Nick Heyward
{{short description|English singer-songwriter and guitarist}}
{{EngvarB|date=October 2017}}
{{Infobox musical artist
| name = Nick Heyward
| background = person
| image = Nick Heyward 2015.jpg
| caption = Heyward at Let's Rock Bristol, June 2015
| birth_name = Nicholas Heyward
| birth_date = {{birth date and age|df=yes|1961|05|20}}
| birth_place = Beckenham, Kent, England
| genre = {{hlist|Pop|rock|new wave|alternative|indie rock}}
| occupations = {{hlist|Singer|songwriter|guitarist}}
| instruments = {{hlist|Vocals|guitar|bass}}
| years_active = 1980–present
| label = {{hlist|Arista (1981–1986)|Reprise (1988–1989)|Epic (1993–1996)|Creation (1997–1998)}}
| current_member_of = Haircut One Hundred
| past_member_of = Boogie Box High
| website = {{URL|nickheyward.com}}
}}
Nicholas Heyward (born 20 May 1961) is an English singer-songwriter and guitarist.{{cite book|title=The Guinness Who's Who of Indie and New Wave Music|editor=Colin Larkin|publisher=Guinness Publishing|date=1992|edition=First|isbn=0-85112-579-4|page=135}} He came to international attention in the early 1980s as the lead singer and songwriter for Haircut One Hundred. He and the band parted ways after their first album, after which he continued as a solo artist.
Biography
=Early life=
Born in Beckenham,{{cite book|first=David|last=Roberts|year=1998|title=Guinness Rockopedia|edition=1st|publisher=Guinness Publishing Ltd.|location=London|page=[https://archive.org/details/guinnessrockoped0000unse/page/183 183]|isbn=0-85112-072-5|url=https://archive.org/details/guinnessrockoped0000unse/page/183}} Heyward spent his early years in and around south London. He attended Kelsey Park School for Boys in Beckenham where he studied art and photography. He left school at 16 to work as a commercial artist.{{cite magazine|last=Rice|first=Maureen|date=19 June 1985|title=Love, Money and Perfect Pop|url=https://www.flickr.com/photos/51106326@N00/14404529423/in/album-72157645082747441/|location=Flickr|format=jpg|pages=58–59|magazine=Smash Hits|publisher=EMAP|access-date=8 July 2015}}
=Haircut One Hundred=
Heyward and school friends Graham Jones and Les Nemes,{{cite magazine|last=Stand|first=Mike|date=4 February 1982|title=Bitz|url=https://m.flickr.com/#/photos/51106326@N00/6442344947/in/set-72157628248867111/|location=Flickr|format=jpg|magazine=Smash Hits|publisher=EMAP|page=11|access-date=8 July 2015}} the core of Haircut One Hundred, started bands together as far back as 1977. They were first known as Rugby, then the Boat Party, Captain Pennyworth and Moving England, before settling on Haircut One Hundred.{{cite magazine|last1=Ellen|first1=Mark|title=The Boy Wonder|magazine=Smash Hits|volume=4|issue=9|pages=28, 31|publisher=EMAP|date=29 April 1982|access-date=10 April 2014|url=https://www.flickr.com/photos/51106326@N00/6887199869/in/album-72157629345952611/|format=jpg|location=Flickr}} The band signed with Arista Records in 1981 and had four UK top 10 singles between 1981 and 1982.{{cite web |url =http://www.officialcharts.com/artist/19327/haircut-100/|title=Haircut 100|publisher=The Official UK Charts Company|access-date=22 June 2016}} Their debut album, Pelican West (1982), written by Heyward, reached No. 2. It was certified platinum{{cite web |url=http://www.bpi.co.uk/certified-awards.aspx |title=British Phonographic Industry |date=23 June 1982 |access-date=18 July 2015 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130124005813/http://www.bpi.co.uk/certified-awards.aspx |archive-date=24 January 2013 }} by the British Phonographic Industry.
