Before new wave had a name, Bryan Ferry was already wearing the suit. Roxy Music’s art-school glamour paved the way for a generation of new wave and new romantic bands, and Avalon showed them how smooth it could get. On his own, Ferry made sophisticated pop look effortless for five decades.
Roxy Music, and a solo career on the side
Ferry fronted Roxy Music through the ’70s and early ’80s, from “Virginia Plain” and “Love Is the Drug” to “More Than This” and “Avalon”. While the band was still riding high, he started a solo career with These Foolish Things (1973), stylish versions of other people’s songs that reached number five in the UK and went Gold. Another Time, Another Place (1974) was another UK top five album.
Let’s Stick Together and the late ’70s
Let’s Stick Together (1976) mixed covers with new takes on Roxy Music songs, and the title track became one of his signatures. In Your Mind (1977) and The Bride Stripped Bare (1978) brought more of his own writing and a more polished production, the smooth, emotional style he became known for.
Boys and Girls and Bête Noire
Boys and Girls (1985), his first solo album of all-original songs in years, was an international success and remains a defining record of sophisticated ’80s pop, with “Slave to Love”, “Don’t Stop the Dance” and “Windswept”. Bête Noire (1987), with “Kiss and Tell” and “The Right Stuff”, widened his audience again.
Is Bryan Ferry new wave?
Bryan Ferry and Roxy Music came just before new wave and helped invent its look and sound. Roxy’s art-rock glamour shaped the new romantics, and Ferry’s ’80s records, from Avalon to Boys and Girls, sit comfortably beside the new wave and sophisti-pop of the decade.
Still making records
He’s kept recording through every decade: Taxi (1993), Mamouna (1994), As Time Goes By (1999), Frantic (2002), Dylanesque (2007), Olympia (2010) and Avonmore (2014). Across 16 solo albums and many live records, his influence runs through art rock, glam, new wave, sophisti-pop, synth-pop and electronic pop.
The essential Bryan Ferry and Roxy Music songs
“Virginia Plain” (Roxy Music) · “Love Is the Drug” (Roxy Music) · “Let’s Stick Together” · “More Than This” (Roxy Music) · “Avalon” (Roxy Music) · “Slave to Love” · “Don’t Stop the Dance” · “Windswept” · “Kiss and Tell” · “The Right Stuff”
The essential albums
These Foolish Things (1973) · Another Time, Another Place (1974) · Let’s Stick Together (1976) · The Bride Stripped Bare (1978) · Avalon (Roxy Music, 1982) · Boys and Girls (1985) · Bête Noire (1987) · Avonmore (2014)
New to Bryan Ferry? Start here
Start with Roxy Music’s Avalon, the album that taught a generation of new wave bands how to sound expensive. Then Boys and Girls, which picks up exactly where it left off. “Slave to Love” is the one to play for someone who’s never heard him.
Like Bryan Ferry? Try these next
- Roxy Music: the art-rock band that started it all
- David Bowie: glam, art rock and endless reinvention
- Japan: David Sylvian’s elegant art-pop
- Talk Talk: from synth-pop to ambient art rock
- ABC: Martin Fry’s stylish pop and soul
- China Crisis: melodic British sophisti-pop
- Prefab Sprout: intelligent, timeless pop
- Simple Minds: anthems with art-rock roots
- Peter Gabriel: an art-rock innovator gone solo
- Tears for Fears: emotional songs, cinematic production
- The Blue Nile: atmospheric, elegant sophisti-pop
- Duran Duran: the new romantics who learned from Roxy
Hear Bryan Ferry on New Wave Radio
Request “Slave to Love” for the late-night shift, or “More Than This” if you want Roxy.
Official links: bryanferry.com · Facebook · Instagram · YouTube
