Heinz Burt (24 July 1942 – 7 April 2000) was a German-born British
rock and roll
Rock and roll (often written as rock & roll, rock 'n' roll, or rock 'n roll) is a genre of popular music that evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s. It originated from African-American music such as jazz, rhythm an ...
bassist and singer who performed under the stage name Heinz.
He was also known as a member of instrumental group
the Tornados.
Life
Heinz was born in
Detmold
Detmold () is a city in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany, with a population of . It was the capital of the small Principality of Lippe from 1468 until 1918 and then of the Free State of Lippe until 1947. Today it is the administrative center of t ...
, Germany, but from the age of seven was brought up in
Eastleigh
Eastleigh is a town in Hampshire, England, between Southampton and Winchester. It is the largest town and the administrative seat of the Borough of Eastleigh, with a population of 24,011 at the 2011 census.
The town lies on the River Itchen, ...
,
Hampshire
Hampshire (, ; abbreviated to Hants) is a ceremonial county, ceremonial and non-metropolitan county, non-metropolitan counties of England, county in western South East England on the coast of the English Channel. Home to two major English citi ...
, England.
His German
father had been killed during
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...
and his mother decided to move to
Britain
Britain most often refers to:
* The United Kingdom, a sovereign state in Europe comprising the island of Great Britain, the north-eastern part of the island of Ireland and many smaller islands
* Great Britain, the largest island in the United King ...
. Heinz was influenced by the US singer
Eddie Cochran
Ray Edward Cochran (; October 3, 1938 – April 17, 1960) was an American rock and roll musician. Cochran's songs, such as " Twenty Flight Rock", " Summertime Blues", "C'mon Everybody" and " Somethin' Else", captured teenage frustration and desir ...
and played in a local Eastleigh group, the Falcons, in the 1950s.
Working in a
Southampton
Southampton () is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. It is located approximately south-west of London and west of Portsmouth. The city forms part of the South Hampshire, S ...
grocery shop Heinz came to the attention of record producer
Joe Meek
Robert George "Joe" Meek (5 April 1929 – 3 February 1967) was an English record producer, sound engineer and songwriter who pioneered space age and experimental pop music. He also assisted in the development of recording practices like over ...
, becoming his protégé.
Meek styled Heinz's image, which included persuading him to
peroxide
In chemistry, peroxides are a group of compounds with the structure , where R = any element. The group in a peroxide is called the peroxide group or peroxo group. The nomenclature is somewhat variable.
The most common peroxide is hydrogen ...
his hair.
Heinz was a member of
the Tornados, famous for their multi-million selling hit "
Telstar". With Meek in love with Heinz, he struggled to launch him on a solo career. Due to the inadequacies of Heinz's voice, his vocals on his first single "Dreams Do Come True" were over-dubbed by another singer, a Meek artist named Mark Douglas or Billy Gray, but whose real name was William Halsey.
The single was a commercial failure.
With Meek vigorously promoting Heinz, he was sent on a tour with
Gene Vincent
Vincent Eugene Craddock (February 11, 1935 – October 12, 1971), known as Gene Vincent, was an American musician who pioneered the styles of rockabilly and rock and roll. His 1956 top ten hit with his backing band the Blue Caps, " Be-Bop-a-Lu ...
and
Jerry Lee Lewis
Jerry Lee Lewis (September 29, 1935October 28, 2022) was an American singer, songwriter and pianist. Nicknamed "The Killer", he was described as " rock & roll's first great wild man". A pioneer of rock and roll and rockabilly music, Lewis mad ...
. Audiences did not take to him, and he was attacked on stage and had
beans
A bean is the seed of several plants in the family Fabaceae, which are used as vegetables for human or animal food. They can be cooked in many different ways, including boiling, frying, and baking, and are used in many traditional dishes t ...
thrown over him (to a contemporary audience 'Heinz' would have been associated with
Heinz Baked Beans).
Heinz's next and biggest-selling solo hit was "
Just Like Eddie", a tribute to
Eddie Cochran
Ray Edward Cochran (; October 3, 1938 – April 17, 1960) was an American rock and roll musician. Cochran's songs, such as " Twenty Flight Rock", " Summertime Blues", "C'mon Everybody" and " Somethin' Else", captured teenage frustration and desir ...
. Its success coincided with the emergence of
The Beatles
The Beatles were an English rock band, formed in Liverpool in 1960, that comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are regarded as the most influential band of all time and were integral to the developm ...
and was the high point of commercial success for Heinz.
