Stacia

Stacia (full name Stacia Blake), born 26th December 1952 in Ireland, was an exotic dancer for the English rock group Hawkwind. Stacia joined the band in 1971, and true to this band's rather chemically-influenced history, accounts vary as to how and why she began working with the band. Liner notes to "In Search of Space" seem to indicate that poet and lyricist Robert Calvert was somehow involved; other sources state that she was a friend of Nik Turner, saxophonist and flautist for the band. In an interview in British music magazine "Melody Maker", Stacia herself stated that she simply showed up and was inspired to dance by the band's music. In any case, she joined the "crew" in 1971 and immediately became an integral part of the group.

Stacia was six feet tall, an attractive and imposing figure of a woman by any standard, and often augmented her visual impact by performing clad only in iridescent or luminescent paint. In a 2007 BBC Four documentary Motorhead's Lemmy described her as 6 ft 2 inches tall with a 52 inch bust and a bookbinder by trade. The same documentary said that she was working as a petrol pump attendant in Cornwall when she joined them.cite video |people = Simon Chu (Director), Tim Cumming (Writer)|date2 = 2007-03-30|title = Hawkwind: Do Not Panic|url = http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1046927/|medium = Documentary|publisher = BBC]

She regarded what she did with the band as interpretive dance, and was an integral part of the early to mid-1970s Hawkwind experience, particularly during the "Space Ritual" era, widely considered to be the group's high point.

Stacia left Hawkwind in 1975 after touring with them for the "Warrior on the Edge of Time" album. Her departure, along with that of Lemmy and Robert Calvert, signaled the end of an era; though Calvert, after a guest appearance with the band at the Reading festival, decided to rejoin the band full time towards the end of that year.

Stacia's subsequent life since leaving Hawkwind was somewhat of a mystery. However, it is now apparent that she married not long after leaving the band. As former Hawkwind manager Doug Smith said in the October 2000 issue of "Classic rock" magazine, "The last anybody heard, Stacia was married with children and living in Hamburg with her husband Roy Dyke, formerly of Ashton, Gardner and Dyke." The couple had a daughter, Aysha Dyke, who lives in Hamburg and is currently in the band Generations of Music. Stacia is now living in Ireland and working as an artist.

References

External links

* [http://www.angel.dk/hawkwind/HAWKovers2.html Photos of Stacia at a concert in Copenhagen]
* [http://www.tac.streamlinetrial.co.uk/woc/stacia/stacia.htm A fan page with a more current picture]
* [http://www.starfarer.net/croct2k.html A mention of Stacia]
* [http://www.staciablake.com/ A current website for Stacia]
* [http://www.intuitivemusic.com/stacia-pioneer-in-rock-nudity/ A short article about Stacia]
* [http://www.ayshadyke.com Stacia's daughter's website]
* [http://www.generationsofmusic.de/ Website of the band Stacia's daughter is part of]
* [http://www.laois.ie/LeisureandCulture/Arts/Art/ArtistsinLaois/ Article about Stacia and other Irish artists]