Steve Hillage
Encyclopedia
Steve Hillage is an English
musician
, best known as a guitarist
. He is associated with the Canterbury scene
and has worked in experimental domains since the late 1960s. Besides his solo
recordings
he has been a member of Gong
, Khan
and System 7
.
, with Dave Stewart (the keyboardist), Mont Campbell
and Clive Brooks
. The band split up in 1968 with the other members going on to form Egg
, but they briefly re-united under assumed names to record the album Arzachel in 1969. Hillage also guested on Egg
's 1974 album The Civil Surface
.
In 1969, Hillage began studies at the University of Kent
in Canterbury
, befriending local bands Caravan
and Spirogyra
and occasionally jamming with them. Meanwhile he wrote songs and, by late 1970, had accumulated enough material for an album. Caravan put him in touch with their manager Terry King, who got Hillage signed with Deram
on the basis of a demo
of his material recorded with the help of Dave Stewart of Egg. In early 1971, Hillage formed Khan
with bassist/vocalist Nick Greenwood, formerly of Crazy World Of Arthur Brown
. Although future Gong
and Hatfield and the North
drummer Pip Pyle
was involved in the early stages, the line-up finally settled with the inclusion of organist Dick Heninghem and drummer Eric Peachey, both of whom had recently collaborated on Greenwood's solo project Cold Cuts
, recorded in California in 1970 but belatedly released in 1972.
Following a series of concerts throughout 1971, several of them supporting labelmates Caravan, Khan began recording their debut album in November, by which time Heninghem had left, forcing Hillage to bring in his former bandmate Dave Stewart to play the keyboard parts. By the time Space Shanty
came out in May 1972, Canadian Val Stevens (formerly of Toronto's popular soul-rock band Grant Smith & The Power
) had filled the vacancy, making his debut on a short European tour (including a televised appearance at the Montreux Festival) and continuing with a UK tour supporting Caravan in June.
By then, musical disagreements between Hillage and Greenwood culminated with the latter's departure. Hillage decided to form a new line-up with a slightly different direction, retaining the services of Peachey and asking Stewart back, and adding Nigel Griggs
(later of Split Enz
) on bass. New compositions by Hillage and Stewart were added to the repertoire, including "I Love Its Holy Mystery", which would form the basis of Hillage's later Solar Musick Suite. Hillage broke up the band in October 1972.
Hillage promptly joined Kevin Ayers
' new live band Decadence, participating in Ayers' 1973 album Bananamour
(Harvest, May 1973) and touring the UK and France for two months. Having in the meantime become a fan of Gong, Hillage stayed in France after the tour to join the band. In January 1973 he took part in the sessions for Flying Teapot
, the first instalment of the "Radio Gnome" trilogy, and soon after graduated to full-time membership. The 'classic' line-up of Gong was now in place, with Daevid Allen
, Gilli Smyth
, Didier Malherbe
, Tim Blake
, Mike Howlett
and Pierre Moerlen
, and recorded two further albums, Angels Egg
and You
, before disintegrating in 1975.
In November 1973, Hillage participated in a live-in-the-studio performance of Mike Oldfield
's Tubular Bells
for the BBC
. It is available on Oldfield's Elements
DVD
.
When Allen, Gong's founder and mastermind, left in April 1975, Hillage took over leadership but found this position increasingly uncomfortable, and by the year's end had jumped ship to launch his solo career, his motivation to do so fuelled by the success of his solo album Fish Rising
, recorded while still in Gong and featuring most of his bandmates. His next effort L
album was recorded in the United States
using musicians from Todd Rundgren
's Utopia, and on its release Hillage formed a touring band which toured in late 1976. During the latter half of the 1970s, Hillage made a name for himself as a guitar
ist and prog-rock/fusion composer and performer. 1977's Motivation Radio
, with its shorter tracks, marked a departure from the long instrumental
workouts of previous efforts, but 1978's Green
, co-produced by Pink Floyd
's Nick Mason
, was a return to his earlier work.
These 1970s works (tacitly in collaboration with his longtime girlfriend Miquette Giraudy
) blended complex studio production techniques with dreamscape anthems. Hillage spent time in the Ladbroke Grove
area of London
, home of the UK Underground and worked with Nik Turner
founder member of Hawkwind
.
band Sham 69
during their performance at the Reading Festival, and in 1979, he played guitar on "Nuclear Waste" by The Radio Actors with lead vocals by Sting.
