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MIKE LEVON founder and owner of Holyground from 1965 onwards |
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1944 Born in Grantham, Lincolnshire, England. 1960 - 1964 Played drums in a local group. 1965 - 1966 Recorded, produced and sold LPs of fellow students' music in Bretton Hall College, Yorkshire, England. Mike wrote songs with Chris Coombs and Bob Hart for these records. 1967 Set up Holyground Records, the first independent record label in England, and recorded, produced & sold a folk / folk-rock LP, NUMBER NINE BREAD STREET, in Wakefield, Yorkshire. 1968 - 1969 Set up a small recording studio in Cass Yard, Wakefield, and recorded local artistes, including the first recordings of Bill Nelson. Recorded and produced a very collectable psych-rock album A TO AUSTR, which featured Brian Calvert and Chris Coombs. Mike wrote half the songs with Brian Calvert, Chris wrote the rest. 1970 - 1971 Holyground Studios were the centre for rock recording in the area, and further afield. Mike, Brian Calvert and Chris Coombs wrote and recorded a seminal LP, ASTRAL NAVIGATIONS. 1971 - 1975 Other groups recorded at Holyground, and several released records. In 1975 Mike wrote songs with Steve Channing, released on the LP, TEARS ON THE CONSOLE. 1976 Mike, with others, set up a 16 track studio in Doncaster, Yorkshire, England. As a commercial enterprise it did not survive. Mike and Shirley Levon moved house and had two children, John born 1977; and Rose, 1980. 1978 Recorded film soundtracks at Norwood Film Studios in Leeds, Yorkshire. 1979 - 1988 Trained by, and worked for, the BBC at the local Radio Station, full time producing and presenting for two years, and for six years as a roving reporter in the Radio Car. 1989 - 1990 In collaboration with Hugo Chavez' Magic Mixture label. Mike re-released Holyground records in vinyl limited editions. Original copies were then worth up to £600. 1991 - 1999 With Pete Taylor and Chris Coombs, wrote, recorded and produced a CD, & STRANGENESS AND CHARM. Reissued Holyground records on LP and CD. Built a small studio to record in. 2000 onwards Writing songs with Pete Taylor and Chris Coombs, recording CDs with them, and with Steve Channing, re-releasing the whole Holyground Catalogue in association with Kissing Spell Ltd. 2011 Died peacefully on 4th September. DISCOGRAPHY (SONGWRITING)
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