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Dave Rimmer

Dave Rimmer

A key Smash Hits and Face writer in the early to mid-'80s, Rimmer (pictured in New York in 1982) also authored Like Punk Never Happened, a cult study of '80s pop. He spent the late '80s and '90s in Berlin and Budapest, watching the Wall fall in his second book, Once Upon a Time in the East, and has contributed to dozens of publications in the UK, US and Germany. The Look, Dave's book about the New Romantics, was published in 2003.

74 articles

List of articles in the library

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Brian Eno: Eno: Only The Small Survive

Interview by Dave Rimmer, The Face, October 1980

One of the vital musical innovators of the Seventies, Brian Eno now inhabits a curious world. He lives in 'medieval' Manhattan, where he gambles on ...

Linx: Sunny Side Up

Interview by Dave Rimmer, Smash Hits, 1 October 1981

Linx don't mind the weather, just as long as they're together. Forecast: Dave Rimmer. ...

Japan: Japanese Boys

Interview by Dave Rimmer, Smash Hits, 29 October 1981

David Sylvian and Mick Karn stretch out on the sofa and enjoy their new-found British success. Budge up, says Dave Rimmer ...

ABC... or First Steps in Funk.

Profile and Interview by Dave Rimmer, Smash Hits, 12 November 1981

Dave Rimmer meets Sheffield's finest ...

The Human League: Human Nature

Interview by Dave Rimmer, Smash Hits, 10 December 1981

"YOU'D BETTER watch out," Philip Oakey warns in a voice to make even the hardiest soul tremble at the knees. "We've decided we like that ...

The Teardrop Explodes: Club Zoo, Liverpool

Live Review by Dave Rimmer, Smash Hits, 24 December 1981

LOOK! OVER by the bar, there's someone in a Julian Cope leather flying jacket! As the opening chords of 'Passionate Friend' ring through from the ...

Kraftwerk: Art & Kraft

Interview by Dave Rimmer, Smash Hits, 4 February 1982

TWELVE YEARS OF PRACTICAL ELECTRONICS FINALLY PAY OF WITH THE SUCCESS OF 'THE MODEL'DAVE RIMMER TOURS THE WERKS ...

Heaven 17: Heaven CAN wait

Profile and Interview by Dave Rimmer, Smash Hits, 18 February 1982

MAYBE IT'S something to do with the '80s computerised approach to pop. Or maybe it's a reflection of the hard business sense many young bands ...

Theatre of Hate: The National Youth Theatre

Interview by Dave Rimmer, Smash Hits, 4 March 1982

KIRK BRANDON, incisive songwriter, powerful singer and photogenic lead actor in the Theatre of Hate, is tired today. ...

The Associates Q&A

Interview by Dave Rimmer, Smash Hits, 5 August 1982

IT'S BEEN a good year for the Associates, thus far. Since we last interviewed them in February, they've had a second hit single with 'Club ...

Talk Talk

Report and Interview by Dave Rimmer, Smash Hits, 18 August 1982

BIT OF AN abrasive character, this Mark Hollis from Talk Talk. Halfway through our chat, I innocently mention that they're often compared to Duran Duran, ...

J. Walter Negro & The Loose Jointz: The Venue, London

Live Review by Dave Rimmer, Smash Hits, 19 August 1982

JUDGING BY the queue for tickets, "guests" outnumber the paying customers here tonight by something like three to one. It's often like this at The ...

Simple Minds: Jim Kerr's Glittering Dream

Interview by Dave Rimmer, Smash Hits, 16 September 1982

JIM KERR and I have just started talking over a cup of tea in London's Hyde Park, when a girl comes rushing up. ...

The Boys Town Gang: Possibly The Most Boring Group In The World

Interview by Dave Rimmer, Smash Hits, 16 September 1982

The Boys Town Gang talk about Art, Expression and Being Very Creative. Dave Rimmer catches up on some kip. ...

