Slade
Origin ally recording as the ‘N Betweens, this UK quartet comprised Noddy Holder (b. Neville Holder, 15 June 1946, Walsall, West Midlands, England; vocals/guitar), Dave Hill (b. 4 April 1952, Fleet Castle, Devon, England; guitar), Jimmy Lea (b. 14 June 1952, Wolverhampton, West Midlands, England; bass) and Don Powell (b. 10 September 1950, Bilston, West Midlands, England; drums). During the spring of 1966, they performed regularly in the Midlands, playing an unusual mixture of soul standards, juxtaposed with a sprinkling of hard-rock items. A chance meeting with producer Kim Fowleyled to a one-off single, You Better Run, released in August 1966. Two further years of obscurity followed until their agent secured them an audition with Fontana Records’ A&R head Jack Baverstock. He insisted that they change their name to Ambrose Slade and it was under that monicker that they recorded BEGINNINGS. Chaff on the winds of opportunity, they next fell into the hands of former Animals’ bassist turned manager, Chas Chandler. He abbreviated their name to Slade and oversaw their new incarnation as a skinhead group for the stomping Wild Winds Are Blowing. Their image as ‘bovver boys’, complete with cropped hair and Dr Marten boots, provoked some scathing press from a media sensitive to youth culture violence. Slade persevered with their skinhead phase until 1970 when it was clear that their notoriety was passe. While growing their hair and cultivating a more colourful image, they retained their aggressive musicianship and screaming vocals for the bluesy Get Down Get With It, which reached number 20 in the UK. 
Under Chandler's guidance, Holder and Lea commenced composing their own material, relying on distinctive riffs, a boot-stomping beat and sloganeering lyrics, usually topped off by a deliberately misspelt title. Coz I Luv You took them to number 1 in the UK in late 1971, precipitating an incredible run of chart success which was to continue uninterrupted for the next three years. After the average Look Wot You Dun (which still hit number 4) they served up a veritable beer barrel of frothy chart-toppers including ‘Take Me Bak Ome, Mama Weer Al Crazee Now, Cum On Feel The Noize and Skweeze Me Pleeze Me. Their finest moment was 1977's Merry Xmas Everybody, one of the great festive rock songs. 
Unpretentious and proudly working class, the group appealed to teenage audiences who cheered their larynx-wrenching singles and glorified in their garish yet peculiarly masculine forays into glam rock. Holder, clearly no sex symbol, offered a solid, cheery image, with Dickensian side whiskers and a hat covered in mirrors, while Hill took tasteless dressing to marvellous new extremes. Largely dependent upon a young, fickle audience, and seemingly incapable of spreading their parochial charm to the USA, Slade's supremacy was to prove ephemeral. They participated in a movie SLADE IN FLAME, which was surprisingly impressive, and undertook extensive tours, yet by the mid-70s they were yesterday's teen heroes. The ensuing punk explosion made them virtually redundant and prompted in 1977 the appropriately titled, WHATEVER HAPPENED TO SLADE. Undeterred they carried on just as they had done in the late '60s, awaiting a new break. An appearance at the 1980 Reading Festival brought them credibility anew. This performance was captured on the SLADE ALIVE AT READING ‘80 EP which pushed the group into the UK singles chart for the first time in three years. Their festive Merry Xmas Everybody was re-recorded and charted that same year, (the first in a run of seven consecutive years, subsequently in it's origin al form). Slade returned to the Top 10 in January 1981 with We'll Bring The House Down and they have continued to gig extensively, being rewarded in 1983 with the number 2 hit, My Oh My, followed up the next year with Run Run Away, a UK number 7 and their first US Top 20 hit, and the anthemic All Join Hands (number 15). Slade are one of the few groups to have survived the heady days of glitter and glam with their reputation intact and are regarded with endearing affection by a wide spectrum of age groups.