Pete Shelley
Pioneering punk musician BORN APRIL 17, 1955 DIED DECEMBER 6, 2018, AGED 63
AS LEAD singer of punk pioneers Buzzcocks, Pete Shelley was an iconoclast who wrote a pansexual anthem that became a musical masterpiece.
But for all his boundarybreaking, the songwriter confessed Ever Fallen In Love (With Someone You Shouldn’t’ve) was inspired by watching the Hollywood musical Guys And Dolls.
Born Peter Campbell McNeish in Leigh, Lancashire, he met future bandmate Howard Trafford at Bolton Institute of Technology in 1975 and the pair adopted the stage surnames Shelley and Devoto.
They later recruited drummer John Maher and bassist Steve Diggle, making their debut opening for the Sex Pistols in Manchester in July 1976 – a gig they had arranged.
By the time they signed to United Artists in August 1977, Devoto had left and guitarist Shelley was now on vocal duties.
What followed was a hit parade of perfect pop songs with a rapid-fire punk energy, with Shelley’s melodic voice and smart lyrics appealing to a wider audience.
After three albums the band split in 1981 and the former frontman looked towards electronic music.
He had solo success in the 1980s, notably with single Homosapien which was banned by the BBC for its references to gay sex.
Shelley was open about his bisexuality and later said his most famous song was written about a man called Francis with whom he had a seven-year relationship.
Shelley was held in high affection throughout the music industry, influencing everyone from Duran Duran to REM.
He died of a suspected heart attack in Tallinn, Estonia, where he had been living for the last six years and is survived by second wife Greta and a son from his first marriage.