Gerry Beckley is a founding member of the rock and roll band America. Born in Fort Worth, Texas, on September 12, 1952, to an American father, and an English mother. He began playing the piano at the age of three, and the guitar a few years later. By 1962 he was playing guitar in The Vanguards an instrumental surf music band in Virginia. He spent every summer in England and soon discovered British invasion music.
In 1967 Beckley's father became the commander at the U.S. Air Force Base at West Ruislip, near London. Gerry attended Central High School in Hertfordshire, where he played in various school bands, and met his soon to be band members, Dewey Bunnell and Dan Peek.
Gerry has continued success with the rock band America, as well as his solo releases Van Go Gan and Go Man Go (a re-mix of Van Go Gan.) You can find more information about Gerry's current projects at http://www.gerrybeckley.com.
Gerry has worked with a wide variety of musicians on many projects. One of the most notable is the recording Like a Brother done with Carl Wilson of the Beach Boys (now deceased), and Robert Lamm of Chicago. Beckley-Lamm-Wilson released Like a Brother in 2001.
