Pool Of Sound - Dead Or Alive

Dead Or Alive

Pete Burns was born in Cheshire to a Liverpudlian father and German mother who was a survivor of the Holocaust and started out as a clothes designer and the proprietor of Liverpool shop Probe, which catered to the city's nascent punk scene. This became a meeting place for local musicians, and he was notorious for his maltreatment of customers, telling some the clothes they;d just bought were 'crap' and even sometimes throwing their purchases at them because he disapproved of their selection. Having previously gigged with Julian Cope and Pete Wylie in his first band 'Mystery Girls', named after a New York Dolls song, his next band, originally named 'Rainbows Over Nagasaki' was 'Nightmares in Wax' who played their first gig supporting 'Wire' at Eric's in July 1979 but after several changes to the line-up in May 1980, he, as vocalist and songwriter, together with Martin Healy on keyboards were joined by bassist Sue James, guitarist Adrian Mitchley, and drummer Joe Musker. They had recorded a radio session for John Peel and it was at this juncture that Pete changed the name of the band to 'Dead or Alive'.
They debuted in 1980 with the Ian Broudie-produced 'Doors' soundalike 'I'm Falling' and a second record followed in 1981 'Number Eleven', but just as the group was gaining momentum they were swept aside by the emergence of the New Romantic movement, with Pete Burns subsequently allegedly accusing Boy George of 'Culture Club' of appropriating his outrageous unique image. Pete has since said that those disputes between Boy George and Marilyn were completely press-invented.

In his search for personal satisfaction, Pete forged on with a retooled 'Dead or Alive' roster including future 'Mission U.K.' guitarist Wayne Hussey and bassist Mike Percy releasing records such as the 1982 EP 'It's Been Hours Now' and the follow-up single 'The Stranger', which reached No.7 on the UK Indie chart. 
The group evolved into a true dance band, and ultimately landed a deal with major label Epic in 1983.  Their first release for Epic was the single 'Misty Circles' which reached No. 100 on the major UK Singles Chart in 1983. At this point, the band was a five-piece consisting of Burns, Mike Percy on bass, Tim Lever on keyboards/sax, Steve Coy on drums and Wayne Hussey on guitar. Pete would hire and fire many musicians, including Hussey, eventually settling on a four piece made up of himself, Steve Coy, Mike Percy, and Tim Lever. This is the line-up that made their full album debut in 1984Two more singles, 'What I Want' and 'I'd Do Anything', attracted club play, but mainstream success continued to elude the band.

Their debut album 'Sophisticated Boom Boom' was released in May 1984 and featured their first Top 40 UK single, 'That's The Way ( I Like It)', a remake of the 1975 hit by 'KC and the Sunshine Band' which just fell short of the British Top 20. However Wayne Hussey had left the group before the full-length 'Sophisticated Boom Boom' album, which also fared well with audiences, was released.
They achieved true stardom in early 1985 with the Hi-NRG smash 'You Spin Me Round (Like a Record)', the first Number One hit for the production team of Stock, Aitken and Waterman. 
The succeeding LP 'Youthquake' was also a smash, yielding further hits in the form of the singles 'Lover Come Back to Me', 'In Too Deep' and 'My Heart Goes Bang'. All in all 'Dead Or Alive' had seven Top 40 UK singles.

On stage in 1985

The 1986 'Brand New Lover' kept the group in the limelight, but the 1987 LP 'Mad, Bad and Dangerous to Know' proved disastrous at home and in the U.S., although a fervent following emerged in Japan. In the wake of the 1989 'Nude' the original band parted in 1990 when songwriters and musicians Tim Lever and Mike Percy left to form careers as mixers and recordists leaving Burns and Coy remaining to also take over production and managerial duties. Subsequent 'Dead or Alive' LP's included 'Fan the Flame', 'Part One' and 'Nukleopatra'. 

Pop icon Pete Burns died after suffering a heart attack on the 23rd of October 23, 2016 aged 57. Boy George declared after his death: " One of our great true eccentrics and such a big part of my life! He was a cross between Oscar Wilde and Dorothy Parker. You don’t get more brilliant than that."

see also :- http://www.thefootballvoice.com/2019/10/pool-of-sound-frankie-goes-to-hollywood.html