Brian Eno: Only The Small Survive

Interview by Dave Rimmer, The Face, October 1982

One of the vital musical innovators of the Seventies, Brian Eno now inhabits a curious world. He lives in 'medieval' Manhattan, where he gambles on ...

Dexys Midnight Runners: Straight Talking

Report and Interview by Dave Rimmer, Smash Hits, 9 December 1982

"Dexys is my work, my life", claims Kevin Rowland. Much more than that he's not saying. Dave Rimmer waits with bated breath. ...

Thomas Dolby: Marquee Club, London

Live Review by Dave Rimmer, Smash Hits, 9 December 1982

UNTIL THIS series of four shows at London's Marquee, live appearances from the redoubtable Mr Dolby have been rare indeed. He was, apparently, locked up ...

Yazoo: Worlds Apart

Interview by Dave Rimmer, Smash Hits, 9 December 1982

Alf and Vince probably "wouldn't be friends if we weren't working together". They often don't meet up 'til just before going on stage. Dave Rimmer ...

Culture Club: The Boy In New York City

Report and Interview by Dave Rimmer, Smash Hits, 23 December 1982

Culture Club take on America and George discovers 46 flavours of shaving foam. Words: Dave Rimmer. ...

Echo & The Bunnymen

Report and Interview by Dave Rimmer, Smash Hits, 3 February 1983

IT WAS A trifle chilly, apparently, when the Bunnymen did the woodland photo session for their first album, Crocodiles. It was even colder on the ...

The Gap Band, Yarbrough & Peoples: The Gap Band/Yarbrough and Peoples: Hammersmith Odeon, London

Live Review by Dave Rimmer, Smash Hits, 17 February 1983

Intrepid fans shuffle past a regiment of niggly security men and into the Hammersmith Odeon. On stage a whole troupe of compères bounce on and ...

Eurythmics

Interview by Dave Rimmer, Smash Hits, 3 March 1983

Most electronic duos seem to have hits instantly. Not so Dave Stewart and Annie Lennox. Dave Rimmer finds out why it's taken them so long. ...

Luther Vandross: Dominion Theatre, London

Live Review by Dave Rimmer, Smash Hits, 3 March 1983

BRITAIN MIGHT not yet have heard much of Luther Vandross, but over in the States he's a man much in demand. Primarily a vocalist, he ...

New Order

Report and Interview by Dave Rimmer, Smash Hits, 31 March 1983

I'VE ALWAYS had this picture of New Order — four sombre, sensitive types permanently locked in a darkened studio arguing about the merits of their ...

The Kids from Fame: The Kids from Fame: The Famous Five

Interview by Dave Rimmer, Smash Hits, 31 March 1983

...better known as Leroy, Coco, Bruno, Danny and Lydia. Dave Rimmer travels the length and breadth of America in search of the Kids from Fame. ...

Afrika Bambaataa, Grand Wizard Theodore, Grandmaster Flash & the Furious Five, Larry Levan, The Sugarhill Gang: Hip Hop: The Music Centre

Report by Dave Rimmer, Smash Hits, 14 April 1983

Ever wondered where Wham! and Malcolm McLaren got their ideas from? Or how rapping and scratching actually started? The answers lie in the Bronx — a borough ...

Culture Club: Readers' Q&A

Interview by Dave Rimmer, Smash Hits, 12 May 1983

You sent them. We opened them and sorted out the best. The mail sacks were ferried round to the band's London hotel. Dave Rimmer did ...

Wham!: Bad Boys Stick Together

Interview by Dave Rimmer, Smash Hits, 12 May 1983

THROUGH THICK AND THIN, IT SEEMS. WHAM! MET EIGHT YEARS AGO AND HAVE BEEN VERY HARD TO SEPARATE SINCE. ANDREW TALKS ABOUT QEORGE. GEORGE TALKS ...

Blancmange

Interview by Dave Rimmer, Smash Hits, 26 May 1983

IT'S THE UNEARTHLY hour of 8.0 in the morning in some place called Astwick. Your reporter and the two members of Blancmange (both a trifle ...

