Eric Griffiths, 64; Played Guitar for Quarrymen, Predecessor to Beatles
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Eric Griffiths, 64, a member of the schoolboy band that evolved into the Beatles, died Jan. 29 of cancer at his home in Edinburgh, Scotland.
Griffiths played guitar in the Quarrymen, the first group formed by the young John Lennon and the band that brought him together with Paul McCartney.
Born in Denbigh, Wales, Griffiths met Lennon at Liverpool’s Quarry Bank High School in the 1950s. The pair, along with friends Pete Shotton and Rod Davis, formed a band to play skiffle -- a blend of folk, blues and country and western styles popularized by such British musicians as Lonnie Donegan.
Lennon later invited McCartney to join the group. The pair went on to form one of the greatest songwriting partnerships in popular music. The Beatles also included George Harrison and Ringo Starr.
Griffiths left the group in 1958 -- around the time that Harrison joined on guitar -- and later joined the merchant navy.
After leaving the service, he worked in Britain’s prison system before retiring in the early 1990s to run a dry-cleaning business.
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