Gary Numan
Gary Numan performing in 2007
Background information
Birth name	Gary Anthony James Webb
Born	March 8, 1958 (1958-03-08) (age 50), Hammersmith, West London, England
Genre(s)	Rock, Electronic, Synthpop, New Wave, Experimental, Industrial
Occupation(s)	Singer-songwriter, musician, record producer
Instrument(s)	Vocals, keyboards, guitar, bass guitar, percussion
Years active	1977 - present
Label(s)	Metropolis Records, Beggars Banquet Records, Numa Records, IRS Records, Eagle Records, Mortal Records
Associated acts	Tubeway Army, Paul Gardiner, Bill Sharpe
Website	www.garynuman.co.uk

Gary Numan (born Gary Anthony James Webb on March 8, 1958) is an English singer, composer, and musician. Events 1618 - Johannes Kepler discovers the third law of planetary motion. Year 1958 ( MCMLVIII) was a Common year starting on Wednesday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Hammersmith is an urban centre in the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham in West London, approximately 5 miles (8km west of Charing Cross on West London is the area of Greater London to the west of Central London. England is a Country which is part of the United Kingdom. Its inhabitants account for more than 83% of the total UK population whilst its mainland A music genre is a categorical and typological construct that identifies musical sounds as belonging to a particular category and type of music that can be distinguished from other Rock music is a genre of Popular music often though not necessarily employing Electric guitar, Bass guitar, and Drums. Electronic music is music that employs Electronic musical instruments and Electronic Music technology in its production Synthpop is a subgenre of New Wave and Pop music in which the Synthesizer is the dominant musical instrument New Wave is a Rock music genre that existed during the late 1970s and the 1980s Experimental music is a term introduced by composer John Cage in 1955 Industrial music is a loose term for a number of different styles of Experimental music, especially but not necessarily Electronic music. Singer-songwriter is a term that refers to Performers who write, compose and sing their own material including Lyrics A musician is a person who plays or writes Music. Musicians can be classified by their roles in creating or performing music An instrumentalist plays a In the Music industry, a record producer or music producer has many roles among them controlling the recording sessions coaching and guiding the musicians organizing A musical instrument is a device constructed or modified for the purpose of making Music. Singing is the act of producing musical sounds with the voice, which is often contrasted with Speech. A keyboard instrument is any musical instrument played using a Musical keyboard. The guitar is a Musical instrument with ancient roots that is used in a wide variety of musical styles The electric bass guitar (also called electric bass, or simply bass; ˈbeɪs as in "base" is a Stringed instrument played primarily with the Events Bohemian Rhapsody is named 'The Best Single Of The Last 25 Years' by BPI. In the Music industry, a record label can be a Brand and a Trademark associated with the Marketing of music recordings and Music Metropolis Records is a Philadelphia Pennsylvania based Record label, distributor, and mail-order store specializing in the Electro-industrial Beggars Banquet is an English Independent record label that began as a chain of record shops owned by Martin Mills and Nick Austin, and is part of IRS (International Record Syndicate Records was a Record label, started in the United States in 1979 by Miles Copeland III along with Jay Boberg Eagle Records are a leading independent Record label. Also trading as " Eagle Rock Entertainment " Tubeway Army (1977–1979 was a London -based punk and new wave band led by Gary Webb (now better known by his stage name Gary Numan Paul Gardiner ( 1 May 1958 - 4 February 1984) was a British musician best known for playing Bass guitar Shakatak is a British Jazz-funk band, founded in 1980 Career Shakatak scored a number of chart entries including two Top Events 1618 - Johannes Kepler discovers the third law of planetary motion. Year 1958 ( MCMLVIII) was a Common year starting on Wednesday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. England is a Country which is part of the United Kingdom. Its inhabitants account for more than 83% of the total UK population whilst its mainland He is considered to be one of the pioneers of electronic music and is widely known for his chart-topping 1979 hits "Are 'Friends' Electric?" and "Cars". Electronic music is music that employs Electronic musical instruments and Electronic Music technology in its production " Are 'Friends' Electric? " is a 1979 song by Gary Numan, released under the name Tubeway Army as a single and on the album Replicas " Cars " is a 1979 song by Gary Numan, released as a single from the album The Pleasure Principle. Numan's signature style combines gloomy themes of depersonalisation and alienation accompanied by energetic synthesizer work. Numan is also a licensed aviator.

