Steve Hanley (musician)
Encyclopedia
Steve Hanley is an Irish-born English musician, based in Manchester
. He is best known for playing bass guitar in The Fall from 1979 to 1998, and afterwards in The Lovers
.
Hanley's distinctive basslines—at once propulsive and melodic—were a signature part of The Fall. He is described by critic Dave Simpson as "one of British music's greatest bassists". Second only to founding vocalist Mark E. Smith
in longevity in the group, Hanley co-wrote over 100 songs on more than a dozen albums. Smith spoke publicly of his admiration for Hanley, telling Melody Maker
in 1983 "The most original aspect of The Fall is Steve...I've never heard a bass player like him...I don't have to tell him what to play, he just knows. He is The Fall sound."
and Craig Scanlon
. When Riley left to join The Fall, they became Staff 9, but disbanded when Hanley and Scanlon joined The Fall themselves in 1979. During the first half of the 1980s, Hanley's brother Paul
was also a member of The Fall playing drums and keyboards.
Hanley left The Fall in April 1998 following an onstage altercation in New York, which also resulted in the departures of longtime drummer Karl Burns
and guitarist Tommy Crooks. Smith regretted the row and asked Hanley to return, but the bassist declined.
Following his departure from The Fall, Hanley formed ARK. In 2001 he joined The Lovers
, a group fronted by Tom Hingley
of Inspiral Carpets
. Both these bands also feature Paul Hanley
, Steve's brother. The Lovers have released two albums, Abba Are The Enemy
, released in 2004, and Highlights
which was released in March 2008. They continue to play regularly.
He was also briefly a member of fellow ex-Fall member Martin Bramah
's group Factory star
, as was his brother Paul Hanley
Manchester
Manchester is a city and metropolitan borough in Greater Manchester, England. According to the Office for National Statistics, the 2010 mid-year population estimate for Manchester was 498,800. Manchester lies within one of the UK's largest metropolitan areas, the metropolitan county of Greater...
. He is best known for playing bass guitar in The Fall from 1979 to 1998, and afterwards in The Lovers
Tom Hingley and the Lovers
The Lovers are a British punk rock band formed by singer Tom Hingley and brothers Steve Hanley and Paul Hanley - both former members of The Fall - with guitarist Jason Brown and keyboardist Kelly Wood....
.
Hanley's distinctive basslines—at once propulsive and melodic—were a signature part of The Fall. He is described by critic Dave Simpson as "one of British music's greatest bassists". Second only to founding vocalist Mark E. Smith
Mark E. Smith
Mark Edward Smith is the lead singer, lyricist, frontman, and only constant member of the English post-punk band The Fall.-Early life:...
in longevity in the group, Hanley co-wrote over 100 songs on more than a dozen albums. Smith spoke publicly of his admiration for Hanley, telling Melody Maker
Melody Maker
Melody Maker, published in the United Kingdom, was, according to its publisher IPC Media, the world's oldest weekly music newspaper. It was founded in 1926 as a magazine targeted at musicians; in 2000 it was merged into "long-standing rival" New Musical Express.-1950s–1960s:Originally the Melody...
in 1983 "The most original aspect of The Fall is Steve...I've never heard a bass player like him...I don't have to tell him what to play, he just knows. He is The Fall sound."
Career
1976 he played in The Sirens alongside Marc RileyMarc Riley
Marc Riley is a British musician, alternative rock critic and radio DJ on BBC 6 Music. Formerly a member of The Fall, he had his own record label, In-Tape, and also worked as a record plugger...
and Craig Scanlon
Craig Scanlon
Craig Scanlon is a British guitarist, best known as a member of The Fall between 1979 and 1995. During this period he co-wrote over 120 of the group's songs; Mark E. Smith excepted, this tally is unmatched by any other musician to have passed through the group.-Career:Scanlon joined the band...
