Preston Heyman
![]() |
Preston Heyman | |
---|---|
File:Preston Heyman World Expo Astana Kazakhstan No Mad Karma Rehearsal.jpg | |
Background information | |
Birth name | Preston Ross Heyman |
Born | Paterson, New Jersey, United States | 5 March 1953
Origin | London, England |
Genres | |
Occupation(s) | Musician, record producer |
Instrument(s) | Drums, percussion |
Years active | 1971–present |
Preston Heyman (born 5 March 1953) is a British record producer, drummer and percussionist, whose career spans five decades. Best known for his collaborations with Kate Bush, he was also a member of the Tom Robinson Band and has contributed to many hit recordings and worked with a diverse range of artists including Terence Trent D'arby, Tin Tin Out, Massive Attack, Paul McCartney, Tina Turner and a Grammy Award-winning film soundtrack with Mike Oldfield.
Acting career
Although principally known for his musical career, Heyman's first experiences of show business came as a child actor and student of Corona Theatre School in London; while studying there he appeared in the films Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, Goodbye Mr Chips with Peter O'Toole, Don't Raise the Bridge, Lower the River (1968) with Jerry Lewis, and Salt and Pepper starring Sammy Davis Jr. and Rat Pack star Peter Lawford, as well as in an episode of Z-Cars.
Early musical career
![]() | This section may require cleanup to meet Wikipedia's quality standards. The specific problem is: Poorly written and extremely poor grammar, sources also needed. (March 2020) |
During this period, Heyman became increasingly interested in music and, when asked by his classmate, guitarist Ronnie Caryl, both aged 16 and still at school, they formed a touring band fronted by former Unit 4+2 singer Tommy Moellar. They would play their hit "Concrete and Clay" sometimes three times a night up and down the country (1966–1967). He later said it was quite a musical education for the age of 16.[citation needed] In 1969, Heyman and Caryl formed the school band Sanctuary; the band's concerts often featured a friend from a rival stage school, Barbara Speake Stage School, the soon to be star Phil Collins. In a two-drummer setup, Heyman and Collins played the same fills, which became somewhat of a norm later in Genesis's career with Chester Thompson. The two were to work again later when Collins asked Heyman to work with his band Brand X as percussionist. Leaving school on the brink of his GCSE exams explaining to his parents that he would not need them in a music career, Heyman secured an album deal for Sanctuary with Polydor, recording an album at Rockfield Studios that still remains unreleased.
Early studio career
Heyman's first chart success came as a member of British R&B funk band Gonzalez,[1] drumming on their worldwide disco hit "Haven't Stopped Dancing Yet" (1975).[2] He had long been a fan and was asked by bandleader and sax player Mick Eve to join them on the eve of dates supporting Bob Marley on his Hammersmith Odeon shows. This led to many studio sessions, as the Gonzalez rhythm and brass sections were always in demand, especially with visiting U.S. artists. While in Air London Studio with Gonzalez recording tracks for their second album, Our Only Weapon Is Our Music (1975), he was watched from the door by Brian Ferry who asked him when he finished if he would cart his drums along the corridor to the studio next door. He agreed and played on "This Island Earth" from Ferry's fifth solo album The Bride Stripped Bare (1978) alongside bass player Alan Spenner and guitarist Neil Hubbard of Kokomo, who were London contemporaries to Gonzalez. This began a long studio session career.
