{{Short description|British writer}} {{EngvarB|date=September 2020}} {{Use dmy dates|date=September 2020}} {{Infobox person | name = Jane Savidge | image = | caption = Savidge in 2024, Photo by Perou | birth_place = Derby, England | known_for = Co-founder of Savage & Best PR | occupation = Writer, public relations }}
'''Jane Savidge''' is a British writer and public relations agent.
As co-founder and head of public relations company Savage & Best,<ref name="Guide to Camden"/><ref name="Suede"/>{{rp|92}} Savidge is widely credited as being one of the main instigators of the Britpop musical movement that swept the UK in the mid 1990s.<ref name="Britpop MOJO"/><ref name="Britpop Virgin"/><ref name="The Guardian"/> During this time Savage and Best represented many of the artists associated with the scene including Suede, Pulp, The Verve, Elastica, Longpigs, Menswear, Marion, Ultrasound, Echobelly, The Auteurs, Black Box Recorder, 60 Ft. Dolls and Kula Shaker.<ref name="Suede"/>{{rp|112}}<ref name="Verve"/> Savage & Best also started a record label, Parkway Records,<ref name="Rock n roll guide to Camden">{{rp|203}}</ref><ref name="Billboard"/> in 1995 which released records by Powder (fronted by Pearl Lowe) and the all-girl punk band Fluffy.<ref name="Powder"/> Savidge's first book ''Lunch With The Wild Frontiers: A History Of Britpop And Excess in 13 and a 1/2 Chapters'' was published by Jawbone in May 2019. Savidge’s second book, ''Here They Come With Their Make Up On: Suede, Coming Up And More Adventures Beyond The Wild Frontiers'' was published by Jawbone in April 2022. Her latest book, ''Pulp’s This Is Hardcore'' was published by Bloomsbury on March 7, 2024.
==Education== {{unreferencedsect|date=May 2026}} Savidge was born in Derby and educated at Nottingham High School and Sherborne School, an independent school in the Market town of Sherborne, Dorset, before obtaining a degree in Philosophy at the University of Nottingham.
==Career== In 1987, after leaving university, Savidge began a PR career working at Mel Bell Publicity representing Danielle Dax, The Wonder Stuff, Gaye Bykers on Acid, Green on Red, The Rhythm Sisters, Daniel Johnston, Soul Asylum, Thin White Rope and US record label Homestead Records. In June 1988, Savidge started work as a press officer at Virgin Records and represented Roy Orbison, Youssou N'Dour, Gary Moore, Jim Steinman, Suicidal Tendencies, Mary Margaret O'Hara and Peter Gabriel's Real World label amongst others. In 1990, Savidge left Virgin Records to join John Best at Best in Press<ref name="Suede"/>{{rp|73}} and the company began managing publicity for bands such as Cocteau Twins, Pixies, Pale Saints, Dead Can Dance, The Farm, Moose, Lush, Curve, Suede and The Verve.<ref name="Verve"/> The company was situated in the Camden Town area of London and many of the bands on its books were part of the shoegazing scene which Melody Maker later dubbed "The Scene That Celebrates Itself". Some members of this scene (Blur, Lush, Suede) would go on to play a leading part in Britpop but it was Savidge's PR success with Suede – eighteen front covers of UK publications before their debut album was released<ref name="Verve"/> – that led to the acquisition of three Music Week PR Awards and the company morphing into its Savage & Best incarnation.<ref name="Suede"/>{{rp|72}} Savage & Best are often acknowledged as launching Britpop<ref name="The Guardian"/> since the company represented many of the movement's protagonists at the time including Suede, Pulp, The Auteurs, Black Box Recorder, Echobelly, Menswear, Elastica, Dubstar, Space, Kula Shaker, 60 Ft. Dolls, Ultrasound, Longpigs, Marion and The Verve.<ref name="Suede"/>{{rp|123}} The latter were managed by Savage & Best for their first two albums.<ref name="Verve"/>
Savidge was featured in the film Live Forever: The Rise and Fall of Brit Pop, a 2003 documentary film written and directed by John Dower.
Savage & Best represented many other artists and projects during the 1990s including ''Tank Girl'', The Jesus and Mary Chain, Spiritualized, Texas, The Fall, Nine Inch Nails, Erasure, The Charlatans, The Cranberries, Faithless, Fluke, and Fat Les.<ref name="Top of the Pops"/><ref name="Fat Les"/> Savage & Best also founded a record label, Parkway Records, and released records by Powder (fronted by Pearl Lowe) and the all-girl punk outfit Fluffy.<ref name="The Guardian"/>
In December 1999, Savage & Best dissolved and Savidge formed Savidge & Savidge.<ref name="Savidge & Savidge"/> The following year Savidge again represented Damien Hirst (through a friendship with Fat Les) for Hirst's Art Tube project and for Keith Allen's Glastonbury Play which featured Hirst's stage designs.<ref name="Keith Allen"/> Savidge continued to represent Suede and Keith Allen amongst other artists but also diversified into club PR handling PR accounts for Soho House and Babington House as well as Home in Leicester Square. Around this time she also represented A.R. Rahman, multi-million selling composer of Andrew Lloyd Webber's Bombay Dreams.
