Space Waltz are a

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...

glam rock Glam rock is a style of rock music that developed in the United Kingdom in the early 1970s and was performed by musicians who wore outrageous costumes, makeup, and hairstyles, particularly platform shoes and glitter. Glam artists drew on diver ...

band formed in 1974 by frontman Alastair Riddell. In 1974, they had a number-one hit in New Zealand with "

Out on the Street "Out on the Street" is a 1974 single by New Zealand band Space Waltz. The song peaked at number one in the New Zealand singles chart in October 1974, becoming the first glam rock song to achieve this distinction. The Bowie-influenced song was la ...

Career

In 1974, Alastair Riddell (vocals/guitar), Greg Clark (guitar),

Eddie Rayner Anthony Edward Charles Rayner (born 19 November 1952) is a New Zealand musician who spent twelve years as a keyboardist in the band Split Enz. He has also played in the groups Orb, Space Waltz, Crowded House, The Makers, The Angels in 1986-198 ...

(keyboards), Peter Cuddihy (bass), and

Brent Eccles Brent Eccles is best known as the drummer for The Angels, an Australian pub rock band. He has also drummed in: The Breed, Vox Pop, Stuart & The Belmonts, Streetalk, Space Waltz, After Hours, and Citizen Band. Eccles left Citizen Band in 1981, a ...

(drums) had been performing as a

covers band A cover band (or covers band) is a band that plays songs recorded by someone else, sometimes mimicking the original as accurately as possible, and sometimes re-interpreting or changing the original. These remade songs are known as cover songs. Ne ...

named Stewart and the Belmonts. Seeking to record Riddell's original compositions, they entered the television talent quest ''New Faces'' under the name Space Waltz. In the qualifying round they performed "Out on the Street"; in the finals, "Beautiful Boy", creating a stir with Riddell's "androgynous" image (influenced by

David Bowie David Robert Jones (8 January 194710 January 2016), known professionally as David Bowie ( ), was an English singer-songwriter and actor. A leading figure in the music industry, he is regarded as one of the most influential musicians of the ...

's Ziggy Stardust''). Although Space Waltz did not win the final, they attracted attention from rock fans and were promptly signed up by

EMI Records EMI Records (formerly EMI Records Ltd.) is a multinational record label owned by Universal Music Group. It originally founded as a British flagship label by the music company of the same name in 1972, and launched in January 1973 as the succ ...

, who released "Out on the Street" as a single. The song reached number 1 on the New Zealand charts. Eddie Rayner and Alastair Riddell

In 1975 the band's debut album was released, entitled ''Space Waltz by Alastair Riddell'', creating some confusion among the public as to whether Space Waltz was a group or a Riddell solo project. The album, which featured backing vocals by The Yandall Sisters, made the New Zealand Top 20, with the second single, "Fraulein Love" reaching the Top 30. Space Waltz won Best New Artist at the 1975

Recording Arts Talent Awards The Recording Arts Talent Awards (RATA) were an annual award honouring excellence in recorded New Zealand music. The RATAs ran from 1973 to 1976, before being replaced by the RIANZ Awards. History The RATAs were founded in 1973 when the New Ze ...

. The group subsequently flew to Australia but were unable to finalise a record deal there, and disbanded shortly afterwards. Riddell pursued a solo career, Rayner joined

Split Enz Split Enz were a New Zealand rock band formed in Auckland in 1972 by Tim Finn and Phil Judd and had a variety of other members during its existence. Originally started as a folk-oriented group with quirky art rock stylings, the band built a ...

, and Clark and Eccles joined Citizen Band. In 2023, the band reunited for the release of a second album, ''Victory'', which featured a blend of new songs together with re-recordings of selected tracks from their first album.

Discography

Notes

References

External links

Official SiteAudioCulture profile
{{Authority control 1970s in New Zealand music New Zealand glam rock musical groups EMI Records artists Musical groups from Auckland Musical groups established in 1974