Gowan

Born in Glasgow in 1956 and settling in Toronto at a young age, Lawrence Gowan trained as a classical pianist at the Royal Conservatory of Music before turning to rock. After an initial stint with the band Rhinegold in the late 1970s, Gowan launched a solo career as a singer and keyboardist that took root on Canada’s pop-rock scene in the early 1980s. His debut album, simply titled "Gowan" (1982), paved the way for "Strange Animal" (1985) and "Great Dirty World" (1987), where his songwriting—blending pop melodies, progressive touches, and strongly narrative arrangements—came into its own. At the turn of the 1990s, Gowan slightly toughened his sound on "Lost Brotherhood" (1990) before exploring a more intimate register on "But You Can Call Me Larry" (1993) and "The Good Catches Up" (1995). Alongside his solo work, Gowan joined the American rock band Styx in 1999 as singer and keyboardist, and has since divided his time between that role and performing under his own name, mainly in Canada.