Steven William Prestwich (5 March 195416 January 2011) was an English-born Australian drummer, guitarist, singer and songwriter. After relocating from

Liverpool Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the 10th largest English district by population and its metropolitan area is the fifth largest in the United Kingdom, with a popul ...

, Prestwich was the founding and long-term drummer for the band Cold Chisel, which formed in

Adelaide Adelaide ( ) is the capital city of South Australia, the state's largest city and the fifth-most populous city in Australia. "Adelaide" may refer to either Greater Adelaide (including the Adelaide Hills) or the Adelaide city centre. The dem ...

in 1973. He wrote the Cold Chisel songs "

When the War Is Over "When the War Is Over" is a power ballad of Australian band Cold Chisel from their 1982 album ''Circus Animals''. The song was written by drummer Steve Prestwich and issued as the third single from the album, peaking at number 25 on the national ...

" and " Forever Now". Prestwich also had a short spell with the

Little River Band Little River Band (LRB) are a rock band originally formed in Melbourne, Australia, in March 1975. The band achieved commercial success in both Australia and the United States. They have sold more than 30 million records; six studio albums rea ...

in the 1980s. He released two solo albums in the 2000s. Prestwich died on 16 January 2011 following surgery to remove a brain tumour, two months before his 57th birthday.

Biography

Prestwich was born in

, England in 1954. He was a member of a folk-rock band called Sandy in 1970. His family relocated to

Adelaide, South Australia Adelaide ( ) is the list of Australian capital cities, capital city of South Australia, the state's largest city and the list of cities in Australia by population, fifth-most populous city in Australia. "Adelaide" may refer to either Greater A ...

in 1971 when he was 17. He was a member of

Elizabeth Elizabeth or Elisabeth may refer to: People * Elizabeth (given name), a female given name (including people with that name) * Elizabeth (biblical figure), mother of John the Baptist Ships * HMS ''Elizabeth'', several ships * ''Elisabeth'' (sch ...

band Ice from 1971 to 1973. In 1973, he was the founding drummer for heavy metal group, Orange, with the line-up of

Jimmy Barnes James Dixon "Jimmy" Barnes (née Swan; born 28 April 1956) is a Scottish-born Australian rock singer. His career, both as a solo performer and as the lead vocalist with the rock band Cold Chisel, has made him one of the most popular and best-s ...

Ian Moss Ian Richard Moss (born 20 March 1955) is an Australian rock musician from Alice Springs. He is the founding mainstay guitarist and occasional singer of Cold Chisel. In that group's initial eleven year phase from 1973 to 1984, Moss was recorde ...

, Don Walker and Leszek Kaczmarek. Orange evolved into Cold Chisel in 1974 and a year later, Kaczmarek was replaced by

Phil Small Phillip James Small (born 2 August 1954) is an Australian musician and songwriter, who is the bass guitarist for the pub rock band Cold Chisel.McFarlane . Retrieved 17 February 2010.Spencer et al, (2007Small, Phil entry. Retrieved 17 February ...

. Prestwich remained a member until early 1983 and during his time in Cold Chisel, he wrote "

" and "Forever Now". Both songs appeared on the 1982 album '' Circus Animals''. He co-wrote with Walker the song ''

Flame Trees "Flame Trees" is a song by Australian pub rock band Cold Chisel from their 1984 album ''Twentieth Century''. One of their best known songs, it was written by drummer Steve Prestwich and keyboardist Don Walker. On its release it reached No.&nb ...

'' from the 1984 album ''

Twentieth Century The 20th (twentieth) century began on January 1, 1901 ( MCMI), and ended on December 31, 2000 ( MM). The 20th century was dominated by significant events that defined the modern era: Spanish flu pandemic, World War I and World War II, nuclear ...

''. He briefly rejoined Cold Chisel for their Last Stand Tour from October to December 1983. From 1984 to 1986 Prestwich was the drummer in the

. He toured the United States and released two albums with LRB. Little River Band recorded a version of "When the War is Over" with

John Farnham John Peter Farnham Officer of the Order of Australia, AO (born 1 July 1949) is a British born Australian singer. Farnham was a Teen idol, teen pop idol from 1967 until 1979, billed then as Johnny Farnham, but has since forged a career as an Adu ...

on vocals. Prestwich rejoined Cold Chisel in later reformations. Prestwich released his first solo album, ''Since You've Been Gone'' in August 2000, which he also produced. His second album, ''Every Highway'' was released in October 2009. Prestwich was the father of a daughter, Melody, and a son, Vaughan. Prestwich died at the

Macquarie University Hospital The Macquarie University Hospital (abbreviated MUH) is a private teaching hospital owned by Macquarie University. The hospital is located within Macquarie University and is the first private hospital to be located on a university campus in Aust ...

Sydney Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mountain ...

after not regaining consciousness following brain surgery to remove a tumour diagnosed less than two weeks before. Cold Chisel singer Jimmy Barnes later planted a flame tree in Prestwich's memory at the

National Arboretum Canberra The National Arboretum Canberra is a 250-hectare (618 acre) arboretum in Canberra, the national capital of Australia, created after the area was burned out as a result of the Christmas 2001 and 2003 Canberra bushfires: The Himalayan Cedar for ...

Discography

Albums

References

;General * Note: Archived n-linecopy has limited functionality. ;Specific

External links

*
Online memorial
1954 births 2011 deaths Australian drummers British male drummers Australian male singers Cold Chisel members Deaths from brain tumor English male singers English emigrants to Australia Little River Band members Musicians from Liverpool Deaths from cancer in New South Wales Australian rock drummers English rock drummers Australian songwriters {{Australia-musician-stub