- Pete Shelley
Infobox musical artist
Name = Pete Shelley
Background = solo_singer
Birth_name = Peter Campbell McNeish
Alias =
Born = birth date and age|df=yes|1955|4|17
Origin =Leigh, Greater Manchester , United Kingdom
Genre =Punk rock ,Pop punk , New Wave,Power pop
Occupation =Musician , Singer, Songwriter,Guitarist
Years_active = 1975–present
Instrument = Vocals,Guitar
Associated_acts =Buzzcocks ,The Tiller Boys ,Howard Devoto ,Steve Diggle
Label = I.R.S., Cooking Vinyl, Island
Notable_instruments =Gibson Marauder :"This musician is not to be confused with the 1970s singer
Peter Shelley ."Pete Shelley (born Peter Campbell McNeish, 17 April 1955 in
Leigh ,Greater Manchester ) is an English singer, songwriter and guitarist, best-known as the leader ofBuzzcocks .Career
Buzzcocks
Buzzcocks were formed by Shelley andHoward Devoto shortly after the two met at an electronic music society at Bolton Institute of Technology (now theUniversity of Bolton ) in 1975.During this time Shelley lived for a while at the college-owned house 54 Radcliffe Road, Bolton, where he was influenced by other students, wrote songs and practised playing music in the cellar. He was engaged for a time to fellow student Hilary Collins. His breakup with Hilary was highly traumatic but his emotional pain gave birth to some of his first groundbreaking work.
Devoto and Shelley travelled together to London to see
The Sex Pistols . They debuted in 1976 inManchester , opening for the Sex Pistols.In 1977, they released their first
EP , "Spiral Scratch", on their own independent label, New Hormones. The song "Orgasm Addict " garnered attention in and beyond the Manchester punk scene but afterward singer Howard Devoto left the group. Shelley continued to front the band, creating such quintessential punk singles of the period as "What Do I Get?", and "Ever Fallen in Love (With Someone You Shouldn't've) " along with three LPs, "Another Music in a Different Kitchen " (1978), "Love Bites" (1978), and "A Different Kind of Tension " (1979), until difficulties with their record company, and a dispute over the U.S. release of their greatest hits record, "Singles Going Steady ", brought Buzzcocks to a halt in 1981.olo career
Shelley's debut album "Sky Yen" was recorded in 1974 but remained unheard until March of 1980 when it was released on 12" vinyl in an edition of 1000 on Shelley's own label,
Groovy Records . The original purpose of "Sky Yen" was as the soundtrack to the experimental film of the same name by Howard Devoto. It was recorded as one continuous piece of music with a purpose-builtoscillator and was notable for its use of layered electronics and playback speed manipulation to achieve its experimental feel. Rooted inelectronic music , it has garnered comparisons tokrautrock . [ [http://allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=10:mzvyxddbjol7 Sky Yen] from Allmusic.com] Also released on Groovy Records was the soundtrack LP "Hangahar" bySally Timms andLindsay Lee , which included Shelley as a musician, and an album by artistsEric Random ,Barry Adamson andFrancis Cookson under the name "Free Agents." After these releases, Groovy Records never released another album. The label was managed by Shelley cohortsJon Savage andLinder Sterling , who also ran the Buzzcock's own label, New Hormones.In 1981, Shelley released his first solo single, the song "Homosapien", which had originally been written for the next Buzzcocks LP. On this recording he returned to his original interests in
electronic music and shifted emphasis from guitar to synthesizer. The song was banned by theBBC for "explicit reference to gay sex", which didn't stop it from becoming enormously popular in dance clubs in Europe and North America. At this time, Pete Shelley also talked about hisbisexuality ,citation |title=Queerly Independent: The Best of New Queer Music Isn’t Finding Home at the Major Labels |first=Gregg |last=Shapiro |date=2003-03-26 |accessdate=2007-09-09 |url=http://www.windycitymediagroup.com/gay/lesbian/news/ARTICLE.php?AID=3504 |periodical=Windy City Times ] which had been implicit in many of the Buzzcocks songs he had written but now came to attention due to "Homosapien" and the BBC ban. The same year saw the controversial single followed by an LP of the same name.Shelley released his second LP "
XL1 " in 1983 onGenetic Records . In addition to the minor hit "Telephone Operator," the album included a computer program for theZX Spectrum which featured lyrics and graphics which displayed in time with the music, an innovative precursor to the visuals of today's media players. "XL1" was produced byMartin Rushent and Shelley.June of 1986 saw Shelley release the darker, edgier "
Heaven and the Sea ", an album that drew comparisons toLove and Rockets ,Gary Numan and late periodUltravox . In 1987 he followed the album with a new song, "Do Anything", for the film "Some Kind of Wonderful".In 1989 Shelley recorded a new version of "Homosapien" billed as "Homosapien II." The single featured four mixes of the new recording.
