Francis Dunnery

by Jason AnkenyThe onetime frontman of the progressive rock group It Bites, singer/songwriter Francis Dunnery was born on Christmas Day, 1962 in Egremont, Cumbria, U.K. His tenure with It Bites began in 1984, and after three LPs concluded in 1990; during that time Dunnery invented the Tapboard, a unique guitar-like instrument fitted with such odd accessories as a shower hose and an egg timer. Turning towards a more conventional pop sound, he issued his first solo album, Welcome to the Wild Country, in 1991, and in 1993 played guitar in Robert Plant's touring band; his first Atlantic effort, Fearless, followed a year later. After 1995's Fearless, Dunnery issued a live effort titled One Night in Sauchiehall Street; upon leaving Atlantic, he signed with Razor and Tie to release Let's Go Do What Happens in 1998. A follower of astrology and metaphysics, he also wrote "MusicScopes," a weekly horoscope column for Billboard magazine.