{"title":"Billy Mackenzie","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eBilly MacKenzie was a Scottish musician born on March 27, 1957 in Dundee, Scotland. He gained recognition as the lead vocalist and primary songwriter for the band Associates, which he formed with Alan Rankine in the late 1970s. Together, they released their first 7\" cover of David Bowie's \"Boys Keep Swinging\". The duo went on to produce a series of highly acclaimed albums and singles under the Associates name.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eAfter parting ways with Alan in 1982, Billy continued his musical journey as The Associates with various line-ups. Throughout his career, he collaborated with other artists such as Skids and Yello, lending his distinctive vocals to their projects. In addition to his work with The Associates, Billy also released solo singles under different names like \"MacKenzie sings Orbidoig\", \"Holger Hiller featuring Billy Mackenzie\", and \"BEF featuring Billy MacKenzie\".\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eIn 1992, Billy embarked on proper solo ventures under his own name with the release of the album \"Outernational\" and several accompanying singles. He continued to collaborate with notable musicians including Yello, Peach, Barry Adamson, Apollo Four Forty, Loom, and Siobhan Fahey.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eTragically, at the age of 39 on January 22nd, 1997 in Auchterhouse near Dundee Scotland,\u003cen\u003e\u003c\/en\u003e took his own life\u003c\/p\u003e","products":[{"product_id":"satellite-life-recordings-1995-1996","title":"Satellite Life Recordings 1995-1996","description":"\u003cp\u003eCoinciding with the 25-year anniversary of iconic vocalist \u003cstrong\u003eBilly MacKenzie\u003c\/strong\u003e's passing, a new triple-CD collection, highlighting his collaborations with \u003cstrong\u003eSteve Aungle\u003c\/strong\u003e. Re-assembling past recordings with several previously unreleased songs (including some collaborations with \u003cstrong\u003eDennis Wheatley\u003c\/strong\u003e and \u003cstrong\u003eLaurence Jay Cedar\u003c\/strong\u003e).\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eLovingly presented with hitherto unseen photos of Billy from the relevant period, with incisive sleeve-notes from \u003cstrong\u003eSteve Aungle\u003c\/strong\u003e and other collaborators.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eFirst with \u003cem\u003eThe Associates\u003c\/em\u003e and then as a solo artist, \u003cstrong\u003eBilly MacKenzie\u003c\/strong\u003e blazed a trail with a tenor voice which can truly be described as unique. Tragically, the singer took his own life when he was only 39 years old in January 1997. A quarter century later, this new package pays tribute to a talent who left us before his time.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eHailing from Dundee, Scotland, MacKenzie formed \u003cem\u003eThe Associates\u003c\/em\u003e with \u003cstrong\u003eAlan Rankine\u003c\/strong\u003e on the back of the punk scene. The band enjoyed huge critical acclaim, chart success, and cult status but the pair parted company in 1983. Thereafter, \u003cstrong\u003eBilly\u003c\/strong\u003e continued to make adventurous, charismatic, soulful records. While not reaching the same commercial heights, his talents continued to be obvious to his loyal fanbase.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eAround 1994, \u003cstrong\u003eBilly\u003c\/strong\u003e met \u003cstrong\u003eSteve Aungle\u003c\/strong\u003e. The pair sparked off each other, prompting a purple patch for making new music. Sadly, little if any of these sessions were issued during \u003cstrong\u003eBilly\u003c\/strong\u003e's lifetime. Some recordings appeared on two posthumous albums, \u003cem\u003eBeyond The Sun\u003c\/em\u003e (1997) and \u003cem\u003eEurocentric\u003c\/em\u003e (2001). A couple more surfaced on \u003cem\u003eAuchtermatic\u003c\/em\u003e (2004).\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eHowever, \u003cstrong\u003eSteve\u003c\/strong\u003e had long felt that the recordings hadn't been presented or sequenced appropriately. Therefore, to coincide with the quarter-century anniversary of \u003cstrong\u003eBilly\u003c\/strong\u003e's passing, \u003cstrong\u003eSteve\u003c\/strong\u003e has curated this new triple-CD collection, which re-assembles past recordings with several previously unreleased songs (including some collaborations with \u003cstrong\u003eDennis Wheatley\u003c\/strong\u003e and with \u003cstrong\u003eLaurence Jay Cedar\u003c\/strong\u003e).\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eLovingly presented with hitherto unseen photos of Billy from the relevant period, with incisive sleeve-notes from \u003cstrong\u003eSteve Aungle\u003c\/strong\u003e and other collaborators, \u003cem\u003eSatellite Life\u003c\/em\u003e captures the spirit – if that was possible – of one of the true talents in British music to have emerged since punk.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Cherry Red","offers":[{"title":"CD | x3","offer_id":50459046510923,"sku":"1144577","price":19.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0867\/1120\/6219\/files\/3296c746-e7ba-49db-8d6f-e0bd7de397e7_thumbnail_4096.jpg?v=1727216732"}],"url":"https:\/\/shop.roughtrade.com\/collections\/billy-mackenzie.oembed","provider":"Rough Trade","version":"1.0","type":"link"}