Alastair Donaldson (27 April 1955, in Edinburgh – 18 June 2013, in Edinburgh) was a

Scottish Scottish usually refers to something of, from, or related to Scotland, including: *Scottish Gaelic, a Celtic Goidelic language of the Indo-European language family native to Scotland *Scottish English *Scottish national identity, the Scottish ide ...

multi-instrumentalist, and was the bass guitar player for the Scottish punk/

pop Pop or POP may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Music * Pop music, a musical genre Artists * POP, a Japanese idol group now known as Gang Parade * Pop!, a UK pop group * Pop! featuring Angie Hart, an Australian band Albums * ''Pop'' (G ...

band The Rezillos, for whom he played under the stage name of William Mysterious.Strong, Martin C.: "The Great Alternative & Indie Discography", 1999, Canongate, He was a formative member of the folk ensemble Silly Wizard prior to his involvement with The Rezillos, and appears on many of their recordings under his real name. He appears on the Rezillos' second single for Sire Records, featuring the songs "(My Baby Does) Good Sculptures" and "Flying Saucer Attack" and also on their first studio album ''

Can't Stand The Rezillos ''Can't Stand the Rezillos'' is the debut studio album by Edinburgh-based punk band the Rezillos, released on Sire Records on 21 July 1978. The album has a more mainstream pop and rock and roll sound than the punk music of the time, and includes ...

''. He took over the bass slot in the Rezillos whilst working as their saxophonist. He left The Rezillos after a British tour supporting The Ramones, although he did make a guest appearance at the Rezillos' final gig at the Glasgow Apollo, where he returned to his original role of saxophone player alongside his replacement on bass guitar, Simon Templar (born Simon Broomfield). This performance was captured on The Rezillos' live album, ''Mission Accomplished (But The Beat Goes On)''. He also appeared on the B-side of the single version of "Top of The Pops", playing saxophone on the instrumental track, "20,000 Rezillos under the Sea". This track itself was a re-imagining of the " William Tell Overture" by the classical composer

Rossini Gioachino Antonio Rossini (29 February 1792 – 13 November 1868) was an Italian composer who gained fame for his 39 operas, although he also wrote many songs, some chamber music and piano pieces, and some sacred music. He set new standards f ...

. After leaving the Rezillos, he released one single in 1982 as William Mysterious with Alastair Donaldson on the independent Mezzanine label, "Security of Noise" b/w "Alright". After The Rezillos split up for the first time in 1978, former members became

The Revillos The Rezillos are a punk/ new wave band formed in Edinburgh, Scotland, in 1976. Although emerging at the same time as other bands in the punk rock movement, the Rezillos did not share the nihilism or social commentary of their contemporaries, bu ...

, and Donaldson rejoined them in 1979 for the ''Rev Up'' LP where he once again played bass. After this final outing with The Rezillos he retired from recording and touring, but was still semi active in live work in his native Edinburgh up until his death on 18 June 2013. He is survived by a daughter, Ailsa, and a son, John, as well as his wife Ksenija Horvat.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Donaldson, Alastair People educated at George Watson's College Scottish bass guitarists 2013 deaths 1955 births Silly Wizard members