After Dinner Speakers: Huey Lewis & The News, David Beckham, Peter Wickens

This highly successful AOR band was formed in Marin County, California, USA in 1980 by ex-Clover members Huey Lewis (b. Hugh Anthony Cregg III, 5 July 1950, New York City, New York, USA; vocals, harmonica) and Sean Hopper (keyboards). They recruited guitarist and saxophonist Johnny Colla, Mario Cipollina (bass), Bill Gibson (drums) and Chris Hayes (lead guitar), all fellow performers at a regular jam session at local club Uncle Charlie's. Their debut album was produced by Bill Schnee and released by Chrysalis Records, and a single from it, "Do You Believe In Love" reached the US Top 10 in 1982 aided by a tongue-in-cheek video. The band's easy-going rock/soul fusion reached its peak with Sports, which provided five US Top 20 hits in 1983 and 1984. Among them were the Chinn And Chapman and song "Heart & Soul", "The Heart Of Rock & Roll", "If This Is It" and "I Want A New Drug". Lewis sued Ray Parker Jnr. over the latter song, claiming it had been plagiarised for the Ghostbusters theme. Between 1985 and 1986, three Huey Lewis & The News singles headed the US charts. They were "The Power Of Love' (chosen as the theme tune for Robert Zemeckis" movie Back To The Future), the Hayes-Lewis composition "Stuck With You" and "Jacob's Ladder", written by Bruce Hornsby. "Perfect World' (1988) from the fifth album was also a success although Hard At Play did less well. Lewis" status with AOR audiences was underlined when he was chosen to sing the national anthem at the American Bowl in the 80s. The band maintained a lower musical profile in the 90s, with Lewis electing to concentrate on his acting career instead. A beautiful a cappella cover version of Curtis Mayfield's "It's All Right", released in June 1993, was followed by Four Chords And Several Years Ago, a tour of the band's musical mentors. The band's comeback album, the soulful Plan B, was released in July 2001.