Few bands have garnered admiration, myth and folklore quite like Gentlemen of Industry. For nearly four hundred years the band has occupied a unique place in musical history, performing through revolutions, wars, technological change and the shifting sands of musical fashions to establish themselves as the world’s most enduring and hardest working rock band.

From the band’s first documented appearance in the spring of 1627 in a small English tavern, local scribes recorded that the performances would continue late into the small hours to delighted audiences and rapturous applause, before the troubadours would disappear quietly before dawn.

From these humble beginnings Gentlemen of Industry established a reputation as the must see touring act in taverns, alehouses and the village festival circuit in the summer of 1628.

Keen to build upon this success, the band embarked upon a thirty year tour of England. Enthusiastic audiences young and old, rich and poor would flock to see the Gentleman, as it was rumored that the three minstrels’ timeless melodies and haunting refrains could cure the Black Plague.

The Gentlemen’s fame grew with every appearance as their schedule continued apace, with only a brief interlude when the Great Fire of London broke out in 1666, which was rumored to be caused by primitive pyrotechnics utilized in the band’s shows at the time.

While London was rebuilding its venues and music halls, Gentlemen of Industry began carrying their music across the Old World aboard merchant vessels, naval ships and trading galleons.

They sailed the high seas via the great ports of Europe and the Mediterranean, performing wherever they dropped anchor—from bustling dockside taverns and candlelit gilded halls to the grand residences of merchants and nobility.

Their journeys through the age of sail laid the foundations for what would become four centuries of uninterrupted touring.

However, the 1600s were perilous times, even for swashbuckling musicians, and it would not be long before the Gentlemen’s infamy brought about the unwanted attention of the Spanish Inquisition.

It was during their Grand Tour in the Summer of 1672, the band were playing a series of shows in the Basque region when arrested by the religious lunatics and charged with heresy.

A brief hiatus ensued while the band was incarcerated awaiting execution, but once more their dazzling musical skills came to bear, after an impromptu a cappella vocal performance, their gaoler was convinced to allow the trio to make good their escape.

Over the following decades the band continued to tour across Europe, while stories spread like wildfire telling of their sensational musical feats. In those early days, the Gentlemen would often appear without warning, rocking audiences late into the delirious night.

Peasants reported seeing the musicians in townships hundreds of miles apart, often on the same night. It was said that these itinerant entertainers could tear down their gear and be on their way to the next show in the blink of an eye.

By the turn of the Eighteenth century, Gentlemen of Industry had developed a reputation unlike any other touring act of the time. Contemporary journals would note that they performed with gusto, verve… and punctuality, whether putting on shows for dock workers, wealthy merchants or aristocracy.

The band’s notoriety as the preeminent musical act of the age had been solidified, and from 1775 to 1799 the Gentlemen took up residency at the prestigious De Vere Grand Connaught Rooms in London, while continuing to headline outdoor festivals and music halls throughout Europe.

As the Nineteenth century rolled in, the Gentlemen of Industry set sail for the New World, voyaging across the Atlantic to America in 1820, whereupon they expanded their touring schedule dramatically. Initially performing around the East Coast and the South in the newly constructed concert halls.

Eminent American composers, poets and artists of the time regularly cited the Gentlemen as influences, though the band themselves declined opportunities to explain their extraordinary appeal and musical approach.

As the nascent country was gripped by the Gold Rush, the Gentlemen headed West and increased their touring schedule to meet the burgeoning needs of their newfound pioneering audience, and soon became the unlikely legends of the Wild West.

Traveling alongside wagon trains, riverboats and the rapidly advancing railroads, performing in rough-hewn frontier saloons, mining camps, cattle towns and newly built opera houses that seemed to appear overnight on the edge of civilization.

Records of the era would all note that regardless of the setting, the band was always impeccably well turned out.

The trio would go on to tour the emerging towns springing up throughout the West, stopping to perform at campsites and pioneer settlements along the way. The Gentlemen entertained cowboys fresh from the trail, prospectors chasing fortune, railroad workers, lawmen and notorious outlaws alike.

It was documented that the band’s performances brought rare moments of serenity to the frontier; quelling many a gun fight and barroom brawl, while their raucous saloon shows would become the stuff of legend, woven into the mythology of the American West.

Soon enough, the Industrial Revolution began its inexorable march across the Western World, sweeping in a new era. So too, the Gentlemen of Industry would adapt and evolve once more, finding their way to less rustic settings and ushering in the Twentieth century with a hip new look, and a modernized sound.

Advances in technology had provided the band with new opportunities to perform across continents to further widen their audience, they enjoyed regular sojourns across the Atlantic and to far flung corners of the world. Gentlemen of Industry had established themselves as the world’s first international super group.

But once again, the Gentlemen found themselves in a scrape when accepting a Royal commission to play aboard the world’s largest ocean liner – its maiden voyage setting sail from Southampton, England in the spring of 1912.

