Pete Shelley

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Pete Shelley in 2009

Pete Shelley (real name Peter Campbell McNeish , born April 17, 1955 in Leigh , † December 6, 2018 in Tallinn ) was a British musician who became known as the guitarist and singer of the Buzzcocks .

Life

Peter McNeish was born to Margaret and John McNeish. He studied electronics at the Bolton Institute of Technology and began writing and recording his first songs. He formed a band called "Jets of Air" that made a few appearances. He also experimented with electronic music.

Inspired by the Sex Pistols , he founded the punk band Buzzcocks together with Howard Devoto in Bolton in 1975/76 , where he played guitar and for which he took the stage name Pete Shelley . The two traveled to the Sex Pistols for their performances in a borrowed car. They wanted to organize a gig in Manchester for the Pistols and persuaded their manager Malcolm McLaren to let them perform there as well. This did not happen because the band was not yet fully occupied for the gig on June 4, 1976, but shortly afterwards, on July 20, they were able to play in the opening act at the second Sex Pistols concert in Manchester. In keeping with the do-it-yourself idea , they released their first EP Spiral Scratch in 1977. They borrowed the money from Shelley's father. Although independent record labels did not yet have a distribution network, they managed to sell 16,000 copies. The minimalist guitar solo played by Shelley on the piece Boredom is considered one of the most famous of the punk era.

Devoto left the band after the record was released to start his own Project Magazine . Therefore Shelley took over the vocal part and the lyrics of the songs. He wrote the band's most successful song, Ever Fallen in Love (With Someone You Shouldn't've) . Shelley also promoted the careers of young bands himself: Joy Division , for example, had the first appearance as the opening act for the Buzzcocks. After some successful releases on the major label United Artists , Shelley broke up the Buzzcocks in 1981 and embarked on a solo path, incorporating his interest in electronic music. His first album as a solo artist was Sky Yen, which was recorded in 1974 . The debut single Homosapien from the album of the same name was a club hit in the US and is said to have influenced the developing techno scene in Detroit .

In 1989 there was a reunion of the Buzzcocks, the band went on tour and released other albums. In 2002 Peter Shelley and Howard Devoto recorded another album together under the name Shelley Devoto .

Pete Shelley was married to Greta, an Estonian , for the second time and had also lived in Estonia since 2012. There he died in December 2018 at the age of 63, presumably of a heart attack .

Discography

with the buzzcocks

as a solo artist

  • 1980: Sky Yen (Groovy Records)
  • 1981: Homosapien (Genetic / Arista Records )
  • 1983: Telephone Operator (Genetic / Arista Records)
  • 1983: XL 1 (Genetic / Arista Records)
  • 1986: Heaven & the Sea ( Mercury Records )
  • 2016: Cinema Music and Wallpaper Sounds (Caroline True Records)

with ShelleyDevoto

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Brian Gomm: University honors Buzzcock Pete. In: leighjournal.co.uk. July 1, 2009, accessed December 12, 2018 .
  2. ^ A b Adam Sweeting: Pete Shelley obituary. In: The Guardian . December 7, 2018, accessed December 12, 2018 .
  3. ↑ Kevin Rawlinson: Pete Shelley, lead singer of punk band Buzzcocks, dies at 63. In: The Guardian . December 6, 2018, accessed December 7, 2018 .
  4. ^ A b c d Felix Bayer: Pete Shelley: Obituary for the Buzzcocks singer. In: Spiegel Online . December 7, 2018, accessed December 7, 2018 .
  5. ↑ Buzzcocks: Singer Pete Shelley is dead. In: Rolling Stone . December 7, 2018, accessed December 7, 2018 .
  6. ^ Paul Lester: Part time punks. In: The Guardian . March 1, 2002, accessed December 7, 2018 .
  7. ^ Buzzcock's frontman Pete Shelley living in Estonia. In: Postimees . April 17, 2013, accessed December 7, 2018 .
personal data
SURNAME Shelley, Pete
ALTERNATIVE NAMES McNeish, Peter Campbell (real name)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION British musician
DATE OF BIRTH April 17, 1955
PLACE OF BIRTH Leigh , UK
DATE OF DEATH December 6, 2018
Place of death Tallinn , Estonia