Guy Bailey

Died April 6, 2023

GUITARIST GUY BAILEY, a co-founder of The Quireboys, has died after a short illness. He was 62. The news was confirmed by vocalist and bandmate Spike. “My best friend Guy Bailey passed away peacefully in hospital last night in the arms of his beloved Bianca,” he wrote. “Guy was the kindest, funniest man you could have the pleasure of being around. He was loved by everyone who he ever worked with, all the bands he ever toured with and all the Quireboys fans he ever met. He certainly loved you all more than you will ever know.”

Last December Bailey had made a very brief stage appearance along with Spike and vintage-era Quireboys members Nigel Mogg, Chris Johnston and Rudy Richman during their one-off concert at London’s Islington Academy. Bailey had been billed as a performer on the night but emerged from the wings to receive rapturous applause from the audience before waving farewell.

Spike and Bailey founded The Quireboys (originally The Queerboys) in 1984. Bailey played on their first two albums: 1990’s A Bit Of What You Fancy and 1993’s Bitter Sweet & Twisted.

Although the Quireboys are engaged in a war of words with the Spike-led version, QBs guitarist Guy Bailey took to social media to write: “36 years since we met, six years in a band together, through so many great highs and another 30 years as friends, brothers in arms. I learnt a lot from you. Your songwriting set the bar. We set the world on fire for a while and I’m happy I was along with you on that amazing ride. You had the driest, most intelligent wit. I’ll miss the conversations, also the disagreements. I’m glad I got to say goodbye…”

Spike insists that a new set of songs he wrote last year with Bailey will be released under the Quireboys banner.

“They’re pure Quireboys,” he told Classic Rock late last year, “just the way we sound – good old British rock’n’roll.”