Pete Shelley
Birth name Peter Campbell McNeish
Born 17 April 1955
Origin Leigh, Lancashire, England
Genres
Punk rock pop punk new wave power pop
Occupation(s) Musician, singer, songwriter, guitarist
Instruments Vocals, guitar
Peter Campbell McNeish (born 17 April 1955 in Leigh, Lancashire), known professionally as Pete Shelley, is an English singer, songwriter and guitarist, best known as the leader of Buzzcocks.
Shelley was born to Margaret and John McNeish at 48 Milton Street, in Leigh. Margaret was an ex-mill worker in the town, while John was a fitter at the nearby Astley Green Colliery. He has a younger brother, Gary.
Shelley formed Buzzcocks with Howard Devoto after the two met at Bolton Institute of Technology (now the University of Bolton) in 1975 and subsequently travelled to London to see the Sex Pistols. Buzzcocks debuted in 1976 in Manchester, opening for the Sex Pistols.
In 1977, Buzzcocks released their first EP, Spiral Scratch, on their own independent label, New Hormones. When Devoto left the group shortly afterwards, Shelley took over as lead vocalist and chief songwriter. Working with producer Martin Rushent, the band went on to create such quintessential punk/new wave singles of the period as “Orgasm Addict”, “What Do I Get?”, and “Ever Fallen in Love (With Someone You Shouldn’t’ve)” along with three LPs: Another Music in a Different Kitchen (1978), Love Bites (1978), and A Different Kind of Tension (1979). Difficulties with their record company and a dispute with Virgin Publishing over the UK release of their greatest hits record, Singles Going Steady, brought the band to a halt in 1981.
Shelley’s debut album Sky Yen was recorded in 1974 but remained unheard until March 1980 when it was released on 12″ vinyl on Shelley’s own label, Groovy Records.
In 1989 Shelley recorded a new version of “Homosapien” entitled “Homosapien II”. The single featured four mixes of the new recording.
Shelley has also played with various other musicians during his career, including The Invisible Girls, who backed punk poet John Cooper Clarke. Shelley also formed bands called The Tiller Boys, and Zip. He briefly reunited with Howard Devoto to make the LP Buzzkunst, released in 2002.
He also appeared on the 2005 debut EP by the Los Angeles band The Adored (who toured extensively with Buzzcocks the following year.)
A substantially sped-up club remix of “Telephone Operator” is a standard offering on the Dance Dance Revolution arcade game. He produced a single by the band Redtrack.
In 1989, Buzzcocks reunited, and released a new full-length recording, Trade Test Transmissions, in 1993. They continue to tour and record, their most recent release being the CD The Way in 2014.
Discography
Albums
Sky Yen (1980) Groovy Records
Hangahar (1980) Groovy Records
Homosapien (1981) Genetic-Island/Arista
XL1 (1983) Island/Arista (UK #42)
Heaven and the Sea (1986) Mercury
Some Kind of Wonderful: Music from the Motion Picture Soundtrack (1987) MCA Records
Cinema Music and Wallpaper Sounds (2016) (Caroline True Records) – instrumental electronic music archived from 1976 recordings, presented as two extended tracks and issued on vinyl and CD
Singles
“Homosapien” (1981) Genetic-Island/Arista (AUS #4) (CAN #6) (US Dance #14)
“I Don’t Know What Love Is” (1981) Genetic-Island/Arista (US Dance #22)
“Witness the Change” (1981) (US Dance #63)
“Qu’est-Ce Que C’est Que Ça” (1982)
“Homosapien” (1982) Genetic-Island/Arista
“Telephone Operator” (1983) Island/Arista (US Dance #22) (UK #66)
“Millions Of People (No One Like You)” (1983) (UK #94)
“Never Again” (1984) Immaculate
“Waiting For Love” (1986) Mercury
“On Your Own” (1986) Mercury (US Dance #10)
“Blue Eyes” (1986) Mercury
“I Surrender” (1986) Mercury
“Your Love” (1988)
“Homosapien. Pete Shelley Vs. Power, Wonder and Love” (1989) Immaculate
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