David Wakeling
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David Wakeling (born 19 February 1956) is an English singer, songwriter and musician, best known for his work with the band the Beat (known in North America as the English Beat) and
General Public In public relations and communication science, publics are groups of individual people, and the public (a.k.a. the general public) is the totality of such groupings. This is a different concept to the sociological concept of the ''Öffentlichkei ...
.


Career

Wakeling began his professional career when he formed the band the Beat. The band's debut studio album, '' I Just Can't Stop It'' (1980), included the title song as well as "
Mirror in the Bathroom "Mirror in the Bathroom" is a single by the British ska band the Beat, released as a single in 1980 from their debut studio album '' I Just Can't Stop It''. It reached number 4 on the UK Singles Chart and consequently was their highest chart ...
", " Hands Off...She's Mine", and "
Can't Get Used to Losing You "Can't Get Used to Losing You" is a song written by Doc Pomus, Jerome "Doc" Pomus and Mort Shuman, first made popular by Andy Williams in a 1963 record release, which was a number-two hit in both the US and the UK. Twenty years later, British ba ...
", all of which charted within the Top 10 on the UK Singles Chart. The band also had UK hits from the studio albums '' Wha'ppen?'' (1981) and ''
Special Beat Service ''Special Beat Service'' is the third studio album by the British ska band the Beat, released on 1 October 1982 by Go-Feet Records. Like the rest of their material, it was released in the US under the name "the English Beat". It peaked at No. 3 ...
'' (1982). Wakeling then formed
General Public In public relations and communication science, publics are groups of individual people, and the public (a.k.a. the general public) is the totality of such groupings. This is a different concept to the sociological concept of the ''Öffentlichkei ...
with Ranking Roger in 1983, and they released their debut studio album, '' All the Rage'', the next year. He also recorded two other studio albums with General Public, '' Hand to Mouth'' (1986) and ''
Rub It Better ''Rub It Better'' is the third studio album by the English new wave music, new wave band General Public, released on 4 April 1995 by Epic Records. The band had not recorded together in almost 10 years. Production The album was produced by Jerry ...
'' (1995), shortly after which the band disbanded. In 1984, Wakeling, along with Ranking Roger, sang backing vocals on the song "
Free Nelson Mandela "Nelson Mandela" (known in some versions as "Free Nelson Mandela") is a song written by British musician Jerry Dammers, and performed by the band the Special A.K.A. with a lead vocal by Stan Campbell. It was first released on the single "Nelso ...
" by the Special A.K.A. They also provided backing vocals on the Madness studio album '' Keep Moving'', singing on the tracks "Waltz into Mischief" and "Victoria Gardens". He then produced the soundtrack for the
John Hughes John Hughes may refer to: Arts and Entertainment Literature *John Hughes (poet) (1677–1720), English poet *John Hughes (1790–1857), English author *John Ceiriog Hughes (1832–1887), Welsh poet *John Hughes (writer) (born 1961), Australian au ...
romantic comedy film ''
She's Having a Baby ''She's Having a Baby'' is a 1988 American romantic comedy film directed and written by John Hughes and starring Kevin Bacon and Elizabeth McGovern. It tells the story of a young newlywed couple who try to cope with married life and their par ...
'' (1988), in which he also recorded the title track. In 1991, Wakeling released his sole solo studio album, ''No Warning'', on
I.R.S. Records I.R.S. Records was a major American record label founded by Miles Copeland III and Jay Boberg in 1979. I.R.S. produced some of the most popular bands of the 1980s, and was particularly known for issuing records by college rock, new wave and a ...
. He recorded two new songs that feature in the '' Scooby-Doo! Mystery Incorporated'' episode " Dance of the Undead", which debuted in March 2013." In 2018, the Beat album ''Here We Go Love'' was released. Wakeling regularly performs as the English Beat in North America. Throughout his career, Wakeling has mainly used a left-handed Vox Teardrop guitar, the Vox Mark III. He was initially drawn to this guitar as his favourite artist and guitarist
Brian Jones Lewis Brian Hopkin Jones (28 February 1942 – 3 July 1969) was an English musician and founder of the Rolling Stones. Initially a slide guitarist, he went on to sing backing vocals and played a wide variety of instruments on Rolling Stones r ...
of
the Rolling Stones The Rolling Stones are an English Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1962. Active for over six decades, they are one of the most popular, influential, and enduring bands of the Album era, rock era. In the early 1960s, the band pione ...
used one. "I wanted to be him and I used to play my cricket bat or my tennis racket and pretend it was a teardrop in the mirror when my mum had gone out shopping. I even bought a blond wig from a second-hand shop and I cut it out into a bob. As soon as I heard the front door I would think "Great, she's gone". I would take out the wig, the cricket bat and play in front of the mirror." On 8 April 2006, he donated his Vox of 26 years to the
Rock and Roll Hall of Fame The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame (RRHOF), also simply referred to as the Rock Hall, is a museum and hall of fame located in downtown Cleveland, Ohio, United States, on the shore of Lake Erie. The museum documents the history of rock music and the ...
.