During the 1980s, Hillage worked as a record producer
, working for artists such as It Bites
, Simple Minds
, Murray Head
, Nash The Slash
, Real Life
, Cock Robin
and Robyn Hitchcock
. He returned to producing in the 1990s, working on The Charlatans
1994 album, Up to Our Hips
.
After hearing the likes of The Orb
playing his 1979 ambient record Rainbow Dome Musick
, Hillage teamed up with Giraudy again in the early 1990s to form their own ambient dance act: System 7
. They soon became part of the underground dance scene in London and Hillage was also a key figure in getting the Glastonbury Festival to recognise the dance scene and set up the Dance Tent, which he programmed in its first year. Hillage also produced in the 1990s a raï
musical show called '1, 2, 3 Soleils', featuring Algeria
n singers Faudel
, Rachid Taha
and Khaled
. He also arranged many songs of Latifa
.
In November 2006, he made a surprise return to the Gong fold when he and Giraudy performed at the Gong Unconvention in Amsterdam, as the "Steve Hillage Band" (playing material from the 1970s albums - mainly from Fish Rising) as System 7, Hillage and Giraudy's current set up, and also as members of Gong. At the Unconvention, Hillage also contributed to the "Glissando Orchestra", a one hour plus performance where a number of guitarists (ten or more at some stages, including Hillage and Daevid Allen) all played mostly continuous drone notes with some gentle melodic lines overlaid. This participation was reprised in a small number of concerts held by Gong in London in June 2008, where Hillage and Giraudy were among the line up which also included Daevid Allen, Gilli Smyth, and Mike Howlett. At those concerts, Hillage also played one track from his own solo repertoire: "Light in the Sky" from Motivation Radio.
In January 2007, four of his albums - Fish Rising, L, Motivation Radio and Rainbow Dome Musick - were released in the UK remastered on CD, each, except the latter, with previously unreleased bonus tracks. In February 2007, Green, Live Herald, Open and For To Next/And Not Or followed, similarly remastered with bonus content.
Hillage also collaborated with Ozric Tentacles
on the 2004 album Spirals in Hyperspace
.
"Light in the Sky", from his 1977 album Motivation Radio, is used as the theme for The Sunday Night Project
on Channel 4
.
The Gong album, 2032, released on 21 September 2009, featured both Hillage and Giraudy.
English people
The English are a nation and ethnic group native to England, who speak English. The English identity is of early mediaeval origin, when they were known in Old English as the Anglecynn. England is now a country of the United Kingdom, and the majority of English people in England are British Citizens...
musician
Musician
A musician is an artist who plays a musical instrument. It may or may not be the person's profession. Musicians can be classified by their roles in performing music and writing music.Also....* A person who makes music a profession....
, best known as a guitarist
Guitarist
A guitarist is a musician who plays the guitar. Guitarists may play a variety of instruments such as classical guitars, acoustic guitars, electric guitars, and bass guitars. Some guitarists accompany themselves on the guitar while singing.- Versatility :The guitarist controls an extremely...
. He is associated with the Canterbury scene
Canterbury Scene
The Canterbury scene is a term used to loosely describe the group of progressive rock, avant-garde and jazz musicians, many of whom were based around the city of Canterbury, Kent, England during the late 1960s and early 1970s...
and has worked in experimental domains since the late 1960s. Besides his solo
Solo (music)
In music, a solo is a piece or a section of a piece played or sung by a single performer...
recordings
Sound recording and reproduction
Sound recording and reproduction is an electrical or mechanical inscription and re-creation of sound waves, such as spoken voice, singing, instrumental music, or sound effects. The two main classes of sound recording technology are analog recording and digital recording...
he has been a member of Gong
Gong (band)
Gong is a Franco-British progressive/psychedelic rock band formed by Australian musician Daevid Allen. Their music has also been described as space rock. Other notable band members include Allan Holdsworth, Tim Blake, Didier Malherbe, Pip Pyle, Gilli Smyth, Steve Hillage, Francis Moze, Mike Howlett...
