Steve Diggle brings the buzz to Brighouse

Venue 73, Brighouse on Mar 2

Steve Diggle(Buzzcocks)and his band will be playing two warm up shows performing Buzzcocks hits and of course his critically acclaimed solo material. Steve’s beginnings with the Buzzcocks began after he went to a Sex Pistols gig at Manchester’s Lesser Free Trade Hall, in June 1976. Their manager Malcolm McLaren introduced him to guitarist Pete Shelley - who sadly died before Christmas last year - and vocalist Howard Devoto, who were looking for a bassist for their band, Buzzcocks - which became pivotal in the punk rock movement and had several hit records over five years. John Maher joined as drummer and six weeks later, Buzzcocks played their first concert. Steve played bass at several concerts and on the Spiral Scratch EP. Howard Devoto left Buzzcocks shortly after the EP was released, which prompted the band to reshuffle – Pete Shelley becoming lead vocalist as well as guitarist and Diggle switching from bass to guitar. Steve wrote several songs for Buzzcocks, including “Autonomy”, “Fast Cars” (co-written with Howard Devoto and Pete Shelley), “Love Is Lies” (perhaps the first Buzzcocks song featuring an acoustic guitar), “Sitting Round At Home”, “You Know You Can’t Help It”, “Mad Mad Judy”, “Airwaves Dream”, and, perhaps his most famous song, “Harmony in My Head”, a Top 40 hit in 1979. After Buzzcocks split in 1981, Diggle was briefly a solo artist, releasing the 50 Years of Comparative Wealth EP (with the guest participations of fellow-Buzzcocks Steve Garvey and John Maher) the same year. In 1982, he formed a new band, Flag of Convenience with ex-Buzzcock John Maher. Ex-Easterhouse drummer Gary Rostock played on Diggle’s 2000 release Some Reality. In 2013, Diggle also appeared in the British punk-pop comedy Vinyl, playing himself.

Tickets from www.venue73.com