Richard Westwood (born 7 May 1943), also known as Rick West or Ricky West,[1] is a British retired musician, known for being a member of the Tremeloes from 1961 to 2012. Westwood was the lead guitarist for the group, and the original falsetto singer on the bands only number one, "Silence Is Golden" (hearing problems in the 70s robbed him of the singing ability). Rick retired in 2012. He and Tremeloe member Chip Hawkes were accused of sexual assault in 2015, and were later acquitted in the following July 2016.[2] Westwood briefly came out of retirement in 2019 to perform in a new Tremeloes band with Hawkes, but left the same year.
Early life
Richard Westwood was born in Dagenham, East London on 7 May 1943. Westwood first learned how to play guitar at age nine, and got his first electric guitar at age 12 after seeing guitarist Bert Weedon play live.[3][1]
He was in "Joe and the Teens"[4] and "Tony Rivers & the Castaways" before he joined the Tremeloes.[1]
Westwood was applauded for his falsetto vocals on the Tremeloes' hit song "Silence Is Golden", however in the mid-1970s, Westwood started having troubles hearing, and briefly left the band to recover, replaced by Bob Benham during this time. Once he came back, he was unable to sing properly, including being completely unable to sing falsetto.[9]
During 1977–1979, he played piano for the Nashville Teens, leaving to rejoin the Tremeloes as they reformed.[10]
Westwood served as Tremeloes guitarist until 2012, when he announced his retirement after 54 years.[3] His last concert was in Guildford on 1 November. The performance was a part of the “Sensational 60s Experience” tour. An exact reason for Westwood's retirement isn't clear, but his long history of hearing problems is suspected to be the reason.[9] Westwood returned to the band with Hawkes for a small tour in 2019.
In December 2015, it was reported that Westwood and Tremeloes member Chip Hawkes would stand trial for the April 1968 assault of a then-fifteen-year-old girl[11] at a hotel in Chester.[12] In December 2015, while leaving Chester Crown Court, both he and Hawkes were assaulted by an intoxicated photographer, who had to be restrained by their barrister.[13]
In July 2016, it was reported that both parties had been acquitted after their accuser failed to enter evidence.[2] Westwood told reporters that he and his family endured "stress" from the public and tabloids during the case.[14]