Biography

Early life

Born in Hammersmith, West London, Gary Webb's father was an airline driver based at Heathrow Airport. Hammersmith is an urban centre in the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham in West London, approximately 5 miles (8km west of Charing Cross on West London is the area of Greater London to the west of Central London. Webb was educated at Town Farm Junior School Stanwell, Ashford County Grammar School, Middlesex, Slough Grammar School ^[1] and Brooklands Technical College. Stanwell is a suburban village in the Surrey borough of Spelthorne. Ashford is a town almost entirely in the Surrey borough of Spelthorne in England, with a small part falling within Greater London "Upton Grammar School" redirects here For the school in Merseyside see Upton Hall School FCJ. He had an early ambition to be an airline pilot, but did not gain any academic qualifications, however he did go on to join the Air Training Corps as a teenager. He then briefly did various jobs including fork lift truck driver, air conditioning ventilator fitter and clerk in an accounts department. A guitar was purchased for him at an early age and he began writing songs when he was about 15 years old. He played in various bands, including Mean Street and The Lasers, before forming Tubeway Army with his uncle, Jess Lidyard, and Paul Gardiner. Tubeway Army (1977–1979 was a London -based punk and new wave band led by Gary Webb (now better known by his stage name Gary Numan Jess Lidyard is the former Drummer of Tubeway Army. He is bandleader Gary Numan 's uncle and played on the band's self-titled debut album and Paul Gardiner ( 1 May 1958 - 4 February 1984) was a British musician best known for playing Bass guitar His initial pseudonym was "Valerian", probably in reference to the hero in French science fiction comic series Valérian and Laureline. Valérian and Laureline ( Valérian et Laureline) also known as Valérian Spatio-Temporal Agent (French Valérian Agent Spatio-Temporel ^[2] Later he picked the name "Numan" from an advert in the "Yellow Pages". The term Yellow Pages refers to a Telephone directory of Businesses categorized according to the product or service provided

1970s

Numan rose to prominence at the tail end of the 1970s as front man, writer and producer for Tubeway Army. After recording an album's worth of punk-influenced demo tapes (released in 1984 as The Plan), he was signed by Beggars Banquet Records in 1978 and quickly released two singles, "That's Too Bad" and "Bombers", neither of which charted. A demo version or demo of a song (shortened from the word "demonstration" is one recorded for reference rather than for release Beggars Banquet is an English Independent record label that began as a chain of record shops owned by Martin Mills and Nick Austin, and is part of " That's Too Bad " is the debut single by Tubeway Army, the band which provided the initial musical vehicle for Gary Numan. " Bombers " is the second single by Gary Numan and his band Tubeway Army, released in 1978 A self-titled, New Wave-oriented debut album later that same year sold out its limited run and introduced Numan's fascination with dystopian science fiction and, more importantly, synthesizers. New Wave is a Rock music genre that existed during the late 1970s and the 1980s Tubeway Army is the debut album by Gary Numan and his band Tubeway Army, released in 1978 A dystopia (from the Greek δυσ- and τόπος alternatively cacotopia, kakotopia, cackotopia, or anti-utopia) is the vision of a society Tubeway Army's third single, the cinematic "Down in the Park" (1979) also failed to chart but it would prove to be one of Numan's most enduring and oft-covered songs; a live version of it can also be seen in the movie Urgh! A Music War. " Down in the Park " is a 1979 single written and recorded by Gary Numan with his band Tubeway Army. Urgh! A Music War is a British Film released in 1981 featuring performances by Punk rock, New Wave, and Post-punk After exposure in a television advertisement for Lee Cooper jeans with the jingle "Don't be a dummy", Tubeway Army released the single "Are 'Friends' Electric?" in May 1979. A television advertisement or television commercial (often just commercial or advert (US or ad (UK is a span of television programming produced " Are 'Friends' Electric? " is a 1979 song by Gary Numan, released under the name Tubeway Army as a single and on the album Replicas The single took seven weeks before it finally reached #1 at the end of June; the parent album Replicas simultaneously climbing to #1 in the album charts. Replicas is an album by Gary Numan and Tubeway Army, released in 1979

A few months later he repeated the feat with "Cars", which became a Top 10 hit in America in 1980 as well, and the 1979 album The Pleasure Principle, both released under Numan's own (assumed) name. " Cars " is a 1979 song by Gary Numan, released as a single from the album The Pleasure Principle. The Pleasure Principle is the third studio album and debut album under his own name by Electronic music pioneer Gary Numan, released in 1979 A sell-out tour ('The Touring Principle') followed; the concert video it spawned is often cited as the first full-length commercial music video release. ^[3][4] The Pleasure Principle was a rock album with no guitars; instead, Numan used synthesisers fed through guitar effects pedals to achieve a phased, metallic tone. Self-produced in a fortnight for very little money, The Pleasure Principle sounded like nothing else, and remains one of Numan's most highly-regarded efforts today. A second single from the album, "Complex", made it to #6 in the UK charts. " Complex " is a song by British musician Gary Numan. The UK Singles Chart is compiled by The Official UK Charts Company (OCC on behalf of the British record industry

