He was a musician and singer-songwriter born in Harrow
Weald, England.He was struck down by polio at the age
of seven during the polio epidemic of 1949 which affected him for the rest
of his life.He studied at WalthamstowArtCollege
followed by the Royal College of Art and from there became a college art
teacher.Alongside his career
in art he also sang and wrote songs and after his idol Gene Vincent died he
decided to form a band which he called Kilburn and the High Roads.They had a London
pub following and opened for The Who on a tour, but never seeing much
success they split up in 1975, and shortly after he became the producer and
drummer for Wreckless Eric on his album Wreckless
Eric. The
Blockheads were formed by him and they would become Ian
Dury and the Blockheads
who saw fame with their hits such as "Hit Me with
Your Rhythm Stick".His
songwriting was often a mix of humorous looks at everyday people in
everyday life and he became a popular character in the 1970s music
scene.The
Blockheads and he
parted in 1981 and he went on to work with a group he named "The
Music Students".As an
actor he has played several small roles in films including Judge Dredd, Hearts of Fire, The Crow:
City of Angels and The Cook, The
Thief, His Wife & Her Lover.He wrote the stage musical Apples
with Mickey
Gallagher
at the request of theatre director Max-Stafford Clark
and composed the theme song for the TV series The Secret Diary of Adrian Mole, but he turned down an offer to
be the librettist for Cats when
asked by Andrew Lloyd Webber, with the explanation "I can't
stand his music".He was
very much involved in making people aware of the plights of the less
fortunate and appeared on TV to make people aware of AIDS, became involved
with the Cancer BACUP charity and become and ambassador for UNICEF.However, 1981 song "Spasticus
Autisticus", which he wrote as a person who suffered from a
disability, for the International Year of the Disabled, was prevented from
being played by the BBC.He
was diagnosed with colorectal cancer in 1998 but he still continued
to work and in 1999 he collaborated with Madness
on a track for
their first album in 14 years.His final performance was at a Cancer BACUP charity concert and
although he needed assistance to get on the stage he gave a strong
performance.He died on 27th
March 2000 aged 57 and he was mourned by hundreds of fans and fellow
celebrities.A solar powered
bench that played his music, if the seated person desired, was dedicated to
him at Poet's Corner in RichmondPark but has been the victim of
vandalism.He had four children
from two marriages, Jemima, Dexter, Billy and Albert, and Dexter is
carrying on his legacy as a current recording artist.
