When Gerry Rafferty passed away on January 4, the urban legend about who played the haunting sax riff reared its head again. The saxophonist who was given album credits was Raphael Ravenscroft, but somehow in the UK a rumour had circulated for years that well known TV and radio host Bob Holness, was the musician who played the famous sax lines.
According to the BBC, the exact source of the urban legend is not known. However, even Ravenscroft himself has taken credit for coming up with the idea.
In an interview he gave the BBC, Ravenscroft said:
I made that up because I used to be asked 20 or 30 times if I was the person who did it, so to a foreign journalist I said it was Bob Holness, because I had been working with him on a Robinson’s advert. It was just a bit of fun.
Source: BBC News Magazine
Urban legend notwithstanding, it was indeed Scottish musician Raphael Ravenscroft who played the riff—that is arguably the most famous saxophone line in rock history.
I believe this riff was influential in contributing to some youth choosing saxophone as their primary instrument in the late 70s and early 80s. How about you? Did a certain song influence your choice to play sax?
Yes, sorry to hear of the demise of Gerry Rafferty, a troubled, reclusive alcoholic for many years.
I read in the recent coverage of him since his death that he made about £80,000 a year in royalties from Baker Street.
It seems that Mr Ravenscroft was paid scale for the session.
Hi Alan. Welcome to my site.
Yes, I’m sure Ravenscroft was paid scale. That would make sense. Even Phil Woods, when he did the sax solo on Billy Joel’s Just The Way You Are, was paid the standard session fee. I remember reading that in an interview with him in an old copy of The Saxophone Journal years ago.
I guess this goes along with the old adage: saxophonists are the last hired, first fired. It doesn’t matter how famous you are, as sax players, we’re more often than not an extra. How sad is that?
Hello Helen.
Yes I had an alright holidays to be honest. I’ve been busy with exams and stuff of the late, but its all done at the moment and i’m starting my 2nd term. And you?
My holidays were OK. Nothing stellar. I was glad when they were over to be honest.
While you’re busy in school, I’m busy moving. And it’s not a simple move. It’s combining 2 houses together: my house, and the contents of my parent’s house. So I’m having to through every scrap of paper, and every book before I put it in the recycling or Goodwill box, just in case it contains something important. At the rate I’m going, I should be fully moved in by the time next Christmas comes around. 😉
Good luck this term Liu.
Take care…helen
Hello guys!
I’ve read up that Raphael used to be a music tutor in my college (York College) which I left last year. He was there till 2004 I think, or that’s what I read in wikipedia.
When i found out about this, i was shocked as usual lol.
Hi Liu.
Nice to see you again.
Did you have nice holidays?
Was inspired by David Jackson of Van Der Graaf Generator in the 1970s (if you’ve heard of them, you know more about obscure rock bands than most people!). But it’s taken me about three decades to get it together and learn to play properly.
Thanks for putting this interesting stuff up on the web.
Stephen
Oxford, UK
Hello Stephen. Welcome to my site.
My apologies for taking so long to respond to your comment. I mentioned in my blog post from yesterday that I’m in the process of moving, and it’s really all a bit much at the moment! 😯
You’re very welcome. I’m so glad you enjoy my site.
What a wonderful vintage sax you have? Is that a Conn? A Buescher?
Sorry, I haven’t heard of Van Der Graaf Generator… Apparently I’m not up on obscure rock bands. Not surprising, I’m a bit of a Top 40 kind of gal, and really liked Neue Deutsche Welle when I lived in Germany. I have a fair amount of recordings from my favourite European artists (I do love Italian rock), but most of them—I am almost embarrassed to admit this on my own sax blog—don’t contain any saxophone whatsoever.
Thank you for stopping by Stephen. I hope you do so again.
Regards,
Helen
I tried to learn (on alto and by ear) John Fogertys tenorsolo on the song “Long As I Can See The Light”. It was in 1970. And later another saxplayer come into my life; Clarence “Big Man” Clemons. His solo and saxplaying on “Rosalita” inspired me to try to do the same but this time I was playing tenorsax as well. I’m still struggling with this song!
I recorded the songs on a Tandberg tape recorder and then I learned each tone by playing along at the half speed and an octave lower. I didn’t knew in what keys I played. Good practice, longtones as well. I did this with a lot of songs that didn’t have a sax solo. I became comfortable with the Rock & Roll keys, concert A and E.
I can’t remember what got me hooked on saxophone, but I don’t think that it was a particular song. All I remember is that I really wanted to play sax in elementary school, and I asked my parents to rent me one so that I could take band class. I started playing in grade 7, so I would have been 12.
By the time I was in Grade 11 & 12, I was really in love with the sounds of the sax in rock music. Foreigner’s song Urgent, and the sax solo in Hall & Oats’ Maneater were huge influences for me (although I actually personally hated the later song), as was Rindy Ross’s playing in the band Quarterflash. Those influences I still remember to this day, as being what first made me pursue the area of rock sax playing.
It’s interesting, because at the time, Urgent was way above my head, but now I use a number of those riffs on occasion when I get stuck for an original thought during a solo.
I did not know Gerry Rafferty was dead until I saw your post. Baker street was a small part of why I started playing sax again after 30+ years and ranks high on my list of favorite sax solos Even though still can’t play it yet. :bang:
Mark