. When Riley left to join The Fall, they became Staff 9, but disbanded when Hanley and Scanlon joined The Fall themselves in 1979. During the first half of the 1980s, Hanley's brother Paul
Paul Hanley (musician)
Paul Hanley is an English musician, based in Manchester. He is best known for playing drums in The Fall and The Lovers.-Career:...
was also a member of The Fall playing drums and keyboards.
Hanley left The Fall in April 1998 following an onstage altercation in New York, which also resulted in the departures of longtime drummer Karl Burns
Karl Burns
Karl Burns is a British musician best known as drummer for The Fall, featuring in many incarnations of the band between 1977 and 1998....
and guitarist Tommy Crooks. Smith regretted the row and asked Hanley to return, but the bassist declined.
Following his departure from The Fall, Hanley formed ARK. In 2001 he joined The Lovers
Tom Hingley and the Lovers
The Lovers are a British punk rock band formed by singer Tom Hingley and brothers Steve Hanley and Paul Hanley - both former members of The Fall - with guitarist Jason Brown and keyboardist Kelly Wood....
, a group fronted by Tom Hingley
Tom Hingley
Tom Hingley is a musician best known as the lead vocalist of the English rock band Inspiral Carpets.-Life:...
of Inspiral Carpets
Inspiral Carpets
Inspiral Carpets are an alternative rock band from Oldham in Greater Manchester, England formed by Graham Lambert and Stephen Holt in 1983. The band is named after a clothing shop on their Oldham estate...
. Both these bands also feature Paul Hanley
Paul Hanley (musician)
Paul Hanley is an English musician, based in Manchester. He is best known for playing drums in The Fall and The Lovers.-Career:...
, Steve's brother. The Lovers have released two albums, Abba Are The Enemy
Abba Are The Enemy
Abba are the enemy is the debut album by Tom Hingley and the Lovers, who feature Inspiral Carpets singer Tom Hingley, Steve Hanley and Paul Hanley from Manchester punk band The Fall. It was released in 2004.- Track listing :...
, released in 2004, and Highlights
Highlights (album)
Highlights is the second album by Tom Hingley and the Lovers, who feature Inspiral Carpets singer Tom Hingley, Steve Hanley and Paul Hanley from Manchester garage band The Fall, Jason Brown and Kelly Wood. It was released in 2008.- Track listing :...
which was released in March 2008. They continue to play regularly.
He was also briefly a member of fellow ex-Fall member Martin Bramah
Martin Bramah
Martin Bramah is a British musician best known as a founder member of both The Fall, Blue Orchids and Factory Star....
's group Factory star
Factory star
Factory Star are an English post-punk group, formed in Manchester in December 2008. The group was formed by singer/songriter/guitarist Martin Bramah. Factory Star began life as Bramah, Tim Lyons and Brian Benson . In April 2009 they were replaced by Steve Hanley , Paul Hanley , and *...
, as was his brother Paul Hanley
Paul Hanley (musician)
Paul Hanley is an English musician, based in Manchester. He is best known for playing drums in The Fall and The Lovers.-Career:...
