Rob Fisher (5 November 1956 – 25 August 1999) was an English keyboardist and songwriter from

Cheltenham Cheltenham (), also known as Cheltenham Spa, is a spa town and borough on the edge of the Cotswolds in the county of Gloucestershire, England. Cheltenham became known as a health and holiday spa town resort, following the discovery of mineral s ...

,Naked Eyes – The Story
Discog.info England, who achieved chart success as a member of the new wave band

Naked Eyes Naked Eyes are an English new wave band"All Eyes on Pete Byrne", ''Newsday'', 15 October 2013 that rose to prominence in the early 1980s. The band had four US top 40 singles. The group's first hit, "Always Something There to Remind Me", was ...

and, later,

Climie Fisher Climie Fisher were a British pop duo formed by vocalist Simon Climie and former Naked Eyes keyboardist Rob Fisher. In 1987–88, they had two international hit singles: " Rise to the Occasion" and "Love Changes (Everything)". Career Simon Cli ...

. He attended

Lord Wandsworth College Lord Wandsworth College (LWC) is a co-educational independent school in Long Sutton, Hampshire, England, for day and boarding pupils between the ages of 11–18, which occupies a 1,200 acre campus and is known for its charitable foundation. It ...

in Hampshire, where he was a member of a band called Cirrus with Nick Ryall (guitar and flute) and Ray Coop (bass).

Career

Fisher's early bands were Whitewing (1975–1978) and the Xtians (1978), both during his time at the

University of Bath (Virgil, Georgics II) , mottoeng = Learn the culture proper to each after its kind , established = 1886 (Merchant Venturers Technical College) 1960 (Bristol College of Science and Technology) 1966 (Bath University of Technology) 1971 (univ ...

. In 1979, he joined up with

Pete Byrne Peter James Byrne (born 9 June 1954) is an English recording artist, and lead singer for the pop/ new wave duo Naked Eyes, during the earlier years of the 1980s. He is well known for his 1983 cover version of "Always Something There to Remi ...

to form

Neon Neon is a chemical element with the symbol Ne and atomic number 10. It is a noble gas. Neon is a colorless, odorless, inert monatomic gas under standard conditions, with about two-thirds the density of air. It was discovered (along with krypton ...

, whose first single "Making Waves/Me I See in You" was released on their own 3D Music label. The band later went on to recruit Neil Taylor,

Manny Elias Manny Elias (born 21 February 1953) is an Indian drummer and record producer of British descent. He is notable for being the original drummer with Tears for Fears during the 1980s. Originally a member of the rock band Interview from Bathford, ...

Curt Smith Curt Smith (born 24 June 1961) is a British singer, songwriter, musician, record producer, and co-founding member of the pop rock band Tears for Fears along with childhood friend Roland Orzabal. Smith plays bass guitar, has co-written several ...

and

Roland Orzabal Roland Orzabal (born Roland Jaime Orzabal de la Quintana; 22 August 1961) is a British musician, singer-songwriter, record producer, and author. He is best known as a co-founder of Tears for Fears, of which he is the main songwriter and joint v ...

before they finally broke up in December 1981. In 1982, Fisher and Pete Byrne, who were key figures in the early days of

synth-pop Synth-pop (short for synthesizer pop; also called techno-pop; ) is a subgenre of new wave music that first became prominent in the late 1970s and features the synthesizer as the dominant musical instrument. It was prefigured in the 1960s ...

, formed the duo

, while in 1981 Smith and Orzabal formed

Tears for Fears Tears for Fears are an English pop rock band formed in Bath, England, in 1981 by Roland Orzabal and Curt Smith. Founded after the dissolution of their first band, the mod-influenced Graduate, Tears for Fears were associated with the new wav ...

