Billy Mackenzie

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William MacArthur "Billy" MacKenzie (27 March 1957 – January 22, 1997) was a Scottish singer, notable for his powerful voice and vast vocal range.

Billy MacKenzie was born and grew up in Dundee. As a youngster, he lived in Park Avenue in the Stobswell area and attended St Marys Forebank Primary School and St Michaels Secondary School. He led a peripatetic lifestyle, which included decamping to New Zealand at the age of 16, and travelling across America aged 17. Here, to avoid deportation, he married Chloe Dummar. Her brother, Melvin Dummar, claimed to be the "one sixteenth" beneficiary of the estate of Howard Hughes, until the case was thrown out in 1978.

He returned to Scotland where he met Alan Rankine and in 1976 formed the Ascorbic Ones. They changed the name to The Associates in 1979. The Associates continued until 1990, after which MacKenzie embarked on a solo career. MacKenzie collaborated with more than a few artists during his career, including contributions to seminal Swiss outfit Yello's "One Second" album in 1987. MacKenzie provided vocals and wrote lyrics for two tracks on that release, and one "The Rhythm Divine" became a hit European single when legendary diva Shirley Bassey was recruited for vocals (Billy's original vocal track was no less powerful and saw release on the CD version of The Associates "Popera" compilation). On January 22, 1997, depression and the death of his mother are believed to have contributed to MacKenzie's suicide. He overdosed on a combination of the anti-depressant amitriptyline, paracetamol, and other prescribed medication in his father's garden shed. He was 39 years old. Now a significant cult figure, much of his musical legacy has been released in the past few years. He was the subject of a biography by Tom Doyle, The Glamour Chase in 1998.

The Smiths' song "William, It Was Really Nothing" is said to have been written about Billy. Morrissey, lyricist and lead vocalist of the band, allegedly had a bit of a crush on him, and they were friends for a while. The Cure song "Cut Here" written by Robert Smith, a friend of MacKenzie, is about his suicide. Siouxsie Sioux wrote the song "Say" about his suicide, revealing in the lyrics that they were going to meet just before his suicide. The song was released as a single in 1999 and charted in the UK Top 75. In 2006, Norwegian singer/songwriter Rockettothesky had a massive radio hit with the song "Barrie For Billy MacKenzie"

MacKenzie's range was most often described as "startling", and his high-register singing is easily mistaken for a female's voice, though his lower register tones leave little doubt as to his gender.

Contents

[edit] Discography

[edit] The Associates releases

[edit] Singles

  • Boys Keep Swinging (1979) unauthorised cover of Bowie song
  • The Affectionate Punch (1980)
  • Tell Me Easter's On Friday (1981)
  • Q Quarters (1981)
  • Kitchen Person (1981)
  • A (1981)
  • Message Oblique Speech (1981)
  • White Car In Germany (1981)
  • Kites (1981) A-side credited to 39 Lyon Street / B-side to Associates
  • Party Fears Two (1982)
  • Club Country (1982)
  • 18 Carat Love Affair (1982)
  • A Matter Of Gender (1982)
  • Those First Impressions (1984)
  • Waiting For The Loveboat (1984)
  • Breakfast (1985)
  • Take Me To The Girl (1985)
  • Heart Of Glass (1988)
  • Country Boy (1988) unreleased
  • The Peel Sessions (1989)
  • Fever (1990)
  • Fire To Ice (1990)
  • Poperetta EP (1990)
  • Just Can't Say Goodbye (1991)
  • untitled 4-track V2 Records promo EP (2000) Party Fears Two/Club Country/Love Hangover/The Associate

[edit] Albums

  • The Affectionate Punch (1980 Fiction) reissued by Universal in 2005 with 4 extra tracks
  • Fourth Drawer Down (1981 Situation 2) reissued by V2 in 2000 with 5 extra tracks
  • Sulk (1982 WEA Records) reissued by V2 Records in 2000 with 7 extra tracks
  • The Affectionate Punch (1982 Fiction) remixed version of 1980 album with different sleeve, reissued on CD by Fiction in 1997
  • Perhaps (1985 WEA Records)
  • The Glamour Chase recorded 1988, unreleased until 2002, then as a double CD album, packaged with (the first CD release of) Perhaps (WEA Records)
  • Wild & Lonely (1990 Circa Records) reissued in 2006 with 4 extra tracks

(Last three are effectively Billy MacKenzie solo albums)

  • Popera - The Singles Collection (1990 WEA)
  • The Radio 1 Sessions (1994 BBC Nighttracks)
  • Double Hipness (2000 V2 Records) double CD album of early demo's and the six 1993 reunion tracks with Alan Rankine
  • The Radio 1 Sessions Vol. 1 1981-1983 (2003 BBC Strange Fruit)
  • The Radio 1 Sessions Vol. 2 1984-1985 (2003 BBC Strange Fruit)
  • Singles (WSM 2004) double CD

