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P.P.Arnold Ashanti David Balfe Manda Beatmaster MC Bello Black Steel Bill Butt Chike Cressida Cauty Simon Cauty Gavin Cauty |
DJ Cesare Nick Coler Lenny Dee Wanda Dee Extreme Noise Terror Gary Glitter Maxine Harvey Glenn Hughes Duy Khiem Katie Kisson Lindz E. Love |
Graham Lee Ricardo Da Force Mark Manning Mickey McElwee Alex Patterson Scott Piering Ian Richardson Mark Stent Ben Watkins Pete Wylie Tammy Wynette |
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This is an attempt to store in one place all the info about the various kollaborators of the KLF. Please email Dr Stuey if you have anything to add. Eventually it may metamorphose into properly written wee summaries with links to all the info and original refs. If you want to receive an email whenever this page is updated, register with the excellent free and private URL-Minder service.
She did backing vocals on Church Of The KLF, and this ('KLF Aha Aha')
was sampled on 3am (and just 'KLF' on Last Train...). In Stadium House
she's the woman in the blue gown with the long braided hair that
sings 'KLF Aha Aha' at the very beginning and again in the breakdown
section.
She did backing vocals on Who Killed The Jams and this ('Mu Mu') was
sampled on WTIL?, America, and Last Train...
^
Ashanti - we assume she's the sleeping women on the left in the back
of the car in the 3am video, because she mouths "Are you ready...
here we go" and this is the lyric that's attributed to Ashanti. I
think its just on 3am (Live) but I could be wrong.
^
David William Miguel Balfe (according to Cope) was Drummond's
infamous Zoo records, management and production partner, who had the
incredible capacity to intensely annoy everyone he worked with.
He has one KLF connection - he was "executive producer" of Disco
2000's Uptight.
He started off in Liverpool group Dalek I Love You, and began to work
his way into the Liverpool scene by sleeping with half of it
(according to Cope) including Big In Japan singer Jayne, which is
probably why Holly Johnson got sacked and Balfe joined BIJ. This line-
up didn't last long and Holly returned for the farewell gig and Peel
Session.
Meanwhile Drummond and Balfe set up Zoo Records and released two BIJ
ep's. They sold out and the second one was repressed without the rest
of the groups knowledge, leading to a tense angry meeting where
accusations of corrupt businessmen were levelled at Balfe and
Drummond which, Holly admits now, was ridiculous considering the small
sums of money involved.
After the Teardrops/Bunnymen double first gig, Balfe approached Cope
and asked him to record for Zoo. Cope didn't like or trust Balfe,
but Drummond persuaded him to record. Balfe took control of the
recording, with Cope petulently fighting back. "I told him to fuck
off. We were producing it. 'You're just the engineer, Balfe' I told
him." But Balfe insisted that they do it his way, as he was playing
for the studio. After a long and tense stand off when Balfe
apparantly "turned purple", Cope relented and did it Balfe's way.
"Balfe was right. It sounded ten times better."
The Drummond/Balfe production team were known as the Chamealeons, and
produced the first Bunnymen single and most of the first Bunnymen LP.
Cope felt that Balfe would take a lot of the Teardrops best ideas and
include them in the Bunnymen sound, which added to the resentment.
They also produced varous Wild Swans records, and formed their own
brief studio-only group Lori & The Chamealeons featuring the breathy,
sexy vocals of Lori Larty on a couple of early-electronic singles. One
song Touch really stood out and got a lot of good reviews. She went
back to art college.
Later when the Bunnymen and Teardrops were playing together all over
the North West on the Zoo Records tour the Teardrops needed a
keyboard player and Balfe joined the group. For the rest of the life
of the group Balfe would be in and out as Cope would have intense
violent arguments with him, and then Drummond would convince Cope
that Balfe was needed.
BIJ, the Teardrops and the Bunnymen all signed publishing deals with
Warners, through Zoo. No-one minded helping out Drummond (as he had
helped them in turn) but this also meant helping Balfe, which wasn't
so popular. This provided Balfe and Drummond's foot in the door with
the music industry and they gradually moved into A&R and management.
When Brilliant were signed to WEA by Drummond, the six-figure advance
allowed Balfe to set up Food Records, which subsequently became the
home for Jesus Jones and Blur.
^
Manda Beatmaster (looks quite similar to Cress) is a member of UK
pop-dance group The Beatmasters who released a lot of great singles
in the late 80s with various vocalists, (notably Rock Da House with the
Cookie Crew, and Burn It Up with PP Arnold, but also Who's In The
House? with Merlin and Hey DJ with Betty Boo).
The KLF presumably knew them from the late 80's rave scene. The
two JAMsmobiles feature in the video for their early 1990 single,
Who's In The House? where they barricade themselves inside a radio
station and the police are outside shouting 'Who's in the house?'.