Personal life
Hanley and his wife Heather have two children, Paul and Matthew. Paul is a drummer and plays in Manchester based rock band; Cartoon Land.Studio albums
| Album | Date of release | Label |
| Dragnet Dragnet (album) Dragnet is the second album by The Fall, released on 26 October 1979. It was recorded 2nd-4th August of that year.The album was recorded less than 8 months after its predecessor, Live at the Witch Trials, establishing at an early stage two key patterns of the group's work; that of high productivity... |
26 October 1979 | Step Forward Records |
| Grotesque (After the Gramme) Grotesque (After the Gramme) Grotesque is a 1980 album by The Fall. The music is a departure from that of the previous albums, 1979's Live at the Witch Trials and Dragnet. Marc Riley played organ on several tracks on the album. This was Paul Hanley's first album with the band, having joined earlier in the year aged just 15... |
17 November 1980 | Rough Trade Records Rough Trade Records Rough Trade Records is an independent record label based in London. It was formed in 1978 by Geoff Travis who had opened a record store off Ladbroke Grove... |
| Slates Slates (album) Slates is the fourth album by The Fall, first released on the 27th April 1981 on Rough Trade Records. Containing 6 tracks and pressed onto 10" vinyl, it was eligible for neither the single nor album charts, being too long for the former and too short for the latter. However, it was included in the... |
27 April 1981 | Rough Trade Records |
| Hex Enduction Hour Hex Enduction Hour Hex Enduction Hour is a 1982 album by The Fall. It was the first album to feature both Karl Burns and Paul Hanley in a two-drummer lineup and was partly recorded in Iceland during the group's 1981 visit, with the remainder being completed in a disused cinema in Hitchin, England... |
8 March 1982 | Kamera Records |
| Room to Live Room to Live Room to Live, subtitled Undilutable Slang Truth!, is the sixth studio album by The Fall. First released September 27, 1982, it was recorded as a quick follow-up to Hex Enduction Hour which had been released in March. It was to be Marc Riley's last album with the group.The group had originally... |
27 September 1982 | Kamera Records |
| Perverted By Language Perverted by Language Perverted by Language is a 1983 album by The Fall. It was the first Fall album to feature Brix Smith, then wife of Mark E. Smith, who performs lead vocals on "Hotel Blöedel"... |
12 December 1983 | Rough Trade Records |
| The Wonderful and Frightening World of The Fall The Wonderful and Frightening World of The Fall The Wonderful and Frightening World of The Fall is an album by The Fall, released in October 1984. It was the band's first album with the relatively large Beggars Banquet label, and was produced by John Leckie. Paul Hanley left the band immediately after the accompanying UK tour, ending the group's... |
8 October 1984 | Beggars Banquet Records Beggars Banquet Records Beggars Banquet is an English independent record label that began as a chain of record shops owned by Martin Mills and Nick Austin, and is part of the Beggars Group of labels... |
| This Nation's Saving Grace This Nation's Saving Grace This Nation's Saving Grace is a 1985 LP by The Fall. It reached number 54 in the UK charts. The album is frequently cited as one of the group's strongest and most consistent... |
23 September 1985 | Beggars Banquet Records |
| Bend Sinister Bend Sinister (album) Bend Sinister is a 1986 album by The Fall, released on Beggars Banquet Records. It reached number 36 in the UK charts. Its title is taken from Vladimir Nabokov's novel Bend Sinister . The US version of the album was titled The "Domesday Pay-Off" Triad Plus!.It was the third and last Fall album to... |
29 September 1986 | Beggars Banquet Records |
| The Frenz Experiment The Frenz Experiment The Frenz Experiment is a 1988 album by The Fall. It was released on Beggars Banquet Records, and like the group's other albums with the label, it has a different track listing across the various formats on which it was released: LP, CD and cassette. A number of the tracks are credited exclusively... |
29 February 1988 | Beggars Banquet Records |
| I Am Kurious, Oranj | 31 October 1988 | Beggars Banquet Records |
| Extricate Extricate Extricate is a 1990 album by post-punk band The Fall. It was made immediately after bandleader Mark E. Smith divorced Brix Smith. Brix's departure influenced more than just the subject matter of the album, it also helped define the sound of this album: her background vocals and post-punk guitar,... |
