Bill Nelson is one of those guitarists that everyone should know about. He's technical and melodic, great tone and phrasing. You can't ask much more from a guitarist.

@wiseonwords

3 жыл бұрын

And he had an excellent and distinctive singing voice.

@hurdygurdyguy1

2 жыл бұрын

@@wiseonwords I'm always amazed at musicians who can be so tight live AND sing (no fukking autotune!)!!!

@apico

2 жыл бұрын

Absolutely!

@billholder1330

10 ай бұрын

The word I think best describes his guitar playing is "emotive" - Bill Nelson can convey perfectly clearly even the most subtle shades of mixed emotions with those fingers and that guitar!

@rockmeamodeo

9 ай бұрын

I agree. About Bill. About Charlie. About how absolutely great this band was. I just turned 62 and I’ve been a fan since my cousin in ‘77 turned me on to Bebop’s new album Live In The Air-age. I was blown away. Somebody tell Tom Bukovac about this guy. He’s one of the best guitarists in the world and he doesn’t know about Bill Nelson. And he’s even into old Yes and Genesis.✌️🤘🎶

Bill nelson: Poet, guitar player extraordinaire and thoroughly nice chap.

@BrianSniatkowski

3 жыл бұрын

A very nice guy. I met him when he toured the US with Red Noise. We spent time with him in the dressing room before the show. My friend met his brother Ian getting a drink at the bar and struck up a conversation. He said you want to come and meet Bill? And he said sure but give me a minute and let me get my friends. About five of us piled into the tiny dressing room and chatted with him while he got dressed for the show. I hate to admit it but once they left for the stage, we stole his luggage tags. I still have one somewhere.

@evanwolf6618

2 жыл бұрын

@@BrianSniatkowski 🤫 i have a secret luggage tag collection of my own .

@Toby_the_Glen

Жыл бұрын

Don't forget artist, sculpture and photographer!

Bill was amazing. He had an instantly recognisable style and moved seamlessly across modes. Great lyricist too.

I'm 16 and just stumbled across them, now watching everything bill nelson has ever done, absolute legend.

@gregall2178

4 жыл бұрын

Welcome to the club :-) You should look for his videos with the Gentleman Rocketeers. It was a concert in 2010, I think. Great to see him playing live many of the Be Bop songs, as I was only able to see him live once, where he didn't play any. Sadly, "Aventures In A Yorkshire Landscape" has been removed from youtube, but here is a short clip of the end of the song: kzread.info/dash/bejne/fGqDyZmLnpanhdo.html

@gregall2178

4 жыл бұрын

oh... I spoke too soon. Here's the full song (audio only) kzread.info/dash/bejne/qJisurCQYbK8aco.html

@pumkinbreath

4 жыл бұрын

Right on

@PTCrucial

3 жыл бұрын

Hi Elea, Wonderful to hear you have discovered Bill Nelson and Be Bop Deluxe. I was also 16 when I discovered them, but that was in 1976!!. I saw them on the Sunburst Finish tour and then many times after that. It’s now up to you and your generation to keep the flame burning. Welcome to the family.!! Take care and stay safe.

@brianconway100

3 жыл бұрын

@@PTCrucial Very similar to me. I was 16 when I discovered BBD when Ships In The Night was in the charts. Saw them on the Modern Music tour (Hammersmith Odeon) and from then on, any possible concert, including Red Noise and solo. Brilliant times.

One of the most criminally underrated bands of our lifetime. Nelson is beyond fantastic!

@WELLBRAN

3 жыл бұрын

who can write songs better?..no one!

@cirenosnor5768

3 жыл бұрын

WELLBRAN - Beatles maybe

@scentdesigner1

2 жыл бұрын

Agree with you totally 😉

@thulsadoom544

9 ай бұрын

Criminally you say drama queen

@thulsadoom544

9 ай бұрын

​@@cirenosnor5768Maybe ha ha

I saw them live in the states in 1976. Bill Nelson should be better known. I always liked the way he played.

He's still going, released over 110 albums from his home studio in Wakefield, Yorkshire, one of the true greats....a gentle, lovely man and a sublime artist in every sense of the word....he wrote the soundtrack of my life.

