Adrian Baker

Adrian Baker, frequently cast as a British counterpart to Brian Wilson, works as a singer-songwriter, producer, multi-instrumentalist and label founder whose primary focus remains intricate vocal harmonies. He first performed with the Essex harmony ensemble Pebbles during the late 1960s; the group issued a pair of singles on Parlophone in 1971 before evolving into Playground and, ultimately, Gidea Park—a name drawn from Baker’s hometown. The lineup made occasional appearances on early-1970s television variety programs. Striking out alone, Baker signed with Magnet Records and scored his sole solo chart success in 1975 with a fresh treatment of the Four Seasons classic “Sherry.” His first album, Into A Dream, appeared that same year. In 1980 he established the Polo imprint solely to release his own material, which encompassed the session outfit Dazz and its offbeat Baker composition “Everything’s Electric,” plus multiple singles for the disco act Liquid Gold that Baker wrote either independently or alongside Eddie Seago. Capitalizing on the 1981 medley trend, he revived the Gidea Park moniker for a continuous Beach Boys medley and then another drawn from the Four Seasons catalog. Early in the decade he enjoyed a brief stint as a touring member of the Beach Boys themselves. By the mid-1980s Baker was once again issuing recordings under either his own name or the Gidea Park banner, functioning essentially as a one-man harmony ensemble.