Draft:Neil Lockwood

Neil Lockwood formed his first band, Element 98, in his hometown, Blackwood, Caerphilly, in the mid-1970s,^[1] the same Welsh town where a decade later, the Manic Street Preachers would also emerge.

As a solo artist, Lockwood's first single, Tell Tale Heart, was released on Red Bus Records in 1983.^[2] In 1985, he revived his 1980 New Romantic band, The Shine, and a single, Shadow Dancing, was released on China Records/Chrysalis, with the reverse cover image by NME (New Musical Express) photographer Chalkie Davies.^[3][4] A year later, I Dream In Blue followed on China Records.

From the mid-1980s, Lockwood embarked on professional session work. In 1986, he appeared as a guest vocalist on Strange Land, the second album by Box of Frogs, a band featuring three former members of The Yardbirds, supplemented by numerous prominent guest musicians such as Jimmy Page, Rory Gallagher, and Steve Hackett. His work with the album’s producer Jeff Glixman led to contributions on Jagged Edge's debut album Fuel for Your Soul (1989).

Lockwood's engagements continued with appearances on two albums by Peter Bardens of British prog rock band, Camel. He provided vocals for the track In Dreams,^[5] on Seen One Earth (1987), and for Speed of Light in 1988,^[6] before joining Bardens' USA touring band in 1989 along with Mick Fleetwood.^{[7] [8]} In the same year, the former Renaissance singer, Annie Haslam recorded Let It Be Me written by Neil Lockwood, for her self-titled solo album.

Through his association with Jeff Glixman, Lockwood was selected to front ELO Part II in 1990.^[9] He also contributed lead and backing vocals to self-titled debut album Electric Light Orchestra Part Two.

In 1991, ELO Part II embarked on their first tour,^[10] which included former ELO members Hugh McDowell, Mik Kaminski, and Kelly Groucutt. Lockwood and Haycock both departed from the band in 1993. In the same year, he achieved a top-three hit in Germany with his song Sarah, recorded by the singer Mathou.^[11]

In 1996, Neil Lockwood connected with Alan Parsons. What began with demoing a few songs led to Neil singing lead vocals on three tracks for Parsons' album On Air. Soon after, he formally joined The Alan Parsons Band, performing vocals on multiple tours.^[12] In 1999, he also supplied vocals for some tracks on the album The Time Machine, before leaving the band in 2000. In 2001, Lockwood made a guest appearance as a backing vocalist on Asia's album Aura.

In 2004, Lockwood self-released You Can’t Get There From Here,^[13] a solo CD featuring ten of his own compositions. During the same year, he reunited with former ELO Part II band mates Bev Bevan and Phil Bates to form the Bev Bevan Band, later renamed Bev Bevan's Move. The lineup also included bassist Phil Tree and in 2007, original Move guitarist Trevor Burton made his occasional involvement permanent.

From the late 2010s, Lockwood built a successful second career as an in-demand cruise ship performer with a full band, often featuring ELO covers. In 2021, he wrote Dreams Are Not Enough, for fellow Welsh artist Bonnie Tyler’s album The Best is Yet to Come,^[14] also contributing backing vocals on track eight, Somebody's Hero.

Neil Lockwood died aged 67 on 15 March 2025, following a brief illness.^[15] Alan Parsons announced his passing on his official website, where he mourned the loss of a "good friend" and highlighted Lockwood's "unique talent as a vocalist" and his "good-humoured" nature.