Echoes of past glories with former Haircut 100 star Nick Heyward’s new album

EIGHTEEN years had passed between solo albums for Nick Heyward before he released Woodland Echoes last year.

The singer, who realised his musical dreams by becoming a star with new wave pop band Haircut 100 in the early ’80s, had long since become disillusioned with the machinations of the record industry.

Having gone from working with major labels such as Arista, Warner, Sony and having label mates like Oasis in Alan McGee’s Creation Records, Nick had been without a label for a long time and wasn’t interested in being under the control of money men again.

But then the industry changed and Nick was able to make music on his own terms without any outside interference – and Woodland Echoes was the result.

Nick, whose hits include Blue Hat For A Blue Day, Whistle Down The Wind and Take That Situation, said: “I don’t have to rejoin the music business as I’m in my own music world.

“I didn’t want to re-enter it – it spat me out once and it would happen again.

“I won’t drop me. I won’t tell myself I need to sound like this or that – I don’t need to sound current.

“I know I have people who will buy this record.

“A lot of change went on in music since my last album, on Creation Records.

“Alan McGee said guitar music was pretty much over, tastes were switching to dance.

“It was the turn of the century and it was completely changing.

“It wasn’t great to be a guy with a guitar, writing songs.

“Some bands were dropped, Sony picked up some, but not me.

“The internet wasn’t what it is now and albums were still hard to make.”

But the advent of early social media form, MySpace, reignited Nick’s creative juices.

“I could write a song in the morning and share it with people online in the afternoon – I was so fulfilled.”

Still performing live regularly, Nick decided to return to recording and was assisted by his son, Oliver.

“He became a sound engineer – a really good one – and we work really well together. We always got on well anyway.

“Some fathers and sons go to the football together, we go into the spare room and make music. I think we’ve helped each other.”

Nick had dreamed of being in music since his early teens and it happened as part of Haircut 100, who were signed in 1981.

Within months they had four top 10 singles – Favourite Shirts (Boy Meets Girl), Love Plus One, Fantastic Day and Nobody’s Fool – and a number two album, Pelican West.

Heyward left the band before the second album was recorded and launched a solo career that included supporting Wham! at their Wembley farewell shows, but one moment stands out from that heady period for Nick, who turns 57 today.

“Top Of The Pops was a standout moment,” he smiled.

“I remember getting recognised in a garage after Top Of The Pops – it was what we wanted.

“The thrill of being on it was huge. It was a big aircraft hangar of a room and we thought to ourselves, is this it?

“Getting to see everything from behind the scenes was an eye-opener.

“Everything changes once you’ve been on it – even with your family. They realise you are a pop star.

“It was a massive change. People look at you differently and you feel you have to be different.

“Your attitude changes suddenly, but you have to remain grounded.”

He continued: “I remember buying NME, Sounds and Melody Maker in my teens and reading them like they were bibles.

“A journalist and photographer from NME came to our flat in the early days of the band and afterwards we said to each other, ‘Did we just do an interview?’

“We thought, ‘Wow!’ and a couple of weeks later we had a half-page article.”

Nick has been receiving some of the best press of his career for Woodland Echoes and as part of the accompanying live tour he’s playing Oran Mor in Glasgow – a city he knows well.

“A life-changing moment happened for me in Glasgow when I was playing at Maestro’s in 1987,” he explained.

“I met my ex-wife, Marion Killen, there and we had two children.

“We’re still good friends and I have roots there.

“When granddad died, we were all up there to send him off.”

Nick Heyward plays Oran Mor, Glasgow on June 7