Gary William Howard was born on 16 June 1955 and is a British musician, best known as a member of the a cappella group The Flying Pickets.
14 Facts About Gary Howard
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Gary William Howard was born in Ilford, Essex on 16 June 1955.
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Gary Howard's father John was a mechanic who was in a folk band called the Pathfinders, for whom John played acoustic guitar.
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Gary Howard describes his father as one of the greatest influences in his life.
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Gary Howard spent his entire childhood in Liverpool and attended the Liverpool Collegiate School and the King David School.
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Gary Howard dropped out of school at the age of 16, and worked as a welder.
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However, Gary Howard rose to prominence as a member of the Royal Engineers Acoustic Band, for whom he played acoustic guitar from 1979 to 1985.
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In 1986, Gary Howard became noticed by the a cappella group The Flying Pickets, who had had a hit in the charts years before with a cover version of Yazoo's "Only You".
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Gary Howard remained with the band for over a decade, before departing to pursue a solo music career, although he remained close to Hibbard right up to Hibbard's death from cancer in 2012.
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On 2 July 2012, Gary Howard fronted a Flying Pickets reunion in a concert dedicated to the Flying Pickets late lead singer Brian Hibbard, who had died following a prolonged battle with prostate cancer.
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In 2015, Gary Howard joined the European Tour of Austrian AOR-band Cornerstone for a few concerts.
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Since 1995, Gary Howard has performed annually at the Isle of Wight Festival along with his backing band The Jazzmasters.
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Gary Howard has been married to his wife Alison Brannigan since 1980.
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Gary Howard is a strong supporter of Liverpool FC, and sang a renowned version of their anthem "You'll Never Walk Alone", originally composed by Rodgers and Hammerstein for the Musical Carousel.