Tag Archives: music

Digitally Remastered by……….

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Some months ago I had a long conversation with a guy called Des Tong. Now Des is an accomplished bass player and he was in the band Sad Cafe who had a number of UK hit albums and singles in the early 1980s. We were remarking, that evening, how it was a shame that some of the finest Sad Cafe albums came out prior to the cd era and had never been re-released. I decided that evening to use my influence with the music industry to see if I could rectify that situation.

I contacted a label in the States called Renaissance who had already licensed some of the Cafe’s back catalogue and suggested that they should also release the remaining titles. They said that the albums would need some sound-work doing and that they didn’t have the original artwork. They could get the appropriate licences but they’d need a producer to re-master and……….

I’ll do it, I said. Okay, they said.

The first of three Sad Cafe album that I have remastered made its way into U.S. stores a couple of weeks ago. The old saying about "if want something doing right…….." comes to mind. I’m pleased with this one. I’ve nurtured it through from the point it was just a germ of an idea to the finished product. I tried to capture what I thought Eric Stewart (10cc) wanted on his original production. I provided all the artwork except the original front cover and the tray liner (for the record, I don’t particularly like that back section), the rest is mine.

Another interesting string to my bow…….

One of the good ones gone………

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A friend of mine died last week.

He’d been round my house on Thursday night. Wednesday night for that matter as well. He talked more on Thursday evening than I’d ever heard him talk. He was animated and what he said was vivid.

He work up Friday morning vomiting. An ambulance was called. He lost consciousness and never regained it.

He was a quiet man. He was a gifted saxophonist. Solid, never showy. He had a deep and real faith in God. He liked people but he was smart enough about human nature that he didn’t take everyone at face value. And he was a friend to many.

I shall miss Reuben

Carry on Camping!

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A Camp
6th of May 2009
King’s College, London

I always thought that the weak strand in Nina Persson’s previous attempt for world domination by music was the band’s name. The Cardigans. I mean the Cardigans! It’s not a name to set the world alight. Their first couple of albums had an unusual pop pastiche going on which made them huge in Japan but meant some corners of the rock world viewed them with suspicion.  This part of their career came to climax and crescendo with the worldwide hit "Lovefool" but Persson and her fellow Cardigans wanted more than a reputation for perfect pop. Ironically, the album (Gran Turismo) which gave them their best known rock anthem "My Favourite Game" was mainly dominated by synthesiser sounds. Acoustic guitars were more to the fore on the best of their later albums, "Long Gone Before Daylight" (2003) but by this time their commercial, if not their creative peak had passed and the album was largely bypassed in the U.S. and the U.K..

In 2001, having decided that she perhaps need an outlet other than the Cardigans, Nina had finished off an album which she had begun with a loose collaboration of her musical friends. Because it was going to be a one-off and because it was intended to be a ragged gathering of musicians who by chance found themselves under the same roof, she called it "A Camp". It wasn’t meant to be a serious longterm commitment, more a holiday from The Cardigans. So a camp it was and "A Camp" would do.

Persson’s musical mainstay on the album was Nathan Larson, bass player and multi-instrumentalist. Another guy who played on some of the tracks was Niclas Frisk. After that it was back to the Cardigans for two more studio albums including the aforementioned "Long Gone Before Daylight" and a "Best of" which seems to have finally drawn the curtain down on the band. At least for now.

When she decided to work again with Larson and Frisk, this time in a proper band with a long term future, the name "A Camp" was resurrected. Perhaps, band names just aren’t Nina’s strong suit. It must be a nightmare to market.

On Wednesday, A Camp brought their first fullscale European tour to its conclusion before heading out to the States. The second album "Colonia" has been well-received by the press but has perhaps not created the same underground frisson as the first. But how do they fare live?

Well, tonight is a triple-bill with Leona Naess performing an off-beat and charming acoustic set to open. Second up is Kristofer Astrom who doesn’t really have the voice to match his obvious guitar skills.

