Brian Willoughby is best known as the guitarist whose presence helped re-invigorate
the Strawbs in their 1980s reincarnation. Born in Northern Ireland, he took up the guitar as a boy and turned professional in his late teens. He eventually ended up running his own folk club in West London. It was through
Dave Cousins, then leading a new group called
the Strawbs, that he got a gig with
Mary Hopkin;
Cousins, who was recording with
Hopkin under the auspices of her husband, producer
Tony Visconti, played several of
Willoughby's instrumentals for the two, and the composer/guitarist was engaged to play on tour with
Hopkin -- as a result,
Willoughby spent most of his 22nd year performing from Israel to Australia and New Zealand. After his stint with
Hopkin, he went on to join the pop/rock group
New World, who had several U.K. hits, including "Tom Tom Turnaround," and was also later played behind
Roger Whittaker and cockney ex-rockabilly star
Joe Brown, with his bands the Bruvvers and Brown's Home Brew, before joining No Sweat, who were the first act signed to Pete Townshend's Eel Pie label in 1977. In 1979,
Willoughby was recruited by
Dave Cousins to join him in a tour of British folk clubs, which led to the recording of
Cousins' Old School Songs. The two continued playing concerts together, which led to
Willoughby's joining
the Strawbs following lead guitarist Dave Lambert's departure in 1979. The band officially broke up in 1980, and
Willoughby went on to play on
Monty Python's Contractual Obligation album and to an appearance in the feature film Time Bandits. In 1983, he joined
Cousins as part of the re-formed
Strawbs, and in the decades since, has not only added to their repertory with his own songs but also took over the repertory belonging to his predecessors, adding a level of virtuosity that the original band seldom approached. In 1994, he also recorded a second album with
Cousins, entitled
The Bridge. Since the mid-'90s,
Willoughby has played a key role in
the Strawbs, which resumed a relatively full schedule of touring at various times. In 1998,
Willoughby recorded the first solo album of his career, Black & White, with American singer Cathryn Craig and a guest appearance by
Mary Hopkin. He also toured on the folk circuit in England and rejoined
the Strawbs at the end of the 1990s with Dave Lambert, playing as a double lead guitar team. ~ Bruce Eder