Numan was one of pop music's first successful synthesizer stars. He wore costumes and make-up and openly proclaimed his influences: David Bowie, Marc Bolan and contemporary electronic acts such as John Foxx's Ultravox. David Bowie (ˈboʊiː born David Robert Jones on 8 January 1947 is an English Musician, actor producer, and arranger. Marc Bolan (born Mark Feld; 30 September 1947 – 16 September 1977) was an English singer songwriter and Guitarist John Foxx is the stage name of English musician Dennis Leigh. Ultravox (formerly Ultravox!) were a British New Wave band that rose to prominence in the late 1970s/early 1980s On stage his persona came across as aloof, alien and androgynous; in interviews, however, his disarmingly open manner caught many by surprise. Androgyny is a term derived from the Greek words ανήρ ( anér, meaning man and γυνή ( gyné, meaning woman that can refer to either of two Numan's great popularity and unabashed admiration of wealth alienated critics and even some fellow musicians; Yes recorded a sardonic song about him, "White Car," for their 1980 album Drama, a reaction to his habit of tearing around London in the white Chevrolet Corvette given to him by Beggars Banquet. Yes are an English Progressive rock band that formed in London in 1968. Drama is the tenth studio album by British Progressive rock group Yes. London ( ˈlʌndən is the capital and largest urban area in the United Kingdom. The Chevrolet Corvette is a Sports car that has been manufactured by General Motors since 1953 His one-time idol, David Bowie, refused to appear with Numan on an episode of The Kenny Everett Video Show on which both were scheduled to perform. Kenny Everett (born Maurice Cole in Seaforth Lancashire; 25 December 1944 – 4 April 1995 was an English radio DJ and television entertainer Numan bewildered the music press. Music journalism is criticism and reportage about Music. It began in the eighteenth century as comment on what is now thought of as ' Classical music ' He was a driven, creative, troubled 21-year-old loner who still lived with his parents. He was not punk. Punk fashion is the styles of Clothing, Hairstyles, Cosmetics, Jewelry, and Body modifications of the Punk subculture. He was not quite New Romantic either, and retrospectives of the period tended to ignore him and his influence. New Romantic was a short- lived Fashion and music movement that occurred primarily in the United Kingdom and Ireland during the very early 1980s Yet, during this period, Numan generated an army of fans calling themselves Numanoids, enough of whom would remain loyal to carry him through the latter half of the 1980s, when his fortunes began to fall precipitously (even before this time, and throughout his commercial peak, Numan was constantly vilified and ridiculed by the UK music press).

1980s

In 1980 Numan again topped the album charts with Telekon, although the concurrent singles "We Are Glass", "I Die: You Die" and "This Wreckage" reached #5, #6 and #20, respectively. Telekon is the fourth studio album and second album under his own name by Electronic music pioneer Gary Numan, released in 1980 " We Are Glass " is a Gary Numan single released in 1980 " I Die You Die " is a Gary Numan single from 1980 Released shortly before his fourth album Telekon, it continued the anthemic " This Wreckage " is a song written and performed by Gary Numan. The final studio album of what Numan retrospectively termed the "Machine" section of his career,^[5] Telekon reintroduced guitars to Numan's music and featured a wider range of synthesisers. The same year he embarked on his second major tour ("The Teletour") with an even more elaborate stage show than The Touring Principle the previous year. Although considered a success, Numan claimed the tour actually lost him a great deal of money because of the vast expense in mounting it. By this time he was weary of the pressures of fame and announced his retirement from touring with a series of sell-out concerts at Wembley Arena in April 1981, supported by Alternative musician Nash the Slash and Shock, a rock/mime/burlesque/music troupe whose members included Barbie Wilde, Tik and Tok and Carole Caplin. Wembley Arena is a famous Entertainment venue located in Wembley, London, UK. Alternative rock (also called alternative music, alt-rock or simply alternative; known primarily in the UK as indie) is a genre of Nash the Slash is a Canadian Progressive rock, classical, and alternative musician Shock is a music/mime/dance/pop group that was notable in the early 1980s for supporting English pop groups such as Gary Numan, Adam and the Ants, Depeche Barbie Wilde is a Canadian actress and writer best known for appearing as the Female Cenobite in ' Hellbound Hellraiser II ' - the second of eight ' Hellraiser Robotic mime and music duo Tik and Tok (Tim Dry and Sean Crawford began performing together with SHOCK a rock/mime/burlesque/music troupe in the early 1980s with Carole Caplin (born January 8, 1962) was the style adviser to Cherie Blair. The decision to retire would be short-lived – in his autobiography he recalls walking out onto an empty stage after his final concerts and thinking, "What the fuck have I done?" – but it would have a fateful effect on his career, as Numan found the fickle pop audience quickly turned its attention to other artists.

