Graham Bond

Graham John Clifton Bond - who was born on October 28th, 1937, in Romford, Essex, England - was a British rock and blues musician and vocalist, considered a founder of the English rhythm and blues boom of the 1960s.  Given up by his biological parents at a young age, he was placed into a Dr. Barnardo's home, before being adopted.  Having passed his 11-plus examination, Bond was educated from the ages of 11 to 16 at the Royal Liberty School - a grammar school in Gidea Park in the London Borough of Havering, England.  Here, he studied music, performing his first jazz concert with the Goudie Charles Quintet in 1960.  Bond first gained national attention as a jazz saxophonist with the Don Rendell Quintet, before briefly joining Alexis Korner's Blues Incorporated.  In around 1963, Bond formed his own band, the Graham Bond Quartet, which soon became the Graham Bond Organisation.  Their 1965 album, There's a Bond Between Us, is considered the first rock music recording to use a mellotron.  The band was plagued by problems with substance abuse (particularly Bond's), as well as disagreements between drummer Ginger Baker and double bassist Jack Bruce.  This culminated in Bond firing Bruce, with Baker leaving soon after, and the pair ultimately forming Cream with Eric Clapton.  The Graham Bond Organisation continued as a trio, but, with Bond's physical and mental health declining, and the band achieving little commercial success, they dissolved in 1967.  After the band's break-up, Bond continued to break-down, as he suffered from manic episodes and periods of intense depression, exacerbated by drug use.  He moved briefly to America, where he recorded two albums and performed session work for other artists, before returning to England in 1969.  With his new wife, Diane Stewart - who shared his interest in the supernatural - Bond then formed Graham Bond Initiation.  In 1970, he formed the band Holy Magick, releasing two albums.  He spent short periods in Ginger Baker's Air Force and The Jack Bruce Band, before releasing the double album Solid Bond in 1970.  In 1972, Bond teamed up with Pete Brown to record Two Heads are Better Than One, and in 1973 recorded an album with the John Dummer Band, although this was not released until 2018. After the near-simultaneous collapse of both his marriage and his band, Bond formed the group Magus, although they disbanded around Christmas 1973 without recording.  Years of commercial failure had left Bond's financial affairs in chaos, as well as severely affecting his pride.  For years, he had been hampered by severe bouts of drug addiction, and he spent January of 1973 in hospital after a mental breakdown.  On May 8th, 1974, at Finsbury Park station in London, Bond threw himself to his death under the wheels of a Piccadilly line train.  Graham Bond was just 36 years old.