Donald's Encyclopedia of Popular Music

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WAH

A UK new wave group formed as Wah! Heat in Liverpool in 1979 by guitarist/vocalist Pete Wylie (b 22 March 1958), who'd been a member of Crucial Three '77 with Julian Cope and Ian McCulloch, who founded Teardrop Explodes and Echo And The Bunnymen respectively. Wylie was last to make his move, having played in short-lived local groups including Nova Mob and A Shallow Madness (both with Cope) and Crash Course with drummer Rob Jones, who followed him into the trio Wah! Heat, completed by Colin Williams, then Pete Younger (ex-Those Naughty Lumps) on bass.

Their first single 'Better Screams' for the local Inevitable label saw its B-side 'Joe' included on Hicks From the Sticks '80, a compilation of post-punk regional bands. Carl Washington replaced Younger and became Wylie's right-hand man; 'Seven Minutes To Midnight' edged towards heavy metal, where 'Scream' had been supercharged Byrds; the album Nah Poo--The Art Of Bliff '81 on WB (with own custom Eternal label) confirmed this heavier approach and didn't sell well, the trio augmented by part-time members Colm Redmond on guitar, King (Ken) Bluff on keyboards. They returned to form with a one-off single 'Remember' '82 (billed as Shambeko! Say Wah, after Bavarian Nazifighters), with a muscular Washington bassline providing backbone where the LP had flown off on torrents of guitar and wailing vocals.

They revamped the group to become keyboard-based new wave, with Washington, Jay Naughton on piano, Chris Joyce on drums, Charlie Griffiths on synths, plus the Sapphires vocal trio, scoring with a neo-Spector 'Story Of The Blues' (no. 3 UK); a cover of the Three Degrees' 'Year Of Decision' would have made a good followup, but the weak 'Hope' reached the top 40 with 'Decision' on a 12-inch flip. An argument with WB led to Eternal linking with Beggars Banquet; once again the mercurial Wylie flattered to deceive with the anthemic 'Come Back' (no. 20 '84) from bombastic, disappointing A Word To The Wise Guy, billed on single and LP as The Mighty Wah!. They disbanded when followups failed to emulate the success of 'Come Back'; Wylie formed group Oedipus Wrecks and made single 'Sinful' for a no. 13 hit on Eternal through MDM/Virgin, but again couldn't follow up.