Moving away from the pure electropop that he had made his name with, Numan then experimented with jazz, funk and ethereal, rhythmic pop. Jazz is an American Musical art form which originated in the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States Funk is an American musical style that originated in the mid- to late-1960s when African American musicians blended Soul music, Soul Pop music as a genre features a noticeable rhythmic element catchy melodies and hooks, a mainstream style and conventional structure His first album after his 1981 farewell concerts was the bleak, atmospheric and experimental Dance (1981). Dance is the fifth studio album the third under his own name by Electronic music pioneer Gary Numan, released in 1981 The album charted as high as #3 on the UK charts, but it only produced one hit single ("She's Got Claws") and then dropped out of the charts after only eight weeks. The album featured several distinguished guest players; Mick Karn (bass, saxophone) and Rob Dean (guitar) of Japan, Roger Mason (keyboards) of Models and Roger Taylor (drums) of Queen. Mick Karn (born 24 July 1958 is an English multi-instrumentalist Musician and songwriter most noted as the Bassist for the Art rock band Japan were a British pop/rock group formed in 1974 in Lewisham, southeast London. Models are an Alternative rock group from Melbourne, Australia, which formed in August 1978 and which went into hiatus in 1988 Roger Taylor (born Roger Meddows-Taylor on July 26, 1949 in Dersingham, Norfolk later moved to Kings Lynn is an English Musician Queen were an English rock band formed in 1970 in London by guitarist However, Numan's career had begun to experience a gradual decline, and he was eclipsed initially by new romantic acts such as Adam Ant, and later by The Human League, Duran Duran, and Depeche Mode. New Romantic was a short- lived Fashion and music movement that occurred primarily in the United Kingdom and Ireland during the very early 1980s Adam Ant (born Stuart Leslie Goddard on 3 November 1954 is an English Musician, who gained popularity as the Lead singer of 1980s Duran Duran are an English Pop rock band famous for a long series of popular singles, albums and vivid Music videos for which they've won two Depeche Mode (dəˌpɛʃˈmoʊd are an English Electronic music band formed in 1980 in Basildon, Essex. Each album also saw a new "image", none of which captured the public's imagination to nearly the same extent as the lonely android of the late 1970s.

The more upbeat and danceable I, Assassin (1982) fared less well than Dance. I Assassin is the seventh studio album and the fifth under his own name by Electronic music pioneer Gary Numan, released in 1982 Despite spawning three Top 20 singles, the album peaked at #8 and dropped out of the charts after six weeks. Numan supported the album with a concert tour in America in late 1982 (where he was living as a tax exile), which were his first series of live shows since his farewell at Wembley. A tax exile is one who chooses to leave a country and instead to reside in a foreign nation or jurisdiction because personal Taxes there are appreciably lower or even nil

Warriors (1983) further developed Numan's jazz-influenced style and featured contributions from avant-garde musician Bill Nelson (who fell out with Numan during recording and chose to be uncredited as the album's co-producer) and saxophonist Dick Morrissey (who would play on most of Numan's albums until 1991). Warriors is the eighth studio album and sixth under his own name by Electronic music pioneer Gary Numan, released in 1983 Avant-garde music is a subjective term that can be used in different ways Bill Nelson (born William Nelson 18 December 1948) is a prolific Guitarist, Songwriter, painter and experimental Richard Edwin "Dick" Morrissey ( May 9 1940, Horley, Surrey - November 8 2000, Deal, Kent The album peaked at #12 and, like I, Assassin, spent six weeks in the charts. Warriors was the last album Numan recorded for Beggars Banquet Records, and was supported by a 40-date UK tour (again with support from robotic mime and music duo Tik and Tok) -- Numan's first live tour in the UK since his Wembley appearances in 1981. Numan's look for the album artwork and tour was a Mad Max-influenced black leather costume against a post-apocalyptic backdrop, but this latest image change was scorned by the music press despite the sell-out tour and aggressive vibrancy of his newer sound. Mad Max is a 1979 Australian apocalyptic action thriller Film directed by George Miller and written

Now battling against the increasing public perception that he was a spent force, Numan issued a series of albums and singles on his own record label, Numa. As the decade continued, he experienced a creative malaise, trying to recapture his former chart glory with less distinguished albums, some of which were stylistically derivative of artists like Robert Palmer and Prince. Robert Allen Palmer ( 19 January 1949 – 26 September 2003) born in Batley, Yorkshire, was an English Prince Rogers Nelson (born June 7 1958 in Minneapolis, Minnesota) is an American musician The first album released on Numa, 1984’s Berserker was also notable for being Numan's first foray into music computers/samplers, in this case the PPG Wave. Berserker is the eighth studio album and sixth under his own name by Electronic music pioneer Gary Numan, released in 1984 A sampler is an electronic musical instrument closely related to a Synthesizer. Palm Products GmbH (commonly abbreviated to PPG) was a highly-regarded manufacturer of audio synthesizers. Berserker moved away from the fluid, fretless sound that characterised Numan's previous three albums, featuring instead harder-edged electric bass and drum sounds. The album was also accompanied by a striking blue-and-white visual image, a tour and a live album/video, but it divided critics and fans and commercially was Numan’s least successful release to that date. 1984 also saw the death of Paul Gardiner, who was Numan's bassist and friend since his Tubeway Army days. Paul Gardiner ( 1 May 1958 - 4 February 1984) was a British musician best known for playing Bass guitar

Numan's next album, The Fury (1985), charted slightly higher than Berserker, and featured another new image of white suit and red bow tie. The Fury is the ninth studio album and seventh under his own name by electronic pioneer Gary Numan, released in 1985 To date, The Fury is the last Numan album to crack the British Top 30.

