Saxon was formed in 1976 in South Yorkshire, England. With Biff Byford on vocals, Paul Quinn and Graham Oliver on guitars, Steve Dawson , and Pete Gill on drums, they released their first album, Saxon , in 1979. In 1980, the band released the album Wheels Of Steel , achieving mainstream success.
In 1981, drummer Pete Gill was replaced by Nigel Glocker due to a hand injury. In 1983, the band released the album Power & The Glory , their best-selling album to date.
Although Glocker left Saxon in 1987, he returned at the end of the following year. He left again in 1989, returning in 2005 and remains in the band to this day. In 1988, bassist Nibbs Carter joined Saxon. In 1994, Graham Oliver was fired from the band for selling recordings of Saxon's performance at Donington without the permission of the other members. He was replaced by current guitarist Doug Scarratt .
With an impressive history of shows and tours, and approximately 15 million albums sold, Saxon is considered today one of the greatest English metal bands, being one of the forerunners and main symbols of the New Wave Of British Heavy Metal . The band is cited as an influence by several groups, such as Motörhead , Metallica and Megadeth .
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