Cardiff music legend John (Burke) Shelley was born, as many of us were, at St David’s Hospital in Canton, Cardiff on 10th April 1950. Soon known as Burke, as a teenager, he formed the Hills Contemporary Grass band in 1967 with guitarist, Tony Bourge and drummer, Ray Phillips.
Shortly after, the band name changed to Budgie. This was chosen, as a parody, naming a heavy rock band after a tiny, gentle little bird for fun!
Budgie released their eponymous debut album in July 1971, releasing ‘Squawk’ and ‘Never Turn Your Back on a Friend’ over the next couple of years, as their reputation grew.
Budgie became one of the flag bearers of the hard rock scene, influencing many other bands. Notably, this included Metallica who have released two covers of Budgie songs, the fabulously titled ‘Crash Course in Brain Surgery’ and ‘Breadfan.’
Metallica often played Budgie songs, including at their 40th anniversary San Francisco gig. Other Metal bands who featured Budgie songs in their sets included Iron Maiden and Van Halen. Burke Shelley was Budgie’s longest-serving member, appearing on all 11 of their studio albums. The band first split in 1988 but made a number of comebacks and retained respect and popularity amongst Hard Rock fans.
Burke was a warm, friendly, humble guy. He’d often turn up and be invited to join bands on stage for a few numbers. I personally enjoyed watching him play, at Cardiff’s original Moon Club and at the Royal Oak, in its heyday. I also occasionally bumped into him at the Andrew Buchan Bar but am so disappointed that I wasn’t there the night he grabbed a guitar for a poignant rendition of Prince’s ‘Purple Rain’.
Cardiff has lost a fabulous musician, a man who made a major impact for all us. He was also one of nature’s good guys.
Thank you, Burke xx
SJ