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Rusty Egan

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Rusty Egan
Born (1957-09-19) 19 September 1957 (age 67)
OriginLondon
GenresPunk rock, synthpop, new wave
Years active1977–present
LabelsEMI Records

Rusty Egan (born 19 September 1957[1][2] in London) is a British-Irish pop musician and DJ.[3]

He is the former drummer of the British new wave band Rich Kids,[4] with former Sex Pistol bassist Glen Matlock (bass and vocals), Steve New (guitar and vocals) and Midge Ure (guitar, vocals and keyboards),[5] from its inception in March 1977 to its disbanding in December 1978.

He continued working with Ure, later collaborated with The Misfits, Skids[6] and Shock, and was a founding member of Visage.[7] He played drums on a remixed version of Phil Lynott's song "Yellow Pearl", which the BBC used as the Top of the Pops theme tune from 1981 to 1986.[8][9]

Career

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Egan was the DJ at Blitz, the influential New Romantic nightclub in London, where he worked with Steve Strange from 1979[10][11] until 1981.[12] Whilst there, he introduced German (Kraftwerk), Japanese (Yellow Magic Orchestra) and British (Eno, Ultravox, Landscape) electronic music/synthpop to the British club scene, almost single-handedly putting together the soundtrack for the New Romantic movement.[13][14][15][16] Egan also owned The Cage, a New Romantic-era record store on London's King's Road. As the club grew in popularity, Egan began to be recognised as a central figure in London's nightlife.[17][18][19]

In 1982, he, Strange and Kevin Millins opened up the Camden Palace nightclub in London, where he continued to spread and influence the development of electronica in the UK.[20] For a time, he switched to producing records for many of the bands he used to DJ, including Spear of Destiny, Shock, Visage and The Senate.

On 13 June 2008, Egan appeared DJing at the 'Big Top' as part of the Isle of Wight Festival.[21]

Egan appeared alongside former Visage bandmate Steve Strange on makeover show Pop Goes the Band in early 2009 on Living TV. He had his teeth and hair drastically reconstructed as part of his makeover.[citation needed]

Egan won the category for lifetime achievement at the 2009 Viagra Awards.[22]

In January 2011, Egan and Strange hosted Return to the Blitz on the site of the original Blitz Club with performances from Roman Kemp's band Paradise Point and electro punk artist Quilla Constance plus DJ sets from Egan himself.[23]

2017 saw the release of Egan's first solo album, 'Welcome to the Dancefloor'. It featured appearances from Midge Ure, Tony Hadley, Peter Hook and Erik Stein of Cult With No Name. The album was subsequently released in remix form as 'Welcome to the Remix' and 'Welcome to the Beach'.[24]

On Friday 18 October 2019,[citation needed] Rusty performed a DJ set overlaid with a commentary of the post punk music scene at the London Palladium, followed by a performance of a number of Visage hits with long time collaborator and friend Midge Ure.

Personal Life

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Egan married freelance dancer Miranda Davis in July 1986.[25]

References

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  1. ^ Lazell, Barry (14 September 1985). "Memory Bank". Sounds. London: Spotlight Publications. p. 14.
  2. ^ "Birthdays". Evening Telegraph. No. 34012 (Final ed.). Derby. 19 September 1990. p. 2 – via Newspapers.com.
  3. ^ Ware, Martyn (April 2021). "Episode 23: Rusty Egan". Electronically Yours with Martyn Ware (Podcast). Retrieved 23 February 2023 – via Spotify.
  4. ^ Ankeny, Jason. Biography for Rich Kids at AllMusic. Retrieved 24 April 2012.
  5. ^ "Nfo.net/calendar". Nfo.net. Retrieved 16 April 2011.
  6. ^ Kelly, Ryan (1 November 1979). "The Fine Art of Compromising". Smash Hits. Vol. 1, no. 24. London. pp. 6–7.
  7. ^ Credits for Rusty Egan at AllMusic. Retrieved 24 April 2012.
  8. ^ Byrne, Alan (2012). Philip Lynott: Renegade of Thin Lizzy. Dublin: Mentor Books. p. 118. ISBN 978-1906623883.
  9. ^ Humphries, Patrick & Blackwell, Steve (2013). Top of the Pops 50th Anniversary. Pembroke Dock: McNidder & Grace. p. 185. ISBN 978-0857160522.
  10. ^ Butler, Robert (9 January 1988). "Ace of Clubs". Weekend. The Daily Telegraph. No. 41225. London. p. 15 – via Newspapers.com.
  11. ^ Elms, Robert (2006). The Way We Wore: A Life in Threads. London: Picador. pp. 180–183. ISBN 978-0330420334.
  12. ^ Rimmer, Dave (1985). Like Punk Never Happened: Culture Club and the New Pop. London: Faber & Faber. p. 52. ISBN 0571137393.
  13. ^ "Youth guilty of mugging Strange for Kylie bangle", 17 January 2003, Western Mail
  14. ^ Bevan, Nathan. "Stranger than fiction", 26 March 2006, Wales on Sunday
  15. ^ "John McGeoch", 14 March 2004, Daily Telegraph.
  16. ^ Hodgkinson, Will. "Home entertainment", 29 June 2001, The Guardian
  17. ^ "Three wizards who changed the course of the 80s". Shapersofthe80s, 5 October 2009.
  18. ^ Stokes, Ali. "The '80s...", 14 December 2002, South Wales Echo
  19. ^ Duncan, Alistair. "The night shift", 25 August 2005, Evening Standard
  20. ^ Barrow, John. How Not to Make It in the Pop World (2003), Trafford Publishing. p.182. ISBN 1-4120-1413-1
  21. ^ "Safeconcerts.com". Safeconcerts. 31 March 2011. Retrieved 16 April 2011.
  22. ^ Caffell, Paul (2 June 2009). "The London Club & Bar Awards 2009". Fluid News. Fluid London. Retrieved 24 April 2012.
  23. ^ "Strange and Egan return to the Blitz". Shapersofthe80s, 8 January 2011.
  24. ^ "RUSTY EGAN PRESENTS Welcome to the Dancefloor". The Electricity Club. 26 November 2016. Retrieved 13 May 2020.
  25. ^ "Star Guests at Minster Wedding". Lincolnshire Echo. No. 27914 (County ed.). 14 July 1986. p. 1 – via Newspapers.com.
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