David Victor Peacock (born 24 May 1945) is an English musician and bass guitarist. He was brought up in Ponders End and the Freezywater areas of Enfield. Peacock is best known as having been one half of the English musical duo Chas & Dave from 1974 until the death of Chas Hodges in 2018

Career

Earlier in his career in the 1960s, Peacock was in a group called the Rolling Stones (formed in 1960 before the more famous band of the same name), as well as The Tumbleweeds, he also worked with Mick Greenwood and Jerry Donahue. He met Chas Hodges in 1963 when he and his friend gave Hodges a lift home, and became friends when they found they had a similar taste in music. Later in the late 1960s they became part of a group called Black Claw together with Harvey Hinsley and Mick Burt; they recorded tracks with Albert Lee. Black Claw was short-lived, and Peacock left to join a country and western band, while Hodges joined Heads Hands & Feet in 1970.

Chas & Dave

In 1972, Peacock and Hodges decided to form a band together which would be the beginning of Chas & Dave. In their early years, they recorded as Oily Rags (cockney rhyming slang for cigarettes - "fags") with Gerry Hogan and Ian Wallace, releasing a self-titled album in 1974. They also worked as session musicians and recorded albums at this time with Oliver Nelson and Teresa Brewer. Both played on Labi Siffre's album Remember My Song in 1975. Eminem would later sample a riff from the song "I Got The..." (featuring Hodges on guitar and Peacock on bass) on his 1999 hit "My Name Is". One of the early songs Peacock and Hodges wrote together, "Gertcha", would become a hit in 1979 after it was used in a television advert for Courage bitter. They would have a number of hit songs together, including "Rabbit" and "Ain't No Pleasing You". They also recorded a number of songs with Tottenham Hotspur F.C., both being fans of the team; the first song they wrote for the club, "Ossie's Dream", was largely written by Peacock. In 2009, following the death of his wife Sue (Susan Heath; born 1946 in Croydon, married in Greenwich in 1973) Peacock announced his retirement from performing with Chas & Dave. However, in 2010 the band announced a tour for the following year. They also played their "Christmas Jamboree" at the IndigO2 on 23 and 24 December 2011 and 8 December 2012. After this they had a "Back by Demand" tour of the UK between 28 February and 16 May 2013. The double act ended with Hodges' death from pneumonia on 22 September 2018.

Discography

With Chas & Dave (1974-2018)

With Black Claw

With Spike Island

With Françoise Hardy

With Mick Greenwood

With Magna Carta

With Carolanne Pegg

With Prelude

With Teresa Brewer

With Oliver Nelson

With Big Jim Sullivan

With Les Walker

With Labi Siffre

With Mike Berry

With Sioux

With Tony Ashton

With Albert Lee

With Jackie Lynton

With Dave Edmunds

With Wild Men of Wonga

With Jerry Donahue

With Danny McCulloch's Friends

With Hereward Kaye

With Marc Ellington