Ronnie Caryl (10 February 1953 – 18 December 2023) was an English guitarist who was a member of the band Flaming Youth. Over the years Caryl worked alongside

Phil Collins Philip David Charles Collins (born 30 January 1951) is an English musician, songwriter, record producer and actor. He was the drummer and later became the lead singer of the rock band Genesis (band), Genesis and had a successful solo career, ac ...

, plus

David Hentschel David Hentschel (born 18 December 1952) is an English recording engineer, film score composer and music producer who engineered on George Harrison's ''All Things Must Pass'' and Elton John's ''Goodbye Yellow Brick Road'', as well as for such a ...

Michel Polnareff Michel Polnareff (born 3 July 1944) is a French singer-songwriter who rose to prominence in the 1960s. He is noted for integrating rock and pop elements into his early work. He wrote pop hits such as "La Poupée qui fait non" and "Love Me, Ple ...

Lulu Lulu may refer to: Companies * LuLu, an early automobile manufacturer * Lulu.com, an online e-books and print self-publishing platform, distributor, and retailer * Lulu Hypermarket, a retail chain in Asia * Lululemon Athletica or simply Lulu, a C ...

, Stephen Bishop,

Eric Clapton Eric Patrick Clapton (born 1945) is an English Rock music, rock and blues guitarist, singer, and songwriter. He is regarded as one of the most successful and influential guitarists in rock music. Clapton ranked second in ''Rolling Stone''s l ...

Gary Brooker Gary Brooker (29 May 1945 – 19 February 2022) was an English singer and pianist, and the founder and lead singer of the rock band Procol Harum. Early life Born in Hackney Hospital, East London, on 29 May 1945, Brooker grew up in Hackney ...

Maggie Bell Margaret Bell (born 12 January 1945) is a Scottish vocalist. She came to fame as co-lead vocalist of the blues rock group Stone the Crows, and was described as the UK's closest counterpart to American singer Janis Joplin. Bell was also promine ...

and John Otway.

Biography

Phil Collins was 18 when, with his friend and accomplice guitarist Ronnie Caryl, he accompanied American singer John Walker of the Walker Brothers on tour in Great Britain. The other two musicians were Gordon "Flash" Smith on bass (b. 1947, Glasgow, Strathclyde, Scotland) and Brian Chatton, the ex-organist of the Warriors, the former band of

Jon Anderson Jon Anderson (born John Roy Anderson, 25 October 1944) is a British, and latterly American, singer, songwriter and musician, best known as the former lead singer of the progressive rock band Yes (band), Yes, which he formed in 1968 with bassis ...

. When the tour ended, the four musicians decided to stay together and try their luck as a group, so they formed Hickory and recorded a single, "Green Light/The Key", released by CBS Records on 24 January 1969. This formation would eventually become Flaming Youth, when they met authors Ken Howard and Alan Blaikley who offered to record their album. The group signed with Fontana Records and recorded the album ''Ark II'' in 1969, which was ranked "Album of the Month" by the British music magazine Melody Maker. The band played at the London Planetarium for the launch of the album in 1969. After a few concerts, the group no longer managed to generate interest from both the public and the media, and despite the addition of a new musician, the organist Rod Mayall (b. Roderick Mayall, 19 September 1946, Macclesfield, Cheshire) (the half-brother of John Mayall), Flaming Youth disbanded. Through the years Caryl and Collins remained friends, and Caryl was

best man A groomsman or usher is one of the male attendants to the groom in a wedding ceremony. Usually, the groom selects close friends and relatives to serve as groomsmen, and it is considered an honor to be selected. From his groomsmen, the groom usuall ...

at Collins's first wedding. In 1970, they both auditioned for

Genesis Genesis may refer to: Religion * Book of Genesis, the first book of the biblical scriptures of both Judaism and Christianity, describing the creation of the Earth and of humankind * Genesis creation narrative, the first several chapters of the Bo ...

and whilst Collins obtained the job as drummer, Caryl was unsuccessful and after a brief stint with Mick Barnard on guitar,

Steve Hackett Stephen Richard Hackett (born 12 February 1950) is an English guitarist who gained prominence as the lead guitarist of the progressive rock band Genesis (band), Genesis from 1971 to 1977. Hackett contributed to six Genesis studio albums, three l ...

was recruited as a permanent replacement lead guitarist for

Anthony Phillips Anthony Edwin Phillips (born 23 December 1951) is an English musician and composer who gained prominence as the original lead guitarist of the rock band Genesis, from 1967 to 1970. He left in July 1970 and learned to play more instruments, bef ...