, Khan
Khan (band)
Khan were an English progressive rock band of the Canterbury Scene during 1971-1972.Formed by Steve Hillage from Uriel, the initial line-up was Steve Hillage , Nick Greenwood , Dick Heninghem and Pip Pyle...
and System 7
System 7 (band)
System 7 are a British ambient dance band. Due to the existence of another band called System Seven, they were initially marketed as 777 in North America...
.
Early career
Whilst still at school, he joined his first band, a blues rock band called UrielUriel (band)
Uriel were an English psychedelic/blues band formed in 1968, consisting of Steve Hillage , Dave Stewart , Clive Brooks and Mont Campbell...
, with Dave Stewart (the keyboardist), Mont Campbell
Mont Campbell
Hugo Martin Montgomery Campbell , formerly known as Mont Campbell, now Dirk Campbell is a British progressive rock musician, best known as a member of progressive rock band Egg.-Biography:...
and Clive Brooks
Clive Brooks
Clive Colin Brooks is a drummer, best known for his work in the English progressive rock band Egg.-Uriel/Egg:...
. The band split up in 1968 with the other members going on to form Egg
Egg (band)
Egg were an English progressive rock band formed in January 1969.-Career:The founding members of the group were Dave Stewart who played organ , Mont Campbell on bass and vocals and drummer Clive Brooks...
, but they briefly re-united under assumed names to record the album Arzachel in 1969. Hillage also guested on Egg
Egg (band)
Egg were an English progressive rock band formed in January 1969.-Career:The founding members of the group were Dave Stewart who played organ , Mont Campbell on bass and vocals and drummer Clive Brooks...
's 1974 album The Civil Surface
The Civil Surface
The Civil Surface is Egg’s third and final album. It was released in 1974. The band had broken up in 1972, not before performing some new material during their last concerts. The new songs were very well received by the audience, so the trio decided to re-unite to record these songs...
.
In 1969, Hillage began studies at the University of Kent
University of Kent
The University of Kent, previously the University of Kent at Canterbury, is a public research university based in Kent, United Kingdom...
in Canterbury
Canterbury
Canterbury is a historic English cathedral city, which lies at the heart of the City of Canterbury, a district of Kent in South East England. It lies on the River Stour....
, befriending local bands Caravan
Caravan (band)
Caravan are an English band from the Canterbury area, founded by former Wilde Flowers members David Sinclair, Richard Sinclair, Pye Hastings and Richard Coughlan. Caravan rose to success over a period of several years from 1968 onwards into the 1970s as part of the Canterbury scene, blending...
and Spirogyra
Spirogyra (band)
This article refers to the British folk band. For the American jazz fusion band, see Spyro Gyra.Spirogyra are a British folk/prog band that recorded three albums between 1971 and 1973, with further original albums in 2009 and 2011.-History:...
and occasionally jamming with them. Meanwhile he wrote songs and, by late 1970, had accumulated enough material for an album. Caravan put him in touch with their manager Terry King, who got Hillage signed with Deram
Deram Records
Deram Records was a subsidiary record label established in 1966 by Decca Records in the United Kingdom. At this time U.K. Decca was a completely different company than the Decca label in the United States, which was then owned by MCA Inc. Deram recordings were also distributed in the U.S. through...
on the basis of a demo
Demo (music)
A demo version or demo of a song is one recorded for reference rather than for release. A demo is a way for a musician to approximate their ideas on tape or disc, and provide an example of those ideas to record labels, producers or other artists...
of his material recorded with the help of Dave Stewart of Egg. In early 1971, Hillage formed Khan
Khan (band)
Khan were an English progressive rock band of the Canterbury Scene during 1971-1972.Formed by Steve Hillage from Uriel, the initial line-up was Steve Hillage , Nick Greenwood , Dick Heninghem and Pip Pyle...
with bassist/vocalist Nick Greenwood, formerly of Crazy World Of Arthur Brown
Crazy World of Arthur Brown (band)
The Crazy World of Arthur Brown were an English psychedelic rock band formed by singer Arthur Brown in 1967.-History:Their song "Fire" was one of the one-hit wonders in the United Kingdom and United States in the 1960s. "Fire" sold over one million copies, and was awarded a gold disc.The line-up...
