Starbound on a Silver Machine

Starbound on a Silver Machine

This magazine article is from an unknown publication but dates from 1996 - unlike the photo below, which is from the 1979 tour and features (L-R) Huw Lloyd Langton, Harvey Bainbridge and Dave Brock

During the early Seventies, while the spirit of optimism and hippie idealism -so much a part of late-Sixties rock- began to evaporate, Hawkwind kept the 'freak flag' flying. The group played whenever and wherever they could, especially at free gigs and community benefits, and rapidly established a reputation as the last of the "underground" bands. Initially, Hawkwind's music and presentation was based heavily on the early 'space-rock' of Pink Floyd: audiences were drawn by the group's experiments with lighting and other effects, their long, loud and dense improvisations around basic riffs and their interest in fantasy, science fiction and other 'alternative' forms of culture. Their reputation was fanned by the attentions of the gutter press - and the band did little to try and shake off the dope-crazed, spaced-out image.

Space freaks
Hawkwind were formed, as Group X, in 1969 by Dave Brock (guitar, vocals), Nik Turner (sax, vocals) and Mick Slattery (guitar), who were all ex-members of various obscure London underground outfits. With bassist John Harrison, drummer Terry Ollis and Dik Mik, who provided fairly rudimentary electronics, they played their first gig (a 10-minute jam) at All Saints Hall, Notting Hill, in the autumn. On the strength of this and a demo tape, they signed to Clearwater Productions; their new management negotiated a recording deal with United Artists in November, by which time the band had become Hawkwind.

The group's first album, Hawkwind, appeared in the following summer, but it was at the Isle of Wight Festival in August that the group first came to public attention. As a protest against the Festival's high admission charges, the band staged a free gig outside the fences and Nik Turner attracted media attention by painting his face silver.

By 1971, Hawkwind had built up a large live following; their second album, In Search Of Space, made a minor showing in the UK LP charts while their status as leaders of the dwindling hippie movement was further enhanced by their appearance at the Glastonbury Fayre in June. Dave Brock was ill and thus unable to play at Glastonbury - his place was taken by Bob Calvert, self-styled 'space-age oral poet' (who was to become a full-time band member the following year) and Hawkwind were joined on stage by voluptuous dancer Stacia.

Later in the year, Ian 'Lemmy' Kilminster (ex-Rocking Vicars, Sam Gopal and Opal Butterfly) joined the band on bass and vocals, adding enormously to Hawkwind's drive, energy and image. Then, on 13 February 1972, Hawkwind appeared at what was to be, for them, a significant benefit gig at the Roundhouse in aid of alternative music organization Greasy Truckers. A live album, Greasy Truckers Party, featuring Hawkwind, Global Village Trucking Company and other 'left-field' acts of the day was recorded at the event, and from the outtakes emerged a Hawkwind single, 'Silver Machine'. Written by Brock and Calvert, it was little more than basic, albeit intense, heavy metal; nevertheless it picked up airplay and reached Number 3 in the UK charts in July of that year.

The success of 'Silver Machine' enabled Hawkwind to mount their mammoth Space Ritual tour which, complete with an amazing liquid light show, proved to be their most ambitious project and the clearest expression of their musical direction and spirit so far. A third album, Doremi Fasol Latido (1972) was released to public and critical acclaim in November, while a live double album of the tour, Space Ritual, released in May 1973, reached Number 9 in the LP charts.

Amazing stories
In August, the follow-up single to 'Silver Machine', 'Urban Guerilla', was released. It began to climb the UK charts, but had reached no higher than Number 39 when United Artists withdrew it from circulation - there had recently been a spate of terrorist bombings in London and the song's subject-matter was therefore considered, by some, to be in questionable taste.

Not that Hawkwind were about to sever their connections with outer space: Warriors On The Edge Of Time (1975) featured the voice of science-fiction writer Michael Moorcock, a long-time admirer of the group, while lights and experimentation were to remain very much on the menu. Nonetheless, they were beginning to tone down the image somewhat; when Lemmy was arrested on suspicion of possession of cocaine during an American tour in May 1975, the band, afraid of jeopardising their chances in the States, sacked him and flew in Paul Rudolph (formerly of the Deviants and the Pink Fairies) as a replacement.

The following year, having changed labels from UA to Charisma, they recorded Astounding Sounds, Amazing Music and toured with their new Atomhenge lightshow to promote it. For some time now, the Hawkwind sound had been changing, becoming clearer and cleaner while their numbers were growing shorter and tighter. However, these changes produced strains and led to Turner, Rudolph and Powell (the band's new drummer) being fired. A remodelled Hawkwind -Brock, Calvert, Simon King (drums), Adrian Shaw (bass) and Simon House (keyboards)- made a debut appearance at London's Roundhouse in February 1977 and a second Charisma album, Quark, Strangeness And Charm, released in June, reached Number 30 in the LP charts.

Early in 1978, however, Brock, unhappy with the band's direction, decided to disband Hawkwind and assemble a new outfit, Hawklords, with Calvert. The new group put out just one LP, 25 Years On (1978), before friction forced Calvert out.

In September 1979, a new Hawkwind, consisting of Brock, Simon King, Harvey Bainbridge (bass), Huw Lloyd Langton (guitar) and Tim Blake (keyboards), came into being and played their first gig headlining the Futurama Festival in Leeds, where they used laser lighting for the first time. The early Eighties saw the group continuing to change line-ups but still recording and drawing a loyal following of new, younger fans.

Although many still regarded them as some kind of hippie hangover, after nearly 15 years of existence they had adjusted to the modern world both in their lyrics and in their presentation, where liquid lightshows combined with modern technological backdrops. As Michael Moorcock said in the Eighties: 'Nearly all their best stuff has been concerned with the city and technology... One of the main reasons why Hawkwind are still going strong these days is because the current scene has caught up with them.'

-Julian Petley