Alkatrazz were an English heavy metal band from

Maidstone Maidstone is the largest town in Kent, England, of which it is the county town. Maidstone is historically important and lies 32 miles (51 km) east-south-east of London. The River Medway runs through the centre of the town, linking it wi ...

Kent Kent is a county in South East England and one of the home counties. It borders Greater London to the north-west, Surrey to the west and East Sussex to the south-west, and Essex to the north across the estuary of the River Thames; it faces ...

. Formed in 1980 as part of the

new wave of British heavy metal The new wave of British heavy metal (commonly abbreviated as NWOBHM) was a nationwide musical movement that started in England in the mid-1970s and achieved international attention by the early 1980s. Journalist Geoff Barton coined the term i ...

(NWOBHM) movement, the group originally featured lead vocalist Craig Stevens, guitarist and backing vocalist Bob Jenner, bassist Gary Bevan, and drummer and backing vocalist Nicko Parsons. In 1981 they signed to

RCA Records RCA Records is an American record label currently owned by Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America. It is one of Sony Music's four flagship labels, alongside RCA's former long-time rival Columbia Records; also A ...

and released their debut album ''Young Blood'', followed by their second ''Radio 5'' the following year. Shortly after the latter's release, Alkatrazz were dropped by the label. Bevan was briefly replaced by Phillip Tame, before the group disbanded in 1983.

History

Bob Jenner and Nicko Parsons originally performed as part of jazz fusion band Interface, before being persuaded by their manager Tony Tullett to "move to a more rock direction". After bringing in bassist Gary Bevan, the group began rehearsing with a second guitarist called Dave Saunders, before Craig Stevens was enlisted after responding to an advertisement in '' Melody Maker'' magazine. The band took on the name Alkatrazz and spent "around six months" performing local shows before they were signed by

, following a performance on the

BBC Radio Kent BBC Radio Kent is the BBC's local radio station serving the county of Kent. It broadcasts on FM, DAB, digital TV and via BBC Sounds from studios at The Great Hall in Tunbridge Wells. According to RAJAR, the station has a weekly audience of ...

Rock Show. Alkatrazz recorded their debut album ''Young Blood'' at Magritte and Regents Park Studios in

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

, which was released in May 1981 preceded the month before by their first single "Rockin' High". The band toured in promotion of the album alongside fellow NWOBHM acts Magnum,

Tygers of Pan Tang Tygers of Pan Tang are an English heavy metal band who are part of the new wave of British heavy metal movement. They formed in 1978 in Whitley Bay, England, and were active until 1987. The band reformed in 1999 and continue to record and perf ...

and

Samson Samson (; , '' he, Šīmšōn, label= none'', "man of the sun") was the last of the judges of the ancient Israelites mentioned in the Book of Judges (chapters 13 to 16) and one of the last leaders who "judged" Israel before the institution o ...

. Shortly after touring with Samson, Alkatrazz returned to the studio to record their second album ''Radio 5'', on which they adopted a sound more akin to American

album-oriented rock Album-oriented rock (AOR, originally called album-oriented radio) is an FM radio format created in the United States in the 1970s that focuses on the full repertoire of rock albums and is currently associated with classic rock. Album-orien ...

(AOR) acts. The album featured guest appearances by

Toni Childs Toni Childs (born October 29, 1957) is an American-Australian singer-songwriter. She is best known for her songs "Don't Walk Away" (a ''Billboard'' Hot 100 hit in the United States in 1988), "I've Got to Go Now", a Top 5 hit in Australia in 19 ...

and

Mel Collins Melvyn Desmond Collins (born 5 September 1947, Isle of Man) is a British saxophonist, flautist and session musician. Collins has played in several progressive rock groups, having been a member of King Crimson on two occasions (the first from ...

. Shortly after the release of ''Radio 5'', however, Alkatrazz were dropped by RCA. Bevan was fired from the band around the same time, which according to Stevens was "a knee jerk reaction born out of frustration", and was replaced by their sound engineer Phillip Tame. Desipte several sources claiming that Parsons was replaced by former

Iron Maiden Iron Maiden are an English heavy metal band formed in Leyton, East London, in 1975 by bassist and primary songwriter Steve Harris. While fluid in the early years of the band, the lineup for most of the band's history has consisted of Harri ...

drummer Clive Burr in 1983, he was not. Burr joined an American group with a similar name. Bevan has commented on Burr reportedly having joined, "I have no idea where that one came from but I do think it's quite funny." Shortly thereafter, Alkatrazz disbanded.

Members

*Craig Stevens – lead vocals *Bob Jenner – guitar, backing vocals *Nicko Parsons – drums, percussion, backing vocals *Gary Bevan – bass *Phillip Tame – bass

Discography

Studio albums *''Young Blood'' (1981) *''Radio 5'' (1982) Singles *"Rockin' High" (1981) *"You and the Night" (1981) *"Think It Over" (1982)

References

{{reflist Musical groups from Kent English hard rock musical groups English heavy metal musical groups New Wave of British Heavy Metal musical groups RCA Records artists Musical groups established in 1980 Musical groups disestablished in 1983