Mr Bill is a brilliant Artist. My hero Indeed. Futurama is one of my favourite Album all times. Thanks Pegasus, great video 😉🇸🇪

Charlie Tumahai was a great bass player for that band. Great back up vocals too.

@paulkelcher824

5 жыл бұрын

Pity hardly anyone in NZ knows of his work outside Herbs. Gary Thain is largely forgotten too.

@hohaia01

5 жыл бұрын

@@paulkelcher824 you just made me look up Gary Thain. Never heard of him before.

@paulkelcher824

5 жыл бұрын

@@hohaia01 Bass player for Uriah Heep in the early to mid seventies. they were pretty big at the time. Got electrocuted on stage, and later died of a heroin overdose. He was from Christchurch.

@malekmo64

4 жыл бұрын

Charlie was in a band called Healing Force, had a hit here in Australia and in New Zealand. kzread.info/dash/bejne/gHmh1dtphcrXn6Q.html

@lblack1961

4 жыл бұрын

No words. LOVE that man. I wonder if any of his children became musicians?

Bill Nelson is (for me) the perfect guitarist. He never wanted to be known as an 'axe hero'. For him it was art over image. He was and still is very humble. Even then in the 70's, he didn't see the need to have long hair to signify his 'rock-ness'. At the height of his success with Bebop Deluxe, he took the brave step of changing tack from AOR to cutting edge new wave music with Red Noise (who were only unsuccessful because his then record company didn't understand it).

Be-Bop Deluxe Live In the Air Age was well played at many a party back in my high school days. Fond memories.

@2011jamesallen

4 жыл бұрын

yes, amazing stuff - we saw them back up Nazareth in 1979 should have been the other way round...

@davidsmith-jj4iq

3 жыл бұрын

top quality album ,still sounds good today.

@stevehawthorn8733

3 жыл бұрын

Bought Live in the air age with the extra EP when it was released here in England and played it continuously, they always shone brighter live, now have it on CD

That blissful smile that spreads across your face as the song progresses says it all.

Bill Nelson, one of the finest guitarists on the planet. Sunburst Finish, and Modern Music are two of my all time favourite albums,

@christopherdavies3079

2 жыл бұрын

And mine too !

The solos on ,Crying to the sky,and Adventures of a Yorkshire landscape,are stunning.

Be Bop Deluxe and Bill Nelson are, sadly, not given the due they deserve in North America. I am often alone in my fond memories of this group and Nelson's musical influence on my tastes even today. Can't say how many times I've been playing tracks and some one asks, ' who is that?", and is surprised they missed thsi group way back when. My kids are aspiring guitarists now, and I have made sure they hear this work, as to me its as fresh and original as they first time I fell in love with it! Great show.

@WELLBRAN

3 жыл бұрын

keep showing your music to your kids I did that with my daughter and she is now a better musician from it, and she is now an orchestral conductor and plays brass..at age 3 she memorised in a few minutes "yours is no disgrace" by YES i was shocked she was humming it in her buggy down the street!...lol!

@bradkaitting4638

2 жыл бұрын

You are not alone ... I am still blaring BBD on the daily, sharing them with my family, friends ... everyone. I fell in love with their music when I was 3 years old; i'm now 46.

@tribalskyes4838

2 жыл бұрын

I as well shopped his sound and musicianship to all who would listen back in the '70's. Ironically, to me some of his best work has been produced in the past 10 yrs. and I'm still trying to get people to listen. Tragically, underrated.

@giulioluzzardi7632

Жыл бұрын

Good to know there are fans if Be-bop-Deluxe in America!!

@RJPaul-px6vt

Жыл бұрын

They're not even given the credit they deserve in the UK. I have no hesitation in saying Bill Nelson is the greatest English rock guitarist of all time, better than Page.

Criminally underrated band, absolutely no wankery whatsoever with Bill Nelsons guitar work.

@jonrichie6110

3 жыл бұрын

Ffs. Is every band, muso and artist on the planet CRIMINALLY UNDERRATED? Everytime i read comments these effing words are always used to describe everything. Ive even seen it used to describe Brian May, Steve Vai and Prince ffs.

