Gerry Rafferty

Gerald Rafferty (16 April 1947 – 4 January 2011) was a Scottish singer-songwriter. He was a founding member of Stealers Wheel, whose biggest hit was "Stuck in the Middle with You" in 1973. His solo hits in the late 1970s included "Baker Street", "Right Down the Line" and "Night Owl". Rafferty was born into a working-class family in Paisley, Renfrewshire, Scotland. His mother taught him both Irish and Scottish folk songs when he was a boy; later, he was influenced by the music of the Beatles and Bob Dylan. He joined the folk-pop group the Humblebums (of which Billy Connolly was a member) in 1969. After they disbanded in 1971, he recorded his first solo album, Can I Have My Money Back? Rafferty and Joe Egan formed the group Stealers Wheel in 1972. In 1978, he recorded his second solo album, City to City. A heavy drinker for much of his life, Rafferty died from liver failure in January 2011.

Early years

Rafferty was born in 1947 into a working-class family of Irish Catholic origin in Underwood Lane in Paisley, a son and grandson of coal miners. His parents were Joseph Rafferty and Mary Skeffington, and he had two older brothers, Joe and Jim. Rafferty grew up in a council house in...