My friend Brian Bethell, who has died of heart failure aged 74, was a musician and journalist in the UK and Australia. He worked with the Blow Monkeys, Nine Below Zero, Paul Weller, the 69ers and the Richard Clapton Band, and toured with musicians ranging from Chuck Berry to the Who.
In 1981 Brian joined the R&B band Nine Below Zero as bassist. He performed on their early albums including Third Degree, with its front cover image by David Bailey, appeared on TV shows such as The Old Grey Whistle Test, Top of the Pops, OTT and the South Bank Show, and toured Britain and Europe. In 1982 he appeared with the band on the BBC TV comedy series The Young Ones.
Later that year he left Nine Below Zero and joined the Truth. He also toured and recorded with his friend Robert Howard (AKA Dr Robert) in the Blow Monkeys, until taking early retirement in 1997.
The elder son of William, a wages clerk, and Mavis, who worked in a bakery, Brian was born in Epsom, Surrey, grew up nearby in Worcester Park, and was educated at Kingston grammar school. His musical career began when his father bought him a bass guitar for his 13th birthday.
In 1968, soon after he left school, Brian and his family emigrated to Australia on the Ten Pound Pom Scheme. Their journey on the TSS Fairstar was a huge adventure. His parents and younger brother, Martin, returned to the UK, but Brian remained in Sydney and joined the Sun newspaper as a trainee journalist. He played in local bands including the 69ers, and was on bass for Richard Clapton’s 1975 hit song Girls on the Avenue.
Brian and I first met in 1978 as journalists at TV Times magazine in Sydney. I had just arrived back from the UK with dozens of new wave rock band cassettes, which reignited his dream of a career in London. He had real stage presence and youthful good looks. In 1980 we moved to London, marrying in 1981 and working together at Visnews and Reuters.
Our separation in 1995 was hard, but when I remarried, my new husband gracefully accepted our desire to remain friends, which made it easier for the whole family. In 1997 we both went with Brian to see the singer Geno Washington perform in Richmond, Surrey. That night Brian met and fell in love with Susan Skene, and they remained together until his death.
Brian was a Labour supporter and Fulham football fan, a kind and intelligent person, and a superb musician who delved deep for emotional truth. He was never dull or fake.
He is survived by Susan, me and our children, David and Lucille, and four grandchildren, Poppy, Florence, Daisy and Marley, and his brother, Martin.