@signedupfordoconly4275

Жыл бұрын

@@jonrichie6110 Steve Vai is certainly not under rated lol. I’ll agree with that. But sadly Bill is. BBD would barely be even remembered from most burn outs in the 70’s. But there are a few of us who try and get the word out nearly 50 years later :)

Bill Nelson's talent was immense. I never could understand why he didn't get more recognition and accolades than he did. Great choice, Fil! Top notch analysis.

@davidsmith-jj4iq

5 жыл бұрын

Agreed,his down to earth lyrics,and stellar guitar playing/singing,as well as being ahead of his time

@WELLBRAN

3 жыл бұрын

he was not pushy enough and had no ego and he was not a "break up the hotel" guy so its a shame that the music business is like that...run by dick heads

@hurdygurdyguy1

2 жыл бұрын

Have to amend your statement, Bill's talent is still immense!! Check out his bandcamp channel!

6:58 Charlie's bass lines in the transition to Terminal Street are sublime.

Thank you for your brilliant analysis of this fantastic band and it’s genius frontman. I always look forward to your reviews to make me better able to appreciate the talents of musicians like Bill Nelson!

I always thought Bill Nelson was a bit of a musical genius. Underrated for sure.

@MrParisienWalkways

3 жыл бұрын

He’s a lot of one!

@chriswalford9228

3 жыл бұрын

Still is rather than was

@jasoncdebussy

3 жыл бұрын

@@chriswalford9228 I know Bill is still alive. I used a perfectly acceptable grammatical construction.

I did not listen to anything but bebop,thin lizzy, and free in the seventies they were the best of the best and Bill is a giant of a lead guitarist his tone and phrasing is awesome.

Nice pull. Discovered Axe Victim not knowing anything about them but fell in love with that album. Eventually picked up the entire catalog and some of Bill Nelson's numerous solo albums. Good to see some light shed on this very underrated band.

Terminal Street is one of my favorites. Bill’s vocal performance on the studio version gives me the chills. Thanks so much for spreading the amazing talents of Bill Nelson and Be Boo Deluxe! 🔊🌝👍

@royalerathcliff5703

5 ай бұрын

agreed...studio version greatest production...2nd to none!

My favourite player. Saw them live twice . Brill . Crying to the sky my all time best two lead breaks .

Be Bop De Luxe, a great band, and surely Bill Nelson is one of the best guitarists on the planet.

Class act, brilliant guitar player

Hands down, my favourite guitarist. Truly an artist who paints with sound.

@barringtongilbert9230

9 ай бұрын

Same here...yet nobody today knows his name.

A very nice surprise Fil. Be Bop Deluxe was a very under appreciated band IMO. Thanks!

@geryhatrix

4 жыл бұрын

I agree 100%!!!

Happy you did this. Bill Nelson deserves to be mentioned as one of the great guitar players and songwriters. One of the most distinctive guitar sounds of the 70's.

Hugely underrated band, Bill Nelson is a genius. Just fantastic.

Bill Nelson is one of Britain’s greatest rock and fusion guitarists so very very under appreciated some of his live stuff is awesome I grew up with bill Nelson Rory Gallagher Gary Moore as my guitar hero’s Thankyou for posting this it re awakened many wonderful memories of my youth.

Great raw rock sound! Outstanding dynamics and guitar solo🤘🏻............. RIP Dr John😞

@wingsofpegasus

5 жыл бұрын

Amen.

@ericheine2414

5 жыл бұрын

Dr. John. Thank you for your contribution. I've heard some marvelous stories about you. But we'll save those for later. Godspeed.

as a 17 year old back in 1976 i thought their music really did cover many genres , rock pop and even a little prog dare i say I love em 😁

Live in the Air Age !!!! Adventures in Yorkshire Landscape . My favorite solo of all time

@davidsmith-jj4iq

5 жыл бұрын

So true the whole album,has great playing on,also,"crying to the sky",has a superb solo on it

@jefffoster3557

4 жыл бұрын

Don't forget it was that very solo on CTTS that inspired Prince's playing on Purple Rain. Nelson is one of my personal top 10 fav guitarists. Look up the vid with New Precision live here on YT......timeless stuff.

@aeropilot4419

3 жыл бұрын

Killer 👍🏼

Astute summary of Be Bop Deluxe...excellent. Truly amazing band.