New Edition

Profile and Interview by Dave Rimmer, Smash Hits, 26 May 1983

A YOUNG QUINTET FROM ROXBURY, BOSTON. DAVE RIMMER TAKES A LEAF FROM THEIR BOOK ...

Imagination: The Gospel According To John...

Profile and Interview by Dave Rimmer, Smash Hits, 9 June 1983

Leee John, that is, from Imagination. In the beginning he was a snowflake in a school play. Today he's the singer in Britain's biggest-selling black ...

Irene Cara: Flashdance and Irene Cara

Interview by Ian Birch, Dave Rimmer, Smash Hits, 23 June 1983

THE FILM It's going to be the big box-office smash of the summer. And Dave Rimmer's already seen it. ...

Big Country, Eurythmics, Simple Minds, Steel Pulse, U2: U2, Simple Minds, Eurythmics, Big Country, Steel Pulse: A Day At The Racecourse

Report by Dave Rimmer, Smash Hits, 1 September 1983

A long, hot, emotional day it was too. Dublin's Phoenix Park throws open its gates to U2, Simple Minds, Eurythmics, Big Country and about 20,000 ...

Culture Club: If It's Thursday It Must Be Munich

Report and Interview by Dave Rimmer, Smash Hits, 29 September 1983

'DO YOU REALLY WANT TO HURT ME' HAS BEEN NUMBER ONE IN 23 DIFFERENT COUNTRIES, "AND IF YOU'RE A WORLD-WIDE ACT, YOU HAVE TO TRAVEL ...

The Cure

Interview by Dave Rimmer, Smash Hits, 29 October 1983

Q: WHAT DO The Cure, The Banshees, The Royal Ballet and Crawley all have in common? ...

Duran Duran: Life In The Land Down Under

Report and Interview by Dave Rimmer, Smash Hits, 24 November 1983

Duran Duran have just got back from three months in Australia. Before they left, Dave Rimmer flew out to join them. ...

Boy George, Culture Club: Culture Club and George

Report and Interview by Dave Rimmer, Smash Hits, 23 December 1983

A TYPICAL SUNDAY afternoon in New York's Central Park. Horse drawn carriages sweep by full of tourists. Armies of joggers with headphones stream down every ...

Thomas Dolby: The Appliance of Science

Profile and Interview by Dave Rimmer, Smash Hits, 2 February 1984

AT THE TENDER age of 25, Thomas Dolby has already established himself as an ingenious and inventive songwriter, performer, producer, synthesizer wizard and video director. ...

The Smiths: Hits And Myths

Interview by Dave Rimmer, Smash Hits, 16 February 1984

From "severe starvation" to chart success without ever once ironing a shirt. Yes friends, says Dave Rimmer, it can be done! ...

Culture Club: Cutlure Club: The Jon Moss Story

Interview by Dave Rimmer, Smash Hits, 1 March 1984

Pig William, Phone Bone Boulevard, Pastrami Barmy, Eskimo Norbert, The Clash, London, The Damned, The Edge, Jane Aire & The Belvederes, The Nips, Adam And ...

Phil Fearon & Galaxy: Everything's Clicked!

Interview by Dave Rimmer, Smash Hits, 29 March 1984

PHIL FEARON HAD A HIT IN 79 AND THEN... WHAT? A LONG HARD PENNILESS SLOG TO FIND A SOUND THAT WOULD DRAG PEOPLE BACK ON ...

Blancmange Q&A

Interview by Dave Rimmer, Smash Hits, 10 May 1984

When Neil Arthur first met Stephen Luscombe, he thought he was "a bit strange". When Stephen first met Neil, he thought he was "a right ...

New Order: We've Got This Far And We Can't Even Play!

Interview by Dave Rimmer, Smash Hits, 24 May 1984

So says New Order's Bernard Sumner. Dave Rimmer isn't saying anything. ...

