Biography
Nigel Dixon fronted the British rockabilly outfit Whirlwind throughout the 1970s, earning equal notice for his striking appearance and his forceful singing style. British music journalist Stuart Coleman noted in the liner notes to the band’s 1977 album Blowing Up A Storm, “(Dixon) should know with his sharp looks and throbbing vocal chords, he cuts a dash with chicks on live dates.”
Dixon refined his abilities in several groups around Uxbridge before guitarist Michael “Redhead” Lewis discovered him, an encounter that led the two musicians to combine efforts and launch Whirlwind. Their earliest performances supported rock and roll disc jockey Fifties Flash.
The group issued its first single, “Full Time Thing,” on the Pye label and soon secured a three-album contract with Chiswick. Despite supporting slots on tours with the Clash, Ian Dury, and Elvis Costello, the initial pair of Chiswick releases did not achieve commercial success, prompting the band’s dissolution in 1979. Material from those two albums later resurfaced, supplemented by additional tracks, under the title In The Studio.
Dixon ventured out on his own with the 1980 single “Thunderbird.” In the late 1980s he appeared with Havana 3 AM, the band led by former Clash bassist Paul Simonon. He passed away on April 3, 1993.
Dixon refined his abilities in several groups around Uxbridge before guitarist Michael “Redhead” Lewis discovered him, an encounter that led the two musicians to combine efforts and launch Whirlwind. Their earliest performances supported rock and roll disc jockey Fifties Flash.
The group issued its first single, “Full Time Thing,” on the Pye label and soon secured a three-album contract with Chiswick. Despite supporting slots on tours with the Clash, Ian Dury, and Elvis Costello, the initial pair of Chiswick releases did not achieve commercial success, prompting the band’s dissolution in 1979. Material from those two albums later resurfaced, supplemented by additional tracks, under the title In The Studio.
Dixon ventured out on his own with the 1980 single “Thunderbird.” In the late 1980s he appeared with Havana 3 AM, the band led by former Clash bassist Paul Simonon. He passed away on April 3, 1993.