. Caryl went on to play in some other bands, including Sanctuary in 1972, with whom he recorded an unreleased album. By the following year he joined the jazz rock outfit, Zox & the Radar Boys, including

Peter Banks Peter William Brockbanks (15 July 1947 – 7 March 2013), known professionally as Peter Banks, was an English guitarist. He was the original guitarist in the rock bands Yes (band), Yes, Flash (band), Flash, and Empire; he was also a guitarist f ...

, Mike Piggott and Phil Collins. Caryl moved to France in 1995 with his wife Melanie. In 1996, Caryl became an official member of Collins's group as a backing vocalist and rhythm guitarist. As well as work with Collins, Caryl has also performed alongside

, Stephen Bishop,

and John Otway. Caryl released two solo albums, ''Leave A Light On'' (1994) and ''One Step at a Time'' (2003). Caryl died on 18 December 2023, at the age of 70. His sister Zoe announced on Facebook that a memorial for him would be held 23 December in Saintes, France.

Discography

Flaming Youth

Singles

*"Guide Me, Orion" –

Fontana Records Fontana Records is a record label that started in the 1950s as a subsidiary of the Dutch Philips Records. Fontana Distribution, an independent label distributor, takes its name from the label. History Fontana began in the 1950s as a subsidi ...

(1969) *"Man, Woman and Child" – Fontana Records (1970) *"From Now On (Immortal Invisible)" – Fontana Records (1970)

Albums

*'' Ark 2'' – Fontana Records (1969)

Solo

Singles

*"You Got It" –

Polydor Records Polydor Limited, also known as Polydor Records, is a British record label that operates as part of Universal Music Group. It has a close relationship with Universal's Interscope Geffen A&M Records label, which distributes Polydor's releases in ...

(1983) *"Somewhere Within" – Full Colour Records (1994)

Albums

*''Leave A Light On'' – Full Colour Records (1994) *''One Step at a Time'' – Outside Records (2003)

Session work

*1975 : Album –

: ''Startling Music'' *1975 : Album – Eugene Wallace: ''Dangerous'' *1977 : Single –

: "Lettre A France" *1981 : Album –

: ''Lulu'' *1982 : Album – Lulu: ''Take Me To Your Heart Again'' *1989 : Album – Stephen Bishop: ''Bowling in Paris'' *1996 : Album –

: '' Dance into the Light'' *2004 : Album –

: ''The River Sessions'' (recorded live at the Pavilion in Glasgow, Scotland, on 1 November 1993) *2010 : Album –

: '' Going Back''

DVDs

*1997 : Phil Collins – ''Live And Loose in Paris'' *2004 : Phil Collins – ''Finally...The First Farewell Tour'' *2007 : Phil Collins – ''The Long Goodnight: A Film About Phil Collins''

Tours

*1981 / 1983 : with

*1987 : with John Otway *1993 : with

*1994 / 1995 : with The Free Spirit *1996 : with

– 'Dance into the Light Tour' *1999 : with Phil Collins – 'Tarzan Tour' *2002 / 2003 : with Phil Collins – 'Testify Tour' *2003 : with Phil Collins – 'Brother Bear Tour' *2004 / 2005 : with Phil Collins – 'The First Farewell Tour' *2017 : with Phil Collins – 'Not Dead Yet Tour'

Different shows

*1972 : ''Shoot Up at Elbow Creek'' *1977 : ''

Elvis Elvis Aaron Presley (January 8, 1935 – August 16, 1977) was an American singer and actor. Referred to as the "King of Rock and Roll", he is regarded as one of the most significant cultural figures of the 20th century. Presley's sexuall ...

'' – Theatre musical *1986 : '' Tutti Frutti'' –

BBC Television BBC Television is a service of the BBC. The corporation has operated a Public service broadcasting in the United Kingdom, public broadcast television service in the United Kingdom, under the terms of a royal charter, since 1 January 1927. It p ...

series with

Emma Thompson Dame Emma Thompson (born 15 April 1959) is a British actress and screenwriter. Emma Thompson on screen and stage, Her work spans over four decades of screen and stage, and List of awards and nominations received by Emma Thompson, her accola ...

*1992 / 1993 : ''Good Rockin' Tonight !''

References

External links

Ronnie Caryl band
* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Caryl, Ronnie 1953 births 2023 deaths English blues guitarists English blues musicians English blues singers English rock bass guitarists English rock guitarists English rock singers English male singer-songwriters English singer-songwriters Musicians from Liverpool British rhythm guitarists English bass guitarists English male bass guitarists English expatriates in France Flaming Youth (band) members