Evelyn Thomas, Gloria Gaynor, The Weather Girls: High Energy

Report by Dave Rimmer, Smash Hits, 7 June 1984

It's a new type of dance beat. Hazell Dean's 'Searchin'' is High Energy; so are The Weather Girls, Gloria Gaynor and Evelyn Thomas. The charts ...

Bronski Beat: Runaway Boys: Bronski Beat

Interview by Dave Rimmer, Smash Hits, 21 June 1984

Bronski Beat are young, talented and they've only played a handful of concerts. And suddenly everyone's asking them questions. Questions about their "stance" as a ...

Culture Club In The Land Of The Rising Sun

Report by Dave Rimmer, Smash Hits, 19 July 1984

Culture Club in Japan are very big news INDEED. They're the most popular British pop group. They fill massive stadiums. There are Girl Georges everywhere. ...

Paul Young: Too Much, Too Young

Interview by Dave Rimmer, The Face, January 1985

CLOSE YOUR EYES and picture the man who is talking. Chances are you imagine him looking well turned-out in a sharp and quite possibly shiny ...

Culture Club: Wembley Arena, London

Live Review by Dave Rimmer, Smash Hits, 17 January 1985

"THIS SONG — first of all it's a great song," George titters, something like this: aha-haha-huyuk. "Second, it's called 'The Medal Song'." ...

Duran Duran: The Pop Dream Come True

Report and Interview by Dave Rimmer, The Face, December 1985

NIGHT SETTLES ON The Palace Hotel, Philadelphia, like a sigh of relief. All the acts have finished all their frantic, last minute preparations for Live ...

David Sylvian Vs. The Pop Goliath

Interview by Dave Rimmer, The Face, March 1986

THE MAN WHO STROLLED INTO the lobby was small and neat, grey-suited with white shoes. His hair was a natural darkish brown a small silver ...

Courtney Pine: Wow! This is Jazz and We Like It!

Profile and Interview by Dave Rimmer, Q, October 1986

COURTNEY PINE LISTENED TO A LOT OF GROVER WASHINGTON, SONNY ROLLINS AND JOHN COLTRANE, THEN HE THOUGHT HE'D HAVE A GO HIMSELF. ...

Frankie Goes to Hollywood: The Revenge of Frankie Goes To Hollywood

Report and Interview by Dave Rimmer, Q, November 1986

"NO ONE GETS IN HERE!" screams Brian Nash, slamming the caravan door and flicking the lock. "No one!" Outside hover a few members of the ...

Debbie Harry: It's About Time, Isn't It?

Interview by Dave Rimmer, Q, December 1986

SO WHY, WE must ask, is Debbie Harry back right now, exactly? Has she brought out her brand new single, 'French Kissing In The USA', ...

John Peel: Two Decades On

Profile and Interview by Dave Rimmer, Q, December 1986

JOHN PEEL IS sitting in his pyjamas in the kitchen of his Suffolk home. It is a Sunday afternoon. On the wall is a Radio ...

Anita Baker

Interview by Dave Rimmer, Q, March 1987

THAT RESTLESS, relentless and often quite ridiculous search for the Next Big Thing has to be the longest-running game in pop. When Anita Baker's album, ...

The Style Council: The Cost Of Loving

Review by Dave Rimmer, Q, March 1987

IT'S FOUR YEARS now since Paul Weller knocked The Jam on the head and launched his new group with "Merton" Mick Talbot. Ever since the ...

You Don't Have to Say You Love Him: The Divine Simon Napier-Bell

Profile and Interview by Dave Rimmer, Q, April 1987

IN A DISCREET east London venue, in the smaller dressing room backstage, a new group called Blue Mercedes are packing up their gear after their ...

Grandmaster Flash & the Furious Five: Various Artists: Genius Of Rap — The Sugar Hill Story

Review by Dave Rimmer, Q, August 1987

"I SAID A HIP, HOP..." starts the rap by The Sugar Hill Gang's Wonder Mike over a riff faithfully copied from (though only much later ...

