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Final Note:

"I'm about to retire from performing on 6 December in the UK and early Feb in the USA."

12 Nov 1997
Sal Solo

New Best of ....

Best of CN is to be released by EMI (UK) 14 September.

Sal Solo

Is It A Dream (Extended Version) - 7:15

Guilty (New Version) - 3:19

Never Never Comes 2:53

Inside Outside (Single Version) - 3:18

1999 - 3:44

Forever And A Day (Extended Version) - 6:44

No Sympathy, No Violins - 4:07

Never Again (The Days Time Erased) - 3:52

No Other Way - 4:52

Soldier - 3:48

La Verite - 5:18

Manitou - 3:52

The End... Or The Beginning - 3:08

Where To Go - 3:14

The Robots Dance (New Version) - 5:03

I Will Return - 5:38

Song times differ from that stated on cover.

A haircut band with a difference - namely Sal Solo. Self proclaimed night person and darling of the teen pop mags in the early '80's (especially Flexi-pop - that glossy magazine that called Gary Numan a fat white slug in the first issue but brought you some quite neat little flexi discs including the Adam and the Ants classic A.N.T.S.).

The band formed in 1979 by Sal Solo, Mik Sweeny, BP Hurding, and Jak Airport. BP and Jak had preiviosly been in punk band X-ray Spex, and Sal and Mik had been in new wave band The News. They played a low key gig in Bedford to ascertain their viability and three weeks later played their debut gig with Opposition at the Music Machine in London (see early live dates below).

In 1979 they toured with Adam & the Ants. In 1980 Gary Steadman (ex-Eater) replaced Jak and they relesed 3 singles (Nasty Little Green Men b/w Test Tube Babies, Tokyo b/w Old World For Sale , Guilty b/w Night People). Guilty was a classic single, in a "one-hit-wonder" manner of speaking - basic and catchy with sparse string synth, a splash of guitar, repetetive bass and dark vocals. Nestled after a windy little instumental that sounds like an outtake from the "War of the Worlds" soundtrack, it sets the scene for a debut album in the same vein as the first Visage Album.

During the early part of 1981 the band establishd their following with two major UK tours. The first was the much publicised 2002 Review which sprang from Sal Solo's idea of combining a number of promising new bands in one package. This gave national exposure to Kirk Brandon's Theatre of Hate and Shock. A more extensive tour followed ending in London's Hammersmith Palias in May and coinciding with the release of their debut album (Classix Nouveux & Night People, more or less the same album except for a change in song line up and different names). By this time they had charted in several countries and they toured 11 countries including Sweden, Yugoslavia and Portugal, where they received silver discs for the first album. The album had been released in 27 countries including India, the Phillipines ans Bolivia.

In November 1981 they started work on their second album La Verite, a more pop oriented album released the next year with a single "Is it a Dream?" that saw them hit number 13 in the UK. They toured extensively including England, Eastern Bloc countries (Hungary and Czechoslovakia) and India becoming the first western rock group to play in Sri Lanks. They won gold awards in Australia, Steadman left in 1982 and was replaced by Jimi Suman and they released their third album, Secret, in 1983. The band split up after this release and Sal Solo went solo.

Last thing known of Sal Solo was his involvement with a band called Rockets.

Now in a new Christian band - The Sal Solo Band.

Personnel

Sal Solo - Vox, Keyboard Synthesizers, Guitar
Mik Sweeney - Bass, Keyboard Synthesizers,Backing Vox
Gary Steadman - Guitar & Guitar Synthesizers
B.P. Hurding - Drums, Electronic Percussion, Sax & Backing Vox

Name: Sal Solo
Height: 5'11"
Weight: 10.5 St.
Sign: Virgo
Birth date: 5/9/55
Birthplace: England
Ambition: To be able to do exactly what I like
Turn-ons: Bald heads
Turn-offs: Bitchiness
Favourite food: Anything exotic
Preferred performers: Bette Davis, John Hurt
All time favourite song: Somewhere Over the Rainbow
Favourite pastime: Performing
Best films: Dracula (Bela Lugosi’s), One Flew Over the Cuckoo Nest
Favourite reading matter: Magazines
Favourite outfit: Black and clinging
Perfect evening: Playing a concert to 10,000 people
Desert island companion: A radio
Best and worst characteristics: My bald head
Like to be reincarnated as: King of England
Secret: I shave my head every morning in the bath


"One paper said my voice sounded like an owl being attacked by a breadknife."

Sal Solo in 1982 - thanks Michelle!

Discography

 

Singles

Albums


Night People

"It comes packaged like a box of super-expensive chocolates full of Eastern promise but reaveals little more than a re-recorded romp through the chap's chequered past - all soft centers in flash, trash wrappings." - Sounds

"...the sense of familiarity, as manifested in trite, banal lyrics, music of agonising mediocrity and sterility, and to cap it all abysmal self-production is overwhelming." - NME

La Verite

"Colourless, tasteless, harmless, new wave muzak; a soporific mess as full of surprising ideas, strong melodies and intriguing lyrics as his head is full of hair." - Sounds

"An incredibly neutral record, pretty acceptable as an updated Hot Chocolate or Lindisfarne." - NME

Secret

"After an encouraging 18 month absence, here they resume their place as pompous fishes who provided early insipid inspiration for the Fixx, H2O, Blue Zoo, Talk Talk, and so on." - NME

Early Live Dates

Although correct, I am not sure as to the completeness of this list. Information gleaned from Punk Diary - 1970-1979 by George Gimarc.

Full Tour in 1982

From NME.

Guilty

Don't say a word, I know what you're thinking
It's plain to see
I see my opportunities shrinking
In front of me

I know you've made up your mind
But don't say
Although I know of no crime
It's the same Guilty, Guilty, you found me Guilty

I wonder why you haven't the time for
The reasons why
To hear the truth might alter your mind or
Open yourr eyes
I know you've made up you're mind...etc. Guilty

Thanks to Michelle in Canada and Tibor in Hungary for valuable info.

Can you help:

I am trying to get a hold of all the early tracks from this band - The End or The Beginning (extended version), Old World For Sale, Manitou (instrumental) and Chemin Chagrin.

Jouni


Anyone have the set of Classix video's?

Let me know.

The Sal Solo Page

The Rockets Homepage

New Wave Complex

A resource for New Wave music and genres it encompasses.

Created: 21/6/96
Modified: 12/11/99
Maintained by: Ashley Fletcher nwc@nerosoft.com