The Stone Roses: War and Peace Read online

  SIMON SPENCE

  The Stone Roses

  War and Peace

  Photography by

  Dennis Morris, Lena Kagg Ferrero

  and Sue Dean

  VIKING

  an imprint of

  PENGUIN BOOKS

  Contents

  Photography

  Cast

  Prologue

  1. The Patrol

  2. Reni

  3. Sweden

  4. So Young

  5. Hannett

  6. Gareth

  7. Mani

  8. Leckie

  9. Blackpool

  10. ‘Fools Gold’

  11. Madchester

  12. ‘One Love’

  13. Geffen

  14. Second Coming

  15. Reni II

  16. Robbie

  17. Fifteen Years

  18. Reunion

  Afterword

  Illustrations

  Bibliography

  Notes

  Gigography/Discography

  Acknowledgements

  ABOUT THE AUTHOR

  Simon Spence collaborated with Rolling Stones manager Andrew Loog Oldham on the acclaimed memoirs Stoned and 2Stoned. He has written for the NME, i-D, Dazed & Confused and the Independent. He was at the Stone Roses’ legendary Blackpool and Alexandra Palace shows in 1989 and covered their seminal Spike Island show for The Face.

  To Thalia, Theo and Sylvie

  The Stone Roses

  War and Peace

  Based on 400 hours of interviews with over seventy of The Stone Roses’ closest associates, including six former band members, War and Peace is the first major biography of the band that defined a generation. Originally planned in collaboration with Reni, the reclusive drummer, this book had been a year in the making when the Roses, against all odds, announced their re-formation.

  It is a remarkable coda to an astonishing story of a band like no other. In 1989 their debut album and the single ‘Fools Gold’ made them the most exciting British export since the Sex Pistols. With their incendiary aura the Roses became figureheads of the ‘Madchester’ movement.

  War and Peace traces the band’s genesis, studded with violent gigs and abandoned recordings, and shaped by their infamous manager, Gareth Evans. As their jeans grew wider and their songs more anthemic, the Roses’ legendary gigs culminated in the era-defining Spike Island show in 1990. From this pinnacle the unravelling was spectacular. With the band refusing to play in America, arrested for vandalizing a record company and dragged through the High Court, the epic recording of their dark second album is the stuff of legend. They disbanded in turmoil in 1996.

  Since then the Roses myth has grown even bigger. ‘I Wanna Be Adored’, ‘She Bangs the Drums’, ‘Waterfall’, ‘This Is the One’ and ‘I Am the Resurrection’ have become national anthems, and their first album is widely recognized as one of the best ever made.

  But the true story behind their rise and fall – and resurrection – has never been told. Until now. From the Manchester backwaters to the worldwide 2012 tour, War and Peace lays bare the irresistible tale of the last of the great bands.

  ‘Revolution is not “showing” life to people, but bringing them to life.

  A revolutionary organization must always remember that its objective is not getting its adherents to listen to convincing talks by expert leaders, but getting them to speak for themselves, in order to achieve, or at least strive toward, an equal degree of participation.’

  Guy Debord, Situationist International (1961)

  Photography

  This book includes forty previously unseen photographs from Dennis Morris, Lena Kagg Ferrero and Sue Dean.

  Dennis Morris shot to fame as a teenager photographing Bob Marley between 1973 and 1981, before taking iconic shots of John Lydon and the Sex Pistols. In 1985 Martin Hannett, then producing The Stone Roses, tried to convince the band to collaborate with Morris to develop their ‘look’ – a plan that was abandoned when Morris and John Squire didn’t hit it off. But Ian Brown and Reni kept in contact with him. The photographs in this book were taken during informal sessions from 1989 to 1995.

  Lena Kagg Ferrero followed the Roses on their 1985 tour of Sweden with Toxin Toy. Her photographs of the Roses had been stored for more than twenty-five years in the loft of her father’s house. They are the rarest early shots of the band.

  Sue Dean was a well-known face on the Manchester scene in the 1980s, and for a couple of years was the girlfriend of the Roses’ manager Gareth Evans. She was the only photographer to capture the Roses consistently throughout their lost years of 1986, 1987 and 1988.

  The never-seen-before ephemera from this period was supplied from the archives of Howard Jones, manager of The Stone Roses from 1984 to 1986. Producer John Leckie also supplied private paperwork, as did Jive/Zomba’s Steven Howard.

