Wayne Bickerton | |
|---|---|
| Birth name | Arthur Ronald Bickerton |
| Born | (1941-07-11)11 July 1941 Rhyl,Denbighshire, Wales |
| Origin | Kirkdale,Liverpool, England |
| Died | 29 November 2015(2015-11-29) (aged 74) Hertfordshire, England |
| Occupation(s) | Songwriter, record producer, music business executive |
| Labels | State Records (founder) |
Wayne Bickerton (bornArthur Ronald Bickerton;[1] 11 July 1941 – 29 November 2015) was a British record producer, songwriter and music business executive. He became well known, withTony Waddington, as writer and producer of a series of UK chart hits in the 1970s forThe Rubettes, and as a leading figure inSESAC – one of the three major American performing rights organisations.
Born inRhyl,Denbighshire, Wales,[2] and named after his father, Bickerton grew up inKirkdale, Liverpool.[3] He first came to prominence in 1963 when, after spells with the Bobby Bell Rockers (featuring Det Pete), Steve & the Syndicate,Lee Curtis and the All-Stars andthe Remo Four, he became bassist and singer with thePete Best Four (later the Pete Best Combo), at the same time as childhood friend Tony Waddington became the group's guitarist.[4][5][6][7] As well as sharing most of the singing, Bickerton and Waddington became songwriters for the group, which toured mainly in Germany and the US, before they left in 1966.[8]
Bickerton then became a record producer atDeram Records, responsible for albums byGiles, Giles & Fripp (the forerunner toKing Crimson) andWorld of Oz; he also worked withPetula Clark andTom Jones. He later joinedPolydor Records, becomingA&R chief and producing the bandMongrel.[4] At the same time, he and Waddington continued writing songs together. One of the most successful was "Nothing But A Heartache", recorded by American girl singing groupThe Flirtations, which reached No. 34 on the USBillboard Hot 100 in 1969, No. 31 on the CanadianRPM Magazine charts, and is now regarded as anorthern soul classic. It was later recorded bySouthside Johnny and the Asbury Jukes.
During this period, he and Waddington also came up with the idea for arock 'n' roll musical.[2] They co-wrote and produced ademonstration recording of a song, "Sugar Baby Love", originally intending to submit it for theEurovision Song Contest but instead offering it toShowaddywaddy, who turned it down.[4] Bickerton and Waddington then offered it to the demo musicians, provided that they would become an actual group. The musicians agreed, becameThe Rubettes, and "Sugar Baby Love" became aUK #1 hit in 1974, also reaching No. 37 in the US charts and No. 25 in Canada. They wrote and produced all of the Rubettes' subsequent UK hits – nine Top 50 hits in all between 1974 and 1977 – winning anIvor Novello Award as Songwriters of the Year,[9] and also reached the UK Top 10 with "Sugar Candy Kisses" byMac and Katie Kissoon.[2][4][10] They set up their own record label,State Records, which diversified in 1979 into owningOdyssey Studios and a new office building atMarble Arch in central London, later sold to the radio stationJazz FM.[11]
Bickerton moved into the upper reaches of the wider music industry, initially as an executive of thePerforming Right Society in England, where he worked from the late 1970s, eventually as chairman and acting Chief executive.[12][13] He also became Deputy Chairman of TheUniversity of Liverpool Institute of Popular Music.[13] In 1997, he became an executive atSESAC, as Chairman of SESAC International,[4][12] and was also awarded anhonorary doctorate (LL.D.) by the University of Liverpool.[14][15]
He died on 28 November 2015 aged 74 at his home inHertfordshire, England.[16]
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