UFO tour will continue this summer despite the death of Paul Raymond

Paul Raymond (Image credit: Ollie Millington/Redferns - Getty)

UFO have said that they’ll continue their Last Orders tour, despite the death earlier this month of Paul Raymond.

The guitarist and keyboardist died after suffering a heart attack at the age of 73 – just days after the band wrapped up the UK leg of the tour.

Now UFO have confirmed that they’ve recruited former member Neil Carter to ensure that their remaining 2019 live shows will go ahead as planned.

UFO say in a statement: “On April 13, 2019, the UFO family got the tragic news that our bandmate Paul Raymond had died of a heart attack. It had been just a week since we finished the first leg of our Last Orders tour in the UK.

‘While mourning his loss, sadly we also had to face the reality of what to do with the band. We feel moving forward with the tour is the right thing to do. We all know this is what Paul would have wanted us to do.

“We are therefore very pleased to announce that our friend and former bandmate Neil Carter has agreed to join us again and take over the keyboards/guitar and vocals slot for the remainder of the tour.

“Neil was already part of the family between 1981 and 1983, playing on the albums The Wild, The Willing And The Innocent, Mechanix and Making Contact.

“Before he joined UFO he was in Wild Horses, later he continued his career with Gary Moore. Together with Neil, we will bring our 2019 Last Orders tour to a close.

“We want to make sure that all our amazing fans get a fantastic experience out of it one more time.”

The next run of shows will get under way at Hannover’s MuzikCentrum on June 7 and conclude on October 30 at New York’s Sony Hall.

Scott has spent 37 years in newspapers, magazines and online as an editor, production editor, sub-editor, designer, writer and reviewer. Scott joined our news desk in 2014 before moving into e-commerce in 2020. Scott maintains Louder’s buyer’s guides, highlights deals, and reviews headphones, speakers, earplugs and more. Over the last 12 years, Scott has written more than 11,500 articles across Louder, Classic Rock, Metal Hammer and Prog. He's previously written for publications including IGN, Sunday Mirror, Daily Record and The Herald, covering everything from news and features, to tech reviews, video games, travel and whisky. Scott's favourite bands are Fields Of The Nephilim, The Cure, New Model Army, All About Eve, The Mission, Cocteau Twins, Drab Majesty, Marillion and Rush.