  1. Garner, Brown and Couzens on tour bus, Sweden, 1985 © Lena Kagg Ferrero.

  2. Squire, Brown, Garner, Reni and Jones on tour bus, Sweden, 1985 © Lena Kagg Ferrero.

  3. Couzens and Brown on stage, Sweden, 1985 © Lena Kagg Ferrero.

  4. Squire and Garner on stage, Sweden, 1985 © Lena Kagg Ferrero.

  5. Couzens, Brown, Squire and Garner on stage, Sweden, 1985 © Lena Kagg Ferrero.

  6. Couzens, Brown, Reni and Squire on stage, Sweden,1985 © Lena Kagg Ferrero.

  7. Reni and Brown on stage, Sweden, 1985 © Lena Kagg Ferrero.

  8. Thin Line advert for 1985 Swedish tour. Courtesy of Howard Jones.

  9. Garner, Reni, Brown and Squire on tour, Sweden, 1985 © Lena Kagg Ferrero.

  10. Thin Line press release for ‘So Young’/‘Tell Me’, 1985, p.1. Courtesy of Howard Jones.

  11. Thin Line press release for ‘So Young’/‘Tell Me’, 1985, p.2. Courtesy of Howard Jones.

  12. Thin Line advert, 1985. Courtesy of Howard Jones.

  13. Thin Line advert for ‘So Young’/‘Tell Me’, 1985. Courtesy of Howard Jones.

  14. ‘So Young’/‘Tell Me’ single label detail, 1985. Courtesy of Howard Jones.

  15. Ticket for Warehouse 1, 1985. Courtesy of Howard Jones.

  16. The Patrol, 1980 © Sue Dean.

  17. Squire, Brown and Garner in rehearsal, 1987 © Sue Dean.

  18. Brown in rehearsal, 1987 © Sue Dean.

  19. Squire, Garner and Brown on stage, 1987 © Sue Dean.

  20. Brown on stage, 1986 © Sue Dean.

  21. Reni on stage, 1986 © Sue Dean.

  22. Reni on stage, 1987 © Sue Dean.

  23. Brown and his tattoo, 1988 © Sue Dean.

  24. Mani in 1987 © Sue Dean.

  25. The Roses at Warehouse 2, 1985 © Sue Dean.

  26. Mani, John Leckie and Brown outside the International II, 1988 © Sue Dean.

  27. Mani, Gareth Evans and Tim Booth outside the International II, 1988 © Sue Dean.

  28. Garner, Squire, Reni and Brown signing the contract, 1987 © Sue Dean.

  29. Band contact list. Courtesy of Howard Jones.

  30. Mani, Brown, Squire and Reni studio shot, 1989 © Dennis Morris.

  31. Reni, Squire, Mani and Brown studio shot, 1989 © Dennis Morris.

  32. Fax from John Leckie, p. 1. Courtesy of John Leckie.

  33. Fax from John Leckie, p. 2. Courtesy of John Leckie.

  34. Fans at Spike Island, 1990 © Dennis Morris.

  35. Dressing room at Spike Island, 1990 © Dennis Morris.

  36. Crowd shot, Spike Island, 1990 © Dennis Morris.

  37. Squire and Brown on stage, Spike Island, 1990 © Dennis Morris.

  38. Brown on stage, Spike Island, 1990 © Dennis Morris.

  39. Brown on stage, Spike Island, 1990 © Dennis Morris.<
br />
  40. Squire on stage, Glasgow Green, 1990 © Dennis Morris.

  41. Reni on stage, Glasgow Green, 1990 © Dennis Morris.

  42. Brown on stage, Spike Island, 1990 © Dennis Morris.

  43. Glasgow Green, 1990 © Dennis Morris.

  44. Cressa, Brown and Reni on stage, Glasgow Green, 1990 © Dennis Morris.

  45. Reni, Mani, Squire and Brown on stairwell, Dennis Morris’s studio, 1994 © Dennis Morris.

  46. John Leckie’s post-resignation fax, p. 1. Courtesy of John Leckie.

  47. John Leckie’s post-resignation fax, p. 2. Courtesy of John Leckie.

  48. Brown in Morris’s studio, 1994 © Dennis Morris.

  49. Mani in Morris’s studio, 1994 © Dennis Morris.

  50. Squire in Morris’s studio, 1994 © Dennis Morris.

  51. Reni in Morris’s studio, 1994 © Dennis Morris.

  52. The band in Morris’s studio, 1994 © Dennis Morris.

  Cast

  Principal characters in order of appearance

  Phil Jones: concert promoter, Alexandra Palace and Spike Island

  Gareth Evans: manager of The Stone Roses and owner of the International and International II clubs

  Ian Brown (nickname IBEX): singer, The Stone Roses

  Matthew Cummins (RIP): Evans’s business partner, co-manager of The Stone Roses and co-owner of the International clubs

  Paul Oakenfold: DJ at Alexandra Palace and Spike Island

  Dave Haslam: author; DJ at Blackpool Empress Ballroom, Alexandra Palace and Spike Island

