Wayne Bickerton

Wayne Bickerton (born Arthur Ronald Bickerton; 11 July 1941 – 29 November 2015) was a British record producer, songwriter and music business executive. He became well known, with Tony Waddington, as writer and producer of a series of UK chart hits in the 1970s for The Rubettes, and as a leading figure in SESAC – one of the three major American performing rights organisations.

Life and career Born in Rhyl, Denbighshire, Wales, and named after his father, Bickerton grew up in Kirkdale, Liverpool. He first came to prominence in 1963 when, after spells with the Bobby Bell Rockers (featuring Det Pete), Steve & the Syndicate, Lee Curtis and the All-Stars and the Remo Four, he became bassist and singer with the Pete Best Four (later the Pete Best Combo), at the same time as childhood friend Tony Waddington became the group's guitarist. As well as sharing most of the singing, Bickerton and Waddington became songwriters for the group, which toured mainly in Germany and the US, before they left in 1966.

Bickerton then became a record producer at Deram Records, responsible for albums by Giles, Giles & Fripp (the forerunner to King Crimson) and World of Oz; he also worked with Petula Clark and Tom Jones. He later joined Polydor Records, becoming A&R chief and producing the band Mongrel. and also reached the UK Top 10 with "Sugar Candy Kisses" by Mac and Katie Kissoon. They set up their own record label, State Records, which diversified in 1979 into owning Odyssey Studios and a new office building at Marble Arch in central London, later sold to the radio station Jazz FM.

Bickerton moved into the upper reaches of the wider music industry, initially as an executive of the Performing Right Society in England, where he worked from the late 1970s, eventually as chairman and acting Chief executive. He also became Deputy Chairman of The University of Liverpool Institute of Popular Music.

Death He died on 28 November 2015 aged 74 at his home in Hertfordshire, England.