DJ Froggy
| DJ Froggy | |
|---|---|
| Birth name | Steve Howlett |
| Born |
November 8, 1949 Whitechapel, east London, England |
| Died | 28 March 2008 (aged 58) |
| Genres |
Disco Soul |
| Occupation(s) | Disc jockey |
Steven Howlett (8 November 1949 – 28 March 2008), aka DJ Froggy, was an English DJ who worked as a 'beatmixer DJ' on the British club music scene in the 1970s and 1980s.
Born Steven Howlett in Whitechapel, east London, the son of Jean and Kenneth Howlett. His father worked as a mechanical engineer at the electrical equipment manufacturer Plessey in Ilford. His mother died in 1956 when he was only 7 years old. Educated at Dane Secondary School in Ilford, he became fascinated by sound equipment, in particular the radiogram that his father brought home from work.
He undertook his apprenticeship as an engineer at 15 and took the City and Guilds qualification, and was responsible for chairing the Apprentice Association. He put on his own shows using a sound system built by himself.
In 1971 he became the resident DJ at The Robin Hood in Dagenham (on Thursdays) and the Bird's Nest, in Romford. It was here that the name DJ Froggy was created. He became known as 'Froggy' for his habit of jumping up and down in time to the music.
He was taken on by popular music act manager George Cooper in 1972, and offered the DJ accompaniment for bands including acts such as Sweet, Slade and T. Rex, quite often at big venues such as Scunthorpe Baths. He met up with BBC Radio 1 DJ Emperor Rosko, who came to fame through pirate radio in the 1960s. Froggy was inspired by the quality of Rosko's sound system. As a result, he upgraded his own sound system, and went in search of Mat Mathias who set up the Huddersfield company Matamp based in Yorkshire and was the designer of the mixing console owned by Rosko. Mathias and Froggy then decided to co-design their own consoles.
In 1974, BBC Radio 1 disc jockey Dave Lee Travis (known to his followers as the 'Hairy Monster') suggested a collaboration. Between 1974 and 1978 their act, which Travis described as 'verging on cabaret', toured Britain. Later Froggy decided to quit and focus on disco, soul and jazz-funk music. He took on several club dates in the south of England and in late 1978 started a weekly residency (Fridays/Saturdays) at the Royalty, in Southgate, north London. He then progressed on to Purley and the National Soul Festival.
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