  Dave Booth: DJ at Blackpool Empress Ballroom and Spike Island

  Reni (Alan Wren): drummer, The Stone Roses

  Adrian Sherwood: producer; remixed ‘One Love’ and support act at Spike Island

  Philip Hall (RIP): press officer, The Stone Roses, and the band’s manager in 1993

  John Squire (often Johnny): guitarist, The Stone Roses

  Stephen ‘Cressa’ Cresser: The Stone Roses’ road crew and on-stage vibes

  Mani (Gary Mounfield): bassist, The Stone Roses

  Peter Hook: Joy Division and New Order; producer of ‘Elephant Stone’

  Steve Lock: Granada TV producer, filmed Alexandra Palace

  Roddy McKenna: A&R at Jive/Zomba

  Kevin Cummins: NME photographer

  Si Wolstencroft: original drummer in The Stone Roses, 1983–4

  Pete Garner: original bass player in The Stones Roses, 1983–7

  Andy Couzens: original guitarist in The Stones Roses, 1983–6

  Pennie Smith: NME photographer, The Stone Roses’ photographer

  Mensi (Thomas Mensforth): lead singer, Angelic Upstarts

  Mike Phoenix: scooterboy and founder of the Twisted Wheel SC club

  Johnny Poland: scooterboy and style influence

  Johnny Bolland: scooterboy and manufacturer of the Stone Roses T-shirts

  Kaiser (David Carty): scooterboy and singer, The Waterfront

  Chris Goodwin: drummer, The Waterfront

  Michelle ‘Mitch’ Davitt: Ian Brown’s partner

  Sue Dean: photographer and girlfriend of Gareth Evans

  Rob Hampson: scooterboy and bassist in The Stone Roses, 1987

  Geno Washington: soul sensation and life coach

  John Breakell: owner of Spirit Studios

  Caroline Reed: first manager of The Stone Roses, 1984

  Tony Wilson (RIP): co-founder of Factory Records

  Garry Johnson: Sounds writer and band champion

  Howard Jones: manager of The Stones Roses, 1984–6

  Tim Chambers: co-founder of Thin Line Records

  Martin Hannett (RIP): producer; co-founder of Thin Line Records

  Steve ‘Adge’ Atherton: The Stone Roses’ tour manager

  Tony Michaelides: DJ, Piccadilly Radio, Manchester

  Paula Greenwood: Piccadilly Radio/Piccadilly Records and PR at the International clubs

  Bob Dickinson: journalist, Manchester

  Andreas Kemi: The Eye magazine, Swedish tour promoter

  Toxin Toy (Harald Sickenga, Micke Mürhoff, Anette Svensson and Christian Adelöv): co-headliners of Swedish tour

  Glen Greenough (RIP): The Stone Roses’ first roadie

  Lena Kagg: photographer on Swedish tour

  Clive Jackson: singer with Doctor & The Medics

  Slim (Paul Haley): The Stone Roses’ road crew

  Martin Pendergast (‘Little Martin’): Haçienda DJ and ‘Baldrick’

  Al Smith: ‘Baldrick’ and The Stone Roses’ road crew

  Phil Saxe: source of flared jeans, 1983–4, and manager of the Happy Mondays

  Chris Nagle: engineer for Martin Hannett

  Dennis Morris: photographer, artist, stylist and club runner

  Helen Plaumer: John Squire’s partner

  Dougie James: soul singer, club runner and original owner of the International

  Roger Eagle (RIP): booker at the International

  Stephen Lea: lawyer, acting for Andy Couzens and The Stone Roses

  Dave Roberts: A&R at FM Revolver/Heavy Metal Records

  Paul Birch: owner of FM Revolver/Heavy Metal Records

  Simon Machan (‘Big Simon’): The Stone Roses’ road crew, live sound

  Lindsay Reade: co-manager of The Stone Roses, 1987–8

  Geoff Travis: founder of Rough Trade Records

  Ian Tilton: Sounds photographer, The Stone Roses’ photographer

  Steven Howard: managing director of Jive Records and Zomba Music Publishing

  Clive Calder: founder of Jive/Zomba

  Geoff Howard: Gareth Evans’s lawyer and The Stone Roses’ legal representative

  John Leckie: producer of The Stone Roses, ‘Fools Gold’, ‘One Love’ and Second Coming

  Andrew Lauder: manager of Silvertone Records

  Lawrence Stewart: engineer at Coconut Grove Studios

  Paul Schroeder: producer and engineer on The Stone Roses, ‘Fools Gold’, ‘One Love’ and Second Coming

