The Manic Street Preachers

[grendood]

holy bible     

[jaknudsen]

Interesting that you mention that - AFD is often cited by the Manics to be one of the albums that had a big influence on them as they were starting out.

Their older stuff rocks... you can sorta hear a bit of GNR influence in songs like Motorcycle Emptiness, with the melodic guitar leads threaded right throughout the song.

And it doesn't hurt that they did a live cover of It's So Easy 

I've got it on mp3 somewhere...

Here's the mp3: Manic Street Preachers - It's So Easy (live in Belfort '92)

[*RightNextDoorToHull*]

 Long time, die-hard manics fan... they did introduce me to GnR! I agree that you can hear a lot of Gunners influence in the early albums- particularly Generation Terrorists. Izzy, if you liked the first two albums, then you want to give Holy Bible a listen, it's without a doubt the climax of the bands work ... before it admittedly started to go downhill.  And a friendly tip:- saying that Richie's dead when there's no evidence to show is only going to get you into trouble  Just missing.

And Tj, Holy Bible is constantly in my stereo! It's depressing, but it's genius! 

Em Xx

[Izzy]

saying that Richie's dead when there's no evidence to show is only going to get you into trouble? Just missing.

I thought he was dead? So where is he then?

[AdZ]

He's missing.

[Izzy]

He's missing.

Now i remember the story - his car was found next to the Severn bridge a place notorious for suicides. I'm sure he's alive and doing well somewhere.

The point still stands, up to that point they were a good band - after, they became rubbish, just in my humble opinion though.

[Tj]

Richey has been missing long enough to be declared dead, but his parents didn't want to do it, so...yeah. Sure, he may still be alive somewhere, but he wasn't exactly a very happy bunny...

Anyway, here's some stuff I found on the BBC website:


"1 February 1995: Edwards walks out of the Embassy Hotel in London in the early morning, ahead of the band's US tour to promote The Holy Bible.

In the following days, police issue a missing person alert and his parents, Graham and Sherry, plead for their son to let them know he is safe and well.

15 February 1995: Police discover Edwards' car in a car park near the Severn Bridge near Bristol - a notorious suicide spot. The discovery leads many to believe he has killed himself. The rest of the band stop touring and recording.

December 1995: The band play their first concerts since Edwards' disappearance as a trio, performing support slots for The Stone Roses on their UK stadium tour.

May 1996: The Manic Street Preachers release their first music since Edwards' disappearance. A Design For Life reaches number two in the UK singles chart. The album Everything Must Go follows.

February 1997: The Manics win best band and best album for Everything Must Go at the Brit Awards.

March 1997: A fan says she saw Edwards in the hippy resort of Goa, India. Interpol are alerted but do not track him down.

December 1998: Graham and Sherry Edwards fly to the Spanish island of Fuerteventura six weeks after reports a man fitting their son's description has been seen in a bar called Underground. The report comes to nothing.

February 2000: Edwards' sister Rachel makes an emotional TV appeal five years after the disappearance. "I'd just like to say to him if he is able to listen that we do love him very much and we'd like him to come back - me, mum and dad," she said.

February 2001: The band play a concert in the Cuban capital, Havana - the first contemporary western rock band to play there.

February 2002: On the seventh anniversary of his disappearance, police offer Edwards' parents the opportunity to sign a death certificate. They refuse.

The Big Issue magazine, which supports homelessness charities, prints the last known picture of Edwards in a fresh plea for information.

March 2002: A pair of trainers containing human bones washed up on the banks of the River Severn have no link to Edwards, police say.

June 2003: The last song written by Edwards - a song called Judge Y'Self, which was to have been used for the Judge Dredd film soundtrack - is released on the B-side compilation Lipstick Traces.

A skeleton found by the River Severn is not Edwards, tests reveal.

August 2004: The Manics' seventh studio album, Lifeblood, features a song dedicated to Edwards called Cardiff Afterlife.

February 2005: The remaining Manic Street Preachers members continue to pay a quarter of the band's royalties into an account held in his name."


I imagine at many moments since his disappearance it's been a living hell for most of his family   

[Izzy]

Yeah, that anxiety must be awful. It's inconcievable he's still alive - without money or a passport he couldn't have escaped our wonderful homeland....and there is no possibility he could have hidden for 10 years without being recognised.

It's also remarkable the body was never found in the river.

[Tj]

I had a funny feeling I had read in the past that his passport was nowhere to be found, indicating he took it with him...but nope, you're right, I just googled it and found out his passport was found back at his cardiff flat. Sucks, eh. There have been supposed sightings, but I guess that doesn't really prove anything.

[AdZ]

I don't know, a lot of people have successfully managed to be 'missing' for a long time, and then found their way back.

[Izzy]

I don't know, a lot of people have successfully managed to be 'missing' for a long time, and then found their way back.

Yeah but few have been famous celebrities and even fewer have had no car, no money and no passport. U throw in a history of mental illness and it just doesn't look good....

I hope he's alive, he was the talented part of the band, if he was to re-emerge maybe the band would become good again

[Poof!]

I don't know if there are any other Manics fans around here, but I need a little help replacing some of their b-sides. I have tried iTunes and every other credible music store on the net, but they are nowhere to be found. I used to have quite a few of them (their singles, that is), but I am fearing they got lost in a move cuz I haven't been able to find them since. Any help or info on where to find them would be much appreciated!?

[babydolls]

I used to be a huge manics fan up till everything must go era.  The b-sides I have are all from singles (From Despair to where,  Roses in the hospital, life becoming a landslide, slash n' burn etc ) - these are regularly on ebay fairly cheaply (from 99p to a few quid) - so shouldnt be too hard to find.
www.eil.com is also worth a look, although i find some of their stuff to be pretty overpriced.  Maybe there's also a decent Manics forum out there that could help also??
Good luck!!!!!   

[Poof!]

Thanks for your response/advice. I appreciate it! 

[badapple81]

Nice to see some other fans on here. I am mainly a fan of post Everything Must Go.

[Izzy]

Lipstick traces has all the ones worth a damn....

[Poof!]

Lipstick traces has all the ones worth a damn....

Well, it's got a lot of great ones, for sure, but it lacks "Black Holes For The Young" and "No One Knows (What it's like to be me)" - two of my favorite B-Sides. I just found out about Lipstick Traces and I am definitely getting it! Now I just gotta find those other two songs.

Thank to everyone who replied. And yeah, it's cool to see fellow Manics fans here!

[badapple81]

What did you think of Lifeblood? How did it do in the UK and how was it received by fans?

[babydolls]

i used to love MSP - i remember travelling down to from scotland in 94 to see them at the astoria 3 nights in a row! ended up being Richey's last gigs and the best stage trashing I've ever seen. They just arent the same without him - I loved Holy Bible the most (the lyrics and the rough, sound PLAY IT LOUD!), but I remember when Generation Terr. came out as they did keep going on about GnR.  They had a great image, and live, were incredible (esp for the HBible tours).  I for one do not think Richey is dead and that its perfectly possible that he is still alive.  For all we know he has contacted family/friends in the time that has passed and is happy to remain completely anonymous.  i think he was too intelligent to top himself (then again, i would have said the same about Kurt     )  Last time i saw them was at Glastonbury 99 and although I wasnt into them as much, it was still great to hear them again.

[badapple81]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mZDZZ6eek3A&search=manic%20street%20preachers

It's So Easy - 2003 @ HMV in London - Lipstick Traces promo gig