Robert Gotobed
Robert Grey (born 21 April 1951) is an English musician best known as the drummer for Wire. He is sometimes credited as Robert Gotobed.
Also recorded as Robert Grey
Robert Gotobed

Fergus Kelly · CC BY-SA 2.0
- Name
- Robert Grey
- Born
- 21 April 1951
- Birthplace
- Marefield, Leicestershire, England
- Nationality
- United Kingdom
- Occupation
- musician
- Fields
- punk rock
- Languages
- English
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Documentary summary
Robert Grey (born 21 April 1951) is an English musician best known as the drummer for Wire. He is sometimes credited as Robert Gotobed.
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Note VALÉORINE
Robert Gotobed (born 1951) is a musician, of British nationality. The musician was born in Leicester. Robert Gotobed is a member of Wire.
The work spans punk rock. Languages used include English.
Composed from admitted, traceable facts · 01 October 2026
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wikidata · Q3435254
In this article
Key facts
Key facts
• Name — Robert Grey • Alias — Robert Gotobed • Born — 21 April 1951 • Birthplace — Marefield, Leicestershire, England • Origin — London, England • Instrument — Drums • Genre — * Punk rock • art punk • post-punk • experimental rock • Years Active — 1973–present • Current Member Of — Wire • Website — pinkflag.com
Career
Career
In 1973, Grey joined his first band, an R&B group called the Snakes, as vocalist. The Snakes released one single, "Teenage Head". After the group folded, Grey began teaching himself to drum. He has been Wire's regular drummer since their start in 1976; at first he used the stage name 'Robert Gotobed'. The group broke up in 1980, reforming in 1985. Grey left Wire in 1990, after the release of the album Manscape, because of Wire's increasing use of sequencers, computers, and drum machines: he began to feel uncomfortable with the computer-based environment. After his departure, the band dropped one letter from its name, becoming "Wir". Grey began to explore African drumming and devoted his time to organic agriculture, running a small farm in the Midlands. He rejoined Wire in 2000, dropping his Robert Gotobed alias and using his birthname Robert Grey. He has recorded and toured with the band since.

The band Wire, sept 2013. Photo by Fergus Kelly.
Fergus Kelly
Life and career
Dated record
Life and career
The full dated record · 1 entries
1951
Robert Gotobed born at Leicester.
Notes from the source article
Cited by Wikipedia
Notes from the source article
These works are cited by the source article, in its own numbering. They are recorded as its citations, not as sources VALÉORINE has verified.
- 1.Perry, Jonathan. Wire is still electric. The Boston Globe. 5 April 2011.
- 2.Pinkflag.com (the official Wire website) - Us - Robert Grey. Pinkflag.com.
- 3.Strong, Martin C. The Great Rock Discography. Mojo Books. 1075–1076. 2000. 1-84195-017-3.
- 4.Robert Gotobed in interview. Stereosociety.com.
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The Encyclopedia exists whether or not anything is for sale. Corrections are recorded rather than overwritten, and every version of this record is kept. Published 18 August 2026.
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