Tears & fears

WE WERE THE first band of our generation that started to grow up,” Billy Corgan says, reflecting on the making of the Smashing Pumpkins’ 1995 grand opus, Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness. “The b

He began leading London punks Tubeway Army but was diverted into brooding synth-rock by a stray Minimoog. Cue 1979’s mysterious monster hit Are ‘Friends’ Electric? and the adoration of superfans the Numanoids. Follow-up solo 45 Cars also hit Number 1, but soon GARY NUMAN dramatically retired from live performance at the height of his success. “A whole world descended on me,” he says. “I wanted to get out of the burning building…”

Forty years ago this September, Kate Bush released Hounds Of Love . Her fifth studio record reinstated her position as one of the most innovative and creative artists of all time and yielded the (future) chart-topper Running Up That Hill . But its creation wasn’t always smooth. Here’s the story behind one of Bush’s best-loved albums.

YOU’LL never guess what I found. From our childhood,” Carly said. “You’ll have to give me a clue,” Juliet said. “Well, it’s something we used to wear all the time.” “Legwarmers? Shell suit? Day-Glo so

Strawbs lodestar and constant Dave Cousins left us on July 13.

In 1974, Mike Oldfield defied the critics and hit the top of the UK charts with Hergest Ridge, the ambitious follow-up to his unexpectedly successful debut Tubular Bells . To coincide with the release of the 50th-anniversary edition, the musician, his siblings and collaborators recount the story of an album created by an overwhelmed 21-year-old taking refuge near the Welsh borders.