Stray

This article relies on references to primary sources. Please add references to secondary or tertiary sources. (June 2008) Stray are a British band, formed in 1966. The vocalist Steve Gadd (born 27 April 1952, Shepherd's Bush, London), guitarist Del Bromham (born Derek Roy Bromham, 25 November 1951, Acton, London), bass player Gary Giles (born Gary Stephen Giles, 23 February 1952, North Kensington, London) and drummer Steve Crutchley (born c 1952) formed the band, whilst all were attending the Christopher Wren School in London. Richard "Ritchie" Cole (born 10 November 1951, Shepherd's Bush, London) replaced Crutchley in 1968. They signed to Transatlantic Records in January 1970. The group's brand of melodic, hook-laden hard rock proved to be a popular draw on the local club scene during the early 1970s. However the band did not have commercial success with its record releases. At one stage Charlie Kray, (brother of the Kray twins Ronnie and Reggie), was their manager. Gadd left the band in 1975 due to artistic differences and was replaced on vocals by Pete Dyer. The original Stray finally dissolved in 1977, although Bromham later continued to play in various resurrected versions of the project well into the 2000s. There are two Iron Maiden connections to Stray. "All in Your Mind" from Stray's 1970 debut album was covered by Iron Maiden, and Maiden bassist Steve Harris's daughter Lauren has covered "Come On Over". From late 2006 until early 2007, the band's back catalogue of eight studio albums issued originally during the 1970s, were re-released by the UK based Sanctuary Records in compact disc format. The new releases were remastered and had bonus tracks culled from single B-sides, studio outtakes and BBC broadcast sessions. The Universal Music Group have bought the entire back catalogue, and Stray are touring again with Bromham (guitar and vocals), Stuart Uren (bass guitar and vocals) and Karl Randall on drums. The latest album, Valhalla, produced by Chris Tsangarides, was released on 4 October 2010 on Angelair Records. They celebrated the release by performing a special show at The Borderline venue in London on 6 October 2010.