. Although future Gong
Gong (band)
Gong is a Franco-British progressive/psychedelic rock band formed by Australian musician Daevid Allen. Their music has also been described as space rock. Other notable band members include Allan Holdsworth, Tim Blake, Didier Malherbe, Pip Pyle, Gilli Smyth, Steve Hillage, Francis Moze, Mike Howlett...
and Hatfield and the North
Hatfield and the North
Hatfield and the North were an experimental Canterbury scene rock band that lasted from October 1972 to June 1975, with some reunions thereafter.-Career:...
drummer Pip Pyle
Pip Pyle
Phillip "Pip" Pyle was an English-born drummer from Sawbridgeworth, Hertfordshire, who later resided in France...
was involved in the early stages, the line-up finally settled with the inclusion of organist Dick Heninghem and drummer Eric Peachey, both of whom had recently collaborated on Greenwood's solo project Cold Cuts
Cold Cuts (Nicholas Greenwood album)
Cold Cuts is a studio album released in 1972 by Nicholas Greenwood, but in fact recorded in California in 1970, before he, along with two other musicians featured on the album, drummer Eric Peachey and organist Dick Heninghem, joined Steve Hillage in the English progressive rock band Khan of the...
, recorded in California in 1970 but belatedly released in 1972.
Following a series of concerts throughout 1971, several of them supporting labelmates Caravan, Khan began recording their debut album in November, by which time Heninghem had left, forcing Hillage to bring in his former bandmate Dave Stewart to play the keyboard parts. By the time Space Shanty
Space Shanty
Space Shanty is the debut and only album by the short-lived Canterbury scene band Khan. Steve Hillage's first solo album, Fish Rising, included material originally intended for the second album by Khan, but the band split up before that was a possibility.-Track listing:All tracks are credited to...
came out in May 1972, Canadian Val Stevens (formerly of Toronto's popular soul-rock band Grant Smith & The Power
Grant Smith & The Power
Grant Smith & The Power were a popular Canadian rock-soul outfit from the 1960s that had a hit with a cover of Jackie Edwards' "Keep On Running" and was also a training ground for musicians who went on to the likes of McKenna Mendelson Mainline, Motherlode, Crowbar and Leigh Ashford.- Group...
) had filled the vacancy, making his debut on a short European tour (including a televised appearance at the Montreux Festival) and continuing with a UK tour supporting Caravan in June.
By then, musical disagreements between Hillage and Greenwood culminated with the latter's departure. Hillage decided to form a new line-up with a slightly different direction, retaining the services of Peachey and asking Stewart back, and adding Nigel Griggs
Nigel Griggs
Nigel Griggs is a musician who played bass guitar in Split Enz. He is the brother of Paul Griggs from the 1970s vocal group Guys 'n' Dolls...
(later of Split Enz
Split Enz
Split Enz were a New Zealand band of the 1970s and early 1980s featuring Phil Judd and brothers Tim Finn and Neil Finn. They achieved chart success in New Zealand, Australia, and Canada during the early 1980s ‒ most notably with the single "I Got You", and built a cult following elsewhere...
) on bass. New compositions by Hillage and Stewart were added to the repertoire, including "I Love Its Holy Mystery", which would form the basis of Hillage's later Solar Musick Suite. Hillage broke up the band in October 1972.
Kevin Ayers
Kevin Ayers is an English singer-songwriter and was a major influential force in the English psychedelic movement...
' new live band Decadence, participating in Ayers' 1973 album Bananamour
Bananamour
Bananamour is the fourth studio album by Kevin Ayers and it featured some of his most accessible recordings, including "Shouting in a Bucket Blues" and his whimsical tribute to Syd Barrett, "Oh! Wot A Dream". After Whatevershebringswesing, Ayers assembled a new band anchored by drummer Eddie...
(Harvest, May 1973) and touring the UK and France for two months. Having in the meantime become a fan of Gong, Hillage stayed in France after the tour to join the band. In January 1973 he took part in the sessions for Flying Teapot
Flying Teapot (album)
Flying Teapot is an album by Gong, originally released by Virgin in 1973. A later edition was issued by BYG in France and Japan in 1976. Co-titled "Radio Gnome Invisible Part 1", it is the first of the Radio Gnome Trilogy of albums, and was followed by Angel's Egg and You...
