Music History
Founder of Stone the Crows Electrocuted Onstage
Members of the band tried to free him but received electric shocks for their efforts
Stone the Crows was a promising blues-rock act with two main members, Scottish musician Les Harvey and his talented vocalist and songwriting partner Maggie Bell.
Bell’s raspy voice was described as raw and has been compared to Janis Joplin, or a female Rod Stewart, with whom she performed guest vocals on “Every Picture Tells a Story” in 1971.
By the early seventies, Stone the Crows had spent some time building a following and were poised to break through with legendary Led Zeppelin manager Peter Grant acting as their producer.
The group’s rise to stardom was not to be.
May 3, 1972
At a performance at Top Rank Suite in Swansea, Wales, Les Harvey was electrocuted onstage in front of a live audience.
A report from Melodymaker via the Hackensack Record read:
According to the British rock paper Melody Maker, Les Harvey died on stage with Stone the Crows. Some members of the audience had ripped up wires from the group’s equipment, and the roadies had spent some time repairing the damage. They missed…
