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I was born in London in 1962, son of the most successful record producer in the world, the late Mickie Most. One of my earliest memories was at the age of 18 months learning to read, via the labels of an expanding collection of 45 records, housed next to my first record player. My early influences were shaped predominately by my parents love of 1950s American Rock & Roll, great’ such as Buddy Holly, Little Richard and Gene Vincent (my uncle). But as the decade progressed my tastes developed as I started listening obsessively to The Beatles, Sly & the Family Stone, Donovan, The Jackson 5, Led Zeppelin, The Temptations and The Monkees (whom I remember seeing in concert in 1967). It was an extraordinary time and place to be growing up. I remember at 5 years of age, pestering The Hollies Graham Nash for a week solid, to keep playing and singing me his newly composed Marrakesh Express during a summer holiday he spent on my Fathers yacht in the South of France. I clearly recall watching my Father record Donovan and Hermans Hermits and on one memorable occasion, during a session at Abbey Road, being invited by the Beatles into their studio (wish I could remember which song they were recording) during which, on the paving stones in the middle of the vast Studio One live area, I spent a couple of hours being taught to play hopscotch by none other than John Lennon.
The first musical instruments I learned play (to a point) at 8 years old were the descant/cello recorder and the melodocia. It was around a year later that my Father brought home a pair of drumsticks that had been left lying around the studio. I began practising, playing along with records by using a school case as a drum, which 18 months later was replaced by a red junior Beverley kit. A pre-requisite for receiving the kit was that my parents wisely insisted that if I were to play drums I would have to learn to read music and study classical piano, which I did, alongside receiving lessons from legendary drummer Cozy Powell. In 1976 I was enrolled for 2 years at the Purcell School of Music in Harrow on the Hill, studying piano, music theory and orchestration. It was that Spring I heard the Sex Pistols first demo tape, financed by my Father and produced by ace session guitarist, Chris Spedding, whom I’ve had the pleasure of working with extensively over the years. Although initially shocked by how raw the lead vocals sounded, that cassette and the London punk explosion that was happening at the time, made a deep impression on me. In October of that year I spent an evening playing with a group who were all wearing paint splattered clothes in a Chalk Farm studio called Rehearsals Rehearsals. They’d recently advertised for a drummer in the Melody Maker and I’d gone along to audition. After a couple of hours the band seemed excited and duly summoned their manager Bernie Rhodes to come and check me out. After hearing me play 2 or 3 songs he asked me how old I was. I lied, saying with a quivering voice that I was 15. No you’re not, you’re about 12 or 13, he snarled. I knew the game was up as he turned to the band and said, He can’t possibly join, he’s only a fucking school boy…. go .. him pack up his drums… A couple of weeks later I saw the same group make their television debut, being interviewed by Janet Street Porter for her London Weekend Show, which that week was documenting the burgeoning punk scene. The band, I discovered, was called ‘The Clash’ and at that point still hadn’t found a drummer. The following year I joined my first proper group who hailed from Finchley and were called The Outrage, they were, I have to say, very nice guys and not particularly outrageous. Around that time I started playing drum and keyboard sessions for my dad, recording with artistes such as Suzy Quatro and Hot Chocolate. I also began my production career when a friend, Adrian Heath, financed the recording of a cover of the Booker T & the MGs hit Time is Tight. It featured sax player Dave Wright (Essential Logic, Rip Rig and Panic) and a deal was duly offered by Chrysalis A&R man Simon Potts, for release on Go Disks (The Beats label.) However, as fate would have it, the original Booker T version was re-released a week later. Early productions of mine that were released included a Coventry Ska band called Boss and a new romantic group who became Blue Zoo, on RAK and Magnet Records respectively. In 1980, along with guitarist friend James Stevenson (ex Generation X), I joined Kim Wilde’s band (for her Kids in America release) and spent the next 18 months travelling Europe, making numerous television and video appearances. Other projects I was involved with at the time included Jungle Ali Ali, formed by Kevin Mooney, the bass player who had just left Adam & the Ants, and a one off single with The Swingers, released by Magnet Records, featuring original Sex Pistols bass player Glen Matlock and Slaughter & the Dogs guitarist Mick Rossi. I also, on one occasion, deputised for Culture Clubs drummer Jon Moss at a gig in London’s original Marquee club, for Spizz Energy (Wheres Captain Kirk). In 1981 James Stevenson and I decided to form our own group called Hot Club enlisting Glen Matlock and Steve Allen, the singer of legendary Liverpool band Deaf School. With this line up Hot Club recorded one great single entitled The Dirt That She Walks On is Sacred Ground to Me produced by my Father and showcased live on