Manda was featured playing 808 on WTIL? (Live, LP, etc).
The Beatmasters tried to make a comeback in the early 90's, with a
second album, but neither of the singles did particularly well. They are
now well known remixers, famous for producing nice commercial house
mixes, by artists such as Erasure and The Shamen, and probably lots
of others.
^
Poet Supreme MC Isaac Bello B is the rapper with the Outlaw Posse and
he raps on What Time Is Love? courtesy of Gee Street Records. He has
co-writing credits for WTIL? too. He also did the rap on America (credited
to Bello B). There's a thanks to the KLF on the Outlaw Posse's 1990 LP
'My Afro's On Fire' (GeeA6).
^
Black Steel - is he the funky looking dread bouncing around mid-stage
in the Stadium House video playing bass? He worked on the The White Room:
he did vocals on No More Tears,
Justified and Ancient (LP version)
Last Train (UK LP version)
and scat singing and backing vocals on The White Room
and additional vocals on 3am (Moody)
additionally his "all aboard, all aboard" was sampled for Last
Train...(Live)
he played bass on No More Tears
Jusified and Ancient (LP version)
3am (Moody)
He released a single "Children of the Revolution" (a cover of the old T-Rex
track) credited to the Children of the Revolution (who got featuring credits
on KLF tracks) in Oct '92. But it failed to chart. He also did vocals for The
Moody Boys on "What is Dub?".
^
Bill Butt, a long-time friend of Drummond's, filmed all the KLF's
video's including the "Rites of Mu" and directed "The White Room" and
"Waiting" films. He seems to have filmed many KLF personal
appearances, including club appearances and the Liverpool comedy
festival. He is probably one of the people standing around talking
to Drummond and Cauty in the ambient documentary extra bit of
Stadium House. He was last heard of filming a nature program for BBC.
The Manual doesn't mention him directly just says: "For our video we
were lucky. We had a mate who had a director's ticket. He was not a
regular video director. We had a lot of fun making it."
He co-wrote the script to the unmade White Room film, and appears in
the script in several scenes (16, 19, 23, 26, 32, 63, 70) sitting
around discussing the movie, and its filming.
He seems to have been Zoo Records main photographer, he took a photo
of an early Bunnymen gig which appears on the insert of their first
LP "Crocodiles". Butt was a mate of the Teardrop Explodes too so
Julian Cope mentions him quite a lot in his biography "Head On".
In July of 1980 "mate and photographer" Butt went to New York with
Drummond and the Teardrops for their first US gigs. "The two Bills
stayed at the Iroquis Hotel on Columbus Circle. It was a hip dump but
mainly it was near the club." Later the rest of the band joined them.
Butt helped Drummond and Teardrops' guitarist and psychedelic guru
Alan Gill pull tripping Teardrops' drummer Gary Dwyer IN the hotel
12th floor window. Everyone but Cope tried cocaine and fine American
weed. "At JFK they all finished the cocaine in the toilets."
Around Christmas 1980 Butt co-made the Teardrops' "Reward" video with
Don Letts.
In January 1981 the two Bill's drove the Teardrops' new members down
to Rockfield Studios, in the country south of Liverpool near
Monmouth, taking turns to "weird them out with drug and mayhem
stories." Then they hung out with the Teardrops and the
Bunnymen, who were spending more time having drugged car races than
recording. "We'ed see Pete de Freitas and the two Bill's hanging off
the back [of the jeep] as it swerved and tumbled [down the lane]."
In February 1981 Butt went on the Teardrops' East-coast US tour,
filming everything (like getting out of stretch limos) and doing the
lights. Butt befriended two young female Teardrops' fans who were
following the tour and introduced them to Cope. One of them, Dorian
Beslity, went onto become Cope's second wife.
In October 1981 Butt filmed the video for the Teardrops' "Colours Fly
Away" video.
In Autumn 1982 Butt filmed some of the recording of the unfinished
third Teardrops' LP.
^
Cressida Cauty, (nee Bowyer) Jimmy's wife was a central part of KLF
Communications and one half of Disco 2000 for whom she did vocals.
she did backing vocals on 1987
Who Killed The Jams
Kylie Said to Jason
What Time Is Love ('oohs')
Last Train... ('wild yelps')
America ('wild yelps and oohs')
she co-wrote One Love Nation
Mr Hotty Loves You
(and probably I Love Disco 2000 and I Gotta CD)
she did costume design and chorography for the KLF's videos and TOTP
appearances. She designed the Mu-gowns featured a lot in Stadium
House and the Rites Of Mu. And probably knitted Jimmy's KLF jumper
and her Disco 2000 jumper.
she worked in KLF Communications office producing the KLF info sheets
from 6 onwards, and dealing with mail order sales etc.
she's the sexy redhead jumping around in all the videos and TOTP
appearances. In Stadium house she has a red body suit and devil's horns
in 3am Eternal and a Native American headress in Last Train.
she gets a namecheck on 2 Orb LP's: next to Jimmy's inside u.f.orb under
the title Orb In Effect and also in the Live 93 album under the The
Final Guest List there is the entry: jimi and cressida + 2
^
Simon Cauty, Jimi's brother helped build the model landscape ( 'Land of Mu' )
for the Stadium House Trilogy / Last Train To Trancentral video.
