Tribute album supporting memorial campaign for borough music icon

To help swell the coffers further Peter Hough, a long-time personal friend of the punk rock icon, is putting together Yesterday’s Not Here, an album of cover versions of Pete’s songs.

The full album is slated for release in December but a vinyl taster single featuring two tracks has already sold out its first pressing.

The memorial campaign has already raised £11,200 and has secured a blue plaque for the guitarist, singer and songwriter, though it has yet to be put in its final location.

Paul Lally from the campaign said: “Peter Hough was a close personal friend of Pete Shelley and he has been in touch with us throughout the campaign, helping us with all sorts of things.

“He came up with this idea for people to submit songs Pete had written for an album. It has been in the pipeline for about 12 months.

“All the proceeds are going towards the memorial campaign. Leigh is going to benefit from this album and it’s all out of love for Pete.”

The vinyl single, which is currently being re-pressed due to demand, features a version of You Say You Don’t Love Me from The White Ribbons and Klammer’s take on I Don’t Know What It Is.

The project specifically encourages people to consider covering some of Pete’s lesser-known tracks, with contributors invited to stick to Buzzcocks’ punk ethos or reinterpret the material in any style they saw fit.

Peter, who runs the official Buzzcocks fan page on Facebook, said the submissions ranged from blistering guitar tracks to more off-the-wall takes on Pete’s music including elements of spoken word and electronica.

The final album track listing has yet to be announced but a number of local musicians have submitted songs for Peter to consider using.

Like many fund-raising campaigns the memorial drive has had to adapt due to Covid-19, although it did manage to stage an online fund-raiser which brought in around £700.

As well as creating a permanent landmark honouring Pete’s music and life in Leigh the campaign is keen to use some of the funds raised to increase access to culture and the arts in the town.

Paul said: “We are in ongoing discussions with the council about the permanent memorial to Pete in Leigh.

“After that we are in the process of registering as an official charity and we’ve got a long-term plan to continue fund-raising to put money back into the borough.

“We want music and the arts to benefit young people here. A lot of people have told us that is something Pete would have been proud to be associated with.

“He was all about helping and supporting people and we want to ensure Pete’s legacy.”

To find out more about the campaign, visit www.peteshelleymemorial.com

For more information about the vinyl single and the upcoming album, go to www.yesterdaysnothere.co.uk