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Martin Whitehead - Features


Flatmates

Flatmates - Part 15

Chapter 28: Heaven Knows tour, autumn 1988 In October 1998 we played our first gigs with Jackie. From 14th - 28th October we had a tour of the UK booked, but a week before that started, on 7th Octo


Flatmates

Flatmates - Part 12

Chapter 24: Back in Blighty Our first gig back in the UK was playing at The Fridge in Brixton, south London. The Fridge is a large theatre and a prestigious venue to play. We were supported by the


Flatmates

Flatmates - Part 15 (Continued)

Chapter 29: He had a whisky drink, he had a lager drink… In Bristol a recuperated Joel joined the tour again, having seen a doctor and rested for several days. After a welcome night in our own beds


Flatmates

Flatmates - Part 2

Chapter 4: It’s a HIT! ‘I Could Be In Heaven’ was released on my Subway Organization label in September 1986 with the catalogue number Subway6. The runout grooves of the A and B side bore the messa


Flatmates

Flatmates - Part 14

Chapter 27: Don’t you come round here with that polar bear Our management’s plan was that ‘Heaven Knows’ was the single that was going to get us signed to a major deal. After ‘Shimmer’ had attracte


Flatmates

Flatmates - Part 13

Chapter 26: ‘Heaven Knows’ - I’m miserable now We’d decided on ‘Heaven Knows’ for our 5th single. The song’s lyrics tell of a protracted battle with mental instability brought about by the traumas


Flatmates

Flatmates - Part 11

Chapter 23: Going kinky in Hamburg Two nights later we were playing the last night of the tour in Hamburg. Since the Beatles had their residency in Hamburg it’s been a place of fun and frolics for


Flatmates

Flatmates - Part 6

Chapter 14: Bye Bye Baby/Hit The North June 1987 was busy, with The Flatmates playing 12 gigs in that month. 12 gigs over a month may not seem busy, but apart from the Devon weekend they were all b


Flatmates

Flatmates - Part 5

Chapter 13: Summer 1987 On 28th May 1987, not long after we got back from the Dutch tour, we played in Lichfield in Staffordshire where the Rosehips turned up to hang out with us. On 8th June we pl


Flatmates

Flatmates - Part 4

Chapter 11: Dutch Tour May 1987 Back in January of 1987 we’d been phoned up by a Dutch promoter, Rob Berends of the Paperclip Agency, and asked to play some gigs in Holland. So it was that on the 1


Flatmates

Flatmates - Part 7

Chapter 15: Fantasy pop stars We had a 7 week break from gigging between 19th July and 7th September 1987 for Joel to get rehearsed properly, to have a break from the physical and emotional strains


Flatmates

Flatmates - Part 10

Chapter 21: I thought you had the leads bag? At Stuttgart we managed to leave all our leads behind in the club. "Iz a problem". Not just the guitar leads, but all the connectors for the effects ped


Flatmates

Flatmates - Part 9

Chapter 19: Spring 1988 Our tour with The Wedding Present took in 6 gigs. Birmingham Irish Centre, Newcastle Riverside, Nottingham Trent Poly, Bristol Bierkeller, London Town and Country Club and M


Flatmates

Flatmates - Part 8

Chapter 17: Shimmer Our new management were keen to crack on with a new single. Their long term plans were to get a recording contract with a major record company. A new single would give them mate


Flatmates

Flatmates - Part 16 (Continued)

Chapter 31: Life after The Flatmates Me, Jackie, Joel and Gary decided to recruit a new singer and carry on. We advertised in Bristol and after auditions selected a girl named Kirsty. The band was


Flatmates

Flatmates - Part 16

Chapter 30: The fallout from ULU I think after the ULU incident we all wanted to go and hide under a rock until everybody forgot about us, but we still had gigs to play in Tunbridge Wells and Brigh


Flatmates

Flatmates - Part 1

Chapter 1: It’s early days yet The Flatmates formed in 1985 shortly after I met up with Rocker, the band’s original drummer at a gig by The Jazz Butcher in the June of that year. It took me some ti


Flatmates

Flatmates - Part 3

Chapter 8: Love and death and Janice On 5th February 1987 we played at the Knightstone Theatre in Weston Super Mare. The Knightstone is an old theatre near the sea front. At the time we played ther







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