David Jenkins
Guitarist and singer
David Owen Jenkins was born on 30 October 1945 in Swansea, Wales. In 1961 he became a founding member of The Iveys, a Swansea-formed band that grew out of an earlier outfit called The Panthers, playing rhythm guitar and taking an early turn as the band's lead singer alongside future stars Pete Ham and Ron Griffiths.
Jenkins played on some of the band's earliest recordings, including tracks produced by The Kinks' Ray Davies, helping shape the sound that would carry the group forward. He left The Iveys in 1967, replaced by guitarist Tom Evans, as the lineup that would later be renamed Badfinger — and go on to international hits such as 'Come and Get It' and 'Without You' — began to take shape.
Jenkins did not pursue a high-profile music career after leaving the band, but he has remained connected to its legacy, notably attending the 2013 unveiling of the blue plaque honouring his former bandmate Pete Ham in Swansea — a reminder of Badfinger's roots in the city.