“One of life’s delinquents”
HMO salutes Pete Way who has sadly just passed away aged 69. He’d played in a few different acts and as a solo artist but round these parts he’ll always be the iconic, polka-dotted delinquent in UFO. I’d usually use a post like this to highlight some sort of instrumental prowess but he wasn’t really that kind of player. His main thing was being larger than life. Cool as fuck outfits. Cool as fuck posing. But that’s not to put down his musical abilities. His playing gave UFO’s songs a good kick up the arse and he was a talented writer too. Check out Too Much Of Nothing. It’s a rare example of a UFO tune that was solely written by Way. Taken from their 1975 album Force It, it’s a dirty down-trodden rocker with a carefree lift in its chorus. And there’s a good bit of the Way persona in the lyrics: overdoses, habits, just rolling along. It’s not one of the band’s standout moments but it’s a great deep cut and it holds its own on an album that is stacked to the gills with classics. So there was more to Way than just throwing shapes. But still… there’s a reason I own a Firebird bass. Because Pete Way was cool as fuck.
HEAVY METAL OVERLOAD 
2020 officially sucks! Rest in peace Pete.
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Yes it sure does.
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The deep track has a nice rolling movement to it, imo. R.I.P. Pete Way.
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That’s a good way of putting it. Pretty simple song otherwise but it’s got a good vibe.
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UFO had a lot of great deep down tracks as you call it. Way’s passing didn’t surprise me but it did as that dude outlived 9 lives more like 18 lives. What a rocker.
Still one of my favs is the Vices album from Waysted. Such a great record and a great name but a goofy cover. The Man had a great career.
The Good The Bad The Waysted.
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Yes not really surprising but still sad. And that’s Paul Raymond, Chapman and Way all gone now.
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Mogg and Parker the last two standing!
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Really sad. Lucky to see him 4 times. Absolute legend.
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Great stuff. Just twice for me. Glad I got to see him in action.
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Were those times all UFO or different bands?
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UFO. Last time I saw them was way back in 1985 at Knebworth.
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Oh wow. I didn’t see them until later on. First time was when they got back together with the Lights Out lineup. It was one of the best gigs I’ve seen.
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Nooooooo. Pete Way… he was larger than life. I read Nikki Sixx based a lot of his looks on him (along with a few other artists).
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Yes I think Nikki Sixx totally got a lot of his look there. Steve Harris was a big fan of him too.
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Man, the good ones just keep on leaving us.
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It sucks.
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I wasn’t familiar with his work, HMO – but this tribute definitely makes me want to explore more
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Well said, people forget what an excellent musician the man was.
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You should know. People often overlook your talents because they are too busy admiring your crazy outfits.
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