McGuinness, Tom

McGuinness, Tom

 Tom McGuinness was born in Wimbledon, England on 2 December 1941. A guitarist, he was a member of Eric Clapton’s first band, The Roosters. After leaving The Roosters, he and Eric spent one month touring with Casey Jones And The Engineers with lead singer, Brian Casser.

Tom then joined Manfred Mann in 1964, switching from guitar to bass, just as their hit 5-4-3-2-1 began its climb up the charts. He switched back to guitar in 1965. He remained with Manfred Mann until it disbanded in 1969.

He then formed McGuinness-Flint with Hughie Flint, who worked with Eric in the Bluesbreakers. In 1979, Tom joined the Blues Band with Paul Jones (ex-Manfred Mann) and Hughie Flint. Manfred Mann reformed in 1991.

Tom also enjoyed a successful career in television as a writer, producer and director. He wrote a humorous account of his musical career entitled So You Want To Be A Rock & Roll Star.