Two successful
EPs
EPS, EPs or Eps may refer to:
Commerce and finance
* Earnings per share
* Electronic Payment Services, in Hong Kong, Macau, and Shenzhen, China
* Express Payment System, in the Philippines
Education
* Edmonton Public Schools, in Edmonton, Al ...
, ''Heinz'' and ''Live It Up'', followed, and 1963 he appeared in the British music-film ''
Live It Up!'' as Ron. Following a well-received tour with
Billy J. Kramer and the Dakotas and
Bobby Rydell
Robert Louis Ridarelli (April 26, 1942 – April 5, 2022), known by the stage name Bobby Rydell, was an American singer and actor who mainly performed rock and roll and traditional pop music. In the early 1960s he was considered a teen idol. ...
, Heinz was seen as belonging to an era of rock and roll as the more modern
Merseybeat
Beat music, British beat, or Merseybeat is a British popular music genre that developed, particularly in and around Liverpool, in the late 1950s and early 1960s. The genre melded influences from American rock and roll, rhythm and blues, skiffl ...
became more popular.
He covered the
Bob Dylan
Bob Dylan (legally Robert Dylan, born Robert Allen Zimmerman, May 24, 1941) is an American singer-songwriter. Often regarded as one of the greatest songwriters of all time, Dylan has been a major figure in popular culture during a career sp ...
song "
Don't Think Twice, It's Alright", which was another commercial failure.
A move from the
Decca label to
EMI saw him gain a minor hit with "Diggin' My Potatoes".
Differences of a professional and personal level with Meek appeared, and with Heinz introducing his girlfriend to Meek their relationship faltered. Although he had lived briefly in Meek's flat, further disagreements over
royalties saw him move out, leaving some possessions behind including a shotgun.
It was this shotgun with which Meek killed his landlady and then himself in 1967, and although Heinz was questioned by police, they concluded he had nothing to do with their deaths.
Meek's death ended Heinz's recording career as a solo artist, and he worked outside the music industry including in advertising at a local newspaper, ''The Dagenham Post''.
Although often dismissed as a mediocre talent pushed into the spotlight by Meek, Heinz was an enthusiastic performer, and worked in
pantomime
Pantomime (; informally panto) is a type of musical comedy stage production designed for family entertainment. It was developed in England and is performed throughout the United Kingdom, Ireland and (to a lesser extent) in other English-speakin ...
and theatre in the 1970s, including a role in
David Hare's ''
Teeth 'n' Smiles
''Teeth 'n' Smiles'' is a musical play written by David Hare.
Performances
The play was first performed at the Royal Court Theatre on 2 September 1975.
It was subsequently revived at Wyndhams Theatre in May 1976 (directed by the playwright), ...
'' in 1976, as a dim-witted would-be rock star. In later years, he appeared in 1960s revival shows
and continued performing until the end; his last set was from a wheelchair at a social club two weeks before his death.
Backing groups
He was initially backed by
the Saints, a band that included
Roy Phillips
Roy Godfrey Phillips (born 5 May 1941, in Parkstone, Poole, Dorset) is a British musician. He was a member of The Soundtracks (a backing group of The Dowlands), The Saints and The Peddlers.
Background
Phillips is known as the voice and keyb ...
, guitar, and
Tab Martin
Tab Martin (born Alan Raymond Brearley, December 24, 1944) is an English bass guitarist. He has been a member of well-known English bands from the 1960s. He was a member of the Tornados and played on their hit "Globetrotter". He was also a membe ...
, bass. His later backing groups (the Wild Ones or the Wild Boys) featured
Ritchie Blackmore
Richard Hugh Blackmore (born 14 April 1945) is an English guitarist and songwriter. He was a founding member of Deep Purple in 1968, playing jam-style hard rock music that mixed guitar riffs and organ sounds. He is prolific in creating guit ...
and others.
Mick Underwood,
Chas Hodges, Blackmore, and others performed on "
Just Like Eddie" as members of
the Outlaws.
Heinz performed at
the London Rock and Roll Show in 1972, with
Wilko Johnson of
Dr Feelgood in his backing band, as shown in the documentary ''Oil City Confidential''.
Sexuality
He was portrayed by
JJ Feild in ''
Telstar'', a film about the life of Joe Meek, which was released in 2009. The film depicts him as Meek's gay lover at a time when homosexual acts were illegal in the United Kingdom. His family have denied that he was homosexual and have stated that the film is a slur on his life. His former wife, Della Burke, who was married to Heinz at the height of his success said "It is completely and utterly untrue. Heinz was definitely heterosexual."
