"On the road again with a bizarre quest"
Is the name of the following article that originally appeared in a local newspaper from the Brighton and Worthing area of Sussex, known as the Herald. Published first way back on the 4th November 1993 and written by a reporter by the name of Mike Donovan, the original piece also featured the following picture
As well as a potted history of the band from 1970 till the then present 1993. Below is a scan of the ticket that accompanied the gig in question. Just one final point, there's a quote somewhere in this interview that may lead the museum to mount another one of it's investigations into certain Band members extra cirricular activities! No further clues but if your a regular visitor to the site I doubt it'll take too much working out.
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THINK Hawkwind think
spaced out music for the mind and body. maaan!
And there's a big emphasis on the body when it comes to the band planning the stage act on
its current tour which wings into Worthing on November 25 and hits Hastings two days
later. You see the band, together for almost a quarter of a century are on the lookout for
bizarre dancers.
And when they say "bizarre"they mean it if their history is anything to go by.
There was the big and beautiful Stacia - 6ft with a 42inch chest - who used to throw
lashings of psychedelic body paint over her naked flesh and swing her mammaries and the
rest of her body in time to Hawkwind's wafting, ethereal music.
It seems they need some eye catching performers now as the members stand still behind
their MIDI's (Musical Instrument Digital Interface) computerising and synthesising their
sound.
"We have a solitary existence on stage," smiles leader Dave Brock who fronts the
band currently pared down to a three piece.
"We're stuck behind our MIDI's in a world of our own with 800 pre-set sounds and we
don't move about much so a few bizarre dancers might be useful.
"Stacia was a lovely, lovely girl but she's got married and has two kids. And there
was Renee from America and a fire-eater or two.
"But they've gone so we want some bizarre dancers to add some theatricals, hopefully
for this tour. So if you know of any let me know! It would go well with all this spacey
music and the nice lights we have."
In the meantime it seems Hawkwjnd still enjoy an affinity with big breasted attractive
women. Take one Samantha Fox. The former Page Three girl turned singer chose the band to
perform the Rolling Stones classic "Gimme Shelter" for a charity performance.
Brock says " she was quite professional about it and a nice girl"
Other recent projects have included a Re-mixes of work such as Spirit of the age, written
by the late Bob Calvert, a poet member who died of a heart attack five years ago.
"It's keeping Bob's music alive," says Brock "Bob was a loony but very
clever."
And the currant tour is partly about promoting their new album - It is the business of the
future to be dangerous, and the single Right To Decide from their previous album Electric
Tepee.
The CD single also includes a "space reggae" number - The Camera That Could Lie.
Hawkwind have had a few "big personalities" in an ever changing line - up like
former Cream drummer Ginger Baker, Sussex based guitarist Huw Lloyd Langton, Bevis Frond
bassist Adrian Shaw (who will support them with Nick Saloman in Berlin next month) and
synthesiser weirdo Dik Mik. And who could forget head of Motorhead, bassist and vocalist
Lemmy.
The chief hawk admits that down the years there have been troubles over drug taking.
He says "yes we've had a few problems but when you're touring and having to work
every night you have to know your capabilities, particularly when you're getting on!"
Those cramming the Worthing Assembly Rooms and Sticking out at Hastings Pier expecting
Hawkwind to perform their lone chart biggie Silver Machine might be disappointed.
"We haven't played it for years," says Brock. "it gets boring. There are a
few old chestnuts that we don't play."
Hawkwind are a band that needs to tour. "I'm not a millionaire," says Brock.
"I've lost count the number of records we've had out and so many have been re-
packaged. But I don't think we've had the money we should have had from it all. We've been
ripped off, but lawyers fees are so expensive."
"Anyway, I've got a nice little cottage in Devon that I love, with friends dropping
round. It's not too bad. I'm still enjoying what I'm doing after 24 years."
"Each night you never know how things are going to work out with 800 pre-set sounds
including sax, trumpet and whatever. There's the chance that you'll press the wrong button
and the band have to go with whatever comes out!"
Could there eventually be a little more reverence and extra royalty return for Brock, aged
52?
He says: "Well, John Lee Hooker never got all the royalties until he reached his
70's!"
Brock began his musical career entertaining the cinema queues in the West End and is still
going strong. But if it should all fall apart he has another plan.
"I'd go into the antique dealing business," he says.
He dismisses my suggestion that it would make him the Lovejoy of Rock. Still, it's better
than being a Dinosaur of Rock.
"I've got a Silver Antique Machine. . ."