Jowe Head
Encyclopedia
Jowe Head is a British bass guitar
ist, singer, and visual artist, who was a member of Swell Maps
before joining the Television Personalities. He has also released a large amount of material as a solo artist and as leader of groups such as Househunters and Palookas.
slang for "weirdo") was born Stephen John Bird in 1956 in Kidderminster
, Worcestershire
, and moved to Solihull
at an early age. He joined Swell Maps in 1973, a year after the band had been formed, and also played with Epic Soundtracks
and Ken Spiers (later better known as Spizz) in another local band. With Swell Maps he recorded numerous singles (some under the guise of the Phones Sportsman Band and The Cult Figures) and two albums, before the band split up in 1980.
He then embarked on a solo career, releasing his debut album, Pincer Movement, in 1982. In the mid-1980s he formed a new band, The Palookas, which ran in parallel to his other projects until 1989, and joined the Television Personalities in 1984, staying with the band for the next ten years. His second solo album, Strawberry Deutschmark, was issued in February 1986, featuring contributions from several of his former-Swell Maps colleagues and singer Carmel
. He then led a new band, The Househunters, releasing three singles and an album, Feeding Frenzy, between 1986 and 1988, before again recording as a solo artist. The Jowe Head Personal Organizer was released in 1988. A collection of his work, Unhinged, was issued by Overground Records in 1994, comprising the whole of Pincer Movement plus four outtakes from the album sessions. After playing bass in Long Decline, he formed Angel Racing Food.
He has just released an album with the recently formed Jowe Head and the Demi-Monde, available from Topplers Records, called "Diabolical Liberties" with the current line-up Lee McFadden, Jeff Bloom, Marina Young and Jane Ruby. Regular contributing artists include Phil Martin, Chloe Herrington, Kate Newell and Catherine Gerbrands.
Bass guitar
The bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
ist, singer, and visual artist, who was a member of Swell Maps
Swell Maps
Swell Maps were an experimental English rock group of the 1970s from Birmingham that foreshadowed the birth of post-punk.Influenced by the disparate likes of T.Rex and the German progressive outfit, Can, they created a new soundscape that would be heavily mined by others in the post-punk era...
before joining the Television Personalities. He has also released a large amount of material as a solo artist and as leader of groups such as Househunters and Palookas.
Biography
Jowe Head (the stage name derived from BirminghamBirmingham
Birmingham is a city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands of England. It is the most populous British city outside the capital London, with a population of 1,036,900 , and lies at the heart of the West Midlands conurbation, the second most populous urban area in the United Kingdom with a...
slang for "weirdo") was born Stephen John Bird in 1956 in Kidderminster
Kidderminster
Kidderminster is a town, in the Wyre Forest district of Worcestershire, England. It is located approximately seventeen miles south-west of Birmingham city centre and approximately fifteen miles north of Worcester city centre. The 2001 census recorded a population of 55,182 in the town...
, Worcestershire
Worcestershire
Worcestershire is a non-metropolitan county, established in antiquity, located in the West Midlands region of England. For Eurostat purposes it is a NUTS 3 region and is one of three counties that comprise the "Herefordshire, Worcestershire and Warwickshire" NUTS 2 region...
, and moved to Solihull
Solihull
Solihull is a town in the West Midlands of England with a population of 94,753. It is a part of the West Midlands conurbation and is located 9 miles southeast of Birmingham city centre...
at an early age. He joined Swell Maps in 1973, a year after the band had been formed, and also played with Epic Soundtracks
Epic Soundtracks
Epic Soundtracks was the stage name of the British musician Kevin Paul Godfrey . Born in Croydon, Surrey, he was brought up in Solihull, Midlands with his brother Adrian Nicholas, who was known as Nikki Sudden .In 1972 Kevin and Nicholas formed the nucleus of what was to become the post-punk rock...
and Ken Spiers (later better known as Spizz) in another local band. With Swell Maps he recorded numerous singles (some under the guise of the Phones Sportsman Band and The Cult Figures) and two albums, before the band split up in 1980.
He then embarked on a solo career, releasing his debut album, Pincer Movement, in 1982. In the mid-1980s he formed a new band, The Palookas, which ran in parallel to his other projects until 1989, and joined the Television Personalities in 1984, staying with the band for the next ten years. His second solo album, Strawberry Deutschmark, was issued in February 1986, featuring contributions from several of his former-Swell Maps colleagues and singer Carmel
Carmel (singer)
Carmel is a British female singer, her eponymous band Carmel uniting bassist Jim Parris, and drummer Gerry Darby.-Biography of Carmel McCourt:...
. He then led a new band, The Househunters, releasing three singles and an album, Feeding Frenzy, between 1986 and 1988, before again recording as a solo artist. The Jowe Head Personal Organizer was released in 1988. A collection of his work, Unhinged, was issued by Overground Records in 1994, comprising the whole of Pincer Movement plus four outtakes from the album sessions. After playing bass in Long Decline, he formed Angel Racing Food.
He has just released an album with the recently formed Jowe Head and the Demi-Monde, available from Topplers Records, called "Diabolical Liberties" with the current line-up Lee McFadden, Jeff Bloom, Marina Young and Jane Ruby. Regular contributing artists include Phil Martin, Chloe Herrington, Kate Newell and Catherine Gerbrands.
Albums
- Pincer Movement (1982), Hedonics
- Strawberry Deutschmark (1986), Constrictor
- The Jowe Head Personal Organizer (1988), Hollow Planet
- Unhinged (1994), Overground
Compilations
- "Classical Music" (1989), Constrictor
- "Falling Uphill" (2004), Windless Air Music
Singles
- "Cuticles" (1986), 53rd & 3rd
- "Cooler Than Thou" (1988), 53rd & 3rd
- "Warp Factor 13" (1988), Hollow Planet
Albums
- Gift (1986), Constrictor
- Dump (1987), Constrictor
- Hit The Bottle (1988), Constrictor
Singles
- "Clear Day" (1985), Prophet
- "I Want to Be Free" (1987), Constrictor
- "Run Rabbit" (1987), Hollow Planet
- "Schmalookas" (1991), Historia
External links
- Jowe Head at televisionpersonalities.co.uk
- Jowe Head interview, trakmarx.com
- Jowe Head discussing his paintings