Martin Kelly (Heavenly)

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Martin Kelly (born 17 July 1965, RAF Akrotiri, Akrotiri and Dhekelia) has been a musician, music manager, record label boss, music publisher and author. Best known as Jeff Barrett's partner at Heavenly Recordings, a British independent record label run by the pair between 1993-2009.

RAF Akrotiri Royal Air Force station, on the Mediterranean island of Cyprus

Royal Air Force Akrotiri or more simply RAF Akrotiri is a large Royal Air Force station, on the Mediterranean island of Cyprus. It is located in the Western Sovereign Base Area, one of two areas which comprise Akrotiri and Dhekelia, a British Overseas Territory, administered as a Sovereign Base Area.

Akrotiri and Dhekelia British Overseas Territory

The Sovereign Base Areas of Akrotiri and Dhekelia is a British Overseas Territory on the island of Cyprus. The areas, which include British military bases and installations, as well as other land, were retained by the British under the 1960 treaty of independence, signed by the United Kingdom, Greece, Turkey and representatives from the Greek and Turkish Cypriot communities, which granted independence to the Crown colony of Cyprus. The territory serves an important role as a station for signals intelligence and provides a vital strategic part of the United Kingdom communications gathering and monitoring network in the Mediterranean and the Middle East.

Heavenly Recordings is a London-based independent record label founded by Jeff Barrett.

Contents

Early years

Kelly was born in Cyprus, the son of an RAF Squadron leader Michael "Manx" Kelly, who would later go on to form the Rothmans aerobatic display team. Relocated to the UK when his father was posted to Bomber Command in 1968, Kelly grew up in rural Buckinghamshire near Princes Risborough. The death of his father in May 1976 and the advent of punk rock profoundly affected him, and by the late 70s he was obsessed with music and had begun playing guitar and bass in various school bands. In 1983, aged 17, Kelly formed a new group Episode Four with his brother Paul Kelly, Johhny Wood and Spencer Smith. Episode Four managed only one EP release, the 1986 12" 'Strike Up Matches' which has gone on to become one of the most collectable singles of the C86 indie era.

Paul Kelly is an English film director, musician, photographer and designer.

East Village

In late 1986 Episode Four crossed paths with Head Records boss and Creation Records PR man Jeff Barrett. Barrett wanted to sign the band to Head but suggested they came up with a new name first. The debut East Village single was recorded just as the Head label folded in 1987. Barrett then launched the new label imprint Sub Aqua and East Village released two EPs in 1987 and 1988. In 1989 the band began work on their debut album "Drop Out". Regarded by some as a lost classic, the album was released in 1993, two years after the band had split. Prices on original Episode Four and East Village records continue to rise and the band have achieved something of a cult status.

Creation Records record label

Creation Records Ltd. was a British independent record label founded in 1983 by Alan McGee, Dick Green, and Joe Foster. Its name came from the 1960s band The Creation, whom McGee greatly admired. The label ceased operations in 1999, although it was revived at one point in 2011 for the release of the compilation album Upside Down.

Formed in the mid-1980s by two brothers, Martin and Paul Kelly, East Village were an indie pop band from Princes Risborough, England. Their music drew heavily on the influence of 1960s guitar bands such as The Byrds, The Beatles, and Buffalo Springfield and like those groups East Village also featured three songwriters / lead vocalists. Though the bands output troubled only the lower reaches of the UK indie charts they have gone on to earn cult status since their break up in the early 90s.

Heavenly

During the later part of his time with East Village Kelly began working for Jeff Barrett at his independent press company Capersville, assisting with PR duties for a wide range of artists including the Happy Mondays, Primal Scream, New Order and My Bloody Valentine. During this time Barrett and Kelly became close friends and in 1990 Barrett hatched the idea for a new label Heavenly. [1] [2] Over the next 20 years Heavenly would launch the careers of Saint Etienne, Manic Street Preachers, Beth Orton, Ed Harcourt, Doves and The Magic Numbers. After a brief stint in 1992 when Kelly worked for Alan McGee at Creation Records, in 1993 Barrett asked him to become his partner at the label. At that time Kelly had begun managing one of the labels key acts, Saint Etienne, something he does to this day. In 1994 Kelly was involved in starting up The Heavenly Social club with Jeff Barrett, Robin Turner and Nick Dewey. The Social proved to be a pivotal moment in London club culture as it spawned a musical genre, big beat. Kelly is still a partner in The Social, a 7 days a week, nightclub and bar in central London. In 2009 Kelly switched his focus from recorded music to song publishing and set up Heavenly Songs Limited via Bucks Music in early 2010.

