Gun

Formed by Giuliano Gizzi (guitar), Cami Morlotti (bass), Mark Rankin (vocals), Alan Thornton (drums), David Aitken, and Gary Moore (guitar) in 1987 originally under the name Blind Allez, Glaswegian hard-rockers Gun signed to A&M Records in 1988 and rebooted their lineup before unleashing their debut album. After replacing Alan Thornton, Cami Morlotti, and David Aitken with new members Dante Gizzi, Scott Shields, and Baby Stafford, Gun invited Jim McDermott (Kevin McDermott Orchestra, Simple Minds, and The Silencers) into the studio to play drums, and signed up Texas frontwoman Sharleen Spiteri and Alan Thornton for backing vocal duties. They set about recording their debut LP, Taking On the World, and yielded a UK Top 40 hit in "Better Days," subsequently touring the US with The Rolling Stones. A quintet comprising vocalist Mark Rankin, guitarists Alex Dickson and Giuliano Gizzi, bassist Dante Gizzi, and drummer Scott Shields assembled to record Gun's second album Gallus, which went to number 14 on the UK albums chart in 1992. In 1994, they secured their biggest hit in the form of "Word Up!" – a cover of the Cameo smash – going to number eight on the UK singles chart. The track, which earned the band the Best Cover trophy at the first international MTV Europe Music Awards, was contained on their third album Swagger (1994). They went to number 32 in the UK with their fourth album 0141 632 6326 but split up three years later. They announced their reunion in 2008 and issued their fifth album, Break the Silence, in 2012. Gun moved to Caroline Records for their sixth album Frantic, released in 2015, with follow-up Favourite Pleasures coming in 2017. The band marked their 30th anniversary in 2019 with a new compilation LP, R3L0ADED, and a sold-out show at Glasgow's Barrowland Ballroom. They returned in 2022 with new album The Calton Songs, comprising acoustic versions of their own material.