| Tony Wilson - Punk Enthusiast |
TONY WILSON
Tony Wilson was born on 20th February 1950
He died on 10th August 2007
ANTHONY H Wilson's premature death after a fight with kidney cancer last week was criminally
under-reported. Yes, it was noted and of of course there were some laudable plaudits paid by those in
the music industry who knew him.
But after a day or two of single-column-on-page -10 reports (an NME cover piece aside) the story tailed
off and we all went back to worrying about Amy Winehouse's binges.
It shouldn't have been like this. I'm not saying we should all be wearing sackcloth and wondering around
chanting 12th century plainsong (though Wilson may have enjoyed that), but a little more respect is due.
Wilson's place in the British rock and roll canon is absolute key. Without him we'd still be drinking mead
and listening to Jethro Tull.
This is something of a fantastical exaggeration,
but in honour of Wilson - a man who knew how
to spin a fantastical exaggeration - here is why.
Wilson took the Sex Pistols to Manchester
before they were anybody and put them on his
Granada TV show. He fired the imaginations of
Manchesters dissaffected kids. They all went to
see the Pistols play in Manchester Free
Trade Hall, realised the revolution was coming
and decided to storm the castle.
Morrissey formed The Smiths and invented a
new wrinkle on British observational pop.
Throw a water balloon out of a moving bus
today and you'll hit a band who were influenced
by the Smiths. That's down to Wilson.
Then there are the great bands he signed and
pushed - Joy Division, New Order and Happy
Mondays.
By being part of what was
happening in the Hacienda
(which Wilson opened
previously as the Factory which
also become a label) they
brought New York disco to
Britain and invented Acid
House.
They also made brilliant,
influential music. That's down to
Wilson. He did it all with a
brilliant cocksure towering ego
and self belief.
New Order's funny wry drummer
Steve Morris said that one thing
about Wilson was that when
you met him you thought he
was a raging lunatic with
ridiculous dreams and mad schemes. Then down the line
they all come true. He was one of a rare breed and cut
from the same bucaneering cloth as Alan McGhee -
although at times both men had their differences.
The reason Wilson hasn't received his dues is because he
stayed in the provinces! and didn't move to London. His
love affair may well have been with Manchester rafter than
with the bands who came out of it.
Though he was stuck doing Frank Mitchell-style weather
forecasts during his many jobs on local TV he would have
seen it as a betrayal of his city to head down the M6. But
had he gone, just imagine the fireworks if he and McGhee
had been in London at the same time.
Think how different things would have been if in the early
90's one was pitchmg the Happy Mondays against Prtnal
Scream in all out chemical warfare - think of the incredible,
mental tunes.
It is to his credit that he stayed faithful and it's to our shame
that we're not remembering him with at least some of the
respect that was given to DJ John Peel on his passing.
DAILY MIRROR (NI)
(Cheers to Joe Donnelly for donating this from the
Daily Mirror (NI))
Tony Wilson was born on 20th February 1950
He died on 10th August 2007
ANTHONY H Wilson's premature death after a fight with kidney cancer last week was criminally
under-reported. Yes, it was noted and of of course there were some laudable plaudits paid by those in
the music industry who knew him.
But after a day or two of single-column-on-page -10 reports (an NME cover piece aside) the story tailed
off and we all went back to worrying about Amy Winehouse's binges.
It shouldn't have been like this. I'm not saying we should all be wearing sackcloth and wondering around
chanting 12th century plainsong (though Wilson may have enjoyed that), but a little more respect is due.
Wilson's place in the British rock and roll canon is absolute key. Without him we'd still be drinking mead
and listening to Jethro Tull.
This is something of a fantastical exaggeration,
but in honour of Wilson - a man who knew how
to spin a fantastical exaggeration - here is why.
Wilson took the Sex Pistols to Manchester
before they were anybody and put them on his
Granada TV show. He fired the imaginations of
Manchesters dissaffected kids. They all went to
see the Pistols play in Manchester Free
Trade Hall, realised the revolution was coming
and decided to storm the castle.
Morrissey formed The Smiths and invented a
new wrinkle on British observational pop.
Throw a water balloon out of a moving bus
today and you'll hit a band who were influenced
by the Smiths. That's down to Wilson.
Then there are the great bands he signed and
pushed - Joy Division, New Order and Happy
Mondays.
By being part of what was
happening in the Hacienda
(which Wilson opened
previously as the Factory which
also become a label) they
brought New York disco to
Britain and invented Acid
House.
They also made brilliant,
influential music. That's down to
Wilson. He did it all with a
brilliant cocksure towering ego
and self belief.
New Order's funny wry drummer
Steve Morris said that one thing
about Wilson was that when
you met him you thought he
was a raging lunatic with
ridiculous dreams and mad schemes. Then down the line
they all come true. He was one of a rare breed and cut
from the same bucaneering cloth as Alan McGhee -
although at times both men had their differences.
The reason Wilson hasn't received his dues is because he
stayed in the provinces! and didn't move to London. His
love affair may well have been with Manchester rafter than
with the bands who came out of it.
Though he was stuck doing Frank Mitchell-style weather
forecasts during his many jobs on local TV he would have
seen it as a betrayal of his city to head down the M6. But
had he gone, just imagine the fireworks if he and McGhee
had been in London at the same time.
Think how different things would have been if in the early
90's one was pitchmg the Happy Mondays against Prtnal
Scream in all out chemical warfare - think of the incredible,
mental tunes.
It is to his credit that he stayed faithful and it's to our shame
that we're not remembering him with at least some of the
respect that was given to DJ John Peel on his passing.
DAILY MIRROR (NI)
(Cheers to Joe Donnelly for donating this from the
Daily Mirror (NI))
