Nikki Sudden

All Music Guide:

After the post-punk band Swell Maps dissolved in the early '80s, lead singer Nikki Sudden began a diverse and maddening solo career, during which he performed with a number of different bands and side projects. Sudden released his first solo record, Waiting on Egypt, in 1982, followed closely by The Bible Belt in 1983; both records recalled Swell Maps. In 1984, Sudden formed the Jacobites with drummer Epic Soundtracks (his brother, who was also a member of Swell Maps) and guitarist/vocalist Dave Kusworth, who co-wrote the material with Sudden. The band developed a laid-back pop style driven by acoustic guitars and a rolling rhythm section reminiscent of the Velvet Underground. The Jacobites released four albums and three EPs between 1984 and 1986, when Kusworth left the band. Sudden continued using the Jacobites' name, releasing Texas on the Creation label in 1986. During the late '80s, Sudden ditched the Jacobites and began making music that strongly recalled early Rolling Stones. While none of his albums ever attracted a large audience, Sudden remained a cult favorite throughout his career. High-profile guests began appearing on his albums, with Wilco's Jeff Tweedy lending a hand on 1999's Red Brocade, and the Faces' keyboardist Ian McLagan playing on the 2004 release Treasure Island. On March 26, 2006, Sudden passed away after a gig in New York City. He was working on a new album, The Truth Doesn't Matter, which was released in October of that year. In the spring of 2011, the Easy Action imprint released Playing with Fire, a carefully curated compilation of unreleased songs recorded and left off his last two studio albums; the collection featured liner notes by Sudden's bassist and friend, John Barry.

Wikipedia:

Nikki Sudden (19 July 1956 – 26 March 2006) was a prolific English singer-songwriter and guitarist. He co-founded the post-punk band Swell Maps with his brother Epic Soundtracks (born Kevin Paul Godfrey) while attending Solihull School in Solihull.Cite error: There are <ref> tags on this page, but the references will not show without a {{reflist}} template (see the help page).

Career[edit]

He was born Adrian Nicholas Godfrey in London, England. Main influences on Sudden's music was provided by such artists as T.Rex, the Rolling Stones, the Faces, Bob Dylan and Johnny Thunders. Following the break-up of Swell Maps in 1980, he started a solo career, as well as releasing records with Dave Kusworth as the Jacobites. Kusworth had been a member of the Dogs D'Amour and led his own band, the Bounty Hunters.

He collaborated with, among others, Mike Scott and Anthony Thistlethwaite of the Waterboys, Jeff Tweedy of Wilco, The Golden Horde as 'The Last Bandits', Mick Taylor of the Rolling Stones, Rowland S. Howard, Jeremy Gluck of the Barracudas, Metrophase, Ian McLagan of Small Faces and the Faces, Phil Shoenfelt, Baron Anastis van Hustler, Big Sleep, Al DeLoner of Midnight Choir, Tom Ashton of the March Violets, members of R.E.M. and Sonic Youth. The Jacobites' tune "Pin Your Heart" was covered on the Lemonheads' 1997 single "The Outdoor Type".

Sudden also wrote for a number of music magazines, such as Spex, INTRO, Mojo, the local Birmingham based fanzine Waxstreet Dive, and Bucketful of Brains. At the time of his unexpected death, he was writing his autobiography, as well as a history of the Wick (an estate in Richmond once owned by Ronnie Wood, currently owned by Pete Townshend), and was due to perform in London on the 29 March 2006.

Nikki Sudden died from a heart attack at the age of 49 after a concert (with Alan Merrill and Danny Hole joining him on stage and Evan Dando guesting) at the Knitting Factory in Manhattan, New York.Cite error: There are <ref> tags on this page, but the references will not show without a {{reflist}} template (see the help page).

Reissues[edit]

In September 2013 it was announced that The Numero Group would reissue a series of Sudden's albums on vinyl, with Waiting on Egypt, The Bible Belt, Jacobites, and Robespierre's Velvet Basement scheduled for November 2013 release, and further releases scheduled for 2014.Cite error: There are <ref> tags on this page, but the references will not show without a {{reflist}} template (see the help page).