Gecko Turner (Fernando Echave) was born and raised in the San Roque district of Badajoz, Spain, a town about halfway between Madrid and Lisbon, Portugal. As a teenager, he fell in love with The Beatles, Bob Dylan, and The Rolling Stones. The Stones led him back to Elmore James, Leadbelly, Muddy Waters, Jimmy Reed and other blues greats. He picked up his guitar in his teens and eventually formed a cover band that played an eclectic mix of American and British pop.