Personal life

Wakeling is divorced, with two children. He resides in the
San Fernando Valley The San Fernando Valley, known locally as the Valley, is an urbanized valley in Los Angeles County, Los Angeles County, California. Situated to the north of the Los Angeles Basin, it comprises a large portion of Los Angeles, the Municipal corpo ...
, California. In 1985, Wakeling mentioned in a press interview with '' Mother Jones'' magazine that he was
bisexual Bisexuality is romantic attraction, sexual attraction, or sexual behavior toward both males and females. It may also be defined as the attraction to more than one gender, to people of both the same and different gender, or the attraction t ...
.


Discography

* ''No Warning'' (1991 I.R.S. Records) Side one # "I Want More" (Dave Wakeling, Parthenon Huxley) – 4:16 # "No Warning" (Wakeling,
Mark Goldenberg Mark Goldenberg (born October 2, 1952) is an American guitarist and songwriter, noted for his session work and composition of successful songs for Linda Ronstadt, the Pointer Sisters, and others. Biography Early career Raised in Chicago, Illi ...
) – 4:53 # "Remember in the Dark" (Wakeling) – 5:23 # "Every Time You Look at Me That Way" (Wakeling) – 4:12 # "Sensation" (Wakeling, Mickey Billingham, Goldenberg) – 4:04 Side two #
  • "Freedom Fighter" (Wakeling, Billingham) – 5:53 # "One + One + One" (Wakeling, Goldenberg) – 5:15 # "Sex with You" (Wakeling) – 3:32 # "I'm Not Ready" (Wakeling, Billingham) – 3:58 # "
    She's Having a Baby ''She's Having a Baby'' is a 1988 American romantic comedy film directed and written by John Hughes and starring Kevin Bacon and Elizabeth McGovern. It tells the story of a young newlywed couple who try to cope with married life and their par ...
    " (Wakeling, Ian Ritchie) – 3:44 Produced by
    Mark Goldenberg Mark Goldenberg (born October 2, 1952) is an American guitarist and songwriter, noted for his session work and composition of successful songs for Linda Ronstadt, the Pointer Sisters, and others. Biography Early career Raised in Chicago, Illi ...
    (tracks 1–9) and Steve Levine ("She's Having a Baby")


    References

    * ''The Rolling Stone Encyclopedia of Rock and Roll'', Third Edition ( Fireside, 2001) * ''The Billboard Book of Top 40 Hits'', 8th Edition (Billboard Books, 2004)


    External links


    Dave Wakeling's website
    * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Wakeling, Dave 1956 births 20th-century English male singers 21st-century English LGBTQ people 21st-century English male singers The Beat (British band) members Bisexual male musicians Bisexual singers British ska musicians English bisexual men English bisexual musicians English expatriate musicians in the United States English LGBTQ singers English male guitarists English new wave musicians English rock guitarists General Public members Living people British male new wave singers Musicians from Birmingham, West Midlands