Norman Sheffield

Norman Sheffield (25 September 1939 - 20 June 2014)^[1] was a music and advertising industry figure, most noted for his music industry recording and management roles, ownership of the former Trident Studios, and being the first manager of the rock band Queen.

Early life

Sheffield was born in Enfield, the son of Walter Sheffield, a Panel beater. He was educated at Albany Boys School.

Music life

Formerly a drummer in The Hunters, he enjoyed moderate chart success as well as starring as the drummer with Cliff Richard in a television performance at the London Palladium in 1958. More recently, one of the Hunters biggest hits, "Teen Scene", featured on the soundtrack to the 2009 movie An Education.

He later started a record shop in Waltham Cross, Hertfordshire, with his wife and later converted the upstairs into a recording studio proving popular with local musicians wishing to record their own music. When the shop was later sold as he searched for larger premises in London, much of the original equipment was sold to the future founder of Island Records.

Trident Studios

Sheffield went onto launch Trident Studios in 1968 with his brother Barry, turning a disused engraving works in St Anne's Court in the Soho area of London into one of the leading recording studios of the world. The studio recorded many of the world's most famous artists and recordings of the era including the Beatles' "Hey Jude", David Bowie's "Space Oddity" and Elton John's "Candle in the Wind".^[2]

Queen

Between 1972 and 1975, Sheffield, under one of his companies within the Trident Group, was the first manager of British rock group Queen.

Trident invested heavily in the band formerly known simply as Smile when the members were still students and actively assisted in breaking them into the mainstream eventually finding them a recording contract with EMI. Much has been written and televised^[3] that Sheffield and his management treated the band unfairly, which Sheffield fiercely denied. "Death on Two Legs" was a song later written by Freddie Mercury about the band's fall out with Sheffield and although this was never officially stated, a financial settlement was made out of court with him.

During live performances, Mercury would usually dedicate the song to "a real motherfucker of a gentleman". This line was censored (via bleeps) on their Live Killers album in 1979.

Shortly after his death in June 2014, Brian May posted a tribute to Norman on his personal blog^[4]

"Bohemian Rhapsody"

Even after the split with Queen, one of Sheffield's other companies within the group, Trilion Video, was contracted by Queen to produce the music video for Queen's "Bohemian Rhapsody" in 1975. This video is often regarded as the first modern music video.^[5][6]

Life on Two Legs

In 2013, Sheffield released his personal memoirs titled Life on Two Legs: Set The Record Straight^[7] apparently lifting the lid on the inside story of Trident Studios, how it began and grew to record the music that made it famous as a studio worldwide. It also details how Queen were "discovered" and managed by Trident, ultimately leading to Freddie Mercury writing the song "Death on Two Legs" about the acrimonious split with Sheffield and Trident.

The press release and website^[8] promises exclusive photos, untold stories about the artists that recorded at Trident during the era as well as copies of the original Queen management contracts from 1974. The book has a foreword by Sir Paul McCartney.

Other business

With the growth of electronic music and home studios in the 1980s, the music industry began to change shape and Sheffield sold the studio and founded one of the first Apple Computer dealerships in the UK, importing early Apple computers from the USA in 1986 complete with power converters to allow the computers to operate on UK voltage. The same company also opened a facility to allow Apple and PC computer users to scan, print and use the Apple computers on a per-hour basis within specially designed offices known as a bureau.

Later, together with his sons he founded Tableau, an advertising agency using his previous knowledge of the entertainment industry and experience from early desktop publishing. The agency was responsible for the early EasyJet airline advertising campaigns and EasyJet's first online booking system along with other notable advertising accounts and went on to gain awards within the industry for its work.

Death

Sheffield died peacefully in Cornwall, UK on June 2014 aged 75. He had suffered from throat cancer.^[9]

References