Les McKeown – too much fame too young

Les McKeown, lead singer with the stratospherically successful Bay City Rollers (in their day,) has died at 65 after a troubled life. Described by one obituary as a ‘rock star trapped in a boyband’ he initially resisted manager Tam Paton’s invitation to join as an 18 year old. Once he agreed, their popularity soared.

  Paton was a nasty bit of work, had a predatory interest in his young charges, was later sentenced to three years in prison for molesting boys, and introduced McKeown to Mandrax and amphetamines to help him cope with touring. Less than two years after joining the band at the height of their fame McKeown killed an elderly woman when driving which appeared to have been a pivotal point in his life after which he headed sharply downhill. He left the group three years later and continued in a so-so solo career with stints in rehab for alcoholism.  

  He had an intense Sun Saturn in Scorpio with Saturn square Jupiter Pluto in Leo – a contradictory mix of depressive and confident. He had an ambitious Mars on his Midheaven with Moon and creative/addictive Neptune in Libra in his career 10^th. He had an 8^th house Uranus and admitted he was bi-sexual even through his later marriage.

  When he had had fatal road accident tr Saturn was squaring his Mars Midheaven, tr Uranus was conjunct his 10^th house Neptune, and tr Neptune was crossing over his Solar Arc Sun Saturn for a time of great confusion and uncertainty.

  Tam Paton, 5 August 1938, had a ruthless Pluto Mars in Leo which was conjunct McKeown’s 8^th house Uranus and square McK’s Mercury so he had the ability to turn McKeown’s life upside down but it was a fractious relationship. Paton’s Saturn opposed McK’s Mars for another set of aggravations; and Paton’s Uranus opposed McK’s Sun and Saturn. A destructive combination.

   McKeown did have a confident and get-it-together 5^th harmonic but his ‘wheel of fortune’ ups-and-downs 10H and his can-be-self-destructive 16H were also heavily aspected.