First time ever hearing these guys....I LOVE them!!!Such a unique style! Love Bill Nelson's guitar playing. Thanks, Fil, for opening my eyes to record labels.... I had no idea : (

@avolite719

4 жыл бұрын

Welcome Sally. I was fortunate enough to find out about them back in 1982. Many nights spent back then and still to this day listening to all my Be Bop Deluxe albums.

@djclay33

4 жыл бұрын

saw them a no. of time in 70s upclose. sooooo much talent and presence

Brilliant 😎💖😍Chills .Love their smiles😊

Hi Fil I still love Bill Nelson’s 2x solos on “crying to the sky” (B-side to ships in the night) from the “sunburst finish” album 1975 ish , after all these years and countless fads and new favourites, I always come back to this one….. I was 17 at the time, I’m 62 now and still play it regularly BTW. Have you watched Bill Nelson’s live rendition of “for Stuart” he wrote & performed around 2011 in tribute to the late Stuart Adamson of “Big Country” its fantastic and here on KZread

A really talented band, that was overshadowed by the arrival of Punk in 1976.

@ShadowFactoryVids

4 жыл бұрын

Not really. Check out Drastic Plastic and after Bill Nelson split the band up, he went full-power avant-garde punk with his Red Noise band.

Absolutley most underated guitarist in history.....

Bill is a musical heavyweight and probably influenced more well known musicians than we will ever know. I was lucky enough to see Be Pop Deluxe at one of their first ever gigs in Askern nr Doncaster . Bill went on to live in the same area as me and still does he is still very active in music.

Bill is a great storyteller in lyric and painter in his playing. I used to carry his albums to school to try to get friends to listen to them. Thanks for this one, it's special!

Superb guitarist, superb songwriter, superb singer. I have everything Bill Nelson ever put out on vinyl, I remember being on the top deck of the bus with Red Noise album tucked under my arm, great memories of great times.

One of my all time favourite bands. In the mid-70s I won a pair of tickets on a local radio show, Extravaganza on BBC Radio Nottingham. A program that played the best music. On the day of the concert I was struck down with flu and bed-ridden. Had to give the tickets away. I never got to see them live. Still saddens me to this day - then I put on one of their albums. Magic.

I’ve never heard this band before. They are awesome-great rock and roll😎

Gorgeous Bill Nelson. Love Terminal Street ?? I remember Be bop Deluxe . We are like ships in the night. Sailing away... I loved that. When you hear something so unique. I was a kid then . Later , in my misspent youth , a friend of mine had a couple of Bill Nelson albums . We would listen to them in his weird and wonderful room. Stoned to heaven . On thee top most top volume . Powerful speakers. The album had The October man. Flaming desire. Do you dream in colour . He did some other conceptual, trippy stuff . Which I simply adore . But not sure on what album . He was experimental. Like early Roxy . Brian Eno is just like the father of all that. Maybe ? Here come the warm jets . Another trippy album we loved back in my day . I love that album . So many amazing ground breaking artists came from the North of England . Including Bill Nelson. 🛸👄⏰

I've been a massive Bill Nelson fan since '77 and your commentary of his playing is so spot on and valuable. I always bring him up in discussions about great players. Every player in BeBop Deluxe was exceptionally talented and they could just flat out play. Thanks, for this!

A band I never heard of before and a bloomin' good one at that. Excellent analysis Fil, hit it right on the noggin 👍

Be Bop Deluxe were one of my favourite bands back in the 70’s I find it interesting that following the excellent Esoteric label Remastered / Remixed albums that this wonderful band are being appreciated again .

Huge Be Bop Deluxe fan here ever since my drummer at the time introduced me to their Futurama album when it was released. Saw them twice in the 70's and I must confess Bill Nelson and Jimmy Page were my two biggest influences on my own guitar playing.

Great video! Bill/Be Bop is criminally overlooked...a true artist and genius...

This is the first time I have heard this band. Love it. It is pretty crummy how musicians are treated. Thanks, Fil.

i always loved Bill Nelson's eccentric but intensely beautiful & melodic muse. So gifted...but utterly shafted by the record labels, lawyers and managers. An all too common fate that befalls gentle, sensitive and artistic souls such as his.

