Stephen Norman Priest (23 February 1948 – 4 June 2020) was an English musician who was the

bassist A bassist (also known as a bass player or bass guitarist) is a musician who plays a bass instrument such as a double bass (upright bass, contrabass, wood bass), bass guitar (electric bass, acoustic bass), keyboard bass (synth bass) or a low br ...

(and, later, co-lead vocalist) of the glam rock band

The Sweet Sweet (known as the Sweet until the early 1970s) are a British glam rock band who rose to prominence in the 1970s. Their best-known line-up consisted of lead vocalist Brian Connolly, bassist Steve Priest, guitarist Andy Scott and drummer ...

Early life

Priest was born in Hayes, Middlesex. He made his own bass guitar and began playing in local bands as a young teenager, after being influenced by artists such as

Jet Harris Terence "Jet" Harris (6 July 1939 – 18 March 2011) was an English rock and roll musician. He was an original member of Cliff Richard's backing band the Shadows, serving as the bass guitarist from the group's inception until April 1962, aft ...

of the

Shadows A shadow is a dark area on a surface where light from a light source is blocked by an object. In contrast, shade occupies the three-dimensional volume behind an object with light in front of it. The cross-section of a shadow is a two-dimensiona ...

, the

Rolling Stones The Rolling Stones are an English Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1962. Active for over six decades, they are one of the most popular, influential, and enduring bands of the Album era, rock era. In the early 1960s, the band pione ...

and

The Who The Who are an English Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1964. Their classic lineup (1964–1978) consisted of lead vocalist Roger Daltrey, guitarist Pete Townshend, bassist John Entwistle and drummer Keith Moon. Considered one of th ...

Sweet

In January 1968, Priest was invited to form a four-piece band with vocalist

Brian Connolly Brian Francis Connolly (5 October 1945 – 10 February 1997) was a Scottish singer-songwriter, musician and actor, best known as the lead singer of glam rock band Sweet between 1968 and 1979 and known for his charismatic stage presence and di ...

, drummer Mick Tucker, and guitarist Frank E. Torpey – the band that was to become

. Torpey was replaced by Mick Stewart in July 1969. Guitarist Andy Scott joined in August 1970, following Stewart's departure and the classic line-up was established. The Sweet was a band that went through many ups and downs. Initial success for The Sweet began in 1971, after the band teamed up with songwriters

Nicky Chinn Nicholas Barry Chinn (born 16 May 1945) is an English-American songwriter and record producer. Together with Mike Chapman he had a long string of hit singles in the US and UK in the 1970s and early 1980s, including several international record c ...

and

Mike Chapman Michael Donald Chapman (born 13 April 1947) is an Australian record producer and songwriter who was a major force in the British pop music industry in the 1970s. He created a string of hit singles for artists including The Sweet, Suzi Quatro ...

. However, The Sweet would pen a number of their own hits. Priest often directly backed up Brian Connolly's vocals and took distinctive short high pitched vocal leads which was a key to their musical style at that time. He adopted a camp image, wearing heavy make-up and outrageous costumes. Priest recalled talking to

David Bowie David Robert Jones (8 January 194710 January 2016), known as David Bowie ( ), was an English singer, songwriter and actor. Regarded as one of the most influential musicians of the 20th century, Bowie was acclaimed by critics and musicians, pa ...

backstage on ''

Top of the Pops ''Top of the Pops'' (''TOTP'') is a British record chart television programme, made by the BBC and broadcast weekly between 1January 1964 and 30 July 2006. The programme was the world's longest-running weekly music show. For most of its histo ...

'': “I was plastering this make-up on, and Bowie's going: 'Oh no, no, no. You've got to be subtle.' Bowie just didn't get it. It isn't supposed to be subtle. I'm supposed to look like an old tart." Some controversy arose after the band's performance of the hit song "

Block Buster! "Block Buster!" (also sometimes listed as "Blockbuster!") is a 1973 single by The Sweet. Written by Nicky Chinn and Mike Chapman, and produced by Phil Wainman, "Block Buster!" was the band's sole UK No. 1 hit. Released in January 1973, it spen ...

