Saw Tackhead and Mark Stewart & The Maffia several times in the late 80s - an incredible sensory experience. Malcolm X was the first sampling record that I can remember being aware of, and it's a track that has stayed with me - it opened my eyes and ears, musically and politically. RIP Keith, sonic and rhythmic pioneer. Thanks for the beats xx

Thanks for sharing - Jamming was gone by the time I was buying the music press regularly, but I remember it as a good publication. I look forward to reading this article.

Happy Birthday from that other hemisphere, Bill. Thank you for all the years of enjoyment and inspiration. All the best from NZ. Edx

Thornes Park sounds right actually, maybe someone from 'Wakey' can confirm. I just looked it up on the 'net and the accompanying photos of Clarence Park looked familiar. I took some very average photos of the gig (still have them somewhere). Sadly, when Bill was chatting with fans after his set (and selling Household Gods t-shirts - tres chic!), the photo that was taken of me with Bill came out weird and distorted, I never used that camera again. Still, a great day, and obviously a thrill to see Bill playing 'live' for the first time. As I recall, he hadn't played much over the previous few years, so I took the first chance I had to see him. There were a couple of other local gigs over the next couple of years which I managed to get up to as well, including a couple of fun shows guesting with Ian's band 'Bolt from the Blue', I think. Happy memories.

Chimes and Rings - it's back! As a dig-it-all download! We all have our personal favourites, and this album is one of mine. 'Demonstrations' arrived when I was at a bit of a crossroads in my life and I instantly took it to my heart. Inevitably it's dark in places, being as it is an outpouring of Bill's feelings during a tough time for him, but there are many moments of lightness and fun. The rock rocks, and you can definitely play 'spot the riff' as Bill nods back to his guitar hero days (eg, Dangerous Lady), but it's also super funky, and some of my favourite tracks are ones with little or no guitar (eg, I Wait For You - which is as bright and breezy a demonstration of Bill's mastery of drum programming as you could wish to hear). It must have come out a few months before the first time I saw Bill play live (at an arts festival in Wakefield in 1990) because I took it up there with me in the hope of getting Bill to sign it. I went to Clarence Park early on that day, just to suss out the lie of the land, and Bill was there, about to set up. I grabbed the opportunity to speak to him, and got him to sign my Chimes and Rings cd - while I held his umbrella! Happy memories... Anyway, I've just picked out the cd to give it a spin (it still sounds great, obvs), and taken a look at Bill's signature, and I see that he signed it on this date - 9th June! Spooky! So if you've never heard Chimes and Rings, I heartily recommend it as a slice of Bill in perfect pop/rock mode.

This is great news. I've been hoping Bill would turn up here - he seemed such a good fit - especially after giving Fascist Groove Thang a good review in 1980-something! Thanks for sharing @Jon

Very sad news about Terry. As a teenager in the late 70s, the Specials made a big impact on me and my schoolmates, in terms of music, style, and even politics and attitude. Terry was a great front man - understated but quietly powerful - and seemingly a nice guy too. I see that Bill has written a nice tribute to him on his Facebook page. RIP Martin Duffy too - big fan of his work with Felt.

Very glad to hear that the Red Noise box set has charted. And so it should! Sound on Sound is a brilliant album, and the reissue package does justice to the source material - well done Esoteric. A particular highlight so far has been the Leicester live set (after listening to which I have to go and lie down for a while - it's tiring!). Oh how I'd love to have seen Red Noise live (I was too young) - but thrilling now to at least hear them in all their live glory, and see the OGWT footage, which at least allows one to imagine what the gigs would have been like. Fascinating to hear how 'finished' the home demos are - and Bill's solo DIY recording career direction of the past few decades can be seen as a near inevitability in hindsight, given his ability to create 'finished product' (albeit minus the hi-fi) as far back as the 1970s. I'm not sufficiently audiophile to make informed comment on the sound quality - although I feel like I'm hearing everything as clearly as I could hope to. Reverby vocals, newly audible bass guitar melodies, synth textures, percussion fizz, etc, etc. Hindsight is easy, but I think 'My Light' would have sat oddly within Sound on Sound - it almost seems to belong to an earlier - or later incarnation of Bill. Some artists feel a need to tinker with track listings on their reissues - not something I am a big fan of, and I'm certainly glad it hasn't happened here. If it ain't broke... Very happy to hear new, improved Ideal Homes, Instantly Yours, and Disposable. The first two tracks I felt were slightly, er, disposed of, on the b-side of Do You Dream in Colour? (although it made for a great EP, including Atom Man Loves Radium Girl). I've always felt they were 'album quality', and they sound fantastic in their newly mixed forms - as does Disposable. Packaging and extra content? A+ quality. Reissues can be tacky, instant revenue generators to scam the loyal fans, but a great amount of care and attention - and, dare I say it, love - has clearly gone into this box set. Again, kudos to Esoteric for that. This is such an important album for me. Lots of great music was happening in 1979, and although I was a bit too young to fully dig it all, including the Red Noise experience, I can see now what a formative period it was in terms of my musical taste. I'm so glad Red Noise has got the reissue it deserves.

