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How the descendant of a notorious Jewish pirate became a swashbuckling rock ’n’ roll legend

Summarizing Dan Epstein in Forward · Published Thursday, September 18, 2025
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JL;DR SUMMARY Phil Manzanera, renowned guitarist of Roxy Music, discovered a surprising familial connection while writing his memoir "Revolucin to Roxy"—he is a descendant of Moses Cohen Henriques, a 17th-century Jewish pirate. A way out west there was a fella, fella I want to tell you about, fella by the name of Jeff Lebowski. At least, that was the handle his lovin' parents gave him, but he never had much use for it himself. This Lebowski, he called himself the Dude. Now, Dude, that's a name no one would self-apply where I come from. But then, there was a lot about the Dude that didn't make a whole lot of sense to me. And a lot about where he lived, likewise. But then again, maybe that's why I found the place s'durned innarestin'.

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Tags

Memoir  Jewish Pirates  Moses Cohen Henriques  Rock & Roll  Musical Collaboration  Phil Manzanera  Roxy Music  Revolucin To Roxy  Bryan Ferry  Art Rock 

Places mentioned

United Kingdom
"This all goes back to when Brexit happened in the UK, Manzanera told me."
Puerto Rico
"Henriques raids on Spanish ships in the Caribbean reportedly earned him the equivalent of over a billion dollars in todays currency, before he settled in Jamaica and helped establish the island nations first Jewish community."
Curaçao
"So I went on to Ancestry.com, and it turned out she was born in Curacao, and then I went back and back and back and back to the 16th and 17th century."
Chicago, Illinois, United States
"Phil Manzanera and Andy McKay of Roxy Music at the UIC Pavilion in Chicago, 1983."
Cuba
"Though born in London, Manzanera spent much of his childhood in Cuba, Venezuela, Colombia and Hawaii, thanks to a father who worked for BOAC and may have also been a foreign intelligence agent."
Venezuela
"Though born in London, Manzanera spent much of his childhood in Cuba, Venezuela, Colombia and Hawaii, thanks to a father who worked for BOAC and may have also been a foreign intelligence agent."
Colombia
"Though born in London, Manzanera spent much of his childhood in Cuba, Venezuela, Colombia and Hawaii, thanks to a father who worked for BOAC and may have also been a foreign intelligence agent."
Hawaii, United States
"Though born in London, Manzanera spent much of his childhood in Cuba, Venezuela, Colombia and Hawaii, thanks to a father who worked for BOAC and may have also been a foreign intelligence agent."
London, England, United Kingdom
"Though born in London, Manzanera spent much of his childhood in Cuba, Venezuela, Colombia and Hawaii, thanks to a father who worked for BOAC and may have also been a foreign intelligence agent."
Seville, Spain
"hese encounters relatively unscathed. I guess its just down to personality, he told me. Robert Wyatts wife said, I think youre a bit of a facilitator. And I said, Is that good or bad? But I guess when I have my producer hat on, I try to think conceptually, think about the music, think about what were doing here. You know, make sure everybodys ..."

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Cairo Item ID 61904
Cairo Source ID 35
Retrieved 2025-09-19 05:30:51 UTC
Curated 2025-09-19 08:31:51 UTC