^
DJ Cesare was KLF Communications and the JAMs DJ in 1987 and 1988
(he was "featured DJ" on Completeist List 001; "featured" on Downtown;
"cuts, scratches, breaks" on Burn The Beat; and "featured DJ" on One
Love Nation and Gary In The Tardis). He was a member of the Stereo MC's
on their first LP
^
Nick Coler is the programmer at the Village recording studio in
Dagenham where the KLF recorded most of the tracks that weren't
recorded at Trancentral. The Manual says:
"Our programmer, Nick Coler, is a genius. He can play on the piano
every piece of music ever written, his left hand a blur of fumbled
bass notes, while his spectacles slide down his perspiring nose. His
cathedral choir boy sense of fun has never left him and he sports a
line of strange hand knitted jumpers. Is continually trying out new
haircuts. Drives second hand Audi's. He plays keyboards with the
Rubettes."
He played keyboards on:
The White Room (Make It Rain, 3am Eternal, Church of the KLF,
Last Train..., Build A Fire, The White Room, No More Tears
& Justified and Ancient)
3am Eternal (Live & Moody)
Last Train (Live & Moody)
Justified and Ancient
America
and played organ and piano on The Man
and played additional keyboards on Kylie (Remixes)
He was the programmer on:
Burn The Beat
One Love Nation
Doctorin' The Tardis
Kylie (Remixes)
Last Train (Moody)
Justified and Ancient
America
and did additional programming on The White Room
He conducted the orchestra and choir on Its Grim...
and did the orchestral arrangements on America
He was the engineer on Uptight
He did backing vocals ("Eternal") on 3am Eternal (Pure Trance) and
this was sampled on 3am Eternal (Live).
Feed My Frankenstein from 1991 Alice Cooper album "Hey Stoopid"
Not only featuring Drummond's pal Zed, but Nick Coler & Ian
Richardson too. Featured in Wayne's World soundtrack.
The tracks are "Lemmings" and "I think
you'd better do what he says" by SFX on the Synthetic label.
Can't remember if I told u this, but Richardson & Coler actually co-wrote
SFX's ``Lemmings'' and ``I think you'd better do what he says'', as well as
producing them.
^
Lenny Dee
^
Wanda Dee is a dancer, singer, and performer.
The KLF sampled vocal snatches from her "erotic rap" record 'To The Bone' on Tuff
City Records and included them in WTIL? and the single version of LTTT. When
Wanda's manager/husband (Leroy from Fame!) heard these records they sued the KLF and the out-of-court
settlement was that Wanda would get a cash payment, co-writing credits on
these songs, and hence publishing royalties, and appearances in the videos
for these songs. I expect that if the KLF had known the trouble she would
cause them they wouldn't have sampled her. It's up to you to decide whether
the non-inclusion of "I wanna see you sweat" and "Come on boy d'ya wanna
ride" would have detracted from these songs.
Since the KLF's retiral Wanda has performed hundreds of dates round the world
under the names "The KLF featuring Wanda Dee", "Wanda Dee and The New KLF",
"Wanda Dee and the KLF experience" and so forth, which *strangely* always
seem to be advertised by promoters as just "The KLF". Bill and Jimi have nothing whatsoever
to do with these "concerts" and would like very much to see them stopped, but
it's difficult to pursue legal action against her unless she performs in the
UK, and they can't really be bothered with the hassle.
Whenever Wanda is questioned (either by the press or KLF fans in the audience
of one of her shows) she comes up with an explanation somewhat like this: All
90's dance music is constructed in the studio by production teams and this
can never be recreated live on stage. However the performers (dancers singers
etc) on the record can play live. She says she is the co-writer and singer of
all the biggest hits on The White Room and she was the reason those songs
were hits!!
^
Extreme Noise Terror, the infamous vegetarian Ipswich thrash metal band,
have been around since the mid 80's. Their 'songs' are all fairly similar -
short, sharp bursts of hoarse screamed vocals with thundering metal
riffs and machine-gun drumming. The story goes that Drummond was
in the bath listening to John Peel thinking what do for the christmas
TOTP appearance, when he heard an ENT track. So he asked them to
appear on TOTP with the KLF in a thrash-metal version of 3am. The
BBC refused, but the two bands recorded the version and it was
released in a mail order only 1000 copy limited edition, which has since
been bootlegged many times.