, the first instalment of the "Radio Gnome" trilogy, and soon after graduated to full-time membership. The 'classic' line-up of Gong was now in place, with Daevid Allen
Daevid Allen
Daevid Allen , sometimes credited as Divided Alien, an Australian poet, guitarist, singer, composer and performance artist is co-founder of psychedelic rock groups Soft Machine and Gong .-Biography:In 1960, inspired by the Beat Generation writers he had discovered...
, Gilli Smyth
Gilli Smyth
Gilli Smyth is a musician who performed with the bands Gong, Mother Gong and Planet Gong as well as several solo albums and albums in collaborations other members of Gong...
, Didier Malherbe
Didier Malherbe
Didier Antonin Malherbe is a saxophonist and flautist. He was one of the founders of the Canterbury sound band Gong....
, Tim Blake
Tim Blake
Timothy 'Tim' Blake , keyboards, vocalist instrumentalist and composer with both Gong, and Hawkwind. Blake is best known for his Synthesizer and Light performances as Crystal Machine, with the French Light Artist Patrice Warrener...
, Mike Howlett
Mike Howlett
Mike Howlett is a Fijian-born musician, Grammy Award winning producer and teacher based in the United Kingdom and Australia....
and Pierre Moerlen
Pierre Moerlen
Pierre Moerlen was a French drummer and percussionist, best known for his work with Gong and Mike Oldfield.-Biography:...
, and recorded two further albums, Angels Egg
Angel's Egg (album)
Angel's Egg is an album by Gong, recorded and originally released on Virgin Records in 1973.It was recorded using the Manor Mobile at Pavillon du Hay, France, and mixed at The Manor, Oxfordshire, England...
and You
You
You is the second-personpersonal pronoun, both singular and plural, and both nominative and objective case, in Modern English. The oblique/objective form you functioned originally as both accusative and dative)...
, before disintegrating in 1975.
In November 1973, Hillage participated in a live-in-the-studio performance of Mike Oldfield
Mike Oldfield
Michael Gordon Oldfield is an English multi-instrumentalist musician and composer, working a style that blends progressive rock, folk, ethnic or world music, classical music, electronic music, New Age, and more recently, dance. His music is often elaborate and complex in nature...
's Tubular Bells
Tubular Bells
Tubular Bells is the debut record album of English musician Mike Oldfield, released in 1973. It was the first album released by Virgin Records and an early cornerstone of the company's success...
for the BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
. It is available on Oldfield's Elements
Elements - The Best of Mike Oldfield (video)
Elements - The Best of Mike Oldfield is a video collection by Mike Oldfield released in October 1993. It was released by Virgin Records on VHS and Laser disc...
DVD
DVD
A DVD is an optical disc storage media format, invented and developed by Philips, Sony, Toshiba, and Panasonic in 1995. DVDs offer higher storage capacity than Compact Discs while having the same dimensions....
.
When Allen, Gong's founder and mastermind, left in April 1975, Hillage took over leadership but found this position increasingly uncomfortable, and by the year's end had jumped ship to launch his solo career, his motivation to do so fuelled by the success of his solo album Fish Rising
Fish Rising
Fish Rising is the debut solo album by English guitarist Steve Hillage, recorded and released in 1975 .The album was recorded just prior to Hillage's departure from the band Gong, and many of the players on this album are from that band: Bassist Mike Howlett, drummer Pierre Moerlen, keyboardist Tim...
, recorded while still in Gong and featuring most of his bandmates. His next effort L
L (Steve Hillage album)
L is the second studio album by British progressive rock musician Steve Hillage.It was recorded primarily in New York, at the Secret Sound, Woodstock, N.Y., and was produced and engineered by Todd Rundgren, using musicians from Todd Rundgren's band Utopia and others.According to liner notes...
album was recorded in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
using musicians from Todd Rundgren
Todd Rundgren
Todd Harry Rundgren is an American multi-instrumentalist, songwriter and record producer. Hailed in the early stage of his career as a new pop-wunderkind, supported by the certified gold solo double LP Something/Anything? in 1972, Todd Rundgren's career has produced a diverse range of recordings...
's Utopia, and on its release Hillage formed a touring band which toured in late 1976. During the latter half of the 1970s, Hillage made a name for himself as a guitar
Guitar
The guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...
ist and prog-rock/fusion composer and performer. 1977's Motivation Radio
Motivation Radio
Motivation Radio is the third studio album by British progressive rock musician Steve Hillage. It was recorded primarily in California, and was produced and engineered by Malcolm Cecil, of TONTO's Expanding Headband...
