Sheffield is sometimes overlooked in the history of music in the UK, however, upon closer inspection, we can find bands with some of the largest record sales of all time and innovative genre-defining artists all hailing from the steel city. 

One of Sheffield’s most famous rock stars was Joe Cocker who 1968 became the first person from Sheffield to become number one in the charts with a cover of “With a Little Help From My Friends”. He became known for his intense stage performers and played with guitar legend Jimmy Page from time to time. 

On to 1973 and Cabaret Voltaire took to Sheffield stages. They are often considered as one of the main influences of later synth-pop bands (more on those later) due to their innovative DIY experiments with tape machines and other electronics. They had their own studio in the Western works building on Portobello Street which became a hub for local Sheffield musicians and from which albums like “The Voice of America” and “Red Mecca” were formed. 

The early 80s saw synth-pop sweep the nation. For those not in the know, a synth or “synthesiser” is an instrument with a piano-keyboard that manipulates electrical signals in to other-worldly sounds. The reduction in price of these instruments saw bands such as The Human League and ABC emerge from the Sheffield scene with the former’s track “Don’t You Want Me” hitting number one in the UK and US in 1981. 

Of course, we can’t talk about music in Sheffield without mentioning Def Leppard who also came to prominence in the 1980s. It is amazing to think that a guitar-based rock band who originally rehearsed in an old Sheffield spoon factory would go on to sell 25 million copies of their album “Hysteria” making it one of the biggest selling albums ever! Amazingly their drummer recovered from an arm amputation in 1984 after a car accident and continues to play with them to this day using electronic foot pedals to reach his playing potential. 

The 90s and noughties saw the rise of Jarvis Cocker’s (a friend of Joe Cocker) Pulp and the famous Arctic Monkeys. Jarvis Cocker signed Pulp’s first record deal in the Sheffield pub and venue The Frog and Parrot on Division Street. He would also accidentally fall from a window on this very street. Later the Arctic Monkeys would go on to become great successes through the sale of music online through Apple’s iTunes breaking several digital sales records at the time. Their legacy still lives on through Sheffield’s thriving indie scene and they continue to sell out stadiums to this day.  

Unfortunately, in the classical world, Sheffield has no professional orchestra but it is home to various amateur ensembles of a very high standard including: Sheffield Symphony Orchestra, Sheffield Chamber Orchestra and the City of Sheffield Youth Orchestra. These ensembles often play Piano Concertos and Sheffield native concert pianist Mark Gasser has performed with the City of Sheffield Youth Orchestra recently.