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Mike Peters, front man of the Welsh New Wave band The Alarm, who was known primarily for her hits “Sixty Eight Guns”, “Strength” and “Rain in the SummerTime” from the eighties. He was 66 years old.
The alarm and the connection to U2
The alarm were often with U2 compared because the two bands closed a close friendship in the early 1980s and The Alarm in 1983 appeared as a opening advocate for U2 on their “War” tour. Despite the clear similarities between the singing styles of Bono and Peters, The Alarm’s music was less hymn and focused more on acoustic guitars.
Different musical orientations: acoustics instead of hymns
“When we started, we tried a few songs on the electric guitar. But they didn’t sound as good as on the acoustic guitar that we had written on,” said Peters in 1983 Jim Henke from Rolling Stone. ‘So we thought:’ Let’s play the songs on the instrument on which they were written. ‘ And we slowly developed the acoustic guitar from a very personal, large -sounding instrument that is only played by one person to an instrument that also sounds great in front of a large audience, no matter how many people to see the band. ”
Mike Peters’ away from the punk fan to the rock icon
Mike Peters grew up in the remote Welsh city of Rhyl. As a child, he met his future alarm bandmates Nigel Twist and Dave Sharp. And they dreamed of getting out great as a musician. Her life changed forever on September 13, 1976, when they traveled to Chester in England to see the sex pistols in a club called Quaintways.
Early years in Wales and inspiration through the sex pistols
“Your attitude was incredible,” said Peters in 1988 Jimmy Guterman from Rolling Stone. “The music touched me deep inside in a way that I couldn’t understand at all. I felt ready to explode. Even if the sex Pistols later became a joke figure, I think most people who saw them recognized their potential.”
The foundation of The Toilets and Seventeen
Peters and his friends from childhood founded a punk band called The Toilets after the concert. And finally changed their name in Seventeen, after the song of the same name of the sex pistols. After they had struggled in the punk scene for a few years without any noteworthy success, they changed their name again in 1981. They called themselves “The Alarm”. And took up their debut single “Unsafe Building”, which caused a sensation in England and finally brought them into a record deal with IRS.
Breakthrough and popularity in the 1980s
Bono became one of her first fans. “There are so many artists who speak of the fact that they want to avoid clichés in their music. But they rarely deviate from it in their lifestyle,” the U2 front man told Rolling Stone in 1983. “But The Alarm are not like that. You have a new mentality towards Rock ‘N’ Roll-Music. It is not important that you play acoustic guitars. It depends on you. When great music is created, there are usually great people behind it, and The Alarm are great people.”
Success with the debut album “Declaration”
The “War” tour through America in 1983 made The Alarm known to an audience across the country. And drove up the sales figures of her debut album “Declaration” from 1984. In England they were able to secure a large audience throughout the entire 1980s and landed hits like “Where were you you hiding when the Storm Broke?” And “A New South Wales” in the charts, but the mainstream success in the USA was denied them.
However, in 1988 they were the opening act for Bob Dylan at a series of concerts in the USA. Peters was called on stage twice to sing with Dylan “Knockin ‘on Heaven’s Door”.
The ongoing challenges in Mike Peters’ life
The Alarm dissolved in 1991. Three years later, Peters published his solo debut album “Breathe”. However, there was no large audience. In 1996 he was diagnosed with lymph gland cancer. He recovered completely, but has repeatedly fought against cancer in the past three decades of his life.
At the beginning of the 2000s, Peters began to perform again as the alarm with a new accompanying band. But the original members only came together again in 2005 when the VH1 show “Bands Reunited” pushed for it. However, reunification only lasted as long as the filming for the episode lasted.
Commitment to Big Country and Light of Day Benefiz concerts
In 2011 Peters lead singer of the Scottish New Wave band Big Country and replaced the original lead singer Stuart Adamson, who died in 2001. Big Country’s incarnation cited by Peters only lasted two years. In the following years, Peters became an integral part of the “Light of Day” benefit concert series in New Jersey, where he had the opportunity to stand on stage with Bruce Springsteen several times. And sometimes even to share a single microphone.
Legacy and last years by Mike Peters
Peters announced three years ago that his leukemia had returned. “I am still alive and have an incredibly narrow family around me,” he wrote in a letter to his fans. “I also know that I can count on the strength and power of the large alarm community that takes care of me personally. Just like the texts and the music and everything that holds us together through this unique connection. I can still sing. Sing the guitar. And write songs. And I am grateful for all the simple things in life that keep me on life.”