Little Angels biography
Little Angels are a hard rock band of the late 1980s and early to mid 1990s. The band reformed in 2012 and will play the Download Festival.
History and members
Little Angels formed in Scarborough, England in 1984, under the name Mr Thrud. The founding members were Toby Jepson (vocalist), Mark Plunkett (bassist), Dave Hopper (drummer) and the brothers Bruce John and Jimmy Dickinson (guitarist and keyboardist respectively). Michael Lee joined the band to replace Hopper around 1988/89, when the band changed their name to Little Angels and began to achieve national success.
It was at this time that the band met Kevin Nixon who would become their manager and label boss when he signed them to his York-based company Powerstation Records. Eventually out-growing the local scene the band signed to Polydor Records, allegedly a deal done backstage at the old Marquee Club on Charing Cross Road.
Lee was sacked from Little Angels during the Young Gods tour, after it was discovered he had auditioned for The Cult behind their backs. He went on to play the full Ceremony world tour. Lee was replaced by Mark Richardson, who filled in for him on several tour dates, before taking his place officially during the recording of the band's third album, Jam.
"The Big Bad Horns" ("Big" Dave Kemp on saxophone, Frank Mizen on trombone and Grant Kirkhope on trumpet) had become synonymous with the 'Angels' sound over the years, contributing to a large majority of their recorded output, and appearing live with the band more often than not. However, they were keen to remain independent from the band, so appearances on stage and record are credited to Little Angels & The Big Bad Horns.
Little Angels were successful in the UK and cracked the U.S. to some extent, although not enough to satisfy their record label. Nonetheless, they had a massive profile in the UK, playing with Van Halen (who Jepson would be approached to join in 1996) and Bon Jovi, amongst others. In an act of extraordinary generosity Van Halen gave the band their entire back-line for free at the end of the UK tour.
Despite the seemingly disappointing record sales, they followed the announcement of their split by playing a sold-out six date UK tour culminating in a performance at the Royal Albert Hall.
After the demise of Little Angels, the Dickinson brothers would form b.l.o.w. with Richardson and the former No Sweat guitarist (turned vocalist) Dave Gooding. Jepson recorded and toured an album, Ignorance Is Bliss, under the moniker "Toby and the Whole Truth", which was intended to launch a solo career, but illness scuppered the tour & his immediate plans. He would spend subsequent years away from the spotlight before a solo return in 2002.
When b.l.o.w. folded, Jimmy Dickinson became a member of the synthpop group Younger Younger 28's who had some success in Japan, and who released one album, Soap, on the V2 label. He went on to play with the One Hit Wonders, and is now working as a teacher at the Westwood School of Music in Scarborough, including a course in electronic music.
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