It is with great sadness that the entire Classic Pop team pays tribute to Steve Strange, who passed away unexpectedly on 12th February 2015. The wonderful Welsh singer, who fronted Visage, was just 55 when he died of a heart attack at a hospital in Egypt. Strange – real name Steve Harrington – was a leading light on London’s New Romantic scene and became a fi gurehead for the new wave fashion and music scenes throughout the Eighties and beyond. His “heartbroken” friend Boy George led a wave of touching eulogies from the pop world. “We are devastated,” read a statement by Spandau Ballet, who dedicated their performance at the Sanremo music festival to him. “Steve was a lovely warm, generous, kind-hearted man, always full of fun. He will be sadly missed.” Simon Le Bon described Strange as “the leading edge of New Romantic”, while Heaven 17’s Martyn Ware called him “a gentle and respectful friend”.
Still coming to terms with tragedy, Strange’s agent Pete Bassett revealed, “Up until last year he was putting together a book of fashion styles based on the New Romantic movement, and it comes as a great shock. We understood that he had certain health problems, but nothing we knew was life-threatening.” Steve Strange was one of the most important fi gures to emerge from the Eighties. In 1978 he and Rusty Egan began holding David Bowie-themed nights at Billy’s club in Soho beneath a brothel. A year later they moved to The Blitz in Covent Garden where they soon attracted an incredible clientele including Boy George, Marilyn, and house band Spandau Ballet, all of whom would conspire to alter the course of the era’s music. “We played Bowie, Roxy [Music] and electro,” said Strange. “It was where our friends could be themselves.”
David Bowie famously hand-picked Strange to appear in his groundbreaking Ashes To Ashes video following a visit to the Blitz club. Mick Jagger was not so lucky; recalling the infamous incident where Jagger was denied entry, Strange wrote in his autobiography, “Mick got annoyed and said, ‘Don’t you know who I am?’ before storming off in search of nightlife elsewhere.” Strange had already been in various bands including the Moors Murderers and the Photons before forming Visage with Egan, Midge Ure and members of Magazine. They scored a huge hit with Fade To Grey in 1980, and – despite struggles with addiction – Strange continued to produce music and host club nights throughout the decade. After a lengthy absence Strange returned to Visage for 2013’s Hearts And Knives, and last year revisited the band’s early work via the Orchestral album.
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