Collaborations with Bill Sharpe of Shakatak helped little, though one single the duo recorded, "Change Your Mind", did see chart action, reaching #17 in Britain. Shakatak is a British Jazz-funk band, founded in 1980 Career Shakatak scored a number of chart entries including two Top Numa Records, which had been launched in a flurry of idealistic excitement, folded after the release of Numan's Strange Charm album (1986). In addition to Numa's commercial failure, a lack of radio play (his records were removed from the BBC Radio 1 playlist) and sales drained the fortune (he estimated £4. In its most general form a playlist is simply a list of Songs The term has several specialized meanings in the realms of Radio Broadcasting and 5 million) Numan had amassed in the late 1970s. Numan signed to IRS Records and his final studio album of the 80s, the edgy, industrial-funk Metal Rhythm (1988) found favour with fans and scored some positive reviews in the UK music press, but it sold poorly. IRS (International Record Syndicate Records was a Record label, started in the United States in 1979 by Miles Copeland III along with Jay Boberg Metal Rhythm's sales were arguably confounded by the lack of strong promotion and IRS's inappropriate choices of singles (the record label also changed the album's title to New Anger, changed the album colour shade from black to blue, and remixed several of its tracks for its American release against Numan's wishes). 1989 saw the release of the Sharpe + Numan album Automatic. A more lightweight-pop effort than Numan's solo albums, Automatic fared less well than Metal Rhythm (and has been out of print since its initial release).

1990s

In 1991, Numan ventured into film-scoring by co-composing the music for The Unborn with Michael R. Smith (the score was later released as an instrumental album in 1995, Human). After Outland (1991), another critical and commercial disappointment and his second and last studio album with IRS, Numan reactivated Numa Records, under which he would release his next two albums. However, even Numan considers his 1992 Machine + Soul, a misguided attempt at a purely commercial release recorded solely to pay off debts, a career low point. The album sold only a few thousand copies. By 1994, Numan decided to stop attempting to crack the pop market and concentrate instead on exploring more personal themes, including his vocal atheism. Atheism His future wife Gemma encouraged him to strip away the influences of the previous years. Numan re-evaluated his career and went in a harsher, more industrial direction with his songwriting on the album Sacrifice — for the first time he played almost all the instruments himself. Industrial music is a loose term for a number of different styles of Experimental music, especially but not necessarily Electronic music. Sacrifice is a 1994 album by Gary Numan. Its release followed a self-acknowledged career low point Machine + Soul (1992 and is often cited as marking The move was critically well-received, as Numan's harder and darker sound emerged just as Numan-influenced bands like Nine Inch Nails were enjoying their first rush of fame. The influence was two-way; Numan claimed that Nine Inch Nails' song "Closer" is his favourite hit single of all time, and influenced his music. Sacrifice was the last album Numan made before shutting down Numa Records permanently. His next two albums, Exile (1997) and Pure (2000), restored his critical reputation. Exile is a 1997 album by Gary Numan. Its release continued a surprise critical upswing in Numan's career which began three years earlier with the release of Pure is a 2000 album by Gary Numan, the follow-up to 1997's Exile. Numan even toured the U. S. in support of Exile, his first stateside concerts since the early 1980s.

