Matthew Ashman
Matthew Ashman | |
---|---|
Birth name | Matthew James Ashman |
Also known as | "Maff" |
Born | 3 November 1960 |
Origin | Mill Hill, England |
Died | 21 November 1995 | (aged 35)
Genres | Punk rock, new wave |
Occupation(s) | Musician |
Instrument(s) | Guitar, keyboards |
Years active | 1970s–1995 |
Matthew James Ashman (3 November 1960 – 21 November 1995)[1] was an English guitarist with Adam and the Ants and Bow Wow Wow. He died in 1995 after lapsing into a coma due to diabetes, aged 35.[2]
Adam and the Ants
Raised in Mill Hill, Barnet, Ashman attended school alongside Boz Boorer. He was influenced by jazz while learning guitar,[3] and joined his first band, Staffix, after learning Deep Purple's "Smoke on the Water". Staffix opened Glastonbury 77 with a 2 hr set, their own PA and a borrowed generator.
He joined Adam and the Ants after leaving The Kameras in June 1978, playing guitar and singing backing vocals. He toured the UK twice and visited
Shortly afterwards, Adam Ant hired former Sex Pistols manager Malcolm McLaren, in the hope of gaining more widespread recognition. Instead, McLaren persuaded Ashman, drummer David Barbarossa and bassist Leigh Gorman to leave Adam behind, and form a new group under McLaren's management.[6] Thirteen year old Annabella Lwin joined the group as its vocalist, and the band became Bow Wow Wow.
Bow Wow Wow
Bow Wow Wow signed with
In November 1980, Bow Wow Wow released the cassette-only
After splitting with EMI, Bow Wow Wow signed with
In 1983, Bow Wow Wow released their second full-length album,
Chiefs of Relief
Bow Wow Wow was due to embark on a world tour in support of When the Going Gets Tough, the Tough Get Going, but tensions within the group were rising, as the members were suffering from illness and exhaustion after intense US touring.[17] After a brief hiatus, Ashman, Barbarossa and Gorman kicked Annabella Lwin out of the group, and formed Chiefs of Relief with Ashman as its lead singer.[18]
Ashman and Barbarossa co-wrote Chiefs of Relief's first single, "Holiday" b/w "I Don't Mind, She Don't Care",[19] released on MCA Records in 1984. Barbarossa's stay with Chiefs of Relief proved short lived, however, and he was soon replaced by former Sex Pistols drummer Paul Cook.[20] Gorman was also out of the group by the time they released their second single, "Freedom To Rock" b/w "Dream Baby", in late 1985 on WEA. They released their third single, "Weekend" b/w "Kiss Of Life", in 1987. Later in the year, they released a self titled album, which contained none of these tracks, on Sire Records before breaking up.[21]
Agent Provocateur
After the demise of Chiefs of Relief, Ashman spent several years away from the music industry. In 1992, he joined Kevin Mooney's Max, and appeared on the Red Dot Records release, Silence Running.[22] After which, he briefly joined Rams, and appeared on their 1993 debut release, Wrecked on Swiss record label, Sound Service.[23]
The next stop for Ashman was Agent Provocateur, and it was while a member of this band that he died due to complications arising from diabetes on 21 November 1995. They released the album Where the Wild Things Are posthumously in 1997, featuring Ashman on guitar, bass guitar and Vox organ.
Legacy
Ashman was known for his iconic Gretsch White Falcon guitar and applying a spaghetti western guitar twang to Bow Wow Wow's music over Barbarossa's
On the fifteenth anniversary of Ashman's death, Adam Ant topped the bill at a tribute concert for Ashman on 21 November 2010 at the Scala in London, in a show also featuring Bow Wow Wow, Chiefs of Relief and Agent Provocateur. Boorer provided guitar for Ant's set.[25]
References
- ^ Thedeadrockstarsclub.com – accessed June 2011
- ^ Perrone, Pierre (1 December 1995). "Obituary: Matthew Ashman". independent.co.uk. The Independent. Archived from the original on 12 May 2022.
- ISBN 978-1-55652-754-8
- ^ "Young Parisians". Adam-ant.net. 20 October 1978.
- ^ Katagiri, Charlie (29 September 2012). "Adam Ant". Encyclopedia.com.
- ^ Lyon, Joshua (6 September 2016). "Annabella Lwin & the History of Bow Wow Wow". V (American magazine).
- ^ "C·30 C·60 C·90 Go". Discogs.com.
- ^ Johnson, Bobbie (19 October 2006). "CDs, downloads ... and now band launches the memory-stick single". The Guardian. London.
- ^ Jones, Rob (15 April 2013). "Bow Wow Wow Play "C30 C60 C90 Go"". The Delete Bin.
- ^ "Bow Wow Wow – Your Cassette Pet". Discogs.
- ^ "Bow Wow Wow Official UK Singles Charts". The Official UK Charts Company.
- ^ "Bow Wow Wow - I Want Candy". Discogs.
- ^ Demalon, Tom. "I Want Candy Review". AllMusic.
- ^ "Netherlands Singles". dutchcharts.nl. Retrieved 19 June 2016.
- ^ "Bow Wow Wow – Do You Wanna Hold Me?". AllMusic.
- ^ "Netherlands Singles". dutchcharts.nl. Retrieved 16 July 2021.
- ^ Dahlin, Teddie. "Dave Barbarossa: The Sound of the Barbarossa Beat". Mudkiss.
- ^ McLean, Craig (19 April 2012). "Bow Wow Wow haven't lost their bite". The Guardian.
- ^ "Chiefs Of Relief – Holiday". Discogs. 1984.
- ^ "Interview: Dave Barbe". Ant Lib Online. 2004.
- ^ Mason, Stewart. "Chiefs of Relief". Allmusic.
- ^ Cabut, Richard (2004). "The World's Forgotten Boy". 3:AM Magazine.
- ^ "Rams – Wrecked". Discogs.
- ^ "John Frusciante: War and Peace". Premierguitar.com. Retrieved 9 May 2020.
- ^ "Matthew Ashman tribute show". Adam-ant.net. Retrieved 9 May 2020.