The two bands performed this at the Brit Awards in Feb 92, in a riot
of explosions, gunfire and shouting that seriously disturbed some
of the classical recording artists present in the audience. They also
worked together re-recording the Black Room LP, but the sessions
were scrapped.
^
Maxine Harvey was the KLF's main vocalist from 89 to 92. She's the
elegant woman with the flicked back (straight) hair in the blue gown
singing with mic in the 3am (stadium) video.
She did vocals on 3am (live, moody, lp)
Make It Rain
Church of the KLF
No More Tears
Last Train... (moody)
Justified and Ancient (99)
and she did backing vocals on The White Room
Last Train (UK lp)
and additional vocals are credited to the Real Maxine on Kylie...
Since the KLF she sings with The Drum Club
^
Glenn "The Voice of Rock" Hughes, former vocalist with top proto-
metal group Deep Purple in the late 60's early 70's did howling metal
vocals on America and appeared in the video (long curly hair, near
the front of the longboat). He tried to gain some publicity, with a
press release that claimed "the KLF saved my life". Apparantly his
top 10 chart position helped him overcome his drug problems.
^
Duy Khiem, Vietnamese clarinetist, and old friend of Drummond was
one of the musicians on 'The Man'. He plays clarinet on 1987, and 3am,
and pops up in the video (stadium) and TOTP appearance in traditional
costume during the clarinet solo. He sings the traditional Vietnamese
song 'Me Ru Con' which appears on 1987.
^
Katie Kisson
^
Lindz E. Love
^
'Evil' Graham Lee, plays slide guitar on Chill Out, Madrugana Eterna, and The White Room.
He was in top 80's Australian indie/country beat combo The Triffids, who were the backing band on Drummond's 'The Man' solo record.
^
Ricardo 'Da Force' Lyte, was the KLF's rotund rapper, he did the raps
on 3am Eternal (Live, LP) and Justified And Ancient (99). He also did
the rap on LTTT (UK LP) and parts of this ('This is what KLF are
about' and 'back to the heavyweight jam') were sampled on LTTT
(Live). He is credited with sampled voice on LTTT (Moody).
He's the dude with the glasses, rapping in the 3am video, down a
mobile phone. His girth has increased since then, and his rapping
helped take N-Trance's 'Stayin' Alive' to number one, in summer '95. He
has done some tracks on the new N-Trance album which will be out spring '97.
He is also credited with rapping on Adamski's 'Naughty' LP, and
worked with Ramp on a track called 'Rock The Discotek' which was
re-released in mid-'95 but just failed to make the top 40. Just after this
he released his first solo single 'Why?' which was a Carly Simon cover
with lots of rap, which also failed to chart.
^
Mark Manning also known as Zodiac Mindwarp furthermore known as Zed
Feed My Frankenstein from 1991 Alice Cooper album "Hey Stoopid"
Not only featuring Drummond's pal Zed, but Nick Coler & Ian
Richardson too. Featured in Wayne's World soundtrack.
^
Scott Piering was the record plugger for all of Drummond's projects, and an invaluable part of the KLF's success. He sadly died on the 24th Jan 2000. He also appeared on several KLF tracks: "Okay everybody lie down on the floor and keep
calm" at the beginning of Last Train; "I need to get hold of the KLF ... " at the beginning of Waiting; the narration of the promo video and MTV versions of 'Rites of Mu'; and the "... set sail in their Longboats ..." intro to America: WTIL?
His company, Appearing Promotions, also handled Jarvis Cocker at the time of the infamous Michael Jackson/Brits incident, and many other top names.
^
Ian Richardson
Feed My Frankenstein from 1991 Alice Cooper album "Hey Stoopid"
Not only featuring Drummond's pal Zed, but Nick Coler & Ian
Richardson too. Featured in Wayne's World soundtrack.
^
Ben Watkins, a member of Brilliant before they signed to WEA, went on to
be part of Sunsonic, with Adam Peters. Jimmy did a mix of the
Sunsonic single "Roll my Body". Jimmy gets no mention on the album, "melting
down on motor angel" but Youth does. A 'Gavin Cauty' gets a mention on sunsonics single ...
Ben Watkins went on to co-write tracks on the Traci Lords album.
^
P.P. Arnold is a US female singer who had a string of minor hits in
1967-8. She sang backing vocals for Peter Gabriel on at least
Sledgehammer and Big Time from 1986's So LP. She was vocalist on The
Beatmasters 'Burn It Up' hit in 1988. She also did backing vocals on
The Grids second LP 456 (Face The Sun, Fire Engine Red).