Kate Bush
Soon after this, a telephone call came from Kate Bush and he began working with her, rehearsing for 6 months as a member of her band before embarking on her Lionheart Tour, later to become known as The Tour of Life (1979). Heyman also appears on Live at the Hammersmith Odeon (1981), which was later re-issued in 1994 as a box set audio CD with video; and on Bush's On Stage (E.P.), a live recording of four songs performed on Kate Bush's The Tour of Life in 1979. It was released on 31 August 1979 with "Them Heavy People" as the lead track. It peaked at number 10 on the UK Singles Chart. Following the tour Bush then had him in the studio to provide drums, percussion and some backing vocals on the album Never for Ever. Released in September 1980, it was Bush's first No. 1 album and was also the first ever album by a British female solo artist to top the UK album chart, as well as being the first album by any female solo artist to enter the chart at no 1.[3] Heyman played drums with the Tour of Life band on the B.B.C. T.V. Special KATE (1979) on which a new song "December Will Be Magic Again" was aired, later to be released by the B.B.C. as a DVD. He then went into the studio with Bush and played both drums and percussion on the single "December Will Be Magic Again" (1979), then working with her on the 1982 album The Dreaming. His pounding drums[4] featuring on her Single "Sat in Your Lap" (1981), recorded in the stone room at The Townhouse Studio 2 London with Paddy Bush and Preston on whip (played on bamboo canes swooshing through the air rhythmically), both appear in the video as singing Bulls. This was filmed in Orchestral Studio 1 Abbey Road. Critic Simon Reynolds called it "an avant-pop stampede of pounding percussion and deranged shrieks."[5]
During this period Heyman also played with the Tom Robinson Band on the album TRB Two, produced by Todd Rundgren (1979), and Atomic Rooster on their sixth album Atomic Rooster (1980). On recommendation from bass player and friend Phil Spalding, 1984 saw him in the studio with Mike Oldfield recording the soundtrack for the Academy Award winning film The Killing Fields, (1984)[6] using unusual percussion instruments he had brought back from an extended trip to Indonesia after Kate Bush's tour.
Kim Wilde
In 1985, Kim Wilde asked him to join her band and he spent most of that year with her in France doing T.V. shows and concerts. He appears in the video for her top 20 single "Rage to Love" which received a remix by Dave Edmunds. They also recorded a French T.V. special on Réunion Island in the Indian Ocean. And did a tour of Roman Amphitheatres in the south of France and Spain, Summer 1985.
Terence Trent D'arby
After studio sessions (again with Phil Spalding on bass) for the 1987 album Introducing the Hardline According to Terence Trent D'Arby produced by Heaven 17's Martyn Ware, he found himself drumming on the U.S.A. Billboard Hot 100 No. 1 hit "Wishing Well"[7] (1988) and features in the song's video. He joined Terence's band and spent the next 2 years touring the globe. In nearly every country they landed, both the album and single were No. 1 and at times they found themselves doing 5 T.V. appearances a day, once described as "The world's wildest craziest party that never ever stopped." Eventually, on the verge of another U.S. tour, Heyman decided to leave saying he had to "save my sanity before it was too late to do so."[citation needed] Worldwide, the album sold a million copies within the first three days of going on sale.[8]
Equipment
Preston endorses Evans Drumheads, Zildjian Cymbals, Tama Drums and Latin Percussion.
Discography
![]() | This section may require cleanup to meet Wikipedia's quality standards. The specific problem is: Formatting, non-use of wikitable(s), laundry list appearance, unreferenced. (January 2020) |
With Empire
- Mark I (1974)
- The Complete Recordings (2018) The Right Honourable Recording Company Ltd
With Gonzalez
- Our Only Weapon Is Our Music (1975) Capital
Singles:
- "Haven't Stopped Dancing Yet" (1977) Capitol
- "Bless You" (1978) Capitol
- Horft Í Roðann (1976) Steiner Iceland
With Brand X
- Missing Period (1976) Gonzo [released 1997, recorded 1975–1976, collection of lost session tapes]
With Wilding/Bonus
- Pleasure Signals (1977)
With Bryan Ferry
- The Bride Stripped Bare (1977)
- Rama Lama (1979)
With Kate Bush
- Never for Ever (1980)
- The Dreaming (1982)
- Live at Hammersmith Odeon (1995)
Singles:
- "Them Heavy People" Onstage E.P. (1979)
- "December Will Be Magic Again" (1979)
- "Sat in Your Lap" (1982)
- "The Ran Tan Waltz" [Single B Side] (1980)
With Tom Robinson Band
- TRB Two (1979)
With Atomic Rooster
- Atomic Rooster (1980) E.M.I.