Well said. Bill Nelson is one of the greatest guitarists out there, and I love the whole Be Bop Deluxe sci-fi vibe. More to the point, that HUGE sound! For anyone who wants to learn, go listen to Live! In the Air Age, especially "Adventures in a Yorkshire Landscape" God Bless Bill...

First band I ever saw live in ‘78 at Leeds Grand Theatre at the tender age of 13. Still one of my favourite musicians... Not only an outstanding player but a true poet as well, also a fellow Yorkshireman! Cheers for the vid man, peace ✌️

An incredible band who deserves far more recognition than they get. Nelson is brilliant.

Love this band and you definitely did them justice. There's so much delicious variety packed into those 2 pieces! Record labels...grrrrrrr!

They were one of the best bands of that era that no one talks about now and he is forgotten in music today but has made a ton of top albums on his own since..How a guy like that can be shunned by the music "industry" is a crime..A forgotten national music treasure, easily the best songwriter in UK

Love this band

@davidrobertson1980

5 жыл бұрын

EMI are still a bunch of thieves and should be f*^kn ashamed of themselves, someone should set up a patreon for Bill and spread millions of pirated copies of their records EMI stole the rights to! FKM

I remember watching this and falling in love with Gibson It's look and sound !

Enjoyed that, they were always my fav since '76. Thank you. I still have my first kipper neck tie with the wide slanting stripes 'cos of Be-Bop. haha.

Such a unique and superb band, great to see them get their due here. Bill has always been a major talent, the rare triple threat: singer/songwriter/lead guitarist. Futurama is one of the best albums of the 70’s.

I got to see them twice on U.S. tours in the '70s. It was just the quartet, Bill covering as much of the studio wizardry he'd created as humanly possible live. He had a black wedge with about half a dozen foot operated plunger switches on it that he danced on while playing and singing. "Live In The Air Age" was the 2nd tour I saw. In any case, he was and is one of the best composers, arrangers, producers, guitarists and lyricists to come along ever... and all rolled into one.

Live in the Airage one of my favourite Live Albums Bill Nelson & Be Bop"s Keys Player Andy Clark on fire (RIP Charlie Tumahai)

Phil, you do such excellent analysis for a young man. Great job!

Thank you for bringing back BeBop Deluxe. Saw them at the Shrine in the mid 70’s and fell in love with Shine. But Sunburst Finish was one of my favorite 70’s albums

Great choice! Live in the Air Age - Bill Nelson - totally smokin' guitar solos.

Been a fan of BN and BBD since they first toured the US. Saw them in '75 or '76 at the Santa Monica Civic Auditorium. "Live: In the Air Age" is a masterpiece.

I only became aware of this band over the past couple of years. Incredibly talented and sadly underrated.

It was the well known rock producer Bob Rock who introduced me to Be-Bop Deluxe back in the day , this was before he started his recording career, I can hear traces of Bill Nelson's influence on some of Bob's productions and playin' I still have Be-Bop Deluxe "Axe Victim" on vinyl..keep up the good work !

Glad to see this...Be Bop Deluxe was so underrated and Bill Nelson is a fantastic guitarist with great tone...check out the live album Live In The Air Age...it has it all

Huge fan, was fortunate to see them live in '77. Your analysis of the music was spot on.

Hey Fil, been a while, but just found this-- after listening to the new Live In The Air Age Box (7 full concerts). They were a favorite of mine from back in the 70's when I would drive those listening to Paul Revere or the Monkeys absolutely crazy with this. Was not a fan of Bill in his solo stuff, but Be Bop was just amazing. 40 years later and I still got them on my radar. I could see you really enjoyed this also... never saw you smile so much!

I got to see Be Bop Deluxe in Redding, California in 1977. They opened for Golden Earring. We were front, center. Bill nelson is fabulous!

Its always a pleasure coming home and turning on my phone after a hard nights work and Fantastic Fil pops up. What a way up end a long night with Fil and an icy cold iPA 7%. Life doesn't get better.