Work on the band's second album commenced in October 1982 but, in January 1983, a statement was issued confirming that Heyward had left the band, and percussionist Marc Fox had taken over on vocals. At the time of the announcement, Heyward told Smash Hits magazine that he had been contemplating going solo for a while and had already recorded some tracks with session musicians.{{cite magazine | title= Bitz: Cuts Up|magazine= Smash Hits|volume= 5|issue= 3|page=13|publisher= EMAP Metro|date=3 February 1983}} However, many years later, Heyward stated that he had been struggling with stress and depression at the time after a year of constant work and pressure which led to him being, in effect, sacked by the other members of the band.{{cite news|url=http://www.metro.co.uk/music/853775-nick-heyward-facebook-is-the-reason-haircut-one-hundred-are-reuniting|first=Andrew|last=Williams|title=Facebook is the reason Haircut One Hundred are reuniting|newspaper=Metro|date=26 January 2011|access-date=8 November 2011}}{{cite magazine|last=Tennant|first=Neil|magazine=Smash Hits|publisher=EMAP|location=Flickr|date=31 March 1983|title=Back to Square One|page=14}}
Over the years, the band has reformed several times, most recently in May 2023. Heyward described a "deep love" for the band and remarked that "the door is always open".{{cite interview |url=http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b08xxdxr |last=Heyward |first=Nick |author-link=Nick Heyward |others=Clive Anderson |title=Loose Ends |publisher=BBC Radio 4 |location=London |date=23 July 2017 |access-date=25 July 2017}} In an interview with Lorraine, he said he was "ever hopeful" that the band would one day play a reunion show at the Roundhouse where Pelican West was recorded.{{cite interview |url=http://www.itv.com/lorraine/showbiz/haircut-100s-nick-heyward-im-ever-hopeful-that-the-six-of-us-will-reunite |last=Heyward |first=Nick |author-link=Nick Heyward |others=Lorraine Kelly |title=Lorraine |publisher=ITV |location=London |date=27 July 2017 |access-date=1 August 2017}}
=Solo career=
Heyward's solo career began in March 1983 with the single "Whistle Down the Wind", which reached No. 13 on the UK Singles Chart.{{cite web|title =Nick Heyward |publisher=The Official UK Charts Company |url =http://www.officialcharts.com/artist/20232/nick-heyward/ | access-date =22 June 2016}} Two further top 20 hits followed: "Take That Situation" (No. 11) and "Blue Hat for a Blue Day" (No. 14). His debut solo album, North of a Miracle, was released in October 1983 and peaked at No. 10 in the UK. The successive non-album singles, "Love All Day" and "Warning Sign" both went top 40 although a subsequent single "Laura" failed to do so.
Postcards from Home, Heyward's second solo album, was released in 1986, and featured the singles "Over the Weekend" and "Goodbye Yesterday". By 1988, he had moved to Warner Bros. Records and released his third album, I Love You Avenue, which included the single "You're My World".
Heyward's 1993 album, From Monday to Sunday, on Epic Records, featured a more classic rock style,{{cite web |url={{Allmusic|class=artist|id=/nick-heyward-p4480/biography|pure_url=yes}} |title=AllMusic: Nick Heyward |website=AllMusic |access-date=21 March 2009}} and brought him his first hits of the 1990s. The first single, "Kite", reached No. 44 on the UK Singles Chart and No. 4 on Billboard{{'}}s Hot Modern Rock Tracks chart.{{cite magazine|title =Nick Heyward |magazine=Billboard |url =http://www.billboard.com/artist/312241/nick-heyward/chart?f=377 | access-date =30 June 2015}}
In 1995, Heyward released his second Epic Records album, Tangled, providing him with the UK top 40 single "Rollerblade".
In 1998, Creation Records released The Apple Bed,{{cite web|url=http://www.allmusic.com/album/release/the-apple-bed-mr0000154033|title=AllMusic: The Apple Bed – Nick Heyward|website=AllMusic|access-date=28 April 2017}} Heyward's most recent major label release. It featured three singles, "Today", "The Man You Used to Be" and "Stars in Her Eyes".{{cite web|url=http://nickheyward.com/discography/the-apple-bed/|title=The Apple Bed|publisher=NickHeyward.com|access-date=30 June 2015}}
Since 1998, Heyward has released two independent albums: Open Sesame Seed (2001), a collaboration with British actor/singer Greg Ellis, and featuring Ellis reading Heyward's poetry to the accompaniment of Heyward's musical backing; and The Mermaid and the Lighthouse Keeper (2006), an album of songs recorded with singer/actress India Dupre.{{cite web|url=http://nickheyward.com/discography/nick-heyward-india-dupre-the-mermaid-the-lighthouse-keeper/|title=The Mermaid and the Lighthouse Keeper|publisher=NickHeyward.com|access-date=30 June 2015}}
In November 2013, Heyward announced on his website that he was in the process of recording a new album with his son, Oliver.{{cite web|url=http://nickheyward.com/new_album_update/|title=New album update|publisher=NickHeyward.com|access-date=30 June 2015}} A preview of the album was made available on the site in October 2015.{{cite web|url=http://nickheyward.com/new-album-preview//|title=New album preview|publisher=NickHeyward.com|access-date=26 May 2016}} A PledgeMusic campaign to support the album was announced on Heyward's website, on 4 April 2017{{cite web|url=http://nickheyward.com/pledgemusic-campaign-launching-this-wednesday-5-apr-17///|title=PledgeMusic campaign launching this Wednesday|publisher=NickHeyward.com|access-date=13 April 2017}} and the album title, Woodland Echoes, was released the following day.{{cite web|url=http://www.pledgemusic.com/projects/nick-heyward-woodland-echoes///|title=Nick Heyward: Woodland Echoes on PledgeMusic|publisher=PledgeMusic.com|access-date=13 April 2017}}
=Personal life=
Heyward married Glaswegian Marion Killen in 1987. They had two children, Oliver and Katie, before divorcing in 2000.{{cite news |title=BEYOND THE FRINGE; Oasis boss gives Haircut 100 star new lease of life |work=Daily Record |location= Glasgow |date=13 February 1998 |url= http://www.thefreelibrary.com/BEYOND+THE+FRINGE%3B+Oasis+boss+gives+Haircut+100+star+new+lease+of...-a061463220 |access-date=8 July 2015}} In 1998, he had a spiritual awakening{{cite interview |last=Heyward |first=Nick |subject-link=Nick Heyward |interviewer=Clare Balding |title=Clare Balding's Sunday Best with Nick Heyward |url=http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p03hsvs9 |work=Good Morning Sunday |publisher=BBC Radio 2 |location=London |date=7 February 2016 |access-date=18 February 2016 }} that he described as a feeling of complete contentment and a deep connection with nature.
