Nick Tesco

Nick Lightowlers (1955 – 26 February 2022) was a British performer, lyricist, producer, and music industry professional better known to many by his stage name Nick Tesco, the lead singer of The Members.[1]

Nick Tesco
Birth nameNick Lightowlers
Born1955
OriginBelfast
Died26 February 2022
Genresrock, pop, punk
Occupation(s)singer, songwriter, actor
Instrument(s)vocals
Years active1976–2008

Career

As a founding member and co-songwriter of the Members, Tesco fronted the band from 1976 until his departure and the subsequent split of the band in 1983.[2] The Members, from Camberley, Surrey, signed with Virgin Records at the tail-end of punk in 1978 and had a No.12 hit with the single "The Sound of the Suburbs". Co-written by Tesco and Jean-Marie Carroll, the single reportedly sold 250,000 copies and went on to become a staple of punk compilations.

After leaving the band, Tesco co-performed and released the 1983 single "Cost of Living" for UK based independent label Albion Records with J. Walter Negro.[3]

Albion Records was a label he had previously worked for as a producer (The Outpatients single "New Japanese Hairstyles" (1981)[4]) and it was as a producer that he continued to work for the remainder of the decade - extensively for CBS, but also East West, WEA and Ariola.[5]

In 1989, he appeared in Leningrad Cowboys Go America, written and directed by Aki Kaurismäki, and starring Jim Jarmusch, a film about a fictional Russian rock band touring the US. This fictional band then toured and recorded in real life from 1990 until 1994.[6] Leningrad Cowboys Go America was followed five years later by a sequel, Leningrad Cowboys Meet Moses (1994) and a concert film Total Balalaika Show (1994).[7]

In 1998, he joined Music Week and produced the Music Week Directory from 1999 until 2009[8] and also appeared in other films such as Iron Horsemen[9] and I Hired a Contract Killer[10] and BBC 6's Roundtable. [11]

In 2007, the Members reformed and toured the UK.[12]

Death

Lightowlers died aged 67 on 26 February 2022.[13]

References
  1. "Nicky Tesco of UK punks The Members has died aged 66". NME. 2022-02-28. Retrieved 2022-03-01.
  2. "The Members: how we made Sound of the Suburbs". the Guardian. 2021-04-12. Retrieved 2022-02-27.
  3. J.Walter Negro / Nicky Tesco - Cost Of Living, retrieved 2022-02-27
  4. The Outpatients - New Japanese Hairstyles, retrieved 2022-02-27
  5. "Nicky Tesco". Discogs. Retrieved 2022-03-01.
  6. "Leningrad Cowboys", Wikipedia, 2022-02-20, retrieved 2022-02-27
  7. "Nicky Tesco". IMDb. Retrieved 2022-02-27.
  8. "Tributes to Nick Tesco, punk icon and Music Week journalist: 'A genuinely great human being'". www.musicweek.com. Retrieved 2022-03-01.
  9. Charmant, Gilles (1995-01-27), Iron Horsemen (Action, Comedy), Villealfa Filmproductions, Union Générale Cinématographique (UGC), Noé Productions, retrieved 2022-02-27
  10. Kaurismäki, Aki (1990-10-12), I Hired a Contract Killer (Comedy, Drama, Romance), Villealfa Filmproductions, Svenska Filminstitutet (SFI), Finnkino I, retrieved 2022-02-27
  11. "Blank Generation 19 - The Sound Of Nicky Tesco". Phoenix FM. 2020-06-20. Retrieved 2022-02-27.
  12. "The Sound of the Suburbs – north of Brighton". Brighton and Hove News. 2018-02-04. Retrieved 2022-02-27.
  13. "Mort de Nick Tesco, le chanteur punk des Members". Télérama (in French). 2022-02-26. Retrieved 2022-02-27.
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