  Chris Donnelly: co-founder of Gio-Goi

  Anthony Donnelly: co-founder of Gio-Goi

  Gareth Davies: The Stone Roses’ radio and TV plugger

  Phil Smith: The Stone Roses’ road crew

  Chris ‘The Piss’ Griffiths: The Stone Roses’ road crew

  Greg Lewerke: Gareth Evans’s American manager and de facto The Stone Roses’ American manager

  Nigel Kerr: booking agent, The Stone Roses

  Jon Brookes: drummer, The Charlatans

  Tim Vigon: creator of Made of Paper, the Stone Roses fanzine

  ‘The Bobs’: Eileen Mulligan, Shirley McGurrin and sisters Colette and Theresa Shryane

  Bruce Mitchell: founder of Manchester Light & Stage Company

  Geoff Wonfor: film-maker, videos for Blackpool, ‘Fools Gold’ and ‘I Wanna Be Adored’

  Keith Jobling: The Bailey Brothers, Factory-affiliated film-makers

  Joe Bloggs: Bushra Ahmed and Shami Ahmed, Manchester fashion company

  Anthony Boggiano: manager of Inspiral Carpets

  Barry Weiss: manager of New York offices of Zomba

  Michael Tedesco: The Stone Roses’ American A&R at Zomba

  Bruce Flohr: radio plugger at RCA

  Robbie Snow: product manager at RCA

  Mark Furman: Jive/Zomba business affairs

  John Fruin (RIP): Jive/Zomba senior management

  John Kennedy: The Stone Roses’ lawyer

  David Geffen: owner of Geffen Records

  Eddie Rosenblatt: president of Geffen Records

  Gary Gersh: A&R at Geffen Records

  Steve Jenkins: general manager of Jive Records

  Maurice Oberstein (RIP): managing director of PolyGram

  Patrick Savage: The Stone Roses’ accountant at OJ Kilkenny

  Simon Crompton: acid house producer

  Brian Pugsley: engineer on Second Coming

  Trevor Taylor: owner of Square One Studios

  Tom Zutaut: A&R at Geffen Records

  Mark To
lle: producer on Second Coming (Manor Park Studios)

  Al ‘Bongo’ Shaw: engineer on Second Coming (Manor Park Studios)

  Simon Dawson: engineer/producer on Second Coming (Rockfield Studios)

  Peter Leake: band manager

  Bill Price: producer/mixer on Second Coming

  Terri Hall: press officer, The Stone Roses

  Doug Goldstein: manager of The Stone Roses, 1994–5

  Bryn Bridenthal: head of PR at Geffen Records

  Sophie Muller: video-maker, ‘Ten Storey Love Song’

  Robbie Maddix: drummer, The Stone Roses, 1995–6

  Susanne Filkins: A&R at Geffen Records

  Nigel Ipinson-Fleming: keyboards, The Stone Roses, 1995–6

  Noel Walters: Ian Brown’s bodyguard

  Martell Prince: The Stone Roses’ bodyguard

  Aziz Ibrahim: guitarist, The Stone Roses, 1996

  John Nuttall: Reni’s manager

  Simon Moran: promoter; manager of The Stone Roses, 2011–

  Prologue

  It was 4 January 1990 and the snow was blowing in off the River Mersey as concert promoter Phil Jones surveyed the Spike Island landscape. Stood beside him, grinning broadly, was The Stone Roses’ manager Gareth Evans, who just before Christmas had made an application to the local council to hold a one-off gig on the island. The site seemed massive and a bit surreal to Jones, and he warned Evans it would be a huge undertaking to get the application agreed by the Licensing Authority and the police. But Jones agreed that if it came off it was going to be a totally unique event – which was exactly what the band wanted.

  Evans and Jones had searched for weeks for a suitable location to put on such a show, one that would surpass the Roses’ night on 18 November at Alexandra Palace in London. While the band had been left under-awed by that gig, the numbers had given Jones confidence. He’d sold 7,500 tickets for Alexandra Palace and estimated he could easily have shifted three times that number. Acid house and rave had opened up a world of possibilities. Through 1989 organizers like Sunrise, Energy and Biology had set up a series of raves in ad hoc countryside locations close to London, with attendances estimated at between 20,000 and 30,000.

  No guitar band had pulled off anything close in size or style to these headline-grabbing raves. But the Roses believed they could. Evans and Jones had spent some time fruitlessly scouring the area around the Thames Estuary in Essex. ‘You could have done amazing gigs at any of the places we visited but they had nothing there,’ Jones recalled. ‘Some were just quarries or abandoned caravan parks that were quite near to water.’ In the summer the pair had organized a tour of seaside resorts for the Roses, and although it had been ultimately abandoned the idea had culminated in the band’s epochal show at the Empress Ballroom in Blackpool. Putting on a gig close to water still dominated their thoughts.