19 February 1990 | Phonogram Phonogram Records Phonogram Records was started in 1962 as a joint venture between Philips Records and Deutsche Grammophon. In 1972, Phonogram was merged with Polydor Records into PolyGram.... |
| Shift-Work Shift-Work Shift-Work is a 1991 LP by the British rock band The Fall. Released through Phonogram Records, it marked, in the opinion of critic Ted Mills, a change in direction for the group, as "repetitious grooves became interspersed with pop song structures." Non-vinyl versions of the record feature the... |
22 April 1991 | Phonogram |
| Code: Selfish Code: Selfish Code: Selfish is a 1992 LP by British rock band The Fall which entered the chart at number 21. It is characterised by its harsher sound, in relation to the previous year's Shift-Work, and draws influence from techno music. This was probably due to the addition of techno fan Dave Bush to the line-up... |
23 March 1992 | Phonogram |
| The Infotainment Scan The Infotainment Scan The Infotainment Scan is an album by The Fall, released in 1993 on Permanent Records in the UK and by Matador Records in the US. It was considered at the time of its release as the band's most accessible album, and came when the band were experiencing unprecedented recognition in the media... |
26 April 1993 | Permanent Records Matador Records Matador Records Matador Records is an independent record label, with a roster of indie rock artists and bands.-History:Matador was started by Chris Lombardi in 1989 in his New York City apartment. The following year, Lombardi was joined by former Homestead Records manager Gerard Cosloy, and the two of them have... |
| Middle Class Revolt Middle Class Revolt Middle Class Revolt is an album by The Fall, released in 1994 on Permanent Records. It spent one week on the UK album chart at number 48, a marked contrast to the top 10 debut of their preceding album The Infotainment Scan. The album's full title is Middle Class Revolt A/K/A The Vapourisation Of... |
3 May 1994 | Permanent Records |
| Cerebral Caustic Cerebral Caustic Cerebral Caustic is an album by The Fall, released in 1995 on Permanent Records. It spent one week on the UK charts at number 67, 19 places lower than its predecessor Middle Class Revolt, marking the end of one of the group's relatively more successful periods.The album was most notable for the... |
27 February 1995 | Permanent Records |
| The Light User Syndrome The Light User Syndrome The Light User Syndrome is an album by The Fall, released in 1996 on Jet Records. It was preceded by 8 minute, 3-part single "The Chiselers" and was the group's first album to feature keyboard player and guitarist Julia Nagle, It was the last to feature Brix Smith and the group were without Craig... |
10 June 1996 | Jet Records Jet Records Jet Records was a small British record label set up by Don Arden with artists like Electric Light Orchestra , Roy Wood, Gary Moore, Ozzy Osbourne, Riot and Magnum. The first release on the "Jet Records" label was "No Honestly", a UK top 10 for its singer and writer Lynsey De Paul in November 1974... |
| Levitate | 29 September 1997 | Artful Records |
Live albums
- 1982 Live in London 1980Live in London 1980Live In London 1980 is a live album by The Fall, released in 1982 on cassette on the Chaos Tapes label. Initially a limited edition of 4000 copies, the album has since been reissued several times....
- 1982 A Part of America Therein, 1981 (Live in USA)
- 1983 Fall in a Hole (Live Auckland 1982)Fall In a HoleFall In A Hole is a live album by The Fall, released in 1983 on the Flying Nun label of New Zealand.The album was recorded at the last show of the group's 1982 tour of Australia and New Zealand and was originally only released in those countries...
- 1993 BBC Radio One Live in Concert
- 1997 In the City
- 1997 15 Ways to Leave Your Man, Live
- 1998 Live to Air in Melbourne 1982
- 1998 Live Various Years
- 1998 Nottingham 92
- 2000 I Am as Pure as Oranj
- 2000 Live in Cambridge 1988
- 2001 Austurbaejarbio (Live in Reykjavik 1983)
- 2001 Live in Zagreb
- 2003 The Idiot Joy Show
- 2003 Live at the Phoenix Festival
- 2005 Live from the Vaults – Retford 1979
- 2005 Live from the Vaults – Los Angeles 1979
- 2005 Live from the Vaults – Glasgow 1981
- 2005 Live from the Vaults – Hoff Alter Bahnoff 1981
Part studio, part live albums
- 1980 Totale's Turns (It's Now or Never)Totale's Turns (It's Now or Never)Totale's Turns is a live album by The Fall, originally released on May 5, 1980. The first of the band's many live and part-live albums, it was mostly recorded at gigs in the north of England, but the track "New Puritan" was recorded at Mark E...