With Ken Lockie
- The Impossible (1981) Virgin Records
WOMAD Music And Rhythm by WEA Germany (1982) The Best of Music & Rhythm Pengosekan – Vic Coppersmith-Heaven
With Randy California
- Euro-American (album) (1982)
- Restless (1985) Vertigo
Singles:
- "Hand Gun (Toy Guns)" (1982) Beggars Banquet
- "All along the Watchtower" / "Killer Weed" (1982) Beggars Banquet
- "Run to Your Lover" (1985) Beggars Banquet
- "Jack Rabbit" (1985) Vertigo
With Monsoon
- Third Eye (1982)
With Toyah
- "Be Proud Be Loud (Be Heard)" (1982)
With Bill Nelson
- Chimera (1983)
- Vistamix (1984)
- On A Blue Wing (1986)
With Impulse
- Act on Impulse (1983)
- European Affair
With Mike Oldfield
- The Killing Fields (1984) Grammy Award-winning film soundtrack
With Sheila Chandra
- Quiet (1984)
- The Struggle (1985)
With The Colourfield
- Virgins and Philistines (1985)
With Roy Harper / Jimmy Page
- Whatever Happened to Jugula? (1985)
- Loony on the Bus (1988)
With Heaven 17
- Pleasure One (1986)
With Heaven 17 Feat. Jimmy Ruffin
- "The Foolish Thing to Do" (1986) single
With When in Rome
- The Promise (1987)
With Indochine
- 7000 Danses (1987)
With Terence Trent D'Arby
Single:
- "Wishing Well" (1987) U.S.A. Billboard No 1
- "Greasy Chicken" (1988)
With Tina Turner
Singles:
- Two People (1986) B Side Havin' A Party
- "Take Me to the River" (1989)
With British Electric Foundation (Feat. Tina Turner)
- "Change Is Gonna Come" (1991) single
With Del Amitri
- del Amitri (1985)
- Change Everything (1992)
Singles:
- "Always The Last To Know" (1992)
With Heidi Berry
- Heidi Berry (1983)
With Tasmin Archer
- Great Expectations (1993)
Singles:
- "In Your Care" Onstage E.P. (1992)
- "Lords of the New Church" (1992)
- "Somebody's Daughter" (1992)
With Love City Groove
- Love City Groove (1995)
- "Soft Spot" (1995)
With Ian McNabb
- Merseybeast (1996)
With Massive Attack
- "Unfinished Sympathy" (1996)
With Asia
- Archiva 2 (1996)
With Jason Rowe (Jai)
- Heaven (1997)
With Tin Tin Out
- Eleven to Fly (1999)
- Single
- "Here's Where The Story Ends" (1998)
With Tin Tin Out featuring Emma Bunton
- "What I Am" (1998)
With DJ EZ
- Underground Explosion: The Best R'n'B & Garage Mix (1999)
With Whitney Houston
- "Could I Have This Kiss Forever" (2000) single Feat. Enrique Iglesias
With Sting
- "After The Rain Has Fallen" (2000)
With The Waterboys
- Still Burning (2000)
With The Pretenders
- Human (2000)
With Anastacia
Single:
- "I Was Made For Loving You" (2001)
With Faith Hill
- There You'll Be (2000)
With Hedkandi
Fac 15 Stay With Me Till Dawn (2001) Twisted by the Pool (2001) Haven't You Heard (2002)
FAC 15 Ft. Cathi Ogden
- "Rainy Days And Monday's" (2001)
- [Shine Inside, Stay With Me Till Dawn Disco Kandi] (2003)
With Simply Red
- Home (2003)
With King Brillo
- King Brillo (2006)
With The Wolfmen
- Two Eyes (2007)
- Modernity Killed Every Night (2012)
- Married to the Eiffel Tower (2007)
Singles
- Cecilia (2007)
- Two Eyes (2007) Feat. Daler Mehndi
- Wak This Bass (2009)
- "Better Days" (2009)
- Jackie Is It My Birthday? (2011) Feat. Sinéad O'Connor
With Aigul Babayeva
- The Homecoming (2009)
With Namgyal Lhamo
- Paradise Lost (2010)
With Sinead O'Connor
With Ravid
- Ravid Hang (2010) Producer, Percussion instruments.
- Calm Upon You (2013) Producer, Percussion instruments.