Sting: Nothing Like The Sun

Review by Dave Rimmer, Q, November 1987

"WITHOUT FREEDOM FROM the past," sings a typically philosophical Sting on one track called 'History Will Teach Us Nothing', "things will only get worse." ...

Ritchie Valens: La Bamba

Report and Interview by Dave Rimmer, The Face, Summer 1987

SEARCHLIGHTS SWAY IN THE SKY over Hollywood Boulevard and Vine as the premiere party for La Bamba the movie strides into full swing. The subject ...

New Order

Interview by Dave Rimmer, Q, January 1988

"WE GOT a letter last week," Peter Hook, the bearded and occasionally belligerent bass player, the one who answers all New Order fan mail, is ...

Prefab Sprout: From Langley Park To Memphis

Review by Dave Rimmer, Q, April 1988

A RUM PROPOSITION, this Prefab Sprout. It depends on your mood and mode of musical preference, of course, but while much of the time they ...

Kim Fowley: Checkpoint Fowley: Chairman Kim in Berlin

Comment by Dave Rimmer, Checkpoint (Berlin), November 1992

Author's Note: This was written as a column for Checkpoint magazine in Berlin. The column was, at the beginning, nominally about nightlife, so hence all ...

Nazi Noises: Right-Wing Rock in Europe

Report by Dave Rimmer, Select, November 1992

NOTE: This piece about Nazi rock music in Germany was commissioned and published by UK music magazine Select in autumn 1992. It ran alongside a ...

Dire Straits: Coming To a Street Near You: Dire Straits

Comment by Dave Rimmer, Tip Berlin, Summer 1992

Note: This deliberately rather facetious story was written for a Tip magazine cover story in summer 1992, and translated into German by Wolfgang Doebeling. I’m ...

Pet Shop Boys: MTV Launches in Russia - and the PSBs Cut the Ribbon!

Report and Interview by Dave Rimmer, The Guardian, June 1993

2002 NOTE: This piece about the launching of MTV Russia was published by the Guardian in London, by Tip magazine in Berlin, and by the ...

Microglobe: Easy Dance & Musichall, Frankfurt an der Oder

Report by Dave Rimmer, MOJO, January 1994

IN THE CRAMPED LITTLE DJ BOOTH AT THE EASY DISCO, Frankfurt an der Oder – east Germany city of flatblocks and border posts – Berlin ...

Frank Zappa: R.I.P. Frank

Obituary by Dave Rimmer, MOJO, March 1994

[NOTE: This was part of Mojo’s obituary for Frank Zappa, and was published in March 1994. The brief was simply to look at his career ...

Futurebeat: Vorschtsprung dürch Techno

Essay by Dave Rimmer, The Wire, Spring 1994

"The only possible challenge to repetitive power takes the route of a breach in social repetition and the control of noisemaking. In more day-to-day political ...

The Love Parade

Report by Dave Rimmer, Pozor, 1996

NOTE: As a veteran of the event, I have written a lot about the Love Parade – for various music magazines in the UK, for ...

Marianne Faithfull: Berliner Ensemble, Berlin

Live Review by Dave Rimmer, MOJO, February 1996

THE SET IS SIMPLE: black curtain, grand piano, chair and table, snifter of brandy and pack of Marlboro Lights. She’s nervous stepping on to it, ...

Frank Zappa: The Lost Episodes

Review by Dave Rimmer, MOJO, March 1996

DESCRIBED BY UTILITY Muffin Kitchen engineer Spencer Chrislu as a "sort of stealth project", this excellent little album of studio leftovers was put together by ...

Yes: Hello Atlantis!

Report and Interview by Dave Rimmer, Q, February 1997

They're back, and this time they're organic... Dave Rimmer hops on board the Yes reunion special ...

Marshall Jefferson: Last Night A DJ Saved My Life: The History Of The Disc Jockey By Bill Brewster and Frank Broughton (Headline Pbk £12 99)

Book Review by Dave Rimmer, The Wire, November 1999

ONE NIGHT IN the summer of 1996 I went to a rave in an unfashionable district of Prague. It was in a community hall on ...

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