Ballad Spotlight: “Heart and Soul” by Katmandu

A gentle, sincere ballad by a band born from the ashes of Fastway, Asia, and Krokus.

Fastway was formed in 1982 when ex-Motorhead guitarist “Fast” Eddie Clarke joined forces with Pete Way from the UK band U.F.O. The band got its name from a concatenation of their last names – although Way soon left the band to form the band Waysted. Clarke enlisted Irish vocalist Dave King to front the band. Following a string of groundbreaking albums – culminating with the 1986 soundtrack for the movie Trick or Treat, Fastway disbanded. in 1988, Clarke returned to the UK and reformed the band with new members including Lea Hart from Joan Jett’s backing band on vocals. (“Fast” Eddie Clarke passed away on January 10, 2018 after a battle with pneumonia.)

After Fastway’s disbanding, King formed Katmandu with guitarist Mandy Meyer (who spent time in Krokus and Asia) and drummer Mike Alonso, (former member of the Detroit-based band Speedball), who released one self-titled album in 1991. The band had a couple of minor hits but later disbanded. King went on to form the Celtic Punk band Flogging Molly in 1995.

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