Savidge began representing David A. Stewart in 2001, and helped launch Stewart and Paul Allen's £100 million Hospital Club project in Covent Garden. She also set up The Hospital Committee responsible for Club membership and in recent years Savidge has launched PR initiatives for Digital Animal and MOJN whilst continued to represent many of the artists she represented earlier in her career.<ref name="Digital Animal"/><ref name="Mojn"/> Savidge's recent representations include James, Prefab Sprout, Chris Rea, The Stranglers, Don Black, Michael Nyman, Tony Mortimer, Gang of Four, Unkle Bob, Gregory Darling, and Michael Des Barres.<ref name="Phill Savidge website"/>
==Writing== Savidge wrote sleeve notes to accompany all eight Eurythmics albums which were rereleased in 2005 and has written sleeve notes for other artists including Suede, James, Ride and Curve.
Savidge's first book ''Lunch With The Wild Frontiers: A History Of Britpop And Excess in 13 and a 1/2 Chapters'' was published by Jawbone in May 2019 to much critical acclaim. The Glasgow Herald hailed the book as a "20th century glitterball take on Machiavelli's The Prince".<ref name="Glasgow Herald"/> Q magazine also praised the book as "an eye-opening, read in one sitting autobiography",<ref name="Q magazine"/> whilst Classic Pop magazine awarded it five stars and heralded it is "an exhilarating and hilarious expose of the scene, recounted in a gloriously gossipy style with a vibrancy that sees it begging to be adapted for the screen, an addictive read which lifts the lid on the stories that hit the headlines as well as a fair few that were deliberately concealed. By far the finest book on Britpop to date."<ref name="Classic Pop"/> Record Collector went further, calling her book "a rum old blast from a wonderfully ridiculous past whilst the fun lasts”,<ref name="Record Collector"/> whilst Stylist magazine saw it as "a tale of the messy, exciting and truly invigorating whirl that created an unparalleled moment in British music. It's also a fascinating and funny step back in time to a world where demo cassettes and weekly music papers ruled Britain."<ref name="Stylist (magazine)"/>
Savidge’s second book, ''Here They Come With Their Make Up On: Suede, Coming Up And More Adventures Beyond The Wild Frontiers'' was published by Jawbone in April 2022. It quickly became an Amazon best-seller, and received similar plaudits, Classic Pop magazine hailing it as "a scintillating snapshot of a time when life really was lived in the fast lane",<ref name="Classic Pop 2022"/> whilst Louder Than War said "Jane Savidge gives a really enjoyable account, full of many great anecdotes and asides as she gives the sort of insights that only come with being there at the time.<ref name="Louder than War"/>
Savidge’s third book, ''This is Hardcore'' - an analysis of Pulp’s classic 1998 album of the same name - was published by Bloomsbury as part of their 33 1/3 series in March 2024. Classic Pop hailed the book as being "every bit as entertaining and gossipy as its predecessors", whilst Critical Popcorn maintained it is "a brilliant read, the best book I've read in ages." Elsewhere, the Literary Review suggested it is a book that "provides an excellent survey of a record that has only gained in stature since its release," whilst Cult Following called it, "Essential reading, plain and simple."
==Awards== Savidge has won several awards for PR in music. In 1991 Savidge won a Music Week award for Curve. In 1992 the Music Week Best PR Campaign went to Savage & Best for Suede. In 1995 and 1997 Savidge received 2nd place Music Week PR Campaign awards for Suede.<ref name="PR Award"/>
==References== <references>
<ref name="Guide to Camden">{{rp|169}}{{rp|203}} {{cite book | last = Scanion | first = Ann | title = The Rock n roll guide to Camden | publisher = Tristia | date = 9 October 1997 | isbn = 09531029-04 }} </ref>
<ref name="Suede">{{rp|92}}{{rp|112}}{{rp|73}}{{rp|72}}{{rp|123}}{{cite book | last = Barnett | first = David | title = Love & Poison: The Official Biography | publisher = Andre Deutch | date = 1 November 2003 | isbn = 978-0-340-93319-0 }}
</ref> <ref name="Britpop MOJO"> {{cite journal |last = Perry |first = Andrew |date = 10 April 2003 |title = Britpop: the great rock'n'roll swindle |journal = MOJO |url = http://moozine.co.uk/blurcentral/mojobritpop.htm |access-date = 24 February 2015 |url-status = dead |archive-url = https://archive.today/20150224143533/http://moozine.co.uk/blurcentral/mojobritpop.htm |archive-date = 24 February 2015 |df = dmy-all }} </ref>
<ref name="Britpop Virgin"> {{cite book | last = Pattenden | first = Sian | title = How to make it in the music business | publisher = Virgin Publishing | date = 9 August 2007 | isbn = 978-0-7535-1243-2 }} </ref>
