Tony Friel (born 4 May 1958)
is an English bass guitarist, known for his role in different
new wave bands.
He attended Heys Boys Secondary School, where he met
Martin Bramah and attained an art
O-Level
The O-Level (Ordinary Level) is a subject-based qualification conferred as part of the General Certificate of Education. It was introduced in place of the School Certificate in 1951 as part of an educational reform alongside the more in-depth ...
. He and Bramah shared many interests. In the mid-1970s, they were introduced by their friend Barbara Smith to her brother
Mark E. Smith
Mark Edward Smith (5 March 1957 – 24 January 2018) was an English singer, who was the lead singer, lyricist and only constant member of the post-punk group the Fall. Smith formed the band after attending the June 1976 Sex Pistols gig at the ...
and his friend
Una Baines. Smith, Baines, Bramah and Friel shared interests in music, and formed their first band,
the Fall.
Friel remained until December 1977, then he left.
After the Fall, Friel formed a project called Contact and a band called
the Passage
Passage, The Passage or Le Passage may refer to:
Arts and entertainment Films
* ''Passage'' (2008 film), a documentary about Arctic explorers
* ''Passage'' (2009 film), a short movie about three sisters
* ''The Passage'' (1979 film), starring ...
. In late 1978, he and his former Fall bandmate
Karl Burns
Karl Burns (born Carl Birtles,1958 in Manchester, England) is a British musician best known as the drummer for the Fall, featuring in many incarnations of the band between 1977 and 1998.
Although several musicians have rejoined the Fall havi ...
joined
the Teardrops, a group which included
Buzzcocks
Buzzcocks are an English punk rock band formed in Bolton, England in 1976 by singer-songwriter-guitarist Pete Shelley and singer-songwriter Howard Devoto. They are regarded as a seminal influence on the Manchester music scene, the independen ...
bassist
Steve Garvey. They released the ''Leave Me No Choice'' EP, and in 1980, the ''Final Vinyl'' album, before breaking up.
In subsequent years Friel played with R&B bands. Later he was member of the Woodbank Streetband.
Discography
*''Bingo-Master's Break-Out'' – The Fall (1978)
*''New Love Songs'' 7-inch EP – Passage (Object Music, 1978)
*''Future'' 7-inch EP – Contact (Object Music, 1979)
See also
*
List of The Fall members
References
External links
The website of Tony Friel
{{DEFAULTSORT:Friel, Tony
1958 births
English rock bass guitarists
Male bass guitarists
English rock guitarists
English male guitarists
The Fall (band) members
Musicians from Birkenhead
Living people