Alan
Wise grave (12th May 1953 to 2nd June 2016)
I’m sure the location of this
grave in the older section of the vast cemetery was carefully selected. It’s a
few feet from the grave of Factory Records boss Tony Warren. It’s the grave of
Alan Wise who was a guru of the Hacienda nightclub and Factory Records. He
seems to have died in his sleep - probably from heart failure - aged 63. He’s
buried here with his daughter Natasha who had suffered from depression and
killed herself by jumping off a bridge on Athol Road in Whalley
Range in Manchester. A cyclist saw her body and thought someone had drunkenly
fallen into some bushes.
Alan was a key figure in the birth of The Haçienda nightclub and Factory Records and was a popular
figure in the city's music scene in the 1980s, promoting and managing northern
bands. For many years the looming figure was part of every cool gig in the city
with his off-the-wall presence and bohemian spirit. A book about the history of
Factory Records says he came up with the original name 'Factory' after spotting
a sign that read 'Factory Clearance' while walking down Deansgate
in Manchester. He thought it was a great
name that would stick - it did.
I was too square, dumb and geeky to listen to
music made by bands contracted by Factory Records - or know much about the
Hacienda nightclub. Both are famous now but in the seventies the company was an
unknown struggling affair. It was owned by Tony Wilson and Alan Erasmus and
they contacted Alan to help get the business off the ground. From these humble
beginnings the record label went on to release its first album - Joy Division's
Unknown Pleasures.
I’m not sure what Alan died of but it was only a
few weeks after his daughter's suicide. Perhaps it was ‘broken heart syndrome’
(takotsubo cardiomyopathy)
when traumatic events trigger a surge of stress hormones which can make the
heart stop.) He died just three months after his daughter's suicide.
Anyway, here’s the impressive headstone residing
in older part of the cemetery. What a sorry tale. I did a salute and left.
Natasha's funeral...