2000s

After years of ridicule in the press, Numan found himself cited as "the godfather of electronic music" and an artist respected by his peers, with such musicians as Dave Grohl (of Foo Fighters and Nirvana), Trent Reznor (of Nine Inch Nails), and Marilyn Manson proclaiming his work an influence and recording cover versions of old Numan hits. David Eric Grohl (born January 14 1969 is an American rock musician Singer and Songwriter. Foo Fighters is an American Alternative rock and Post-grunge band formed by singer/guitarist Dave Grohl in 1995 Nirvana was an American rock band that was formed by singer/guitarist Kurt Cobain and bassist Krist Novoselic in Aberdeen Washington. Trent Reznor (born Michael Trent Reznor on May 17 1965 is an American Musician, singer producer, and Multi-instrumentalist. Brian Hugh Warner (born January 5, 1969) better known by his Stage name Marilyn Manson, is an American Musician and The band Basement Jaxx had a huge hit in 2002 with "Where's Your Head At?", which relied on a sample of Numan's "M. Basement Jaxx are a critically acclaimed UK House duo comprising Felix Buxton and Simon Ratcliffe that rose to popularity in the late 1990s " Where's Your Head At? " is a song by the band Basement Jaxx from their second album Rooty. E. " - from The Pleasure Principle - for its hook. Fear Factory produced a cover of "Cars" (featuring a prominent guest appearance by Numan himself) for the digipak version of their album Obsolete. Fear Factory is an American heavy metal band The band formed in 1989 and have released seven full-length Digipak is a patented style of Compact disc or DVD packaging and is a registered Trademark of AGI Media a MeadWestvaco Inc Obsolete (with Special characters /capitals °BSΩLE†e is the third full-length Album released by Fear Factory on July 28, Nine Inch Nails covered the song "Metal" on The Fragile remix album Things Falling Apart as did Afrika Bambaataa (with Numan himself) on the album Dark Matter Moving at the Speed of Light. The Fragile (also known as Halo 14) is a concept Double album by American Industrial rock act Things Falling Apart (also known as Halo 16) is an Album by Nine Inch Nails released in 2000 Afrika Bambaataa (born Kevin Donovan on April 17, 1957) is an American DJ from the South Bronx, who was instrumental in the Dark Matter Moving at the Speed of Light was a 2004 album by Afrika Bambaata of Tommy Boy Records. "Cars" remains Numan's most enduring song; it was a hit again in 1987 (remixed by Zeus B. Held) and 1996, in the latter case thanks to an appearance in an advert for Carling beer. Carling is the name of a brand of Lager in Canada, Australia, South Africa and the United Kingdom. In 2000 DJ Armand Van Helden sampled the track and mixed it up in his single "Koochy" which conquered the dancefloors. A disc jockey (also known as DJ or deejay) is a person who selects and plays recorded music for an audience Armand Van Helden (born 1970 in Boston, Massachusetts) is a Record producer and Remixer whose biggest commercial successes came from his remixes In 2002, UK pop trio Sugababes scored a #1 with "Freak Like Me" - a mashup of Adina Howard's "Freak Like Me" and "Are Friends Electric" from Numan's Tubeway Army. Sugababes are a BRIT Award -winning English pop group trio from London. " Freak like Me " is the first single from Adina Howard 's 1995 R&B debut album Do You Wanna Ride?. A mashup or bootleg (also mash up and mash-up) is a song or composition created from the combination of the music from one song with the A cappella Adina Howard (b November 14 1974, Grand Rapids Michigan) is an American R&B Singer who rose to prominence during the Other musicians who have sung Numan's praises in recent years include Beck, Grant Nicholas, Tricky, Damon Albarn, Jarvis Cocker, Queens of the Stone Age, David Bowie, and The Smashing Pumpkins (whose album "Siamese Dream" is based on the title of the Numan song "A Dream of Siam" from his 1982 album I,Assassin). Beck' s birth name was Bek see the sources given This is not a typo and should not be changed without good reason Grant Nicholas (Sometimes AKA Grantley) (born 12 November 1967, Newport, Monmouthshire) is the lead Singer of Tricky (born Adrian Thaws 27 January, 1968) is an English musician Damon Albarn, ˈdɛɪmən ˈɔːɫbɑːn (b March 23 1968 in Leytonstone, London) is an English Singer-songwriter who gained fame as the lead Jarvis Branson Cocker (born 19 September 1963 is an English musician best known for fronting the band Pulp. Queens of the Stone Age (also known as QOTSA or simply Queens) are a rock band from Palm Desert, California, United States David Bowie (ˈboʊiː born David Robert Jones on 8 January 1947 is an English Musician, actor producer, and arranger. The Smashing Pumpkins are an American Alternative rock band that formed in Chicago, Illinois in 1988 Afrika Bambaataa has also talked about the influence of Numan's music on the fledgling American DJ scene: "In the late 70s and early 80s Gary had the rhythms that DJs wanted to get hold of and people waited for his records on the dance floor. " "Cars" was also featured on the soundtrack for the blockbuster 2002 PlayStation 2 videogame Grand Theft Auto: Vice City as part of the New Wave radio station Wave 103, although it did not appear on the soundtrack CD release for the game. Grand Theft Auto Vice City is a sandbox-style action-adventure computer and Video game designed by Rockstar North (formerly New Wave is a Rock music genre that existed during the late 1970s and the 1980s The soundtrack of the game Grand Theft Auto Vice City is popular not only with fans of the game but also with lovers of 1980s music "Are Friends Electric" appeared on EA's game Need For Speed: Carbon in 2006. Need for Speed Carbon, also known as NFS Carbon or NFSC is an Electronic Arts video game belonging to the Need

