Hawkwind - The Sunday People April 1972 - Why I Danced in the Nude – by pop girl.
By Pete Clemons
She joined Hawkwind and began dancing for the group during 1971. But the legend of Stacia, actually started right here in Coventry when she made the national newspapers.
A month or so after the Coventry concert, mentioned below, Hawkwind released their single 'Silver Machine' a tune recorded earlier in the year. It reached number 3 in the charts and remains the bands biggest selling hit.
An article that appeared in the Sunday People is below. And I have left the newspapers spelling of the name Stacia as it was printed...........
People who thought the Hawkwind pop group was all male got a surprise when a naked girl danced to their music at a concert.
And, as an investigation into the act got underway last week, 19 year old dancer Statia – 'that's my only name' – made it quite clear that she did not strip on the stage of the Locarno in the Lady Godiva city of Coventry.
She said that during her 25 minute spot she first danced in a costume then went off the stage to strip and returned to dance naked.
'It sounds much more daring than it is' she said. 'We use a lot of lights flashing on and off and the dance and nudity is only an expression of the music'.
'It is music about freedom – and I feel free with nothing on'.
'A lot of the audience never even realise I'm in the nude because of the lights and the type of music the band plays'.
The act was part of a gig at the Mecca owned ballroom organised by Graham Wood a 20 year old commercial apprentice.
Said Mr. Wood: 'we would never book any group of artists or musicians if nudity comes into the act. Hawkwind is supposed to be an all male group. Investigations are going on.
The ballrooms relief manager Mr Ronald Williams said he did not see the group, but was finding out from staff members what had happened.
He added 'on this occasion the hall was hired out as a private booking to Mr. Wood'.
The group's manager Mr Doug Smith said: 'Statia isn't what you think of as your normal stripper – she's a big girl'.
In the short time after the Coventry gig Stacia became incredibly well known on the rock music circuit.
Later on in 1972 the incredibly busy Hawkwind had several concerts recorded and released the next year titled The Space Ritual. That reached number 9 in the album charts and dented the billboard top 200 in America. The Space Ritual album was an attempt to capture the music but also try to convey the whole audio visual experience of the show by way of the album sleeve. The outer fold-out part of the record's sleeve features an illustration of Stacia flanked by the hounds of the king set over stage shots of the band.
Was that gig in Coventry, or at least the reporting of it, responsible for the sudden rise in Hawkwind's popularity. Who knows but it did coincide with, arguably, one of the most successful periods for the band.
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and bass player Keith Hancock, provided support on the
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