Artist · EveryDisc catalogue

Gary Numan

Gary Numan (real name Gary Anthony James Webb; born March 8, 1958) is a British rock musician, singer, songwriter, and one of the leading performers of the British new wave. Numan is considered one of the pioneers of commercial electronic music; he was called the "king of synth-pop" and the "godfather" of electronic music. Numan's musical style, which combined elements of krautrock, punk, and glam, as well as dark lyrics and the massive use of synthesizer sound, influenced the development of gothic rock, darkwave, and industrial music. Many cover versions of his songs have been made by performers such as Trent Reznor and Nine Inch Nails, Marilyn Manson, Dead Weather, Basement Jaxx, Fear Factory, and many others. Six of Gary Numan's albums entered the top twenty of the UK Albums Chart, and two of them—The Pleasure Principle (1979) and Telekon (1980)—topped the British charts. Two of his singles reached the top of the UK Singles Chart: "Are Friends Electric?" (1979, with Tubeway Army) and "Cars" (1979); the second of these also became an American hit in 1980 (#9, Billboard Hot 100).