. Naked Eyes' two biggest

hits Hits or H.I.T.S. may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Music * ''H.I.T.S.'', 1991 album by New Kids on the Block * ''...Hits'' (Phil Collins album), 1998 * ''Hits'' (compilation series), 1984–2006; 2014 - a British compilation album se ...

were their rendition of the

Burt Bacharach Burt Freeman Bacharach ( ; born May 12, 1928) is an American composer, songwriter, record producer and pianist who composed hundreds of pop songs from the late 1950s through the 1980s, many in collaboration with lyricist Hal David. A six-time Gra ...

song "

Always Something There to Remind Me "(There's) Always Something There to Remind Me" is a song written in the 1960s by songwriting team Burt Bacharach and Hal David. Originally recorded as a demo (music), demo by Dionne Warwick in 1963, "(There's) Always Something There to Remind Me ...

", and the self-penned " Promises, Promises". They had two more US top 40 hits, "When the Lights Go Out" and "(What) In the Name of Love", before going their separate ways. They resumed their writing partnership after a five-year break, and some of the songs written during this period appeared on the 2001 Pete Byrne album, ''The Real Illusion''. In 1987, Fisher re-emerged as one half of the

pop duo A pop duo is a pop music group with only two members. Examples of pop duos Male * A Great Big World * Associates *Charles & Eddie *Erasure * Go West *Godley & Creme *Hall & Oates *Heaven 17 *Lighthouse Family *Marcus & Martinus *Pet Shop Boys ...

with singer-songwriter

Simon Climie Simon Climie (born 7 April 1957) is an English songwriter/producer and the former lead singer of the UK duo Climie Fisher. Biography Climie was born in London. Beginning his career primarily as a songwriter/session musician, Climie found him ...

. Together they took "

Love Changes (Everything) "Love Changes (Everything)" is a 1987 single by British pop duo Climie Fisher that gained international success after a re-release in 1988. The song was later covered and released by house music duo Musikk. Songwriters Simon Climie, Dennis Morg ...

" to the UK No. 2 spot, while the hip hop-inspired " Rise to the Occasion" also cracked the top 10 in the United Kingdom. After the break-up of Climie Fisher, Fisher collaborated on several songs with

Rick Astley Richard Paul Astley (born 6 February 1966) is an English singer, songwriter and radio personality, who has been active in music for several decades. He gained worldwide fame in the 1980s, having multiple hits including his signature song "Ne ...

and

Jules Shear Jules Mark Shear (born March 7, 1952) is an American singer, songwriter, and guitarist. He wrote the Cyndi Lauper hit single " All Through the Night" and The Bangles' hit "If She Knew What She Wants", and charted a hit as a performer with "Stead ...

. For some years, Fisher owned his own studio, The StoneRoom, in

Shepherd's Bush Shepherd's Bush is a district of West London, England, within the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham west of Charing Cross, and identified as a major metropolitan centre in the London Plan. Although primarily residential in character, i ...

, where, until shortly before his death, he had been working with Pete Byrne on a new Naked Eyes studio album.

Death

Fisher died on 25 August 1999, aged 42, following surgery for bowel cancer.

Discography

with Neon

*" Making Waves" / "Me I See in You" (1980) *"Communication Without Sound" (1981)

with Naked Eyes

*'' Burning Bridges'' (1983) *'' Fuel for the Fire'' (1984)

with Climie Fisher

* ''

Everything Everything, every-thing, or every thing is all that exists; the opposite of nothing, or its complement. It is the totality of things relevant to some subject matter. Without expressed or implied limits, it may refer to anything. The univers ...

'' (1987) * ''

Coming In for the Kill ''Coming In for the Kill'' is the second and last album by British pop duo Climie Fisher, released in October 1989. The album was less successful than its predecessor ''Everything'', peaking at #35 in the United Kingdom. The track "Facts of Love" ...

'' (1989)

References

External links

People Who Died
{{DEFAULTSORT:Fisher, Rob 1956 births 1999 deaths People from Cheltenham English songwriters English keyboardists English new wave musicians British synth-pop new wave musicians Sophisti-pop musicians Alumni of the University of Bath Musicians from Bath, Somerset Deaths from colorectal cancer Deaths from cancer in the United Kingdom People educated at Lord Wandsworth College Musicians from Gloucestershire 20th-century English musicians Neon (British band) members Naked Eyes members Climie Fisher members