Vince Clarke

Vincent John Martin was born on 3 July 1960 in South Woodford, Essex; he later moved to Basildon, Essex. He initially studied the violin and then the piano. Clarke's early musical influences included Sparks, Paul Simon, and Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark (OMD), who inspired his interest in electronic music. Clarke also cites electronic influences such as the Human League, Daniel Miller and Fad Gadget.

In December 2013, Clarke listed his "13 LPs that mean the most to him" for The Quietus: Pink Floyd – The Dark Side of the Moon (1973): Kraftwerk – Computer World (1981); The Human League – Travelogue (1980); Simon & Garfunkel – Bookends (1968); T. Rex – Electric Warrior (1971); David Bowie – "Heroes" (1977); The Eagles – Hotel California (1976); OMD – Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark (1980); Philip Glass – Glassworks (1982); Genesis – A Trick of the Tail (1976); Michael Jackson – Dangerous (1991); The Sex Pistols – Never Mind the Bollocks, Here's the Sex Pistols (1977); Led Zeppelin – Led Zeppelin IV (1971).

In the late 1970s, Clarke and schoolmate Andy Fletcher formed a short-lived band called No Romance in China, with Clarke on vocals and guitar and Fletcher on bass guitar. In 1979, Clarke played guitar in the Plan, an Ultravox-influenced band, with friends Robert Marlow and Paul Langwith.

In 1980, after the Plan dissolved, Clarke and Fletcher formed Composition of Sound, and were soon joined by Martin Gore. Clarke provided vocals until lead vocalist Dave Gahan joined the band, which was renamed Depeche Mode. At that time he adopted the stage name Vince Clarke, by which he is currently known. The band initially adopted a slick synthesised electropop sound, which produced the studio album Speak & Spell and the Clarke-penned singles "Dreaming of Me", "New Life", and "Just Can't Get Enough" in 1981. ...

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