David Cairns (musician)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Walthamstow, London, England
David Cairns | |
|---|---|
 Cairns in 1978 | |
| Background information | |
| Birth name | David Anthony Cairns |
| Born | 15 November 1958 (age 66) Walthamstow, London, England |
| Genres | Power pop, mod revival, rock |
| Instrument(s) | Guitar, keyboards |
| Years active | 1976-present |
| Labels | I-Spy, CBS, MCA, Scotti Bros. |
| Member of | Secret Affair |
| Formerly of | New Hearts |
| Website | www |
David Cairns (born 15 November 1958) is an English rock guitarist and songwriter, best known for his role in the band Secret Affair. The writer of the band's biggest hits, he was known for his intense guitar style.
The son of an Epping Forest GP, Dr Richard James Cairns MBE, David Cairns was first inspired to take up the guitar after an encounter at a local nightclub with BBC Radio 1 DJ John Peel, who recommended the teenager listen to a Lynyrd Skynyrd album. He was also inspired by a live performance by The Who at Charlton Athletic's football ground in 1976 and while at sixth form teamed up with singer Ian Page, forming power pop/punk band New Hearts. The band signed to CBS Records in 1977, releasing two singles and touring with The Jam, before being released from their recording contract in mid-1978, although their unreleased album New Hearts, A Secret Affair, The CBS Sessions was finally released on Cherry Red Records, October 2009.
Secret Affair
After the demise of the New Hearts, Cairns continued to work with Page, forming Secret Affair. The two songwriters spent the second half of 1978 writing songs that would form the basis of the first two Secret Affair albums. In a period of a little over two years, the band posted five releases in the UK Singles Chart, and released three albums. The debut single "Time For Action" sold 198,000 copies[1] and reached number 13 in the UK chart in 1979, putting them at the forefront of the mod revival movement. More chart success followed with "Let Your Heart Dance", "My World" and "Sound Of Confusion". Although Cairns and Page would often write together, three of the band's biggest chart hits ("Time For Action", "My World" and "Sound Of Confusion") were written by Cairns alone.
First Secret Affair reunion
After the split of Secret Affair in 1982, Cairns formed The Flag with singer Archie Brown, signing to Scotti Brothers Records/CBS in the U.S. Relocating to Los Angeles for a year, the band toured supporting A Flock of Seagulls and released the USA only album, Flag which featured Dave Ruffy on drums (The Ruts), Nathan East on bass (Eric Clapton Band) and John Van Tongeren on keyboards.
Cairns subsequently teamed up with Scottish singer Alan King in Walk on Fire,[2] writing the majority of the band's material and playing keyboards on their live tours. Signing to MCA in the US, and managed by Bill Curbishley of The Who and Plant/Page fame, they released the album Blind Faith in 1990 and toured supporting Foreigner, Nils Lofgren, and the Dan Reed Network. In 1992 he moved away from playing and joined Gibson Guitars as Special Projects & Events manager, promoting major Gibson shows around the world; in particular UK charity events promoted by Harvey Goldsmith in aid of The Prince's Trust, and developing new custom guitar models for artists such as Jimmy Page and Noel Gallagher before leaving the company in 2000 having managed Gibson's London, Orlando and Memphis offices to join Peugeot as an events manager (in particular the 207 car launch) and later Toyota and Ford.