, with its shorter tracks, marked a departure from the long instrumental
Instrumental
An instrumental is a musical composition or recording without lyrics or singing, although it might include some non-articulate vocal input; the music is primarily or exclusively produced by musical instruments....
workouts of previous efforts, but 1978's Green
Green (Steve Hillage album)
Green is the fourth studio album by British progressive rock musician Steve Hillage. It was recorded primarily in Dorking, Surrey, and in London, and was produced and engineered by Nick Mason, of Pink Floyd fame....
, co-produced by Pink Floyd
Pink Floyd
Pink Floyd were an English rock band that achieved worldwide success with their progressive and psychedelic rock music. Their work is marked by the use of philosophical lyrics, sonic experimentation, innovative album art, and elaborate live shows. Pink Floyd are one of the most commercially...
's Nick Mason
Nick Mason
Nicholas Berkeley "Nick" Mason is an English drummer and songwriter, best known for his work with Pink Floyd. He was the only constant member of the band since its formation in 1965...
, was a return to his earlier work.
These 1970s works (tacitly in collaboration with his longtime girlfriend Miquette Giraudy
Miquette Giraudy
Miquette Giraudy is a keyboard player and vocalist, best known for her work in Gong and with her partner Steve Hillage. She and Hillage currently form the core of the ambient band System 7.-Film:...
) blended complex studio production techniques with dreamscape anthems. Hillage spent time in the Ladbroke Grove
Ladbroke Grove
Ladbroke Grove is a road in west London, in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea. It is also sometimes the name given informally to the immediate area surrounding the road. Running from Notting Hill in the south to Kensal Green in the north, it is located in North Kensington and straddles...
area of London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, home of the UK Underground and worked with Nik Turner
Nik Turner
Nik Turner is a British musician, best known as a founding member of space rock pioneers Hawkwind. Turner plays saxophones, flute, sings and is a composer...
founder member of Hawkwind
Hawkwind
Hawkwind are an English rock band, one of the earliest space rock groups. Their lyrics favour urban and science fiction themes. They are also a noted precursor to punk rock and now are considered a link between the hippie and punk cultures....
.
Later career
In 1977 Hillage played onstage with punkPunk rock
Punk rock is a rock music genre that developed between 1974 and 1976 in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia. Rooted in garage rock and other forms of what is now known as protopunk music, punk rock bands eschewed perceived excesses of mainstream 1970s rock...
band Sham 69
Sham 69
Sham 69 is an English punk band that formed in Hersham in 1976.Although not as commercially successful as many of their contemporaries, albeit with a greater number of chart entries, Sham 69 has been a huge musical and lyrical influence on the Oi! and streetpunk genres. The band allegedly derived...
during their performance at the Reading Festival, and in 1979, he played guitar on "Nuclear Waste" by The Radio Actors with lead vocals by Sting.
During the 1980s, Hillage worked as a record producer
Record producer
A record producer is an individual working within the music industry, whose job is to oversee and manage the recording of an artist's music...
, working for artists such as It Bites
It Bites
It Bites are an English progressive rock and pop fusion band, formed in Egremont, Cumbria, England in 1982 and best known for their 1986 single "Calling All The Heroes", which gained them a Top 10 UK Singles Chart hit...
, Simple Minds
Simple Minds
Simple Minds are a Scottish rock band who achieved worldwide popularity from the mid-1980s to the early 1990s. The band produced a handful of critically acclaimed albums in the early 1980s and best known for their #1 US, Canada and Netherlands hit single "Don't You ", from the soundtrack of the...
, Murray Head
Murray Head
Murray Seafield Saint-George Head is a British actor and singer, most recognised for his international hit songs "Superstar" and "One Night in Bangkok" and his album Say It Ain't So...
, Nash The Slash
Nash the Slash
Nash the Slash is a Canadian musician. Though a multi-instrumentalist, he is known primarily for playing electric violin and mandolin, as well as harmonica, keyboards, glockenspiel, and other instruments .Nash worked as a solo artist beginning in 1975, then founded the progressive rock band FM in...
