen Aksu Sezen Aksu (; born Fatma Sezen Yıldırım; 13 July 1954) is a Turkish singer, songwriter and producer. She is one of the most successful Turkish people, Turkish singers, having sold over 40 million albums worldwide. Her nicknames include the "Q ...

, Gordon played bass on Aksu's subsequent European tour (2002). This prompted his return to his pop music roots in 2003, via his own label Radiant Future Records. He has a number of solo albums to his credit, many recorded in collaboration with Swedish vocalist Pelle Almgren. The first three solo releases were collected in a box-set titled ''The Mammal Trilogy'' (2006). Allmusic noted that ''"any release that reminds the world of the brilliance of Gordon's first three 21st century solo albums can only be applauded"''. His solo albums also feature a selection of

Lennon–McCartney Lennon–McCartney is the songwriting partnership between the English musicians John Lennon (1940–1980) and Paul McCartney (born 1942) of the Beatles. It is widely considered one of the greatest, best known and most successful musical collabo ...

and Gilbert & Sullivan tunes alongside Gordon originals. In 2007, Gordon made his live debut as a solo performer in Boston, United States. The fourth album ''God is on His Lunchbreak'' was accompanied by a book detailing the origins of the material, lyrics and assorted musing entitled ''The Illustrated and Annotated 'God's on His Lunchbreak, Please Call Back' Companion Volume'', with

illustrations An illustration is a decoration, interpretation, or visual explanation of a text, concept, or process, designed for integration in print and digitally published media, such as posters, flyers, magazines, books, teaching materials, animations, vi ...

by drummer Chris Townson. The fifth album ''Time Gentlemen Please'' was accompanied by the album ''Time Gentlemen Please – Demos'', featuring Gordon's original demos of the material (available only via his website). Gordon and vocalist Almgren made appearances in 2011 and 2012 as part of the Swedish garage-punk outfit 70–5 (various performances are to be found on YouTube). The sixth and final instalment of the Mammal Trilogy was entitled ''Include Me Out''; released in August 2013, it was recorded in Berlin, Germany and Gnesta, Sweden and was accompanied by ''Words in Your Shell-Like'', a book of Gordon's lyrics from Jet to the Mammal Trilogy. This brought the Trilogy to completion. An album of

Gilbert and Sullivan Gilbert and Sullivan refers to the Victorian-era theatrical partnership of the dramatist W. S. Gilbert (1836–1911) and the composer Arthur Sullivan (1842–1900) and to the works they jointly created. The two men collaborated on fourteen com ...

compositions
Gilbert Gordon & Sullivan
' was released by Radiant Future Records in April 2016, as well as two singles, "Dump the Trump" in October 2016 and ''Idiots'' in March 2017. In 2018, Radiant Future released the album ''Thanks For All the Fish'' and the single ''Will of the People''. Gordon's album ''OMG'' was released in early 2020, along with a reworking of the
Idiots
' single, entitled
COVIDiots
' and in response to COVID activity and to the fact that German courts decided that the term was in fact allowable under German law. In 2021 he released
Another Words
', a setting to music of

Donald Trump Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who is the 47th president of the United States. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he served as the 45 ...

'
phone call to Georgia governor
Brad Raffensperger, released in 2021. At Xmas 2021, Gordon celebrated the political achievements of Boris Johnson with the single release
Booster
'. Early in 2022, Radiant Future released an expanded version of ''Another Words'' featuring the original audio from the Trump-Raffensperger call, entitled
Another Words - The Phonecall
'. In February 2022 Gordon released an instrumental track in support of Ukraine entitled '' Slava Ukraini''. In 2023, the album
Greatest Sh!ts
was released, featuring a selection of new and reworked material. 2024 saw the release o
a pair of albums
featuring earlier material, ''Singular Obscurities'' and ''Obscure Singularities''.

Equipment

Gordon is known for using the

bass guitar, most notably on the Sparks album '' Kimono My House'' and the later album ''Jet'' by the British group of the same name. He has stated in the Rickenbacker Forum that he used H&H amplification for this recording. He used Rotosound round-wound strings to produce his benchmark sound. Such was his identification with the 4001 that he stated that he preferred to be sacked from the group Sparks rather than accommodate the request for him to use a different instrument. In

, he used a Rickenbacker 3001 and a Fender Precision bass. In more recent times he has used Yamaha 5-string basses and Stagg upright e-basses, before returning to the Rickenbacker 4003 in 2014.