With Parsley Sound
- Picnic on Mars (2013)
With No Mad Karma
- "27" (2015)
With The Mutants
- You Desert My Mind (2016)
Movie soundtracks
- The Bitch (film), with Gonzalez, a 1979 film starring Joan Collins
- The Human Factor (1979 film), directed by Otto Preminger
- The Killing Fields (1984) With Mike Oldfield
- When Harry Left Hogwarts (2011) Official Harry Potter Soundtrack
Music videos
Kate Bush Live at Hammersmith Odeon (1979),Kate Bush – The tour of Life HD LPR Remastering (Live at Hammersmith Odeon 79) on YouTube
Them Heavy People (1979), Kate Bush – Them Heavy People – Official Music Video on YouTube
Breathing (1980),Kate Bush – Breathing – Official Music Video on YouTube
Army Dreamers (1980),Kate Bush – Army Dreamers – Official Music Video on YouTube
Sat in Your Lap (1982),Kate Bush – Sat in Your Lap on YouTube
Rage To Love (1985)Kim Wilde – Rage To Love (1985) HD 0815007 on YouTube
Heaven 17 Ft Jimmy Ruffin
The Foolish Thing To Do (1986)Heaven 17 ft. Jimmy Ruffin – The Foolish Thing To Do [1986 on YouTube
Only Love Remains (1986) Paul McCartney – "Only Love Remains" – ORIGINAL VIDEO on YouTube
Wishing Well (1987) USA No.1 Terence Trent D'Arby – Wishing Well (Video) on YouTube
Dance Little Sister (1987) Music video on YouTube
Sign Your Name (1988) Terence Trent D'Arby – Sign Your Name on YouTube
Introducing The Hardline Live Terence Trend D'Arby – Introducing the Hardline LIVE on YouTube
Tin Tin Out Here's Where The Story Ends Shelley Nelson Tin Tin Out Here's Where The Story Ends TOTP 1998 on YouTube
What I Am Tin Tin Out – What I Am ft. Emma Bunton on YouTube
Live performance and tours
Sanctuary Band – London College Concerts. Guest Phil Collins (1971–1973)
The Rocky Horror Show Kings Road Theatre (1974) Pit Band Dep Drummer Various Dates
Kate Bush – The Tour of Life (1979)
London Symphony Orchestra / Kate Bush 75th Anniversary Concert Royal Albert Hall (1979)
Peter Gabriel Reading Festival (1979) with Phil Collins/Gerry Marotta
The Nolans British Tour (1980)
Roy Harper Glastonbury Festival and U.K. Tour (1981)
Randy California Glastonbury Festival (1985)
Kim Wilde European Tour (1985)
Paul McCartney Royal Command Performance (1986)
The Princes Trust Rock Gala (1989) Percussion with George Martin Level 42 Alexander O'Neal John Farnham
Terence Trent D'Arby World Tour (1995)
Eurovision Song Contest / Love City Groove (1995)
Jimmy Sommerville European Tour and Festivals (1996)
Tin Tin Out / Hyde Park Route of Kings Concert (2000)
Zohar / World Peace Music Awards /Bali/ Concerts in Lomndon, U.S.A. Tour and Singapore (2006–2007)
Bali Jazz Festival (2006)
The Wolfmen London Concerts (2007–2011)
Avivit UK Concerts and Big Green Gathering Festival (2006)
James Stewart Cape Town South Africa Live Album Recording (2006)
Laura Miller and Double Six (2007) London Concerts
Aigul Babaeva The Opera House Almaty Kazakhstan (2012)
Expo 2017 World Expo Astana Kazakhstan 2017 Concert With No Mad Karma
References
- ^ Steve Huey. "Gonzalez | Biography". AllMusic. Retrieved 26 August 2014.
- ^ Whitburn, Joel. The Billboard Book of Top 40 Hits. Billboard Books. p. 259.
- ^ Williamson, Nigel (2 October 2005). "The Mighty Bush". Scotland on Sunday
- ^ "Kate Bush: her 31 UK singles from worst to best". Telegraph.co.uk. 30 July 2016. Retrieved 7 January 2020.
- ^ Simon Reynolds. "Kate Bush, the queen of art-pop who defied her critics". The Guardian
- ^ "Mike Oldfield - The Killing Fields - Tubular.net". Tubular.net. Retrieved 7 January 2020.
- ^ Whitburn, Joel (2004). Top R&B/Hip-Hop Singles: 1942–2004. Record Research. p. 145.
- ^ Whaley, Christopher (September 2007). Sananda Maitreya Speaks! (interview). Sobo Magazine. Retrieved 18 January 2008.