The engagement began well enough, with the band playing to delighted crowds in the grand ballroom, and for three nights the guests danced and celebrated. The Captain’s Log noted that the shows were packed out, with rapturous applause imploring the group to deliver several encores.

But, alas, through no fault of the Gentlemen, their gigantic vessel ran into trouble, striking an iceberg and eventually sinking in the North Atlantic. As the great ship began to sink, the band were asked to play on, but they politely declined the invitation and made haste to the nearest lifeboat.

After returning to America the band continued their touring and played regularly across the country in music halls and amphitheaters, before setting up residency in the bustling Chicago speakeasy, The Gilded Lily.

The prohibition era saw the Gentlemen playing uptempo, swinging sets to a packed house every night as audiences sipped contraband cocktails and gambled the night away in the infamous nightclub.

These were heady times for our intrepid virtuosos, as they juggled their hectic performance schedule with smuggling weekly truckloads of Canadian booze while avoiding capture from the Dry Agents led by Elliot Ness.

Another brief hiatus ensued in the 1940s, when Gentlemen of Industry received a telegram from their connections in London Westminster notifying them that the war efforts had taken a bad turn. The band were of course compelled to put down their musical instruments and take up arms against this rising tide of fascism in Europe.

Legend has it that after several top secret strategy meetings with Winston Churchill and his British military big wigs, it was agreed the trio were to be provisioned with the latest Spitfire fighter planes and join the Allied Forces in the struggle against Hitler – the testicularly challenged little genocidal maniac who was currently running amok in Germany.

The band took to the air in the fight against the awful Nazis with aplomb, derring-do and charisma. Alongside their new found chums in the Royal Air Force, it is said the Gentlemen gave Jerry what for – shooting down hundreds of Luftwaffe, helping to keep the skies safe over Europe.

Though the Gentlemen had little time to spare, war historians have documented that several shows were performed for the troops during the last few months of the War, at President Roosevelt’s personal request. Indeed, records note that the boost to troops’ morale was as a key factor in the triumph on D-Day.

With the War ended, the 1950s heralded an era of peace and prosperity – Gentlemen of Industry now found themselves a jet-setting fixture among New York City’s social elite and London’s high society.

Though rarely appearing on concert bills, their reputation had spread quickly through private circles, leading to invitations to perform at exclusive galas, charity balls, society weddings, noted bar mitzvahs, bat mitzvahs, Fifth Avenue and Mayfair residences and black tie events.

By this time, commercial airlines had provided the band with opportunities to perform far and wide at the drop of a bowler hat, from Casablanca to Cairo, from Bogata to Buenos Aires… this period was one of their busiest to date, with sold out shows and private engagements throughout the 1950s and 60s.

As the years rolled by, America would come to adopt the band as its unofficial soundtrack to the Golden Age. The Gentlemen would perform private celebrations hosted by titans of industry, Presidential galas, anniversary dinners at prestigious institutions and invitation-only gatherings where the city’s most influential movers and shakers relaxed after the closing bell.

Many a veteran broker would later recall leaving the deafening chaos of the trading floor to spend an evening unwinding at a society bash, entertained by the Gentlemen of Industry.

No doubt, among the most enduring stories surrounding the band is of course their legendary performance for NASA in 1982. Their space mission formed part of a classified program, the specific details of which remain unknown. But, it is said the Gentlemen performed a tight set on the lunar surface to a curious and appreciative audience.

The U.S government broadcast the event to neighboring galaxies as a gesture of peace and goodwill. No official record of such a mission has ever been found and NASA has never acknowledged the rumors, but the story feels true.

The 1980s was an especially busy period for the Gentlemen, as socio political change swept across the globe, the band once again found themselves providing the soundtrack to the era with engagements to perform at the most monumental of moments throughout the decade.

From their “People Power” concerts in The Philippines, which led directly to the 1986 peaceful revolution, to their legendary week-long marathon performance at the falling of the Berlin Wall in 1989.

As the Twenty First century dawned, Gentlemen of Industry established its new base in Los Angeles, securing studios in Hollywood and establishing a small network of venues to perform their tunes and provide audiences with an opportunity to also hear their long form improvisations, which they would weave into popular songs with taste and humor.

Though the band would take commissions to perform further afield, they now preferred to play more intimate settings, with a less taxing schedule – and who can blame them – as of writing, noted music historians estimate the Gentlemen have performed over 100,000 live shows.

Throughout history, Gentlemen of Industry’s lineup has appeared constant. Yet, rumors continue to this day of the power trio – their legendary performances are said to still be thrilling crowds young and old, well heeled and blue collar alike.

It is even whispered that if you are in need of a world class band for your event or venue, you can connect with the Gentlemen’s representation via this contact form – and if you state your needs and budget, someone will get back to you asap.