BBC’s Old Grey Whistle Test. Shortly afterwards Steve left and was replaced by Clark Datchler who went on to become the singer in my most successful band, Johnny Hates Jazz. Johnny Hates Jazz began during my 2 year tenure as Head of A&R for my Fathers record company RAK. Formed initially with 2 talented friends, my then production partner Mike Nocito (Hepburn/Katrina and the Waves) and song-writer/producer Phil Thornalley, who ended up co-writing and producing Torn for Natalie Umbrugulia. Phil however ended up having to bow out during the recording of our first single due to up-coming production commitments with Robbie Neville, so we enlisted Clark to replace Phil’s lead vocals and join the group. Our debut single Me and My Foolish Heart, was released by RAK in 1986 to rave reviews and substantial airplay. However the same day it was A-listed on Radio 1, it was ceremoniously pulled off the chart by what the BPI described as, the actions of an over-enthusiastic promotion man. These actions were, to be honest, a national campaign by the group and its friends, including the over-enthusiastic promotions man, to buy copies of the single from chart shops around the country. The following year saw JHJ sign to Virgin Records and release our biggest worldwide, multi-million selling hit, Shattered Dreams (top 5/UK, 1/US). Shattered Dreams was followed by further international hits such as I Don’t Want To Be A Hero, Turn Back The Clock (1, US AC Radio), Heart of Gold and Don’t Say it’s Love. In 1988 our debut album Turn Back The Clock entered the UK album chart at 1, selling 4 million copies worldwide. As the year ended, Clark, with delusions of grandeur, decided to leave JHJ to pursue an unsuccessful solo career. However, Mike and I decided to carry on, recruiting Phil Thornalley once again as lead singer and principal songwriter. Two years were spent recording a follow up to Turn Back The Clock, a fine, but somewhat over-produced album entitled Tall Stories. Two weeks prior to it’s release disaster struck, when Phil and I, during a local radio tour to promote its first single, the anthemic Let Me Change Your Mind Tonight, were, whilst being driven by a mentally challenged Virgin employee at speeds of over 100 miles an hour, involved in an extremely serious car crash. It could only be described as a miracle that all 3 passengers survived. I came off by far the worst with my left arm barely hanging on my shoulder. I spent the next few weeks not knowing whether my arm would have to be amputated. As Tall Stories was shelved indefinitely I remember lying in my hospital bed reading in the Sun newspaper, through a haze of morphine, a Virgin Records press release stating that Johnny Hates Jazz star Calvin Hayes had been involved in a minor car crash, had broken his arm and been released from hospital! Thankfully, due to a series of operations by the eminent surgeon Ian Bailey and after spending over a year in a body cast, my arm was saved, leaving my musical skills intact. The car crash marked the death knell of the band, momentum had been lost and whilst I was recuperating, the musical climate of the early 90s had changed considerably from the sophisticated pop sound we were associated with. When I was well enough to travel I re-located to America for the next 15 years, spending the first 11 in Los Angeles and the following 4 in Olympia, Washington. Living in the States gave me a great opportunity to hone my production, engineering and songwriting skills, working with a varied list of talented artistes, writers and mixing engineers. Artistes I produced whilst based in the US include Chrissie Hynde; Native, a pop-reggae group for whom I secured a deal with MCA and whose cover of Here Comes The Night, co-produced with Mike Nocito, was featured on the Ace Ventura movie soundtrack; Peter Noone, for whom I produced a re-recording of Herman’s Hermits million sellers; The Wild Colonials, another act signed to MCA; riot-girl group Switchblade Kittens (for KROQ D.J Rodney Bingenheimer’s Blockbuster album); Danny Saxon (3 masters for Warner Records); and charismatic singer/drummer Jon Bolton. Songwriters I’ve collaborated with include Steve Kippner, who wrote Genie In A Bottle and Physical; Chris Neil, co-writing songs for Celine Dion, whom he was producing at the time; Phil Picket (Karma Chameleon); Katrina (of the Waves) and Nick Kamen. Musicians I played with include Dave Gregory (XTC); Lyndval Golding (Specials/Fun Boy Three); Jason Faulkner (Jellyfish/Paul McCartney); Phil Chen (Jeff Beck, Rod Stewart) and Lyle Workman (Bourgeois Tag /Beck). Producers I engineered for include the legendary Phil Ramone (Paul Simon/Billy Joel) during an 18 month period I worked at his Connecticut home studio and Ron Dante, the voice behind The Archies Sugar Sugar and producer of 13 Barry Manilow albums. Prominent American mixing engineers I've worked with extensively are Bob Clearmountain, Tom Lord Algee and Ryan Freeland. I've recently re-located back to England and am currently based in Liverpool. I've been signed as a songwriter to Brian Rawlings’ Metrophonic publishing company,
and, along with Mike Nocito, Ashen Datchler, Promotion men, Mick Garbutt and Neil Ashby are working with a new talented artiste called Emma Jane. Her forthcoming single " Gasoline" is featured on my playlist above.
INTERESTED IN BOOKING JOHNNY HATES JAZZ?
Contact christine@eventa-management.co.uk
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