, Real Life
Real Life (band)
Real Life are a Melbourne-based Australian New Wave/Synthpop band that had hits with their debut single, "Send Me an Angel" and with "Catch Me I'm Falling" , both of which were featured on the band's debut album Heartland .-Biography:...
, Cock Robin
Cock Robin (band)
Cock Robin is an American pop rock band, mostly popular in the 1980s, particularly in continental Europe where they became famous. The band was founded by singer-songwriter Peter Kingsbery in 1982, disbanded in 1990, and reformed in 2006.-History:...
and Robyn Hitchcock
Robyn Hitchcock
Robyn Rowan Hitchcock is an English singer-songwriter and guitarist. While primarily a vocalist and guitarist, he also plays harmonica, piano and bass guitar....
. He returned to producing in the 1990s, working on The Charlatans
The Charlatans (British band)
The Charlatans are an English alternative rock band. The band's line-up currently comprises Tim Burgess , Mark Collins , Martin Blunt , Tony Rogers and Jon Brookes .Former members of the band include guitarist Jon Day , vocalist Baz Ketley...
1994 album, Up to Our Hips
Up to Our Hips
Up to Our Hips is the third album by the British band The Charlatans , released on March 21, 1994. "Can't Get Out of Bed" was used as the soundbed of Benylin's 2009 television commercial campaign....
.
After hearing the likes of The Orb
The Orb
Throughout 1989, the Orb, along with Martin Glover, developed the musical genre of ambient house through the use of a diverse array of samples and recordings. The culmination of its musical work came toward the end of the year when the group recorded a session for John Peel on BBC Radio 1...
playing his 1979 ambient record Rainbow Dome Musick
Rainbow Dome Musick
-Recording details:* Recorded at Om, January 1979, for the Rainbow Dome at the Festival for Mind-Body-Spirit, Olympia London, April 21-29, 1979.* Equipment engineer: John Newsham.* Rainbow Dome concept by Rupert Atwill.* Sleeve design: Rupert Atwill/Laserphaze....
, Hillage teamed up with Giraudy again in the early 1990s to form their own ambient dance act: System 7
System 7 (band)
System 7 are a British ambient dance band. Due to the existence of another band called System Seven, they were initially marketed as 777 in North America...
. They soon became part of the underground dance scene in London and Hillage was also a key figure in getting the Glastonbury Festival to recognise the dance scene and set up the Dance Tent, which he programmed in its first year. Hillage also produced in the 1990s a raï
Raï
Raï is a form of folk music that originated in Oran, Algeria from Bedouin shepherds, mixed with Spanish, French, African and Arabic musical forms, which dates back to the 1930s....
musical show called '1, 2, 3 Soleils', featuring Algeria
Algeria
Algeria , officially the People's Democratic Republic of Algeria , also formally referred to as the Democratic and Popular Republic of Algeria, is a country in the Maghreb region of Northwest Africa with Algiers as its capital.In terms of land area, it is the largest country in Africa and the Arab...
n singers Faudel
Faudel
Faudel , born Faudel Belloua on June 6, 1978 in Mantes-la-Jolie, is a French singer of Algerian descent.-Early years:...
, Rachid Taha
Rachid Taha
Rachid Taha is an Algerian singer and activist based in France who has been described as "sonically adventurous." His music is influenced by many different styles such as rock, electronic, punk and raï.-Early life:Taha was born in 1958 in Sig , Algeria, although a second source suggests he was...
and Khaled
Khaled (musician)
Khaled Hadj Ibrahim , better known as Khaled, is a raï singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist born in Sidi El Houari in Oran Province of Algeria...
. He also arranged many songs of Latifa
Latifa
Latifa Bint Alayah Al Arfaoui , better known as Latifa , is an Arab pop music singer, Latifa standing for gentle in Arabic.-Early life:...
.
In November 2006, he made a surprise return to the Gong fold when he and Giraudy performed at the Gong Unconvention in Amsterdam, as the "Steve Hillage Band" (playing material from the 1970s albums - mainly from Fish Rising) as System 7, Hillage and Giraudy's current set up, and also as members of Gong. At the Unconvention, Hillage also contributed to the "Glissando Orchestra", a one hour plus performance where a number of guitarists (ten or more at some stages, including Hillage and Daevid Allen) all played mostly continuous drone notes with some gentle melodic lines overlaid. This participation was reprised in a small number of concerts held by Gong in London in June 2008, where Hillage and Giraudy were among the line up which also included Daevid Allen, Gilli Smyth, and Mike Howlett. At those concerts, Hillage also played one track from his own solo repertoire: "Light in the Sky" from Motivation Radio.
