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Chris Layhe is an English musician, and founding member of Liverpool alternative rock band, The Icicle Works.
Signed to Beggar's Banquet, The Icicle Works had a handful of chart hits (notably "Birds Fly (Whisper to a Scream)") and toured the US and mainland Europe before the departure of original members Layhe and drummer Chris Sharrock in 1989. [1]
In the 1990s, Layhe worked as events organiser at Blue Coat Arts Centre in Liverpool, co-ordinating appearances by Tori Amos and Doris Lessing, among others. [2]
Though originally a bassist, Layhe currently teaches guitar at the Manchester Adult Education Service. Co-writer (with Ian McNabb) of several early Icicle Works songs, he has also performed his own work solo, and with blues rock band Oyster, in venues throughout the north of England.
In 2009, Layhe formed the indie rock band Shadow History, with the Australian singer/guitarist Ben Winch, and returned to bass playing after a lengthy hiatus.
The Lightning Seeds are an English rock band formed in Liverpool in 1989 by Ian Broudie, formerly of the bands Big in Japan, Care, and Original Mirrors. Originally a studio-based solo project for Broudie, the Lightning Seeds expanded into a touring band following Jollification (1994). The group experienced commercial success throughout the 1990s and are well known for their single "Three Lions", a collaboration with David Baddiel and Frank Skinner which reached No. 1 in the UK in 1996 and 2018, with a re-worked version also reaching the top spot in 1998.
Beggars Banquet Records is a British independent record label. Beggars Banquet started as a chain of record shops owned by Martin Mills and Nick Austin and is part of the Beggars Group of labels.
The Icicle Works are an English alternative rock band and were named after the 1960 short story "The Day the Icicle Works Closed" by science fiction author Frederik Pohl. They had a top 20 UK hit with "Love Is a Wonderful Colour" (1983). In the US and Canada, they had only one top 40 hit, the 1984 single "Birds Fly ".
The Liverpool Institute for Performing Arts (LIPA) is a performing arts higher education institution in Liverpool, founded by Paul McCartney and Mark Featherstone-Witty and opened in 1996. LIPA offers 11 full-time BA (Hons) degrees in a range of fields across the performing arts, as well as three Foundation Certificate programmes of study in acting, music technology, and dance and popular music. LIPA offers full-time, one-year master's-level degree courses in acting (company) and costume making. It is a member of the Federation of Drama Schools.
We've Got a Fuzzbox and We're Gonna Use It!!, often shortened to Fuzzbox, are a British alternative rock group. Formed in Birmingham in 1985, the all-female then quartet originally consisted of Vix, Magz, Jo Dunne and Tina O'Neill. The band's name was shortened to Fuzzbox for the U.S. release of their first album. They disbanded in 1990 after releasing two studio albums, and reunited in 2010 for a series of concerts. A second reunion was confirmed in 2015.
Skrew is an American industrial metal band. Formed in 1990 and disbanded in 1998, the group announced its return in 2009.
Robert Ian McNabb is an English singer-songwriter and musician. Previously the frontman of The Icicle Works, McNabb has since embarked on a solo career and performed with Ringo Starr, Neil Young/Crazy Horse, Mike Scott, and Danny Thompson of folk band Pentangle.
Richard Naiff is a British pianist and flautist from London who has performed with the bands Soulsec, The Catacoustics, The Waterboys and The Icicle Works. Naiff is a classically trained musician, having joined the Guildhall School of Music at age ten. The Irish music website Cluas.com describes Naiff as "phenomenally talented".
Test Icicles were a short-lived rock band that formed in England, primarily influenced by post-hardcore, dance-punk and indie rock but containing musical elements from a variety of genres. The band was formed in 2004 by Rory Attwell and Sam Mehran, who were later joined by Devonte Hynes. Hynes and Mehran were both 18 years old at the time of the band's inception. The group has since become notable due to the later success of its members.
James Stanley McCarty is an English musician, best known as the drummer for the Yardbirds and Renaissance. Following Chris Dreja's departure from the Yardbirds in 2013, McCarty became the only member of the band to still tour in the band. He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1992 as a member of the Yardbirds.
Paul Burgess is an English rock drummer, notable for his association with a wide range of British rock and folk-rock bands. In addition to extensive session work, he has been an official member of 10cc, Jethro Tull, Camel, Magna Carta, and The Icicle Works.
The Murmaids were an American one-hit wonder all-female vocal trio, composed of sisters Carol and Terry Fischer ; and Sally Gordon from North Hollywood, California, United States, who, in January 1964 reached No. 3 on the US Billboard Hot 100 with "Popsicles and Icicles".
Our Kid were a British vocal group discovered by the ITV show, New Faces, winning an edition of the programme on 1 May 1976, although they did not go on to reach the series grand final. They then had a number two hit single on the UK Singles Chart in 1976 with "You Just Might See Me Cry", which peaked on 3 July 1976. The track was released on the Polydor label, and spent eleven weeks in the UK Singles Chart. The song was written by Roger Greenaway and Barry Mason. Further singles "I Can't Live Without You" and "Romeo and Juliet" were not successful.
Miles Peter Kane is an English musician, best known as a solo artist and the co-frontman of the Last Shadow Puppets. He was also the former frontman of the Rascals, before the band announced their break-up in August 2009.
The Distractions are an English punk rock/new wave band from Manchester, England.
Chris Sharrock is an English drummer, hailing from Bebington, Cheshire, England. He has been a member of the Icicle Works, the La's, the Wild Swans, World Party, the Lightning Seeds, Robbie Williams's live band, Oasis, Beady Eye and is currently in Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds.
The Cherry Boys were an English new wave band from Liverpool, England. The Cherry Boys formed in 1980. They are most notable for the single "Kardomah Cafe", which missed the UK Singles Chart, but was a top 10 hit in Spain.
The Small Price of a Bicycle is the second studio album by The Icicle Works. The album was released in 1985 and charted at number 55 in the UK Despite the success of the band's first album in North America, it was not released in either the US or Canada, with Arista Records in the US memorably rejecting it as "punk-rock demos".
The Icicles are an American indie pop band from Grand Rapids, Michigan. The band was founded in 2000 by singer/songwriter/guitarist Gretchen DeVault, keyboardist Joleen Rumsey and drummer Korrie Sue, who met when they were students at Grand Valley State University. The group released a debut EP titled Pure Sugar in 2000.