Saint Etienne (band) British band

Saint Etienne are an English band from London, formed in 1990. The band consists of Sarah Cracknell, Bob Stanley and Pete Wiggs. They became associated with the UK's indie dance scene in the 1990s, beginning with the release of their debut album Foxbase Alpha in 1991. Their work has been described as uniting 1990s club culture with 1960s pop and other disparate influences. The name of the band come from the French football club of AS Saint-Étienne.

Manic Street Preachers Welsh alternative rock band

Manic Street Preachers are a Welsh rock band formed in Blackwood in 1986. The band consists of cousins James Dean Bradfield, and Sean Moore, plus Nicky Wire. They are often colloquially known as "the Manics". Following the release of their debut single "Suicide Alley", the band was joined by Richey Edwards as co-lyricist and rhythm guitarist. The band's early albums were in a punk vein, eventually broadening to a greater alternative rock sound, whilst retaining a leftist political outlook. Their early combination of androgynous glam imagery and lyrics about "culture, alienation, boredom and despair" has gained them a loyal following and cult status.

Beth Orton British singer-songwriter

Elizabeth Caroline Orton is an English singer-songwriter, known for her 'folktronica' sound, which mixes elements of folk and electronica. She was initially recognised for her collaborations with William Orbit, Andrew Weatherall, Red Snapper and the Chemical Brothers in the mid-1990s. Her UK/US debut solo album, Trailer Park, garnered much critical acclaim in 1996. Orton developed a devoted audience with the release of the BRIT Award-winning album Central Reservation (1999) and the 2002 UK top 10 album, Daybreaker. Her 2006 album Comfort of Strangers was followed by a hiatus during which Orton gave birth to her daughter and collaborated with the British guitarist Bert Jansch. Orton returned with Sugaring Season in 2012, which moved towards a purer acoustic sound, followed by a return to electronic music with Kidsticks, released in 2016.

Author

June 2010 saw the publication of Kelly's first book Fender:The Golden Age 1946-1970. [3] Written by Kelly and designed and photographed by his brother Paul, with a foreword by Terry Foster the book is a detailed account of the early years of Fender musical instruments, when the company still had connections with its creator Leo Fender. It has been published in several languages around the world. Kelly is currently researching a new book on the subject of Vox guitars manufactured during the 1960s.

Leo Fender American inventor and founder of the Fender company

Clarence Leonidas "Leo" Fender was an American inventor who founded Fender Electric Instrument Manufacturing Company, or "Fender" for short. In January 1965, he sold the company to CBS and later founded two other musical instrument companies, Music Man and G&L Musical Instruments.

Heavenly Films

As manager of Saint Etienne, Kelly was involved in the production of three feature-length films made by the band and Paul Kelly between 2004-2008. The first Finisterre, a documentary about London (directed by Paul Kelly and Kieran Evans), was released to coincide with Saint Etienne's album of the same name and met with huge critical acclaim. What Have You Done Today, Mervyn Day? (2005) and This Is Tomorrow (2007) both directed by Paul Kelly further cemented the team's reputation for producing high quality documentaries. In autumn 2010 brothers Paul and Martin set up Heavenly Films Limited with Bob Stanley from Saint Etienne and Kieran Evans with the intention of producing a series of new documentary films.

Kieran John Evans is a Welsh film director and screenwriter whose work includes music videos, film and documentaries. His 2012 film Kelly + Victor, produced by Janine Marmot, saw Evans awarded the BAFTA Award for Outstanding Debut by a British Writer, Director or Producer at the 2014 BAFTAs.

Bob Stanley (musician) British musician

Bob Stanley is a British musician, journalist, author, and film producer. He is a member of the indie pop/dance group Saint Etienne and has had a parallel career as a music journalist, writing for NME, Melody Maker, Mojo, The Guardian and The Times, as well as writing two books on music and football. He also has a career as a DJ and as a producer of record labels, and has collaborated on a series of films about London. His second publication, Yeah! Yeah! Yeah!: The Story of Modern Pop, was published by Faber & Faber in 2013.

Personal life

Kelly married Sarah Cracknell of Saint Etienne in 2004.


Selected discography

Selected filmography

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References

  1. ↑ "HEAVENLY RECORDINGS est. 1990 | The Heavenly Jukebox". Heavenlyjukebox.wordpress.com. 2011-06-09. Retrieved 2014-08-14.
  2. ↑ "The Heavenly Jukebox | Rhythm And Blues – Beats – Underground – Country Pop". Heavenlyjukebox.wordpress.com. Retrieved 2014-08-14.
  3. ↑ "Login". timesonline.co.uk. Retrieved 16 February 2015.

https://www.pressreader.com/uk/the-observer/20190317/281689731140914

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