In January 2007, four of his albums - Fish Rising, L, Motivation Radio and Rainbow Dome Musick - were released in the UK remastered on CD, each, except the latter, with previously unreleased bonus tracks. In February 2007, Green, Live Herald, Open and For To Next/And Not Or followed, similarly remastered with bonus content.
Hillage also collaborated with Ozric Tentacles
Ozric Tentacles
Ozric Tentacles are an instrumental rock band from Somerset, England, whose music can loosely be described as psychedelic or space rock. Formed in 1983, the band has released 28 albums as of 2011, and become a cottage industry selling over a million albums worldwide despite never having major...
on the 2004 album Spirals in Hyperspace
Spirals in Hyperspace
Spirals in Hyperspace is an album by British band Ozric Tentacles. It was released in 2004 on Magna Carta Records.-Track listing:# "Chewier" – 5:26# "Spirals in Hyperspace" – 9:51# "Slinky" – 8:39# "Toka Tola" – 7:46# "Plasmoid" – 5:17...
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"Light in the Sky", from his 1977 album Motivation Radio, is used as the theme for The Sunday Night Project
The Sunday Night Project
The Sunday Night Project was a British comedy-variety show by Princess Productions that first aired on Channel 4 in February 2005 under the title The Friday Night Project...
on Channel 4
Channel 4
Channel 4 is a British public-service television broadcaster which began working on 2 November 1982. Although largely commercially self-funded, it is ultimately publicly owned; originally a subsidiary of the Independent Broadcasting Authority , the station is now owned and operated by the Channel...
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The Gong album, 2032, released on 21 September 2009, featured both Hillage and Giraudy.
Discography
- (1975) Fish RisingFish RisingFish Rising is the debut solo album by English guitarist Steve Hillage, recorded and released in 1975 .The album was recorded just prior to Hillage's departure from the band Gong, and many of the players on this album are from that band: Bassist Mike Howlett, drummer Pierre Moerlen, keyboardist Tim...
– UKUK Albums ChartThe UK Albums Chart is a list of albums ranked by physical and digital sales in the United Kingdom. It is compiled every week by The Official Charts Company and broadcast on a Sunday on BBC Radio 1 , and published in Music Week magazine and on the OCC website .To qualify for the UK albums chart...
#33 - (1976) LL (Steve Hillage album)L is the second studio album by British progressive rock musician Steve Hillage.It was recorded primarily in New York, at the Secret Sound, Woodstock, N.Y., and was produced and engineered by Todd Rundgren, using musicians from Todd Rundgren's band Utopia and others.According to liner notes...
– UK #10 - (1977) Motivation RadioMotivation RadioMotivation Radio is the third studio album by British progressive rock musician Steve Hillage. It was recorded primarily in California, and was produced and engineered by Malcolm Cecil, of TONTO's Expanding Headband...
– UK #28 - (1978) GreenGreen (Steve Hillage album)Green is the fourth studio album by British progressive rock musician Steve Hillage. It was recorded primarily in Dorking, Surrey, and in London, and was produced and engineered by Nick Mason, of Pink Floyd fame....
– UK #30 - (1979) Live Herald – UK #54
- (1979) Rainbow Dome MusickRainbow Dome Musick-Recording details:* Recorded at Om, January 1979, for the Rainbow Dome at the Festival for Mind-Body-Spirit, Olympia London, April 21-29, 1979.* Equipment engineer: John Newsham.* Rainbow Dome concept by Rupert Atwill.* Sleeve design: Rupert Atwill/Laserphaze....
– UK #48 - (1979) Open – UK #71
- (1980) Aura
- (1983) For To Next – UK #48
- (1983) And Not Or
- (1994) BBC Radio 1 Live
- (2003) Light in the Sky
- (2004) Live at Deeply Vale Festival 1978
- (2008) Evan Marc & Steve Hillage - Dreamtime Submersible (Somnia Records)