Discography

Solo

Albums: *2024
Singular Obscurities
' (download only) - Radiant Future Records *2024
Obscure Singularities
' (download only) - Radiant Future Records *2023
Greatest Sh!ts
' (CD and download) - Radiant Future Records *2022
Another Words - The Phone Call (expanded edition)
' (download) - Radiant Future Records *2021
Another Words
' (CD and download) - Radiant Future Records *2020
OMG
' (CD and download) - Radiant Future Records *2018
Thanks For All the Fish
' (CD, vinyl and download) - Radiant Future Records *2016
Gilbert Gordon & Sullivan
' (CD and download) - Radiant Future Records *2013 '' Include Me Out'' (limited edition CD-R, then download-only) – Radiant Future Records *2009
Time Gentlemen Please
' (CD and download) – Radiant Future Records *2008
Hello Boston
'' – (CD free with first 1000 copies of Radio Stars' ''Something for the Weekend'', then download-only) – Radiant Future Records *2007
The World Is Your Lobster
' (CD and download) – Radiant Future Records *2006 ''The Mammal Trilogy'' (3-disc box set compilation of the above three releases) – Radiant Future Records *2006 ''How Am I Doing So Far?'' (single CD compilation of the first three solo releases w/bonus tracks) – Radiant Future Records *2005 '' God's on His Lunchbreak (Please Call Back)'' (CD and download) – Radiant Future Records *2004 '' The Joy of More Hogwash'' (CD and download) - Radiant Future Records *2003 '' The Baboon in the Basement'' (CD and download) - Radiant Future Records *2003 ''The Baboon in the Basement Radio EP'' (promo-only) – Radiant Future Records Alternative versions: *2013 ''Exclude Me In - Demos'' (limited edition CD-R, then download-only) – Radiant Future Records *2009 ''Time Gentlemen Please – Demos'' (limited edition CD-R, then download-only) – Radiant Future Records Singles: *2024
Mudbath
' (download-only) - Radiant Future Records *2024
A True Totalitarian
' (download-only) - Radiant Future Records *2023
No Sweat
' (download-only) - Radiant Future Records *2022
Dumber Than a Rock
' (download-only) - Radiant Future Records *2022
Slawa Ukraini!
' (download-only) - Radiant Future Records *2021
Booster
' (download-only) - Radiant Future Records *2021
Somewhere Over the Rainbow
' (download-only) - Radiant Future Records *2021
All the Rage
' (download-only) - Radiant Future Records *2020
Superior Jeans
' (download-only) - Radiant Future Records *2020
COVIDiots
' (download-only) - Radiant Future Records *2019
Will of the People
' (download-only) - Radiant Future Records *2018
God's Not Great
' (download-only) - Radiant Future Records *2017
Idiots
' (download-only) - Radiant Future Records *2016
Dump the Trump!
' (download-only) - Radiant Future Records *2016
Modern Major General
' (download-only) Radiant Future Records

John's Children

* 2011 ''Black & White'' –

Acid Jazz Acid jazz (also known as club jazz, psychedelic jazz, or groove jazz) is a music genre that combines elements of funk, soul music, soul, and hip hop music, hip hop, as well as jazz and disco. Acid jazz originated in clubs in London during the 1 ...

AJXCD 234modspeedproduction.blogspot.com
''Black & White'' album review, Modspeedproduction.blogspot.com * 2002 ''Music For the Herd of Herring'' (CD and download) - Radiant Future Records

Blue Meanies

*2006 ''Pop Sensibility'' – Radiant Future Records (download only)

Mira

*1995 ''New Hope for the Dead'' – JVC Records *2008 ''New Hope for the Dead'' – Radiant Future Records re-issued version with extra material including live tracks, remixes and unreleased content – (download only)

Radio Stars

*2017 ''Thinking Inside the Box'' –

Cherry Red Records Cherry Red Records is a British independent record label founded in Malvern, Worcestershire by Iain McNay in 1978. The label has released recordings by Dead Kennedys, Everything but the Girl, The Monochrome Set, and Felt, among others, as w ...

*2008 ''Something for the Weekend'' – Radiant Future Records (live in 1977/78)released 2006 Radiant Future Records *2002 ''Music For the Herd of Herring'' – Radiant Future Records *1992 ''Somewhere There's A Place For Us'' – Ace Records (compilation of the above releases) *1978 ''Holiday Album'' – Chiswick Records (re-released 2006 by Ace Records ) *1977 ''Songs For Swinging Lovers'' – Chiswick Records (re-released 2006 by Ace Records )

Jet

*2020 ''Jet'' –

Sony BMG Sony BMG Music Entertainment was an American record company owned as a 50–50 joint venture between Sony Corporation of America and Bertelsmann. The venture's successor, the revived Sony Music, is wholly owned by Sony, following their buyout o ...

- original release made officially available digitally *2010 ''Some Flotsam – Live in 75'' – Radiant Future Records live on the Hunter-Ronson tour 1975, download only, withdrawn 2011 *2010 ''Jet'' & ''Even More Light Than Shade'' – RPM Records (UK) – reissue of original album, expanded double album set, withdrawn 2011 *2002 ''Music For the Herd of Herring'' – Radiant Future Records *2003 ''Jet'' – Radiant Future Records reissue of original album, withdrawn 2004 *2003 ''More Light than Shade'' – Radiant Future Records demos for second album, withdrawn 2011 *1975 ''Jet'' – CBS Records

Sparks

*1974 '' Kimono My House'' –

Island Records Island Records is a multinational record label owned by Universal Music Group. It was founded in Jamaica by Chris Blackwell, Graeme Goodall, and Leslie Kong in 1959, and was eventually sold to PolyGram in 1989. Island and A&M Records, another ...

References

External links

Official siteRadiant Future RecordsMartin Gordon at Discogs
* Martin Gordon at AllMusicbr>Martin Gordon at Music Brainz

Gordon interviews
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gordon, Martin 1954 births Living people English rock bass guitarists English male bass guitarists English rock pianists English session musicians People from Hitchin Musicians from Ipswich Sparks (band) members Musicians from Hertfordshire Musicians from Suffolk English male pianists 21st-century English pianists 21st-century English male musicians