Heyward lives in Stoke Row, South Oxfordshire,{{cite journal|title=Nick Heyward|url=http://www.henleystandard.co.uk/pageturning/henleylife/1408/files/assets/basic-html/page7.html|access-date=8 July 2015|journal=Henley Life|page=7|date=August 2014|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150709214613/http://www.henleystandard.co.uk/pageturning/henleylife/1408/files/assets/basic-html/page7.html|archive-date=9 July 2015|df=dmy-all}} and in February 2016 announced his engagement to Sara, his American girlfriend.{{cite interview |last=Heyward |first=Nick |subject-link=Nick Heyward |interviewer=Gaby Roslin |url=http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p03hsvs9 |title=Gaby Roslin |publisher=BBC Radio London |location=London |date=21 February 2016 |access-date=22 February 2016 }}
Discography
=Albums=
| class="wikitable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center;"
|+List of albums, with selected details, chart positions and certifications ! scope="col" rowspan="2" style="width:16em;"| Title ! scope="col" rowspan="2"| Details ! scope="col" colspan="4"| Peak chart positions ! scope="col" rowspan="2"| Certifications |
| scope="col" style="width:2.5em;font-size:90%;"| UK ! scope="col" style="width:2.5em;font-size:90%;"| US ! scope="col" style="width:2.5em;font-size:90%;"| SWE ! scope="col" style="width:2.5em;font-size:90%;"| NZ |
|---|
| scope="row"| Pelican West {{small|(with Haircut One Hundred)}} | | 2 || 31 || 29 || 12 | |
| scope="row"| North of a Miracle
|
| 10 || 178 || — || — | |
| scope="row"| Postcards from Home
| | — || — || — || — | |
| scope="row"| I Love You Avenue
|
| — || — || — || — | |
| scope="row"| From Monday to Sunday
|
| — || — || — || — | |
| scope="row"| Tangled
|
| 93 || — || — || — | |
| scope="row"| The Apple Bed
|
| — || — || — || — | |
| scope="row"| Open Sesame Seed
|
| — || — || — || — | |
| scope="row"| The Mermaid and the Lighthouse Keeper
|
| — || — || — || — | |
| scope="row"| Woodland Echoes
|
| 89 || — || — || — | |
| colspan="7" style="font-size:90%"| "—" denotes a recording that did not chart or was not released in that territory. |
=Singles=
| class="wikitable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center;"
|+List of singles, with selected chart positions and certifications, showing year released and album name ! scope="col" rowspan="2" style="width:16em;"| Title ! scope="col" rowspan="2"| Year ! scope="col" colspan="8"| Peak chart positions ! scope="col" rowspan="2" style="width:8em;"| Certifications ! scope="col" rowspan="2"| Album |
| scope="col" style="width:2.5em;font-size:90%;"| UK ! scope="col" style="width:2.5em;font-size:90%;"| US Hot 100 ! scope="col" style="width:2.5em;font-size:90%;"| US AC ! scope="col" style="width:2.5em;font-size:90%;"| US Alt ! scope="col" style="width:2.5em;font-size:90%;"| US Dance ! scope="col" style="width:2.5em;font-size:90%;"| US Rock ! scope="col" style="width:2.5em;font-size:90%;"| NZ ! scope="col" style="width:2.5em;font-size:90%;"| GER |
|---|
| scope="row"| "Favourite Shirts (Boy Meets Girl)" {{small|(with Haircut One Hundred)}} | 1981 | 4 || — || — || — || 41 || 50{{Cite book|title = Joel Whitburn's Top Pop Singles 1955 – 2002|last = Whitburn|first = Joel|publisher = Record Research Inc.|year = 2003|isbn = 0-89820-155-1|location = Menomonee Falls, Wisconsin, USA|page = [https://archive.org/details/joelwhitburnstop00whitbur/page/297 297]|url = https://archive.org/details/joelwhitburnstop00whitbur/page/297}} || 32 || — | | rowspan="3"| Pelican West |
