Hicks first had a taste of fame at age 12 as a member of Les Skifflettes when they were featured on the Carroll Levis talent show in 1957. By the early 1960s, he was a respected member of the Manchestermusic scene and had become the lead guitarist with Ricky Shaw and the Dolphins. When then local rivals the Hollies needed a replacement for their guitarist Vic Steele in February 1963, Hicks was approached to join the band. Although initially reluctant, he was finally convinced to join after listening to The Hollies through the air vent of the Twisted Wheel in Manchester. They had secured a test recording session with EMI's Parlophone label for staff producer Ron Richards, which Hicks duly attended as their new guitarist in April 1963 and which resulted in a recording contract with Parlophone.
With the Hollies
The Hollies soon became one of the most successful bands in Britain; they had a distinctive, breezy pop style built around the three-part harmony of Hicks and bandmates Allan Clarke and Graham Nash. Hicks contributed his first solo composition for the group to an EP release in 1964 and co-wrote a B-side with drummer Bobby Elliott that year. Hicks then joined Clarke and Nash as the group's in-house songwriting team, who from 1964 to mid-1966 wrote as "Chester Mann" and "L. Ransford" before adopting the Clarke-Hicks-Nash banner. By the mid-1960s the threesome had become responsible for writing most of their songs, including singles hits such as "Stop! Stop! Stop!", "On A Carousel", "Carrie Anne" and "King Midas in Reverse". Hicks rarely sang lead vocals on Hollies songs, but was featured on "Look Through Any Window", and sang verse leads on "Too Much Monkey Business", "Carrie Anne" and "Open Up Your Eyes". Hicks took solo lead vocals on his song "Pegasus", the Clarke-Sylvester-penned "Look at Life", his "Born A Man", "Hillsborough" and Bobby Elliott's "Then, Now, Always ". In 1966, with contributions from fellow Hollies Clarke and Nash, Hicks contributed guitar work alongside Yardbirds guitarist and session musician Jimmy Page to the Everly Brothers' album Two Yanks in England. In the 1960s, with Nash performing few guitar duties except for the occasional rhythm part and acoustic work, Hicks became an integral part of the Hollies sound. Apart from contributing distinctive lead-guitar parts, he could be relied on to add unusual instrumentation to their sessions—such as the banjo which was a key component of their hit "Stop! Stop! Stop!", Greek-type and fuzz guitar. When no original material was available, Hicks discovered demos of Hollies hits "Just One Look", "I Can't Let Go" and "He Ain't Heavy, He's My Brother" . Hicks suggested the band do an album of Bob Dylan songs in late 1968; Nash disagreed, one of the reasons for his exit from the band. The Hollies replaced Nash with Terry Sylvester and Hollies Sing Dylan was No. 3 in the UK Albums Chart, although it failed to chart in the US. This was one of the first "tribute albums" devoted to a single artist by a vocal group. After Nash's December 1968 departure from the group Hicks began to write more solo songs, which were used as either B-sides or album tracks. He wrote much of The Hollies' 1970 album Confessions of The Mind, including "Too Young To Be Married". Hicks also co-wrote songs with UK singer Kenny Lynch for The Hollies, such as "What A Life I've Led", "Look What We've Got", "Promised Land", the US hit single "Long Dark Road" and "Blue in the Morning" and "Faded Images", recorded by Cilla Black on her 1971 album Images. He co-wrote Hollies songs between 1974 and 1978 with Allan Clarke and Terry Sylvester. In 1974, Hicks produced the eponymous group album Taggett on EMI Records in the UK. In 1990, Hicks co-wrote "Naomi" for The Hollies with his son Paul. In 1993 he added new guitar parts and harmony vocals to an "alternate" version of "Peggy Sue Got Married" by Buddy Holly, which led off the Not Fade Awaytribute album to Holly by various artists. The Hollies continued to have hits beyond the 1970s, including a UK chart hit with the medley "Holliedaze" in 1981, a US Top 30 hit cover of "Stop! In the Name of Love" in 1983, a UK No. 1 single in 1988, and in 1993 "The Woman I Love". The group still performs and records today; however, with the retirement of Allan Clarke in 1999, only Hicks and drummer Bobby Elliott remain from the band's 1960s heyday.
Awards and honours
In 2010, The Hollies were inducted into the Rock and RollHall of Fame. Hicks and Elliott were absent from the induction ceremony because of UK touring commitments with the current Hollies band, but both were included as part of the award-winning line-up.
Current era
Tony Hicks is still an active member of The Hollies as they continue to do concerts mostly in the UK, Australia, New Zealand, and Europe. He is currently the lead guitarist and does vocals.
Personal life
Hicks has been married to Jane Dawton since 1974. Hicks' son, Paul, worked as an award-winning sound engineer at Abbey Road Studios, and assisted on mixes of several vintage Hollies recordings. Paul has also worked on projects by Pink Floyd, Paul McCartney, and George Harrison, as well as several of The Beatles remastering projects – notably the Anthology and Let It Be... Naked albums, and the mono versions of The Beatles back catalogue on Compact Disc. Paul, along with pal Dhani Harrison, is a member of the band thenewno2, whose music was featured in the 2013 movie, Beautiful Creatures.
