Alan Gowen
A Chronology: taken from the insert
of the National Health album D.S. al
Coda.
- 1971
- Alan Gowen
(keyboards) joins 'Assegai'
- 1972
- Alan, Jamie Muir
(drums) and Laurie Baker (bass) form 'Sunship', with Allan Holdsworth (guitar)
and Lyn Dobson (saxophones & flute).
- 1973
- After
various combinations of musicians, including Dick Morcombe (guitar), Alan
Wakeman (saxophones), Jeff Clyne (bass) and Richard Sinclair (bass),
'Gilgamesh' is formed with Phil Lee (guitar), Mike Travis (drums) and Neil
Murray (bass).
November. Gilgamesh and Hatfield & the North do double quartet
gigs in Leeds and London, playing special arrangements by Alan Gowen.
- 1974
- Neil Murray leaves Gilgamesh and is replaced by
Steve Cook (bass); {eter Lemer (keyboards) joins.
Gilgamesh BBC Radio broadcasts.
Peter Lemer leaves
- 1975
- Steve Cook leaves and is replaced first by Neil
Murray, then by Jeff Clyne.
May. Gilgamesh - Alan Gowen, Phil Lee, Jeff Clyne and Amanda
Parsons (vocals) record their first album (Caroline Records).
After the disbanding of Hatfield & the North, Alan and Dave Stewart
(keyboards) form National Health
with Phil Lee, Phil Miller (guitars), Mont Campbell (bass), Bill Bruford
(drums) and Amanda Parsons.
Phil Lee leaves National Health. - 1976
- National
Health tour U.K.
Bill Bruford leaves and John Mitchell (percussion) joins National Health.
Mont Campbell and John Mitchell leave National Health.
National Health
tour U.K. with Bill Bruford and Neil Murray.
Bill Bruford leaves and is
replaced by Pip Pyle (drums). National Health tour Holland and France.
- 1977
- Amanda Parsons leaves National Health.
April. First National
Health album is recorded - Alan Gowen, Dave Stewart, Phil Miller, Neil
Murray, Pip Pyle, with Amanda Parsons, John Mitchell and Jimmy Hastings
(clarinets & flute) (Affinity).
Alan Gowen leaves National Health.
- 1978
- April. Alan Gowen, Elton Dean
(saxophones), High Hopper (bass) and Dave Sheen (drums) tour France as 'Soft
Head' and record Rogue Element (Ogun).
National Health: John
Greaves (bass) replaces Neil Murray and they tour Belgium and France.
June. Alan Gowen records second Gilgamesh album Another
Fine Tune You've Got Me Into with Phil Lee, Hugh Hopper and Trevor
Tomkins (drums) (Charly Records).
June. Second National Health
record Of Queues And Cures
(Dave Stewart, Phil Miller, John Greaves and Pip Pyle) (Charly Records).
October. Soft Heap album is recorded (Alan Gowen,
Elton Dean, Hugh Hopper and Pip Pyle) (Charly Records).
National Health:
Georgie Born (cello) and Lindsay Cooper (bassoon and saxophone) join.
Dave
Stewart, Georgie Born and Lindsay Cooper leave National Health.
- 1979
- Alan Gowen rejoins National Health (Phil Miller,
John Greaves and Pip Pyle). They tour Scandanavia, Spain, France and America.
Soft Heap (Alan Gowen, Elton Dean, John Greaves and Pip Pyle) tour North of
England and Scotland. - 1980
- February.
National Health tour Scandanavia for the second time.
March. Alan
Gowen leaves National Health and the band splits up.
June. Alan
Gowen and Hugh Hopper record Two Rainbows Daily (Red
Records/re-released by Europa Records). - 1981
- April. Alan Gowen, Phil Miller, Richard Sinclair and Trevor
Tomkins record Before a Word is Said (Europa Records).
On May
17th Alan Gowen dies from leukemia.
October. National Health in
the form of Phil Miller, Dave Stewart, John Greaves and Pip Pyle (with Richard
Sinclair, Elton Dean, Jimmy Hastings, Amanda Parsons, Barbara Gaskin, Annie
Whitehead and Ted Emmett) record D.S. al
Coda (Europa Records).
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