Nick Sheppard (born 28 November 1960) is an English guitarist. He played lead guitar for

the Clash The Clash were an English Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1976. Billed as "The Only Band That Matters", they are considered one of the most influential acts in the original wave of British punk rock, with their music fusing elements ...

from 1983 until the band's breakup in 1986.

Life and career

Sheppard was educated at

Bristol Grammar School Bristol Grammar School (BGS) is a 4–18 Mixed-sex education, mixed, Private schools in the United Kingdom, private day school in Bristol, England. It was founded in 1532 by Royal Charter for the teaching of 'good manners and literature', endowe ...

, one of Bristol's private schools, and was in the same year as fellow musician Mark Stewart of

the Pop Group The Pop Group are an English rock band formed in Bristol in 1977 by vocalist Mark Stewart, guitarist John Waddington, bassist Simon Underwood, guitarist/saxophonist Gareth Sager, and drummer Bruce Smith. Their work in the late 1970s crossed ...

. He started at 16 with the Cortinas, named after the

Ford Cortina The Ford Cortina is a medium-sized family car manufactured in various body styles from 1962 to 1982. It was the United Kingdom's best-selling car of the 1970s. The Cortina was produced in five generations (Mark I through to Mark V, although of ...

automobile. The band moved from R&B towards covering songs by punk forerunners like the

New York Dolls New York Dolls were an American rock music, rock band formed in New York City in 1971. Along with the Velvet Underground, the MC5, and the Stooges, they were one of the first bands of the early punk rock scenes. Although the band never achieved ...

and

the Stooges The Stooges or Iggy and the Stooges, originally billed as the Psychedelic Stooges, were an American rock band formed in Ann Arbor, Michigan, in 1967 by singer Iggy Pop, guitarist Ron Asheton, drummer Scott Asheton, and bassist Dave Alexande ...

. "In retrospect, I suppose we were very hip," Sheppard says. "We were listening to the right records, as we were right there at the right time." The Cortinas' singles, "Fascist Dictator" and "Defiant Pose" both appeared on Step Forward, the label run by

Police The police are Law enforcement organization, a constituted body of Law enforcement officer, people empowered by a State (polity), state with the aim of Law enforcement, enforcing the law and protecting the Public order policing, public order ...

manager Miles Copeland, as did their only album "True Romances". The band split up in September 1978, after which Sheppard played in a number of bands, including the Viceroys and the Spics, a Bristol-based

big band A big band or jazz orchestra is a type of musical ensemble of jazz music that usually consists of ten or more musicians with four sections: saxophones, trumpets, trombones, and a rhythm section. Big bands originated during the early 1910s and ...

. Sheppard moved to California, then back to Britain. When

sacked Mick Jones in 1983, Sheppard and Vince White replaced him, and he toured America and Europe with them in 1984, playing on their final album ''

Cut the Crap ''Cut the Crap'' is the sixth and final studio album by the English punk band the Clash, released on 4 November 1985 by CBS Records. It was recorded in early 1985 at Weryton Studios, Munich, following a turbulent period: co-founder, lead gu ...

''. The album attracted criticism through manager Bernie Rhodes' intrusive production and use of a

drum machine A drum machine is an electronic musical instrument that creates percussion sounds, drum beats, and patterns. Drum machines may imitate drum kits or other percussion instruments, or produce unique sounds, such as synthesized electronic tones. A d ...

. When "This Is England" reached a number 24 in the UK Singles Chart, Sheppard is quoted as saying: "I remember sitting in a different city watching it, thinking, 'There isn't a band'". The Clash finally split up shortly afterwards. From 1986 to 1989 he collaborated with

Gareth Sager Gareth Sager (born 10 August 1960 in Edinburgh, Scotland) is a Scottish guitarist, keyboardist, musician, composer and songwriter, and is a founding member of The Pop Group, Rip Rig + Panic (with Neneh Cherry), Float Up CP and Head. In his ...

(formerly of

and

Rip Rig + Panic To rip is the act of tearing an object. Rip may also refer to: Places * Nioro du Rip, a town in the southern Kaolack Region of Senegal * 7711 Říp, an asteroid * Rip Bridge, New South Wales Australia * Říp, a mountain in the Czech Republic ...

) in

Head A head is the part of an organism which usually includes the ears, brain, forehead, cheeks, chin, eyes, nose, and mouth, each of which aid in various sensory functions such as sight, hearing, smell, and taste. Some very simple ani ...

, but their three albums made little impact. Sheppard next worked with Koozie Johns in Shot, which signed with

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 ...

in 1991, with Copeland as manager; the band's recordings were never released. Sheppard moved to

Perth Perth () is the list of Australian capital cities, capital city of Western Australia. It is the list of cities in Australia by population, fourth-most-populous city in Australia, with a population of over 2.3 million within Greater Perth . The ...

, Australia in 1993, and has formed/played in two local bands, Heavy Smoker and the New Egyptian Kings with

Shakir Pichler The Bamboos were a swamp and alternative rock band from Collie, Western Australia which formed in 1984 by mainstays Mark Gelmi on bass guitar and Craig Hallsworth on guitar and vocals. They relocated to Perth by the following year and were joi ...

. Sheppard owns the Elroy clothing store on

Beaufort Street Beaufort Street is a major road in the inner north-eastern suburbs of Perth, Western Australia, connecting the Morley, Western Australia, Morley area to the Perth central business district. For most of its length, it is a single-carriageway, tw ...

Mount Lawley Mount is often used as part of the name of specific mountains, e.g. Mount Everest. Mount or Mounts may also refer to: Places * Mount, Cornwall, a village in Warleggan parish, England * Mount, Perranzabuloe, a hamlet in Perranzabuloe parish, Co ...

. In 2007 Sheppard formed the DomNicks with

Dom Mariani Dom Mariani is an Australian guitarist, vocalist and songwriter. Mariani has been a member of several bands since the early 1980s, including The Stems, The Someloves, DM3, Datura4 and instrumental side project The Majestic Kelp. The Stems is th ...

, together with bass player Howard Shawcross and drummer Marz Frisina. This combo play a mix of Mariani and Sheppard originals with a spread of 1960s and 1970s garage rock and soul material. In 2009 they released an EP, ''Hey Rock 'n' Roller'', which was produced by Wayne Connolly. The DomNicks toured with the

Hoodoo Gurus Hoodoo Gurus are an Australian rock band formed in Sydney in 1981 by Dave Faulkner (songwriter, lead singer and guitarist) and later joined by Richard Grossman (bass), Mark Kingsmill (drums), and Brad Shepherd (guitar, vocals, harmonica). Th ...

and performed in Sydney and Melbourne at the

Joe Strummer John Graham Mellor (21 August 1952 – 22 December 2002), known professionally as Joe Strummer, was a British musician. He was the co-founder, lyricist, rhythm guitarist, and lead vocalist of punk rock band the Clash, formed in 1976. The Clash' ...

tribute concert, 'Revolution Rock'. In 2013 he flew to Melbourne to reunite with

to be special guest guitarist in a tribute to

by playing in the music video for "Complete Control"

The Clash The Clash were an English Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1976. Billed as "The Only Band That Matters", they are considered one of the most influential acts in the original wave of British punk rock, with their music fusing elements ...

by Melbourne punk band "The Terraces".

Notes

References

* * * * * *

External links

Artist Direct biography

Sheppard playing with The Spics on YouTube
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sheppard, Nick 1960 births English punk rock guitarists Living people Musicians from Bristol People educated at Bristol Grammar School The Clash members