<ref name="The Guardian">{{rp|13}}{{rp|12}} {{cite news | last = Spillius | first = Alex | date = 2 February 1996 | title = Put that in your hype | newspaper = The Guardian }} </ref>
<ref name="Verve">{{rp|42}}{{rp|44}}{{rp|46}}{{rp|59}} {{cite book | last = Baker | first = Trevor | title = Richard Ashcroft: The Verve, Burning Money & The Human Condition | publisher = INDEPENDENT MUSIC PRESS | date = 21 August 2008 | isbn = 978-1-906191-02-3 }} </ref>
<ref name="Billboard"> {{cite magazine | last = Pride | first = Dominique | date = 29 November 1997 | title = Camden Town: Hot Spot For U.K. Up-And-Comers | magazine = Billboard | page = 76 | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=5AkEAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA76 | access-date =24 February 2015 }} </ref>
<ref name="Powder"> {{cite book | last = Lowe | first = Pearl | title = All That Glitters: Living On The Dark Side Of Rock 'n' Roll | publisher = Hodder & Stoughton | date = 20 March 2008 | isbn = 978-0-340-93319-0 }} </ref>
<ref name="Top of the Pops"> {{cite book | last = Gittins | first = ian | title = Top of the Pops: Mishaps, Miming and Music | publisher = BBC Books, Ebury Publishing | date = 25 October 2007 | page = 130 | isbn = 978-1-846-07327-4 }} </ref>
<ref name="Fat Les"> {{cite book | last = James | first = Alex | title = Bit of a Blur | url = https://archive.org/details/bitofblur00jame | url-access = registration | publisher = Little Brown | date = 3 July 2007 | page = [https://archive.org/details/bitofblur00jame/page/181 181] | isbn = 978-0-340-93319-0 }} </ref>
<ref name="Savidge & Savidge"> {{cite journal | last = Barton | first = Phil | date = 19 May 1999 | title = Seven-year partnership ends for Savage & Best | journal = Music Week }} </ref>
<ref name="Keith Allen"> {{cite book | last = James | first = Alex | title = An Autobiography: Grow Up: Written by Keith Allen | publisher = Ebury Press | date = 22 June 2007 | page = [https://archive.org/details/growupautobiogra0000alle/page/358 358] | isbn = 9780091910709 | url = https://archive.org/details/growupautobiogra0000alle/page/358 }} </ref>
<ref name="Digital Animal"> {{cite journal | last = Barton | first = Phil | date = 2 August 2012 | title = Killer idea: why is a music industry stalwart targeting the insurance sector? | journal = Post Magazine | page = 3 }} </ref>
<ref name="Mojn"> {{cite web | url = http://techcitynews.com/2014/02/03/mojn-raises-4m-expands-london-presence/ | title = Mojn raises $4m, expands London presence | last = Evans | first = Jeremy | website = Tech City news | date = 3 February 2014 | access-date = 24 February 2015 }} </ref>
<ref name="Phill Savidge website"> {{cite web | title = Phill Savidge PR | url = http://www.phillsavidge.com | access-date = 24 February 2015 }} </ref>
<ref name="Glasgow Herald"> {{cite news | last = Jamieson | first = Teddy | date = 18 May 2019 | title = Phill Savidge: My Life In Britpop | newspaper = The Herald }} </ref>
<ref name="Q magazine"> {{cite journal | last = Kessler | first = Ted | date = 10 July 2019 | title = Britpop's Svengali spills his beans | newspaper = Q }} </ref>
<ref name="Classic Pop"> {{cite journal | last = Lindores | first = Mark | date = 12 May 2019 | title = Lunch With The Wild Frontiers: A History Of Britpop And Excess in 13 and a 1/2 Chapters | newspaper = Classic Pop }} </ref>
<ref name="Record Collector"> {{cite journal | last = Harley | first = Kevin | date = 24 May 2019 | title = Lunch With The Wild Frontiers: A History Of Britpop And Excess in 13 and a 1/2 Chapters | newspaper = Record Collector }} </ref>
<ref name="Stylist (magazine)"> {{cite journal | last = Brown | first = Francesca | date = 6 May 2019 | title = Top Ten Books for May | newspaper = Stylist }} </ref>
<ref name="Classic Pop 2022"> {{cite journal | last = Lindores | first = Mark | date = 1 June 2022 | title = HERE THEY COME WITH THEIR MAKE UP ON; SUEDE, COMING UP... AND MORE ADVENTURES BEYOND THE WILD FRONTIERS | newspaper = Classic Pop }} </ref>
<ref name="Louder than War"> {{cite journal | last = Browne | first = Dan | date = 31 March 2022 | title = Here They Come With Their Make Up On: by Jane Savidge | newspaper = Louder than War }} </ref>
<ref name="PR Award"> {{cite journal | year = 1997 | title = The PR Awards | journal = Music Week PR Awards }} </ref>
</references>
==Further reading== * The Britpop Story * Live Forever: The Rise and Fall of Brit Pop * Cool Britannia * List of Britpop musicians
{{DEFAULTSORT:Savidge, Jane}} Category:Living people Category:20th-century British non-fiction writers Category:Alumni of the University of Nottingham Category:British writers about music Category:British public relations people Category:Writers from Derby Category:Year of birth missing (living people)