Garry Gary Beers

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Garry Gary Beers
Inxs-garry-beers.jpg
Garry Gary Beers, August 1986
Background information
Birth nameGarry William Beers
Born (1957-06-22) 22 June 1957 (age 66)
Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
Genres
Occupation(s)
  • Musician
  • songwriter
  • producer
Instrument(s)
Years active1975–present
Formerly of

Garry William Beers (born 22 June 1957), known as Garry Gary Beers, is an Australian musician and was the bass guitarist for the new wave rock group INXS.

Contents

Career

Garry William Beers was born to Lola (died 2011) and William Beers. William Beers was a front-end loader operator, and Lola worked part-time in a variety of jobs.[ citation needed ] Garry has an older sister, Kerry.[ citation needed ] He grew up in the Sydney suburb of Manly and attended The Forest High School. [1] His first band was Legolas Elvin Warrior in 1975, where he played acoustic guitar with school mates, Bill Hucker and Glen Fender.

After nine months of studying acoustic guitar with little improvement, Beers moved over to bass guitar but refused to take further lessons. His inspiration was John Paul Jones of Led Zeppelin,[ citation needed ] James Jamerson, and Paul McCartney. He met Andrew Farriss and they formed the band Dr Dolphin, which was followed by the Farriss Brothers in 1977. [2] [3] Farriss Brothers became INXS in 1979 with Beers on bass guitar and double bass, Andrew Farriss on keyboards and guitar, Jon Farriss on drums and keyboards, Tim Farriss on lead guitar, Michael Hutchence on lead vocals and Kirk Pengilly on guitar, saxophone and backing vocals. [4] Generally playing bass guitar, Beers' double bass work occurs on some INXS tracks including "By My Side".

In 1989, while on hiatus from INXS, he joined Absent Friends as bass guitarist. Their No. 7 album, Here's Looking Up Your Address (May 1990) spawned the No. 4 hit single, "I Don't Want To Be With Nobody But You". [5] He also plays the guitar, keyboards, ukulele, and is adept at computer programming for song writing and music production. Beers has co-written tracks for INXS including "Listen Like Thieves", "Don't Change", and "Perfect Strangers". From 2008, Beers has been concentrating on his song writing in Los Angeles, as well as the INXS album, Original Sin released on 8 November 2010. [6]

He co-wrote the song "Tangle With Your Mind" with Scott Weiland of Stone Temple Pilots for Weiland's solo CD Happy in Galoshes (2008). [7] In late 2015, Beers formed a new band called Stadium with Irish singer Ciaran Gribbin who was the lead singer for INXS when they announced their retirement from live performance at the end of 2012.[ citation needed ]

Garry Beers: INXS UK Tour, Brighton June 2007 GGB at INXS Brighton Concert June 2007.jpg
Garry Beers: INXS UK Tour, Brighton June 2007
Garry Beers in January 2016 Garry Beers photo.JPG
Garry Beers in January 2016

Personal life

Beers was given his double name at school,[ citation needed ] it was later misprinted on the cover of INXS' 1980 debut album, INXS , as Garry Gary Beers. Very rarely given as Gary, Beers adopted the alternative spelling, which appears on merchandise and personal items such as guitar picks.

Garry and Jourdan Beers married in September 2007. They live in Los Angeles and enjoy volunteering for several animal rescue organisations. They have girl/boy twins. Beers also has two daughters from his first marriage to Jodie Crampton, and a son from his short relationship with Shelley Preston.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">INXS</span> Australian rock band (1977–2012)

INXS were an Australian rock band, formed as the Farriss Brothers in 1977 in Sydney, New South Wales. The founding members were bassist Garry Gary Beers, main composer and keyboardist Andrew Farriss, drummer Jon Farriss, guitarist Tim Farriss, lead singer and main lyricist Michael Hutchence, and guitarist and saxophonist Kirk Pengilly. For 20 years, INXS was fronted by Hutchence, whose magnetic stage presence made him the focal point of the band. Initially known for their new wave/pop style, the band later developed a harder pub rock style that included funk and dance elements.