- 1989 Seminal LiveSeminal LiveSeminal Live is a 1989 album by British rock band The Fall, recorded partly in the studio and partly at live performances in 1988. The album was the last to be released by the group through Beggars Banquet Records, and as such is often seen as a "contractual obligation" album. It was also the last...
- 1995 The Twenty Seven Points
Compilation albums
- 1981 Early Years 77–79
- 1985 Hip Priest and Kamerads
- 1986 North West Gas
- 1987 Palace of Swords Reversed
- 1990 458489 A Sides
- 1990 458489 B Sides
- 1993 The Collection
- 1994 Backdrop
- 1996 Sinister Waltz
- 1996 Fiend With a Violin
- 1996 Oswald Defence Lawyer
- 1997 The Archive Series
- 1997 The Less You Look the More You Find
- 1997 Oxymoron
- 1997 Cheetham Hill
- 1998 Smile – It's the Best of The Fall
- 1998 Northern Attitude
- 1999 The Peel Sessions
- 2000 A Past Gone Mad
- 2000 Psykick Dancehall
- 2001 A World Bewitched
- 2002 Totally Wired – The Rough Trade Anthology
- 2002 The Rough Trade Singles Box
- 2002 High Tension Line
- 2002 Listening In – Lost Singles Tracks 1990–1992
- 2002 Early Singles
- 2003 Words of Expectation – BBC Sessions
- 2003 It's the New Thing – The Step Forward Years
- 2003 The War Against Intelligence – The Fontana Years
- 2003 Rebellious Jukebox
- 2004 50,000 Fall Fans Can't Be Wrong – 39 Golden Greats50,000 Fall Fans Can't Be Wrong50,000 Fall Fans Can't Be Wrong – 39 Golden Greats is a greatest hits album released by The Fall in 2004. It was the group's first career-spanning compilation, with a selection of songs from the 1978 EP Bingo-Master's Break-Out! up to the 2003 album The Real New Fall LP . The selection of...
- 2005 The Complete Peel Sessions 1978-2004
- 2006 The Permanent Years (Paranoia Man in Cheap Shit Room)
- 2007 The Fall Box Set 1976 – 2007
Singles
- 1979 "Rowche Rumble"
- 1980 "Fiery Jack"
- 1980 "How I Wrote 'Elastic Man'"
- 1980 "Totally Wired"
- 1981 "Lie Dream of a Casino Soul"
- 1982 "Look, Know"
- 1982 "Marquis Cha-Cha"
- 1983 "The Man Whose Head Expanded"
- 1983 "Kicker Conspiracy & Wings"
- 1984 "Oh! Brother"
- 1984 "C.R.E.E.P."
- 1985 "Couldn't Get Ahead"
- 1985 "Cruiser's Creek"
- 1986 "Living Too Late"
- 1986 "Mr. Pharmacist"
- 1986 "Hey! Luciani"
- 1987 "There's a Ghost in My House"
- 1987 "Hit the North"
- 1988 "Victoria"
- 1988 "Jerusalem"
- 1989 "Cab It Up!"
- 1990 "Telephone Thing"
- 1990 "Popcorn Double Feature"
- 1990 "White Lightning"
- 1990 "High Tension Line"
- 1992 "Free Range"
- 1992 "Ed's Babe"
- 1993 "Why Are People Grudgeful?"
- 1993 "Behind the Counter"
- 1994 "15 Ways"
- 1996 "The Chiselers"
- 1998 "Masquerade"
VHS/DVD
- 1981 Perverted By Language Bis (VHS/DVD)
- 1990 VHS8489 (VHS)
- 1991 Shift-Work and Holidays (VHS/DVD)
- 2004 Live at the Hacienda 1983–1985 (DVD)