Posted on 03/19/2023 7:52:45 PM PDT by nickcarraway
Mick Slattery, the original guitarist and co-founder of Hawkwind, has died at the age of 77.
The band’s vocalist and fellow founder, Dave Brock, confirmed Slattery’s passing in a post to Facebook. "We are sorry to share the sad news that our old friend, and Hawkwind founder member, Mick Slattery passed away peacefully at home yesterday, St Patrick's Day, 17th March 2023, aged 77, after a short illness," Brock wrote.
The singer further reminisced on his history with Slattery.
“Me and Mick played together in a band called Famous Cure in 1967, touring Holland before going on to form Hawkwind in 1969,” Brock recalled. “I have lots of fond memories from our younger days, playing together in Holland and hanging out in Richmond at the L'Auberge Cafe and Eel Pie Island. In the late '60s, we used to rehearse in my upstairs flat in Putney and also in the basement of Bob Kerr's music shop in Gwalior Road, playing loud music, much to the annoyance of our neighbors.”
Brock closed his post with a simple message to Slattery: “Fly free old friend.”
Hawkwind formed in 1969 when Brock and Slattery joined forces with John Harrison (bass), Terry Ollis (drums), Nik Turner (sax/flute) and Michael “Dik Mik” Davies (keyboards). The group got gigs before they even had a name, going by Group X until settling on Hawkwind.
Slattery departed early in the band’s existence. He played on an early version of the Hawkwind’s song “Hurry on Sundown” (which later appeared on a 1996 reissue of their self-titled debut). Slattery left band in 1969 and was replaced by Huw Lloyd-Langton.
“He didn’t really like the commercial aspects. He didn’t like to be working regularly,” Turner once noted of Slattery. Decades later, the two musicians teamed up in the band Space Ritual. Slattery also joined fellow Hawkwind alumnus Alan Davey in the group Hawkestrel.
My favorite space-rock band. Still playing and making albums.
They say Blue Oyster Cult was signed by Columbia in part to be the American answer to Black Sabbath. But they remind me more as the American version of Hawkwind.
Chronicle of The Black Sword and Live Chronicles are a rock opera of Michael Moorcock’s Elric Saga. Moorcock even toured with them.
I have a number of their albums.
I still feel like I’m catching up.
I have a half-dozen or of them. But only one of their classics: Space Ritual.
...Unless, by now, Xenon Codex (which is awesome and very BOC-like), Live Chronicles, and Electric Teepee have reached that status!
Ah, the old days, when one could find bands like Hawkwind on FM radio...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X3W7ch0oLeA
Last few have been quite good.
Well, he’s left this world today.
I believe that Motorhead’s Lemmy Kilmister also played bass in this band at one time.
Ginger Baker and Eric Clapton also.
Adjust me
A d j u s t m e
A d j u s t m e
I always thought sound effects in ‘70s records was corny... whooshing swirling... and actually prefer the sound of distant thunder in Hawaiian mood music from the ‘50s.
If I was driving down the road late at night in a song came on with a lot of wooshing and other noises associated with far out and cool I would find myself checking the gauges real quick to make sure my engine wasn’t acting up.
I have listened to music since pocket sized transistor radios, never heard of this guy or his bands.
Had no idea. Small world.
I didn’t know either, until yesterday.
Me neither.
I loved the line where he quit the band because he didn’t like to work regularly
**I have listened to music since pocket sized transistor radios, never heard of this guy or his bands.**
Back in 69, my dad and I installed fender mounted radios on two of our tractors, and a couple years later started using headphones with them. During the day it was mostly WLS, and at night it was superstations on the coasts (or whatever came in the clearest). For Dad it was the grain and livestock markets, and some country music.
I never heard of this band either, but I wasn’t ever into band personalities. If a song didn’t interest me right away, I quickly changed to another station.
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