[edit] Billy MacKenzie solo releases

[edit] Singles

  • Ice Cream Factory (1982 WEA) credited to MacKenzie Sings Orbidöig
  • Baby (1992 Circa)
  • Colours Will Come (1992 Circa)
  • Pastime Paradise (1992 Circa) unreleased
  • Wild Is The Wind EP (2001 Rhythm Of Life)

[edit] Albums

  • Outernational (1992 Circa Records) reissued in 2006 with 3 extra tracks
  • Beyond The Sun (1997 Nude Records)
  • Memory Palace (credited with Paul Haig) (1999 Rhythm Of Life) reissued in 2005 by One Little Indian with 4 extra tracks
  • Eurocentric (credited with Steve Aungle) (2001 Rhythm Of Life)
  • Auchtermatic (2005 One Little Indian)
  • Transmission Impossible (2005 One Little Indian)

[edit] Haig/MacKenzie

Tracks recorded by Paul Haig and Billy MacKenzie in the period 1993 to 1995, appeared on the album release Memory Palace on One Little Indian, in 2005.

Track Listing

  • Track 1: Thunderstorm
  • Track 2: Stone The Memory Palace
  • Track 3: Beyond Love
  • Track 4: Transobsession
  • Track 5: Trash 3
  • Track 6: Listen To Me
  • Track 7: Listen Again
  • Track 8: Take A Chance
  • Track 9: Give Me Time
  • Track 10: Give Me Time (Dennis Wheatley Mix)
  • Track 11: Beyond Love (Remix)
  • Track 12: Stone The Memory Palace (Remix)
  • Track 13: Thunderstorm (Instrumental Mix)

[edit] Other collaborations

[edit] Lead vocals

  • BEF's Music Of Quality & Distinction Volume 1 album: Secret Life Of Arabia and It's Over (1982)
  • Stephen Emmer's Vogue Estate album: duet with Martha Ladly on Wish On (1982)
  • Annie Lennox: duet on The Best Of You; the original Perhaps sessions version, the re-recorded album featured Eddi Reader (1985) †
  • Sweden Through The Ages EP: It Helps To Cry (1986)
  • Yello's Snowball And The Sound Of Yello: Life Is A Snowball (1987); unreleased promo CD
  • Yello's One Second album: Moon On Ice (1987) †
  • Yello The Rhythm Divine (version 2): special limited edition 12" single (MERXR253) featuring MacKenzie's lead vocals in place of Shirley Bassey's (1987); the same recording later appeared on the Popera album (1990) †
  • Uno's self-titled album: Cinemas Of The World single (1987)
  • Holger Hiller's Oben Im Eck album: title track and version, We Don't Write Anything On Paper Or So, and Whippets single (1987)
  • Yello's Baby album: Capri Calling (1991)
  • BEF's Music Of Quality & Distinction Volume 2 album: Free. (1991) Free also appears on the 1998 BEF 'Best Of' album, later reissued by Disky in 2001
  • Loom's Anacostia Bay (At The Edge Of The World) single (1996) † ‡
  • Barry Adamson's Oedipus Schmoedipus album: Achieved In The Valley Of The Dolls (1996) ‡
  • Apollo Four Forty's Electro Glide in Blue album: Pain In Any Language (1997) † ‡

† lyrics by MacKenzie
‡ also appear on Auchtermatic

  • Unreleased tracks Sinking Deeper and The Hungry Look recorded 1980 under name Strange News. Billy, Steve Reid and rhythm section Andy and Gavin. Only copies of tracks exist.


[edit] Backing vocals

  • The Skids 'Joy' album: 'Fields' single (1982) also released on the Skids 'Dunfermline' CD (1987)
  • Yello's One Second album: the singles 'Call It Love', 'The Rhythm Divine' > and 'Goldrush' (1987)
  • Yello's 'Flag' album:, the single 'Of Course I'm Lying', and 'Otto Di Catania' (1988)
  • Jih's 'Take Me To The Girl' single >, title track plus 'Come Summer Come Winter' and 'Wake Up' (1988)
  • Boris Grebenshikov's 'Radio Silence' album/single: 'That Voice Again' (1989)
  • Yello's 'Baby' album: 'Drive/Driven' and the single 'Rubberbandman' (1991)

(6 of Billy's Yello tracks later released on the 'Essential Yello' album) (1992)

  • Siobhan Fahey: 'Do I Scare You' (1996) unreleased until 2004 when it first appeared on Shakespear's Sister's 'Best Of' double CD, and then on the "3" album in 2005
  • Peach 'AudioPeach' album: 'Deep Down Together' and 'Give Me Tomorrow' credited as The MacArthurettes with Caragh McKay (1997)
  • Paul Haig's 'Listen To Me' single (1997)
    > = lyrics by MacKenzie

[edit] Other credits

  • Orbidöig's 'Nocturnal Operations' single: Billy played tubular bells (1981) this single reissued in 1984, credited as The Sensational Creed
  • Paul Haig's 'Chain' album: 'Chained', lyrics by MacKenzie, performed by Haig (1989)

[edit] External links

[edit] See also

[edit] References

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