| scope="row"| "Love Plus One" {{small|(with Haircut One Hundred)}} | rowspan="3"| 1982 | 3 || 37 || — || 18 || 8 || 18 || 22 || — | |
| scope="row"| "Fantastic Day" {{small|(with Haircut One Hundred)}} | 9 || — || — || — || — || — || 29 || — | |
| scope="row"| "Nobody's Fool" {{small|(with Haircut One Hundred)}} | 9 || — || — || — || — || — || — || — | | Pelican West Plus |
| scope="row"| "Whistle Down the Wind"
| rowspan="4"| 1983 | 13 || — || 20 || — || — || — || — || — | | rowspan="4"| North of a Miracle |
| scope="row"| "Take That Situation"
| 11 || — || — || — || — || — || — || — | |
| scope="row"| "Blue Hat for a Blue Day"
| 14 || — || — || — || — || — || — || — | |
| scope="row"| "On a Sunday"
| 52 || — || — || — || — || — || — || — | |
| scope="row"| "Love All Day"
| rowspan="3"| 1984 | 31 || — || — || — || — || — || — || — | | rowspan="4" {{Non-album singles}} |
| scope="row"| "My Pure Lady" {{small|(Japan only)}}
| — || — || — || — || — || — || — || — | |
| scope="row"| "Warning Sign"
| 25 || — || — || — || — || — || — || — | |
| scope="row"| "Laura"
| 1985 | 45 || — || — || — || — || — || — || — | |
| scope="row"| "Over the Weekend"
| rowspan="2"| 1986 | 43 || — || — || — || — || — || — || — | | rowspan="2"| Postcards from Home |
| scope="row"| "Goodbye Yesterday"
| 82 || — || — || — || — || — || — || — | |
| scope="row"| "You're My World"
| 1988 | 67 || — || — || — || — || — || — || — | | rowspan="2"| I Love You Avenue |
| scope="row"| "Tell Me Why"
| 1989 | — || — || — || — || — || — || — || — | |
| scope="row"| "Kite"
| rowspan="2"| 1993 | 44 || 107 || — || 4 || — || — || — || — | | rowspan="2"| From Monday to Sunday |
| scope="row"| "He Doesn't Love You Like I Do"
| 58 || — || — || — || — || — || — || 55 | |
| scope="row"| "The World"
| 1995 | 47 || — || — || — || — || — || — || — | | rowspan="2"| Tangled |
| scope="row"| "Rollerblade"
| 1996 | 37 || — || — || — || — || — || — || — | |
| scope="row"| "Today"
| rowspan="2"| 1997 | — || — || — || — || — || — || — || — | | rowspan="3"| The Apple Bed |
| scope="row"| "The Man You Used to Be"
| — || — || — || — || — || — || — || — | |
| scope="row"| "Stars in Her Eyes"
| 1998 | — || — || — || — || — || — || — || — | |
| scope="row"| "Baby Blue Sky" / "Mountaintop"
| rowspan="2"| 2017 | — || — || — || — || — || — || — || — | | rowspan="3"| Woodland Echoes |
| scope="row"| "Perfect Sunday Sun"
| — || — || — || — || — || — || — || — | |
| scope="row"| "The Stars"
| 2018 | — || — || — || — || — || — || — || — | |
| scope="row"| "The Unloving Plum" {{small|(with Haircut One Hundred)}} | 2024 | — || — || — || — || — || — || — || — || || {{Non-album single}} | |
| colspan="13" style="font-size:90%"| "—" denotes a recording that did not chart or was not released in that territory. |
- "Whistle Down the Wind" additionally charted at No. 20 on the Billboard Adult Contemporary chart.
- "Kite" charted at No. 7 on the Billboard Bubbling Under Hot 100 Singles chart.
See also
References
{{Reflist}}
External links
- {{Official website}}
- {{IMDb name|1705061}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=October 2017}}
{{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Heyward, Nick}}
Category:English male singer-songwriters
Category:English singer-songwriters
Category:English pop guitarists
Category:English male guitarists
Category:English male new wave singers
Category:English new wave singers
Category:People from Beckenham
Category:Haircut One Hundred members
Category:Arista Records artists
Category:Reprise Records artists
Category:Creation Records artists
Category:Musicians from the London Borough of Bromley