In the 1991 BBC documentary, ''The Very Strange Story of... the Legendary Joe Meek'', when asked if Meek was in love with him, Heinz replied "Yes. It's an infatuation ... that was the thing with him, where I told him to get off, that I wasn't into that sort of thing ... if there's something you can't have you want it even more".
Death
Crippled by
motor neurone disease
Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), also known as motor neuron disease (MND) or Lou Gehrig's disease, is a neurodegenerative disease that results in the progressive loss of motor neurons that control voluntary muscles. ALS is the most com ...
, Heinz died in 2000, aged 57 following a stroke.
He was cremated at Eastleigh Crematorium in Hampshire.
Discography
UK singles
*"Dreams Do Come True" (Meek) / "Been Invited to a Party" (Meek, Burt) – 1963 – Decca F 11652
*"
Just Like Eddie" (
Goddard Goddard may refer to:
People
* Goddard (given name)
* Goddard (surname)
Places in the United States
* Goddard, Kansas
* Goddard, Kentucky
* Goddard, Maryland
*Goddard College, a low-residency college with campuses in Vermont and Washington
*God ...
) / "Don't You Knock on My Door" – 1963 – Decca F11693 –
UK No. 5
*"I Get Up in the Morning" (Meek) / "Talk Like A Man" / "That Lucky Old Sun" / "Lonely River" (Meek) – 1963 – Decca DFE 8545
*"Live It Up" (Meek) / "Don't You Understand" (Meek) / "When Your Loving Goes Wrong" (Meek) – 1963 – Decca DFE 8559
*"Country Boy" (
Geoff Goddard) / "Long Tall Jack" (Meek/Lawrence) – 1963 – Decca F11768 – UK No. 26
*"You Were There" (
Geoff Goddard) / "No Matter What They Say" (Meek/Lawrence) – 1964 – Decca F 11831 – UK No. 26
*"Please Little Girl" / "For Loving Me This Way" (Meek) – 1964 – Decca F 11920
*"Questions I Can't Answer" / "Beating of My Heart" (Meek) – 1964 – Columbia DB7374 – UK No. 39
*"Diggin' My Potatoes" (Trad, arr. Meek/Burt) / "She Ain't Coming Back" – 1965 – Columbia DB7482 – Heinz & Wild Boys – UK No. 49
*"End of the World" / "You Make Me Feel So Good" (Meek) – 1965 – Columbia DB 7656
*"Heart Full Of Sorrow" / "Don't Worry Baby" (Meek /Stephen Reading) – 1965 – Columbia DB 7779
*"
Don't Think Twice, It's All Right" (
Dylan) / "Big Fat Spider" (Meek/Davis) – 1965 – Columbia DB7559 – Heinz & Wild Boys
*"Movin' In" (
Adams
Adams may refer to:
* For persons, see Adams (surname)
Places United States
*Adams, California
*Adams, California, former name of Corte Madera, California
*Adams, Decatur County, Indiana
*Adams, Kentucky
*Adams, Massachusetts, a New England town ...
) / "I'm Not A Bad Guy" (
J. Allison) – 1966 – Columbia DB 7942
*"Country Boy" (
Geoff Goddard) / "Just Like Eddie" (
Geoff Goddard) (Re-Recordings) – 1981 – Cargo CRS 010
US singles
*1964: "Questions I Can't Answer" / "Beating of My Heart" – Tower 110
*1965: "Digging My Potatoes" / "Don't Think Twice, It's Alright" – Tower 172
*1965: "Don't Worry Baby" / "Heart Full Of Sorrow" – Tower 195
*1966: "Movin' In" / "I'm Not A Bad Guy" – Tower 253
Albums
*''Tribute to Eddie'' (Decca LK 4599, 1964)
*Live album – Various Artists; ''Live at
The Cavern'':"I Got A Woman" (live) / "Somebody To Love" (live) (Decca SLK 16294, 1965)
References
External links
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Burt, Heinz
1942 births
2000 deaths
20th-century English singers
20th-century German musicians
20th-century bass guitarists
English pop singers
Columbia Records artists
People with motor neuron disease
Decca Records artists
English rock bass guitarists
Male bass guitarists
German emigrants to England
German bass guitarists
German male singers
German pop singers
Musicians from Hampshire
People from Detmold
People from Eastleigh
20th-century British male singers
The Tornados members
German male guitarists