" on the BBC's ''

'' on 25 December 1973, for which Priest wore a

swastika The swastika (卐 or 卍, ) is a symbol used in various Eurasian religions and cultures, as well as a few Indigenous peoples of Africa, African and Indigenous peoples of the Americas, American cultures. In the Western world, it is widely rec ...

arm band. He appeared in German military uniform on the 1973 Christmas edition of the show. The song was named after the Allied blockbuster bomb. In 2010 Priest said: "It's amazing how everyone still talks about the Nazi uniform... Good old BBC wardrobe department. People always want to know if I was serious. I mean, a gay Hitler. Hello?!" After Brian Connolly left The Sweet in early 1979, Priest became the main singer. This continued until 1982, when the original Sweet disbanded. Invited in 1985 by former bandmate Andy Scott to reform the Sweet, Priest declined.

Later career

During the 1980s, Priest largely reverted to private life but made occasional forays into production and session work, as well as collaborations with other artists such as David Arkenstone and future bandmate Stuart Smith. Priest had a demo session in Los Angeles with the other members of the original Sweet in 1988, with

producing, to see if a studio album and reformation were possible. The band did not agree on terms and the project failed. Despite the difficulties of the late '70s, Priest continued his friendship with former Sweet lead singer Connolly, who was by now in poor health. In 1994, Priest published his autobiography, ''Are You Ready Steve?'', the title of which is taken from the intro to the Sweet's "

The Ballroom Blitz "The Ballroom Blitz" is a song by British glam rock band The Sweet, written by Nicky Chinn and Mike Chapman. The song reached number one in Canada, number two in the UK Singles Chart and the Australian Chart, and number five on the US Billboard H ...

" when Brian Connolly counts in the song with "Are you ready Steve? ...Andy? ...Mick? ...Alright fellas, let's gooooo!", and in 2006, he released a CD titled ''Priest's Precious Poems''. In January 2008, Priest formed a new version of the Sweet, not related to Andy Scott's version of the band. This new band played mainly festivals and venues in the U.S. and Canada. In early 2009, the band released a live CD, recorded in August 2008 at the Morongo Casino in Cabazon, California. While in New York, he formed a band called the Allies with guitarist Marco Delmar and drummer Steve Missal. Success was elusive, although their composition "Talk To Me" was featured in a film, ''Fast Food.''

Personal life

By the time Sweet had disbanded, Priest had divorced his first wife, Pat, and moved to New York City. On 18 June 1981, he married his second wife Maureen (née O'Connor), who was then East Coast Director of Publicity and Artist Relations for Capitol/EMI Records in New York. Shortly after 1985, Priest and his family relocated to Los Angeles. In his later years, Priest lived with his wife Maureen O'Connor and two daughters in

La Cañada Flintridge, California La Cañada Flintridge, commonly known as just , is a city in the foothills of the Verdugo Mountains in Los Angeles County, California, United States. Located in the Crescenta Valley, in the western edge of the San Gabriel Valley, it is the l ...

. He died on 4 June 2020, aged 72.Founding member of the Sweet passes
''thesweetband.com'' Retrieved 5 June 2020. Steve Priest was cremated and his ashes are interred at Forest Lawn Memorial Park, Glendale California. Steve Priest Ashes

Discography

References

External links

The Sweet
*
Steve Priest
at the

British Film Institute The British Film Institute (BFI) is a film and television charitable organisation which promotes and preserves filmmaking and television in the United Kingdom. The BFI uses funds provided by the National Lottery to encourage film production, ...

Steve Priest eBook Site
{{DEFAULTSORT:Priest, Steve 1948 births 2020 deaths English rock bass guitarists British male bass guitarists English rock singers English male singers People from Hayes, Hillingdon English expatriate musicians in the United States The Sweet members Glam rock musicians People from La Cañada Flintridge, California English autobiographers Burials at Forest Lawn Memorial Park (Glendale) Musicians from the London Borough of Hillingdon