About

Beggars Opera Progessive Rock Band from the 70′s was formed in Glasgow by
guitarist Ricky Gardiner.

In the early 70′s Beggars Opera recorded 4 albums for the now legendary Vertigo label:

Act One

Waters of Change

Pathfinder
and

Get Your Dog off Me.

Their electrifying and unforgettable live performances at home and abroad, earned them major success in Germany, with the super hit Time Machine from their Waters of Change album of 1971.

Beggars Opera Live bootleg Cardano Al Campo 1972.

Had you been there at that time, you would have seen and heard
Ricky Gardiner‘s sonorous and surreal guitar climbs and bends,
Alan Park‘s lavish organ psychedelia and phenomenal keyboard dexterity,
Virginia Scott‘s ethereal mellotronic orchestration with subliminal song and rhyme,
Gordon Sellar‘s powerful and dynamic, succinct bass growl,
Raymond Wilson’s pounding and relentless driving drum engine and kilt and
Martin Griffith’s ‘fa la la’ minstrel voiced strobe figurine, air conducting the apocalypse!

In the seventies Ricky Gardiner played on David Bowie’s Low
and Iggy Pop’s Lust for Life, on which he was co-author of
legendary song The Passenger.
Beggars Opera is now carried forward by Ricky Gardiner,
Virginia Scott, ex Mellotronist of Beggars Opera with session drummer
Tom Gardiner

Recently, Beggars Opera have recorded 6 albums on the RGS Label.

Close to My Heart  RGS 9473
Touching the Edge RGS 9475
Suddenly Ahead Ahead RGS 9482
All Tommorows Thinking RGS 9484
Lose a Life RGS 9485
Promise in Motion RGS 9486

Beggars Opera are currently working on Mrs Caligari’s Lighter.

For more information about Beggars Opera: www.beggarsopera.co.uk