Chimera is such a perfect album that almost any track from it could have been a single (I recall Tony Mitchell in Sounds chiding Mercury Records for not releasing one). But we all have our favourites, and for me the pinnacle is 'Another Day, Another Ray of Hope', an absolute classic. Always a great disappointment to me that UK audiences were never afforded the opportunity to see the Chimera/Vistamix songs played live. What a show that would have been.

Thank you for sharing the news of Roger's passing - I look forward to reading up on his career, and also seeing the MM photos when I pick up the boxed set (I'm reversing through Bill's Harvest catalogue - first SOS, next DP, etc).

Nice piece, although some might take issue with the assertion that "his [Bill's] career was stunted by the eruption of punk in the mid-1970s", and that "His excellence as a player counted for nothing once the gritty minimalism of the new wave bared its teeth." I would contend that Bill happily embraced some key elements of punk and new wave and, artistically at least, it did no harm to his career. Also, various respected musicians from the late 70s and early 80s have cited Bill as an example of someone who aspired to doing something beyond occupying 'axe hero' status, and hence was able to survive that era with his credibility very much intact.

Wow! This out of the blue! I've loved Cate since I first heard 'Are you with me now?' off her Mug Museum LP. She's a genuinely original artist who writes great songs. Not too many Mercury-nominated artists play Dunedin and Oamaru down south here in New Zealand, so I was massively excited to see Cate twice in two nights (and say hello!) a couple of years ago. She's been exploring that late 70s early 80s electronic pop vibe for a while, so I guess this kind of fits with that journey. It's so great when one of your favourite artists unexpectedly nods towards another one. Thanks for sharing!

Yes, really sad news. Janice was a lovely person and a great champion of non-mainstream music. So sorry to hear she has left us.

Sad to hear this news. I was a fan of his work, particularly the First National Band. His writing had a kind of whimsical quality that was hard not to warm to. And he was always the coolest Monkee. RIP Mike. My sideburns will be at half mast today.

"Saxaphone"? 😮

Dunedin is a hotbed of Nelsonian fervour! I live there (here). And there's the legendary Dr. Hyram Twang (of Twangtown music shop fame) who is a big fan of Bill's work. No doubt many others, to boot. As for the Herbs, I'm glad to hear you found their 'Best Of' collection, down here in the Edinburgh of the South (as it's known). I wonder if you (or any other Dreamsville visitors) have seen the Herbs 'Songs of Freedom' film? It's a really good film, and there is quite a large section dedicated to Charlie, who was obviously a much loved musician over here. If memory serves there is some Be Bop footage included - possibly from the Modern Music-era OGWT. Nelson/Be Bop recollections pop up elsewhere in Aotearoa NZ too. I was reading the memoir of interesting Kiwi 'outsider' musician Graeme Jefferies earlier in the year, and came across this reference to the Charlie, from around the time they were working with Joe Walsh. Let me know next time you're in Dunedin, Major, and we'll raise a glass to Bill!

Thank you for sharing this video. Big Country were an important band for me. Seeing them in Oxford on 'The Crossing' tour in 1983 was only my second ever gig, but remains one of my happiest gig-going memories. I continued to follow them for a couple of years, but after Steeltown my young and fickle tastes headed off in other musical directions. I did see them once more, in 1986, and chatted to Stuart about Be Bop Deluxe (setlists!) afterwards. He was a lovely chap, who seemed to genuinely care about his fans. I still find it hard to take in the trajectory that the latter part of his life took, and the fact that he's no longer with us.

Yes, there's something about this album. A lot, in fact. Not aware that Cherry Red have commented at all about the possibility of a reissue, but I couldn't help thinking that them calling their latest 'new wave' compilation Revolt Into Style was a bit of a teaser. Hopefully 2022 will bring good news.

Got very excited about this single when it came out - I think I might have the 10" somewhere. Listening to it on YouTube at the moment and it has some quite funky guitar on it, which I don't remember. My recollection was just what I thought was an E-bow solo at the very end. Not a huge amount of guitar on the track anyway, and it's a relatively slight piece, arguably. Purchase of the reissue is more than justified however by the presence of the sublime Breakfast - what a gorgeous track that is.

Thanks for sharing this, Alec - look forward to watching it. Slightly less thrilled to be reminded of some of the rest of this thread, which is fairly disturbing.