My brother asked me to revisit this band and Bill Nelson just yesterday. Of course back in the day, Bebop Deluxe was on the airwaves as a known entity. But I don't recall having their records or liking or disliking the band. So it feels like I can just come at this freshly. And wow. Bill is a very classy player. His style seems very personal yet technically proficient on a level that isn't typical or cliche. His ideas seem fresh and full of really engaging sophisticated expression.

All time favourite band. Saw them multiple times in the mid seventies onwards. First time at Cleethorpes Winter Gardens in 1975. Been a massive fan ever since. Got everything on vinyl and CD, plus the newly re-issued of the last 2 years. Bill Nelson is the best guitarist I ever saw.

Thank you for speaking up for Bill. I discovered him during college back in the late ‘70s, and have shouted to the rooftops with praise for him ever since.

And, YES! F**k labels! Here's to your independent success, and--i might note that this is now the ideal platform for showing off that original stuff of yours you've been so shy about. We 💘 you, Fil.

I always remember hearing 'Jet Silver and the Dolls of Venus' single for the first time back in the 70s, absolutely brilliant.

Live in the Air Age was one of my favorites when it was released. Sister Seagull and Axe Victim were my favorite songs.

Fil is the best thing to happen, to actually refresh, KZread in a sea turtle’s age. Criticism is not difficult to pull off but Fil’s brand of explication is both intellectually informative and stimulating but it is also so very emotionally positive. When have I last seen a “critic” smile all through an editorial? I honestly don’t recall.…

Bill Nelsen was a gem...Had heard of them, but never listened until a musician friend turned me on to BBD around 1976. Peace, Pegasus.

Nice....How did I miss theses guys? 👍👍👍

Ahh Bill Nelson what can you say, to sum him up in a single word GENIUS.

Great analysis, Fil - spot on! I've admired Bill Nelson's guitar playing for a long time - Its fun to see your smile widen everytime Bill blazes up the neck. Cheers from Canada!

I can’t believe I missed this. I bugged the crap out of you to do be bop deluxe for months. These guys were just amazing. Almost every sound any 70 rocker made that could be considered cliche was invented by bill Nelson. Amazing guitarist. Phenomenal wardrobe!

Epic enseble of musicians totally dedicated and with telepathic communication skills. When I started playing a top producer told me to always buy our own master tapes(yes it was the late 70s) to record demos etc on and always take them home at the end of the session. The tape is your property not the scuzzy manager/producer/swindler and find a good lawyer to get your back. That was one of the tightest and dynamic performances ever, they were proud of their craft.

With a Maori tribesman on bass guitar. I think that's pretty unique.

Thanks for featuring BN, a vastly underrated musician, writer and guitarist. Cheers!

Saw them in the late 70s at the Shrine Auditorium in LA. Fantastic show. Sunburst Finish was and is still my favorite BeBop Deluxe LP but the song that stole the show, in my humble opinion, was Shine. I purchased Live in the Air Age to have that live performance in my collection.

Bill flicks in a lick seemingly at will that fits perfectly everytime .Nelson should be studied by every guitarist , a wizard of a musician.

Thanks for spotlighting a very under appreciated band! I was introduced to Be Bop Deluxe in the early seventies by a friend. I have those re-release cd’s and feel awful Bill and the boys got nothing.

Malvern Winter Gardens Worcestershire..Modern Music tour!! Totally brilliant changed my young life forever

Nice surprise to see Bebop Deluxe! Sister Seagull live is one of the most awesome live tracks.

Brilliant

One of my favourite bands of all time. Great bunch of class musicians. Bill Nelson is a legend and Charlie was an outstanding Bass player but Simon Fox was an interesting and solid drummer and Andy Clark made the keyboards look so easy. Quality in every album which stands the test of time. Such was their influence on me I started wearing a suit every time I went to see them. Happy and delicious days.

Never heard of them before. Instant fan. Gives that mesmerizing vibe of a David Gilmour-led Pink Floyd concert.

@Grimenoughtomaketherobotcry

9 ай бұрын

Try to get a hold of Live! In the Air Age. Many tracks on YT but listening to a cd or vinyl copy from start to finish with headphones is pure bliss.

Thanks for giving this band some love. Shame more people don't know about them and Bill Nelson especially. Great player!

And Charlie Tumahai was an awesome bassist with his signature flanged Telecaster bass