A book about the Newcastle music scene in the 70s & 80s ‘Closest Thing to Heaven’ featured in a post back in December 2020 (link below).
Pages of black and white photos of bands, venues, posters and flyers were put together by Mick Fielding and Simon McKay. Featured in the book is guitarist and songwriter Alan Fish.
“That picture was taken in 1979 at The Mayfair, Newcastle. Before that In 1976, Bry Younger asked me to join his rock band ‘Hartbraker’, a band very much in the mould of Led Zeppelin and Free. My influences were The Who /The Kinks. This chemistry was perfect for the fast changing music landscape”.
“The photo perfectly captures our transition from rock to new wave with some of us already taking the brave move of getting our hair cut! A new image! A new sound! And a new name ‘White Heat’.
“Bob Smeaton and I were developing a strong song writing partnership and our first independent release, ’Nervous Breakdown’ got us Radio 1 airplay as well as attracting major label record company interest. 1979 was definitely a big year for us”.
If you feature in the book just get in touch using the contact page. The book is available direct from Tyne Bridge Publishing:
Tyne Bridge Publishing | Newcastle City Council
Link to first post about the book in December 2020:
Alikivi October 2023
ALIKIVI : NORTH EAST UK CULTURE 