Basslines #7: John Gustafson plays the iconic intro to Roxy Music’s last great single, Love Is The Drug – but he was never officially in the band.

In fact, for some reason only the first of the baker’s dozen of men to play bass guitar with the band has ever been inducted into the group. Perhaps Bryan Ferry has a longstanding grudge against bassists.

The first (and only actual band member) was Graham Simpson, who co-founded Roxy Music in late 1970 with Bryan Ferry, and played on their self-titled debut album – but not their first hit single, Virginia Plain, which was recorded after he left with replacement Rik Kenton.

Over the next four years various other bass guitarists passed through the band, starting with Peter Paul who replaced Kenton for a 1972 BBC session and John Porter in the same year, credited as a “guest artiste” on second album For Your Pleasure.

Gustafson had the longest spell, from 1973-75, playing on three albums – Stranded, Country Life and Siren, plus one track (Both Ends Burning) on the live album Viva!.

Others included live musicians Sal Maida (1972-73 Stranded tour), John Wetton (1974-75 Country Life tour) and Rick Wills (1975-76 Siren tour), plus studio bassists Gary Tibbs (1979-80 – Manifesto, Flesh + Blood) Alan Spenner (1980-82 – Flesh + Blood, Avalon) and Neil Jason (1980-82 – Flesh + Blood, Avalon).

Subsequent reunions have seen even more bassists pass through, including Guy Pratt and Mark Smith but none left their mark quite as convincingly as Gustafson, who had started out in Sixties bands The Big Three and Merseybeats, passing through forgotten progsters Quatermass and rockers Bullet (later Hard Stuff).

His bass playing on Love Is The Drug is remarkably funky for a fellow whose natural home was in hard rock bands.

After his spell with Roxy, he moved on to the Ian Gillan Band  before joining The Pirates; he also recorded with Roger Glover, Steve Hackett, Ian Hunter and Gordon Giltrap. He died in 2014.