Guy Garvey

Guy Edward John Patrick Garvey is a singer, guitarist and songwriter from Bury in Greater Manchester. He is best known as the frontman of Elbow, the Manchester-based band that wins the Mercury Music Prize. His singing is noted for a strong, thick tenor voice, and his vocal style is often compared with Peter Gabriel.

Broadcasting and writing

Garvey presents a Sunday evening show on BBC 6 Music and previously hosts a Sunday evening programme on XFM. He also writes a monthly column for the Manchester edition of Time Out, and he is a patron of MAG, the Manchester-based Mines Advisory Group charity, which works to clear mines and munitions from war zones worldwide.

Production and collaborations

Outside Elbow, Garvey produces and records for other artists. He produces and records the I Am Kloot album Natural History, and he and Elbow keyboard player Craig Potter also produce another I Am Kloot album. He appears on Massive Attack’s Heligoland. In live performance he plays a range of instruments in addition to vocals, including guitar, percussion and drums.

Background and interests

Garvey is of Irish descent, with family links to Cork and a long family connection to Manchester. He also has a strong interest in Melvyn Bragg’s Radio 4 programme In Our Time.

Other work

He is also the A&R manager of Skinny Dog Records.