In 2002, Numan enjoyed chart success once again with the single "Rip", reaching #29 in the UK chart and in 2003 with the Gary Numan vs Rico single "Crazier" which reached #13 in the UK chart. Rico also worked on the remix album Hybrid which featured reworkings of older songs in a more contemporary industrial style. 2003 also saw Gary Numan performing the vocals on a track named "Pray For You" on the Plump DJs album "Eargasm" which was very well received. In 2004 Numan took control of his own business affairs again, launching the label Mortal Records and releasing a series of live DVDs as a precursor to a critically well-received new studio album, Jagged, which was released on 13 March 2006. DVD (also known as " Digital Versatile Disc " or " Digital Video Disc " - see Etymology)is Jagged is a 2006 album by Gary Numan, his first original album in over five years following Pure in 2000 Events 1138 - Cardinal Gregorio Conti is elected Antipope as Victor IV, succeeding Anacletus II. Year 2006 ( MMVI) was a Common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. An album launch gig took place at The Forum, London on 18 March followed by UK, European and US tours in support of the release. Numan also launched a Jagged website to showcase the new album, and made plans to have his 1981 farewell concert (previously released as Micromusic on VHS) issued on DVD by November 2006 as well as releasing the DVD version of the Jagged album launch gig. Numan undertook a Telekon 'Classic Album' tour in the UK in December 2006, primarily to appease his more nostalgic fans and also to reserve his regular tours for more contemporary material.

On November 6, 2006, Numan took part in the Sky One reality show The Race. Events 355 - Roman Emperor Constantius II promotes his cousin Julian to the rank of Caesar, entrusting him with Year 2006 ( MMVI) was a Common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. Reality television is a genre of Television programming which presents purportedly unscripted dramatic or humorous situations documents actual events and usually features ordinary The Race was a one-off Reality television programme broadcast on Sky One in the UK in November 2006 hosted by Denise van Outen. It pitted ten celebrities (five male, five female) against each other in a series of Formula One-style car races. Auto racing (also known as automobile racing, motor racing or car racing) is a Motorsport involving Racing Cars It These races were held at Silverstone over the next five days, and varied in racing styles, ultimately culminating in one final Grand Prix race on Sunday, November 12. Silverstone Circuit is a Motor racing circuit in Northamptonshire and Buckinghamshire, named after the village in the former England Numan did win on the overall leaderboard, though he lost the final race to AC/DC lead singer Brian Johnson. AC/DC are an Australian Hard rock band formed in Sydney, Australia in 1973 by brothers Angus and Malcolm Young. Brian Johnson (born October 5 1947) is an English Singer and Songwriter, best known as the lead vocalist for the Australian

Numan contributed vocals to four tracks on the April 2007 release of Fenton’s debut solo album Artificial Perfect on his new industrial/electronic label Submission, including songs "The Leather Sea", "Slide Away", "Recall" and the first single to be taken from the album, "Healing". The second single to be released in the UK was "The Leather Sea" on July 30, 2007. Events 1419 - First Defenestration of Prague. 1502 - Christopher Columbus lands at Guanaja in the Bay Islands off Year 2007 ( MMVII) was a Common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar in the 21st century.

In October 2007 Numan announced a fifteen-date UK tour for Spring 2008 during which he will be performing his 1979 number one album Replicas in full. Featuring the singles "Are 'Friends' Electric?" and "Down in the Park", Numan will also be performing the B-sides to the singles on the tour. ^[6]

New albums

In late 2006, Numan announced on his website that recording would begin on his new album in January 2007, with Ade Fenton again co-producing, as he did with Jagged. Numan stated "think of Jagged and Pure, but faster, with bigger choruses, more energy, and more aggression" to describe the album's intended sound. Nothing new had been said about the album until August, when he mentioned on his website that he had found enough demos from the Exile, Pure, and Jagged sessions in his studio to flesh out into another album. Numan stated that this in itself will not be "the new album", just a release for interested fans, confirming that his new studio album hasn't been scrapped for other interests.

In November 2007, Numan confirmed via his website that the album, with the working title of Splinter, will be worked on throughout 2008, after finishing an alternate version of Jagged (to be called Jagged Edge) and the CD of unreleased songs from his previous three albums (working title Resurrection). He wrote that Jagged Edge will not likely see release until after the Replicas tour, after which the unreleased songs will be completed and released, with Splinter to be released in early 2009.

Aviation

Numan is also known for his love of flying, a passion which has featured in some of his music videos ("Warriors", "I Can't Stop"). He has owned several aircraft including a radial-engined Harvard WW2 trainer often seen in formation aerobatic displays. WikipediaWikiProject Aircraft. Please see WikipediaWikiProject Aircraft/page content for recommended layout Numan was a passenger in one of these aircraft when it infamously made an emergency landing on a main road in England, in 1981. This came shortly after he embarked on a flight around the world, during which he was forced to land in India due to mechanical difficulty and he and his pilot were briefly imprisoned there on suspicion of spying. India, officially the Republic of India (भारत गणराज्य inc-Latn Bhārat Gaṇarājya; see also other Indian languages) is a country His aerobatic flying career is also noted on the BBC TV series The Mighty Boosh, whose character Vince Noir (Noel Fielding) is a huge Numan fan, with a "Cars" ringtone on his mobile phone. The Mighty Boosh, colloquially referred to as The Boosh, is the collective name for the creators of the British television situation comedy written by and starring Noel Fielding (born 21 May, 1973 in Westminster, London) is an English Artist, Comedian and Actor Numan has since guest starred on the show. Numan has also recently stated that he likes to go sailing from time to time. Numan's brother is also a pilot and has flown aircraft such as the Bristol Blenheim at airshows. WikipediaWikiProject Aircraft. Please see WikipediaWikiProject Aircraft/page content for recommended layout Numan was also a member of the Air Training Corps. The Air Training Corps ( ATC) is a cadet organisation based in the United Kingdom. ^[7]

