BIOGRAPHY

I was born on 27th November 1966 in Malacca Malaysia, on a British army base and grew up in Cornwall, both my parents coming from London, and moved to Plymouth in 1983.

I am still as passionate about music as I was when I got my first real taste at the age of 11. I had listened to various music before that age, but it wasn't until I heard "In The City" by The Jam, which made me really stand up and listen to what was going on around me. Too young to go and watch them play, I avidly bought all their records and watched them on TV, which led me into other bands like The Clash, The Police, The Undertones, Buzzcocks, Adam And The Ants, Bow Wow Wow, Blondie, The Who and the Small Faces.

In 1979 I got into The Specials, Madness, The Selecter, The Beat, UB40, Steel Pulse, Aswad, Bob Marley & The Wailers, Black Uhuru, along with other 2 Tone and Reggae bands, as well as Stiff Little Fingers and The Ruts. It was The Jam who always remained my favourites, and from the moment I heard them I wanted to see them. It was around this time I also got into Dub Reggae, Jackie Wilson and Nothern Soul, already being into Motown and Stax.

Living so far away near Plymouth always caused a problem seeing live bands, and I unfortunately wasn't allowed to see any until I was 16, this was made worst by the fact that my older sister Dawn was always going off and watching live bands. She was lucky enough to see such bands as The Clash, Theatre of Hate, Siouxsie And The Banshees, Killing Joke, The Specials, Madness, and The Selecter. She also got to see Nine Below Zero and Secret Affair, both of these bands along with The Jam I had really wanted to see.

The day after my 16th birthday my sister took me to my first ever gig with her friend Gary, I finally got to see The Jam on their 'Farewell Tour' at the St Austell(Cornwall) Coliseum on the 28th November 1982. We went without tickets as it was sold out, my sister was determined to get me a ticket, even if I had to go in on my own, but miraculously we all managed to get some. It is one of the best birthday presents I've ever had and what a band to see for my first ever gig, it was so amazing that it left a lasting impression to this day.

Around '82/'83 I also started listening to various New Wave bands such as The Style Council, Fun Boy 3, Dexys Midnight Runners (who I got into in 1980), Squeeze, Heaven 17, Duran Duran, Depeche Mode, The Human League, Haircut 100, Thompson Twins, Fine Young Cannibals, Death Cult, Spear Of Destiny and Theatre of Hate.

Around 1984 I got into bands like The Cult, Siouxsie And The Banshees, Big Audio Dynamite, Killing Joke, All About Eve, Iggy Pop, The Cramps, The Rezillos, Guanabatz, Restless, The Sting Rays, The Meteors, U2, The Smiths, Under Two Flags, Turbo and the Rockets and various 80's Post Punk and New Wave bands. I got to know both Spear Of Destiny and The Cult very well from following them around the UK when they were on tour, and from that crafted a longterm friendship with Stan Stammers who was the bass player for Spear Of Destiny and Theatre of Hate. Stan has become one of my best friends over the years, so I'm lucky enough to manage him. After SOD Stan fronted his own band Crazy Pink Revolvers before moving to the States and forming Philly punk band Plastic Eaters with singer and programmer Rob Daly. Whilst in Plastic Eaters Stan spent a brief period as bass player for cult Philly hip-hop band The Goats.

Towards the end of 1985 through to April '86 when living at Harrow On The Hill, my friend/flatmate Conor O'Brien and our girlfriends at the time Elaine Mooney and Belinda Flury, plus a group of friends from Gravesend, used to go to a club called The Warehouse in the Electric Ballroom on a Saturday night. DJ Jay Strongman would play a selection of Funk, Soul, Disco and Northern Soul on the ground floor and Rockabilly was played on the upper floor. These proved to be really fun and exciting times dancing the night away 'til the early hours, so good that this period of my life has remained with me ever since. We would also regularly go and watch The Flags play around London and the odd few gigs in Brighton. Around 1987 I got into Crazy Pink Revolvers through being mates with Stan, I also got into Chiefs Of Relief, Lightning Strike and Boys Wonder.

1989 saw me and my friends Ian, Lee, Steve, Kev Bragg, Kev Smith, John, Ange and later Jenny Marshall (Jen), get into three scottish bands from Glasgow, Gun, Texas and Slide. Through the early 90's we would go and see these three bands regularly in both Exeter and London. We would also still regulary go and watch The Cult play whenever they came over from California where they were now based, as well as Spear Of Destiny whenever they played in Bristol or London.

In the 90's I got into bands like The Stone Roses, The Charlatans, Ride, Oasis, Reef, Blur, The Housemartins, Airhead, The Verve and Primal Scream. I got involved with a local Plymouth band called Reach, the guitarist Andy Collins (Cobbledick) I had known for about 5 years and was previously in a local Plymouth covers bands called The Beat Directors. I helped the band at various gigs and rehearsals. They should have tasted success as they were excellent, influenced by such bands as The Stone Roses, The Charlatans, The Jam, Paul Weller and U2. They nearly signed to Sony in '94/'95 but unfortuntunately it wasn't meant to be, they disbanded around 1998 but remained very good friends.

Around 1996 I got involved helping a London band called The Cooler who's guitarist Adam Bolton and singer Gavin Juniper were old friends of mine. Adam had been Stan Stammers' guitarist in Crazy Pink Revolvers and Gavin used to front Post Punk band Under Two Flags and later The Flags. The Cooler released one CD Single Never Say Never. Billy Duffy guitarist for The Cult was a regular at gigs being an old friend of Gavin, Adam and myself.

Since 1999 I have been the manager for my friend Stan Stammers, and his band Plastic Eaters, and also look after the interest of Stan's old band Crazy Pink Revolvers.
I enjoy a wide variety of music, but especially Acid Jazz, Funk, Jazz, Motown, Nothern Soul, Soul and Stax.