Trevor Herion, born John Trevor Herion, (c. April 1959 – 1 October 1988) was an Irish singer and songwriter, born in

Cork Cork or CORK may refer to: Materials * Cork (material), an impermeable buoyant plant product ** Cork (plug), a cylindrical or conical object used to seal a container ***Wine cork Places Ireland * Cork (city) ** Metropolitan Cork, also known as G ...

who formed part of the

punk Punk or punks may refer to: Genres, subculture, and related aspects * Punk rock, a music genre originating in the 1970s associated with various subgenres * Punk subculture, a subculture associated with punk rock, or aspects of the subculture s ...

and new wave scenes in the 1970s and 1980s. He later became a solo artist, but was not commercially successful and died in 1988.

Life and career

During the late 1970s, he was lead vocalist in a locally successful pub band called "The B-52s", who later changed their name to "The Puritans" on discovering the existence of the similarly named US band. Failure to land a

recording contract A recording contract (commonly called a record contract or record deal) is a legal agreement between a record label and a recording artist (or group), where the artist makes a record (or series of records) for the label to sell and promote. Artists ...

meant the band's dissolution but shortly after he was called to join as lead vocalist in a new wave band called the Civilians, comprised by

Paul Simon Paul Frederic Simon (born October 13, 1941) is an American musician, singer, songwriter and actor whose career has spanned six decades. He is one of the most acclaimed songwriters in popular music, both as a solo artist and as half of folk roc ...

(former Neo and

Radio Stars Radio Stars were an English new wave group formed in early 1977. They released two albums and had one UK Top 40 single. Career Radio Stars were formed by Sparks exile Martin Gordon (bass, songwriter) and also included ex-John's Children voc ...

) on drums, Mark Scholfield on guitar and Michael French on bass. The band only released two singles: ''Made for Television''/''I See My Friends'' (Arista, November 1979) and without Herion or Simon and featuring Michael French on lead vocals ''In America''/''In Search of Pleasure'' (Secret, September 1980). After that, the band broke up (Later, Scholfield and French formed Academy One). By 1980 or 1981, Herion and Simon reunited in another band,

the Fallout Club The Fallout Club was a British synth-pop and new wave band formed by Irish singer Trevor Herion, the experimental drummer Paul Simon, future successful Thomas Dolby on keyboards, and bassist Matthew Seligman in 1981. Herion and Simon formed the ...

, alongside former

Bruce Woolley Bruce Martin Woolley (born 11 November 1953) is an English musician, singer, songwriter, and record producer. He wrote songs with artists such as The Buggles and Grace Jones, including "Video Killed the Radio Star" and " Slave to the Rhythm", an ...

and

the Camera Club Bruce Martin Woolley (born 11 November 1953) is an English musician, singer, songwriter, and record producer. He wrote songs with artists such as The Buggles and Grace Jones, including "Video Killed the Radio Star" and " Slave to the Rhythm", a ...

Thomas Dolby Thomas Morgan Robertson (born 14 October 1958), known by the stage name Thomas Dolby, is an English musician, producer, composer, entrepreneur and teacher. Dolby came to prominence in the 1980s, releasing hit singles including "She Blinded Me ...

and

Matthew Seligman Matthew Seligman (14 July 1955 – 17 April 2020) was an English bassist, best known for his association with the new wave music scene of the 1980s. Seligman was a member of the Soft Boys and the Thompson Twins, and was a sideman for Thomas Do ...

. They only released three singles, which were "Falling Years"/"The Beat Boys", "Dream Soldiers", "Pedestrian Walkway", "Wonderlust"/"Desert Song" (Happy Birthday Records, 1981). After Fallout Club broke up, Herion went solo. He released a number of singles and an unsuccessful

studio album An album is a collection of audio recordings issued on compact disc (CD), Phonograph record, vinyl, audio tape, or another medium such as Digital distribution#Music, digital distribution. Albums of recorded sound were developed in the early ...

called ''Beauty Life'' (1983), an album produced by

Steve Levine Steve LeVine (born in New York) is a journalist. He writes The Electric, new publicationon batteries, electric vehicles, and their impact on society, cities and geopolitics. He is a senior fellow on the Foresight, Strategy and Risk Initiative at ...

, best known for his work with

Culture Club Culture Club are an English pop band formed in London in 1981. The band comprises Boy George (lead vocals), Roy Hay (guitar and keyboards), Mikey Craig (bass guitar) and formerly included Jon Moss (drums and percussion). Emerging in the New ...

. The sleeve of ''Beauty Life'' and its singles were designed by famed

Factory Records Factory Records was a Manchester-based British independent record label founded in 1978 by Tony Wilson and Alan Erasmus. The label featured several important acts on its roster, including Joy Division, New Order, A Certain Ratio, the Durutt ...

designer Peter Saville. Nevertheless, an argument over the unauthorised remixing of a 7" version resulted in Levine taking his name off the album and refusing to promote it. During the 1980s, Herion began to suffer from

severe depression Major depressive disorder (MDD), also known as clinical depression, is a mental disorder characterized by at least two weeks of pervasive low mood, low self-esteem, and loss of interest or pleasure in normally enjoyable activities. Introdu ...

. He died from suicide on 1 October 1988 at the age of 28.

Discography

Studio album * ''Beauty Life'' (1983) Singles * "Kiss of No Return" (1982) * "Dreamtime" (1983) * "Fallen Angel" (1983) * "Love Chains" (1983)

References

External links

Trevor Herion — ''Forever Young''
Fledgling Trevor Herion tribute web * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Herion, Trevor 1959 births 20th-century Irish male singers Irish new wave musicians 1988 suicides 1988 deaths Suicides in the Republic of Ireland Musicians from County Cork