Shelley has also played with various other musicians during his career, including a stint with
Pauline Murray of Penetration for her LP "Pauline Murray andThe Invisible Girls ", who backed punk poetJohn Cooper Clarke . Shelley also collaborated with a band calledTiller Boys , which was comprised of assorted punk veterans, and Zip. He briefly reunited with Howard Devoto to make the LPBuzzkunst , released in 2002.Shelley co-wrote music for the 2006 film, "
Brothers of the Head ". He also appeared on the 2005 debut EP by the Los Angeles bandThe Adored (who toured extensively with Buzzcocks the following year.)A substantially sped-up club remix of "Telephone Operator" is a standard offering on the
Dance Dance Revolution arcade game.Buzzcocks reform
In 1989, Buzzcocks reunited, and released a new full length recording, "
Trade Test Transmissions " in 1993. They continue to tour and record, their most recent release being the CD "Flat-Pack Philosophy " in 2006. They toured with bands such as The Adored, The Strays, Lola Ray, and Easy Image.In 2005, Shelley re-recorded "Ever Fallen in Love" with an all-star group, including
Roger Daltrey ,David Gilmour ,Peter Hook ,Elton John ,Robert Plant and several contemporary bands, as a tribute toJohn Peel . Proceeds went toAmnesty International . Shelley also performed the song live, with several of the aforementioned, at the 2005UK Music Hall of Fame [http://www.guardian.co.uk/arts/news/story/0,11711,1577076,00.html] .References in popular culture
*"Pete Shelley" is also the title of a short story by
Patrick Marber contained in "Speaking With the Angel", a short story collection edited byNick Hornby . In the story, the narrator loses his virginity while listening to a Buzzcocks song.*Professional wrestler Patrick Martin adapted Shelley's surname into his ring name in homage to the Buzzcock's frontman.
*Nashville, Tennessee singer/songwriter
Tommy Womack has two cats, named Pete and Shelley.*Shelley was featured on the cover of the album
Morbid Florist byAnal Cunt .References
Discography
Albums
* "Sky Yen" Groovy Records (1980)
* "Hangahar" Groovy Records (1980)
* "Reprint' Snatch Tapes
* "Homosapien" (1981)
* "XL1 1983
* "Heaven and the Sea" (1986)
* "Some Kind of Wonderful"ingles
* "Homosapien" (1981)
* "I Don't Know What It Is" (1981)
* "Qu'est-Ce Que C'est Que Ça" (1982) [cite web |url=http://freespace.virgin.net/pete.shelley/quest.htm |title=Buzzcocks Discography : PETE SHELLEY Qu'est-ce Que C'est Que Ça [SINGLE] |accessdate=2007-08-28]
* "Telephone Operator" (1983) UK #66
* "Millions Of People (No One Like You)" (1983) UK #94
* "Never Again" (1984)
* "Waiting For Love" (1986)
* "On Your Own" (1986)
* "I Surrender" (1986)
* "Blue Eyes" (1986)
* "Your Love" (1988)Audio sample
References
External links
* [http://micksinclair.com/sounds/shelley.html Interview with Pete Shelley]
* [http://freespace.virgin.net/pete.shelley/contents.htm Buzzcocks and Pete Shelley Discography]
* [http://www.secretpublic.com/home/default.asp Secret Public Buzzcocks Community]
* [http://www.spiral.snaps.btinternet.co.uk Buzzcocks SPIRAL SNAPS! - an illustrated discography]
* [http://www.answers.com/topic/pete-shelley?cat=entertainment Pete Shelley-Answers.com]
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