Personal life

Numan married a member of his own fan club, Gemma O'Neill. ^[8] In 2003, after a series of miscarriages and IVF attempts, the couple had their first child, Raven. Miscarriage or spontaneous abortion is the natural or spontaneous end of a Pregnancy at a stage where the embryo or fetus is incapable of surviving generally defined In vitro fertilisation ( IVF) is a process by which In 2005 they had a second daughter, Persia. In March 2007 the couple had their third child, Echo. ^[9] He published his autobiography, Praying to the Aliens, in 1997 (updated edition 1998), in collaboration with Steve Malins (Malins also wrote the liner notes for most of the CD reissues of Numan's albums in the late 1990s, as well as executive producing the Hybrid album in 2003). Numan has recently moved to East Sussex from Essex.

Numan has speculated on a number of occasions that he has a mild form of Asperger syndrome. Asperger syndrome (also called Asperger's syndrome, Asperger's disorder, Asperger's or AS) is the Autism spectrum disorder (ASD ^[10] In the April 29, 2001, edition of The Sunday Times he stated:

"Polite conversation has never been one of my strong points. Events 1429 - Joan of Arc arrives to relieve the Siege of Orleans. Year 2001 ( MMI) was a Common year starting on Monday according to the Gregorian calendar. The Sunday Times is a Sunday Broadsheet Newspaper distributed in the United Kingdom and Republic of Ireland. Just recently I actually found out that I'd got a mild form of Asperger's Syndrome which basically means I have trouble interacting with people. For years, I couldn't understand why people thought I was arrogant, but now it all makes a bit more sense. "

In a 2006 interview for Metro he said:

"It was suggested I had it when I was younger but no one knew much about it then. Year 2006 ( MMVI) was a Common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. Metro is the trading name of a Free daily newspaper, published by Associated Newspapers (part of Daily Mail and General Trust) in the I've read a lot about it since and I fulfil some of the diagnostic criteria but not others. I probably have a mild form. . . for example, if people came over for dinner and I saw a magazine I hadn't read, I'd pick it up, sit in the corner and read it - which I now know is wrong. . . I have an obsessive focus when it comes to pushing forward with my music. I don't get crushed by disappointment. I don't do this for the acclaim, luckily. . . because of Asperger I see the world as a hostile place. . . it feeds into my style of songwriting completely. "^[11]

Style

Gary Numan's music is mainly classified as electronic music or rock. Electronic music is music that employs Electronic musical instruments and Electronic Music technology in its production Rock music is a genre of Popular music often though not necessarily employing Electric guitar, Bass guitar, and Drums. It spans across various genres of them, most notably synthpop, new wave, dark wave, industrial rock, and post-punk, in addition to gothic rock and punk rock. Synthpop is a subgenre of New Wave and Pop music in which the Synthesizer is the dominant musical instrument New Wave is a Rock music genre that existed during the late 1970s and the 1980s Dark Wave, also written as Darkwave, is an Umbrella term which refers to a movement that began in the late 1970s coinciding with the popularity of New Wave Industrial rock is a Musical genre that fuses Industrial music and Punk rock. Post-punk was a popular musical movement in the mid to late 1970s following on the heels of the initial Punk rock explosion of the early 1970s This article is about the musical style of gothic rock For the goth scene in general see Goth subculture. Numan has even experimented in more unrelated genres such as funk, jazz, dance and standard pop. Funk is an American musical style that originated in the mid- to late-1960s when African American musicians blended Soul music, Soul Jazz is an American Musical art form which originated in the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States Synonyms Since around the mid-1980s electronic dance music has enjoyed popularity in many Nightclubs and as of 2006 is the predominant type of music played in Pop music as a genre features a noticeable rhythmic element catchy melodies and hooks, a mainstream style and conventional structure

Discography

Main article: Gary Numan discography

References

• Paul Goodwin (2004). Electric Pioneer: An Armchair Guide To Gary Numan.
• Guinness Book of British Hit Singles 7th Edition

External links

• NuWORLD: The Official Gary Numan site
• The Official myspace site
• North American Gary Numan Fan Club
• Gary Numan discography
• SACRIFICE Gary Numan Fan Group