The turbulent, acrimonious and comparatively brief career of Stealers Wheel enabled the two main members Gerry Rafferty and Joe Egan to produce some memorable and inventive, relaxed pop music. During the early 70s, Rafferty (b. 16 April 1947, Paisley, Scotland) and long-time friend Egan (b. Scotland) assembled in London to form a British Crosby, Stills And Nash, together with Rab Noakes, Ian Campbell and Roger Brown. After rehearsing and negotiating a record contract with A&M Records, the band had already fragmented before they entered the studio to meet with legendary producers Leiber And Stoller. Paul Pilnick (guitar), Tony Williams (bass) and Rod Coombes (drums; ex-Juicy Lucy) bailed out Rafferty and Egan; the result was a surprising success, achieved by the sheer quality of their songs and the blend of the two leaders’ voices. ‘Stuck In The Middle With You’ is an enduring song reminiscent of mid-period Beatles, and it found favour by reaching the Top 10 on both sides of the Atlantic. While the song was high on the charts Rafferty departed and was replaced by former Spooky Tooth lead guitarist Luther Grosvenor (aka Ariel Bender). Rafferty had returned by the time the second album was due to be recorded, but then all the remaining members left the band, leaving Rafferty and Egan holding the baby. Various session players completed Ferguslie Park, astonishingly another superb, melodic and cohesive album. The album was a failure commercially and the two leaders set about completing their contractual obligations and recording their final work Right Or Wrong. Even with similarly strong material, notably the evocative ‘Benidictus’ and the arresting ‘Found My Way To You’, the album failed. Rafferty and Egan, disillusioned, buried the name forever. Management problems plagued their career and lyrics of these troubled times continued to appear on both Egan and Rafferty’s subsequent solo work. ‘Stuck In The Middle With You’ was used prominently in the cult 1993 movieReservoir Dogs.
