Powell, Don (musician)

Don Powell was born on September 10, 1946 in Bilston, Staffordshire , England .

Don became interested in drums after being asked to play the drum during a Sunday morning parade in a scout squad in which he participated. After graduating from Etheridge Modern High School, he studied metallurgy at the Wellnessbury Technical College and worked in a small foundry for several years before deciding to become a professional drummer.

In his youth, Powell was fond of boxing . Apparently, his nose was broken three times in amateur fights. His character was sociable and pleasant, they also say that Don was distinguished by wit. In the early “Slade” period, it was him who was sent to the public to collect money in his hat after performances.

Powell became a member of The Vendors, which was later joined by guitarist Dave Hill . The Vendors changed their name to N'Betweens, and Jim Lee joined them, playing guitar, bass, keyboards and violin. Powell then spotted Noddy Holder playing with Steve Brett & The Mavericks, and he and Hill called Holder to N'Betweens. All four were always amused by the fact that they first rehearsed together on April 1 . They changed their name to Ambrose Slade, and then to Slade , and achieved international success.

Slade fans consider Powell one of the best rock drummers. Others notice that he, like Ringo Starr , was inconspicuous, but he perfectly selected his parts and often produced inventive sounds in his own style. Most fans believe that he played best in the early and middle period of Slade.

Powell co-authored many of the early songs of Slade. Many of them can be heard on the Play it Loud album. Together with Holder and Lee, he composed the hit song “Look Wot You Dun”, on the recording of which he depicted panting.

On July 4, 1973 , at the peak of Slade's popularity in Europe and the UK (then the song “Skweeze Me Pleeze Me” was number one on the UK charts), Powell was seriously injured in a car accident in Wolverhampton . His 20-year-old girlfriend, Angela Morris, died, and Don broke both ankles and five ribs, injured his skull, and was unconscious for six days. He was able to recover quickly and in mid-August already appeared in the studio to record “My Friend Stan”, although he walked with a stick for a long time and could not sit on the drum set on his own. The accident left Powell without taste and smell, and he still has severe problems with short-term memory , although long-term memory has remained intact.

After the collapse of Slade in 1991, Don Powell was the owner and manager of a company importing and exporting antiques, until in 1993 he reunited with Dave Hill in the Slade II group. He still performs a lot on stage and released two albums, “Keep on Rockin '” and “Cum On Let's Party!”. In 2000, Powell played a small cameo in the BBC version of Lorna Dun. In 2017, Powell, along with 1970s glam rock stars Suzy Quattro and Andy Scott (ex- Sweet ) released QSP ^[1] .

Powell was married twice and lived in Bexhill-on-Sea, East Sussex , England for a long time. In 2004, he moved to Silkeborg , Denmark , where he now lives with his Danish wife Hannah.

Powell's life is described in three books: George Tremlett's Slade, Chris Charlesworth's Feel the Noize, and Noddy Holder's Who's Crazee Now? Powell is now working with Lisa Ling Falkenberg on his own biography . He has enough material - due to a partial loss of memory in 1973, Don was forced to use notebooks. He recalls that he often did not go on dates with girls because he forgot about them on the appointed day.

• Gary James' Interview With Don Powell Of Slade , December 12, 2009 .
• Slade drummer Don Powell prepares to publish his autobiography
• Don Powell about himself. Express, December 2014.
• Don Powell answers questions from guests on his site, September 2013.