<i>Full Moon, Dirty Hearts</i> 1993 studio album by INXS

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<i>Listen Like Thieves</i> 1985 studio album by INXS

Listen Like Thieves is the fifth studio album by Australian rock band INXS. It was released on 14 October 1985. It spent two weeks at number one on the Australian Kent Music Report Albums Chart. Considered an international breakthrough album for the band, it peaked at No. 11 on the United States Billboard 200, No. 24 on the Canadian RPM 100 Albums and in the top 50 in the United Kingdom.

<i>Elegantly Wasted</i> 1997 studio album by INXS

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<i>The Swing</i> (INXS album) 1984 studio album by INXS

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<i>X</i> (INXS album) 1990 studio album by INXS

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<i>Shabooh Shoobah</i> 1982 studio album by INXS

Shabooh Shoobah is the third studio album by Australian rock band INXS. It was released on 13 October 1982. It peaked at No. 5 on the ARIA Albums Chart and remained on the chart for 94 weeks. It was the band's first album to be released worldwide and appeared on the United States Billboard 200 and on the Hot Pop Albums Chart. The album spawned four singles, "The One Thing", "Don't Change", "To Look at You" and "Black and White". It was produced by Mark Opitz for WEA Australia with most tracks written by band members Andrew Farriss and Michael Hutchence.

<i>INXS</i> (album) 1980 studio album by INXS

INXS is the debut studio album by Australian rock band INXS. It was released on Deluxe Records in Australia on 13 October 1980. The band recorded the album in midnight to dawn sessions during 1979 to 1980 after performing, on average, two gigs a day at local pubs around Sydney. All tracks were credited to band members, Garry Gary Beers ; brothers Andrew, Jon and Tim Farriss ; Michael Hutchence ; and Kirk Pengilly. The album was co-produced by the band and Duncan McGuire. It spawned the single, "Just Keep Walking", which became their first Australian Top 40 hit. INXS peaked in the Top 30 of the related Kent Music Report Albums Chart. The album did not appear internationally until 1984.

<i>Underneath the Colours</i> 1981 studio album by INXS

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<i>Switch</i> (INXS album) 2005 studio album by INXS

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Andrew Farriss</span> Australian musician

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tim Farriss</span> Australian musician

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kirk Pengilly</span> Australian rock musician, saxophonist and guitarist (born 1958)

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">By My Side (INXS song)</span> 1991 single by INXS

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<i>INXS: Never Tear Us Apart</i> 2014 Australian television miniseries

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Simple Simon (song)</span> Single by INXS

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Just Keep Walking</span> 1980 single by INXS

"Just Keep Walking" is a song recorded by Australian rock band INXS. Deluxe released the song in October 1980 as the only single from their debute studio album INXS. The song reached the 38th place on the Top 40 list and became their first Australian Top 40 hit, earning the band international fame.

References

  1. St John, Ed (1998). Burn: The life and times of Michael Hutchence and INXS. Bantam Books, Sydney. ISBN   0-7338-0182-X.
  2. McFarlane, Ian (1999). "Encyclopedia entry for 'INXS'". Encyclopedia of Australian Rock and Pop . Allen & Unwin. ISBN   1-86448-768-2. Archived from the original on 30 September 2004. Retrieved 7 November 2010.
  3. "Garry Gary Beers". INXS . Retrieved 7 November 2010.
  4. Nimmervoll, Ed. "INXS". HowlSpace. Archived from the original on 21 February 2001. Retrieved 7 November 2010.
  5. "Discography Absent Friends". Australian charts portal. Hung Medien. Retrieved 7 November 2010.
  6. Adams, Cameron (19 October 2010). "INXS rework old classics with guest vocalists in new album". Herald Sun . The Herald and Weekly Times (News Corporation). Retrieved 7 November 2010.
  7. "Scott Weiland: More Solo Album Details Revealed; Tour Dates Announced". Blabbermouth.net. 5 September 2008. Archived from the original on 12 September 2008. Retrieved 7 November 2010.