Editing Slik (section)

==History==
Slik were formed as the [[Glasgow]] based band 'Salvation' in June 1970, comprising brothers Kevin McGinlay (vocals) and [[Jim McGinlay]] (bass), Nod Kerr (drums), Mario Tortolano (keyboards), and Ian Kenny (guitar). Brian Deniston replaced Ian Kenny in December 1970 and Nod Kerr departed in May 1971, followed by Tortolano and they were replaced by Matt Cairns on [[drum]]s and Robin Birrel on [[keyboard instrument|keyboards]]. Deniston left shortly after this change and they were forced to continue as a four-piece outfit for almost a year, with Kevin McGinlay taking up guitar duties. Birrel and Cairns then left in March 1972 and they recruited [[Kenny Hyslop]] on drums, [[Billy McIsaac]] on keyboards and [[Midge Ure|Jim "Midge" Ure]] on guitar. They reverted to a four-piece band when Kevin McGinlay left in April 1974 to pursue a [[solo (music)|solo]] career,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.kevinmcginlay.com/kevin_early.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090226202501/http://www.kevinmcginlay.com/kevin_early.html|url-status=dead|archive-date=26 February 2009|title=Kevin McGinlay - Salvation - The Early Years|date=26 February 2009|accessdate=12 May 2019}}</ref> with Midge Ure becoming the band's lead vocalist.

They changed their name to Slik in November 1974, and linked up with the pop songwriters [[Bill Martin (musician)|Bill Martin]] and [[Phil Coulter]], who were also writing for the [[Bay City Rollers]]. Now signed to [[Polydor Records|Polydor]], the band members all adopted pseudonyms - Midge, Oil Slik (Kenny Hyslop), Jim Slik (Jim McGinlay) and Lord Slik (Billy McIsaac). These were dropped after the failure of "[[Boogiest Band in Town]]", their debut [[single (music)|single]] (which was also on the [[soundtrack]] of the film ''Never Too Young To Rock''), and their suits were exchanged for baseball shirts.  A change of [[record label]] also saw them signing with [[Bell Records (UK)|Bell Records]].

This was followed by their greatest success when their single "[[Forever and Ever (Slik song)|Forever And Ever]]" reached [[record chart|number one]] in the [[UK Singles Chart]] in February 1976. As a result of the single, readers of ''[[The Sun (United Kingdom)|The Sun]]'' newspaper voted Slik the best new band of the year. The song formula was repeated with their next single, "Requiem", which made the UK top 30 but failed to repeat the success of "Forever and Ever". Ure was injured in a [[car accident]] shortly after the release of the single, resulting in the cancellation of television appearances and a planned UK [[concert tour|tour]]. "Requiem" opens with the first chords of [[Joaquín Rodrigo]]'s "[[Concierto de Aranjuez]]", which had been a number 3 hit just two months before in the UK for [[Geoff Love]]'s [[orchestra]], billed as 'Manuel & the Music of the Mountains'. Following the "Requiem" single, the band's self-titled album was released but this was a commercial failure, peaking only at number 58 in the UK. Subsequent Slik singles failed to chart.

In March 1977, Jim McGinlay left the group and was replaced by [[Russell Webb (musician)|Russell Webb]], a university [[Dropping out|drop-out]],<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.armouryshow.com/media/interviews/1985-02-09_Record_mirror%20-%20show%20of%20strenght.jpg|title=Show of Strength : The Armoury Show|website=Armouryshow.com|accessdate=12 May 2019}}</ref> who continued for the final Slik gigs.