The main content though is definitely "A Camp". They eschew any Cardigans material opting for a set which is 8-parts new album, 6-parts first album and two covers. The opener "The Crowning" is ideal territory for Persson’s vocals and her dramatic Hollywood-style poses. There is something about the way that the Scandinavian voices the English language on lines like "Let’s raise our glasses to murderous asses like you" which is totally charming and so chic.

Both Larson and Frisk cut dramatic figures in perpetual motion, their guitars pointed skyward. There is indeed a point in the evening when the stage movements and shape-striking does become a little repetitive but this is no major problem. The show continues cutting its way through ballads that emphasise Nina’s vocal qualities and striking lyrical sarcasm to more upbeat songs with great hooks like "Frequent Flyer" and "My America".

Low point? As on the new album, the male vocal on "Golden Teeth and Silver Medals" doesn’t quite cut it. Tonight, Astrom, the support act, handles the duties and he is no better than Nicolai Dunger on the record. The song is perhaps, anyway, a little too Eurovision.

The two covers were well-chosen. First, Grace Jones’ "Done it Again" led by the bass and tightly performed. As an encore, we were given David Bowie’s "Boys Keep Swinging". By this time it was a moment for the band to rock out and the sound became a little bit of a mush, something that Persson’s guidance for the sound guys had carefully avoided the rest of night. But this was fun and the audience sang a long and a great time was had by all.

A great time was had by all. That might just sum up the night. But that name……. A Camp. A Camp! Now that might just halt the next attempt at world domination.

The cards are no good which you’re holding, unless they’re from another world.

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Date: 25 & 26 April 2009
Artist: Bob Dylan
Venue(s): The O2, Greenwich, London & The Roundhouse, Camden, London

Immediately following Bob Dylan’s shows in London this weekend I read droves of reviews complaining. Now I would have expected them to complain about some things – the engineering works that meant there was no tube service heading in or out of North Greenwich on Saturday, the hours of queuing outside of the Roundhouse on Sunday and the insensitivity of the door staff in closing off the toilets, hours before the concert, to those who were having to wait outside, perhaps. But whilst these matters got their own fair share of deserved criticism, it was the artist’s performance which took the lion’s share of negativity – a verdict which left me rather bemused.
One member of the public posted on a messageboard that it was a good thing that Dylan insisted on not using the large screens at the o2 and that he couldn’t work out which one of the distant figures on the stage was Mr Dylan – because if he couldn’t have figured that out, he would have marched down the front and punched poor Bob on the nose.
Now I’ve been a Dylan fan for over thirty years and I know all about the variable quality of his live shows and his periodic apparent disinterest in what the show amounts to and all the rest – but these shows were Dylan at his idiosyncratic best. Sunday night the O2 was the host to that other giant of popular music "Girls Aloud" and if you want to hear crystal clear versions of all the hits just as they were originally recorded, bright colours and dance routines then perhaps that was the show you should have been at. But if you’re going to see Bob Dylan at least judge him on his ability to reach his apparent goals. He will trawl through all his catalogue of songwriting and redesign the melodies on a whim. He won’t talk to the audience much if at all (let’s be fair when he has done this – for example, at his gospel shows in the early 80s, nobody wanted to listen). He won’t pick up his guitar and pretend this is 1962 just because you want him to. But if you want to hear an artist recreating songs from his best known to his most obscure, then perhaps this is the place for you.
The fans are apparently quite happy with his current tour. The band isn’t the most adventurous. He changes the bulk of his setlist most every night – although some of those who watch closest tell me that they can guess what he is going to play according to what night of the week it is. The opener changes each night – The Wicked Messenger, Rainy Day Women, Maggie’s Farm, Gotta Serve Somebody but often according to which day the calendar shows. For example, Sunday night seems most likely to be gospel night. One audience was recently treated to Gotta Serve Somebody, I Believe in You, Every Grain of Sand and Tryin’ to Get to Heaven. Monday night had none of these. There is a kind of perverse logic to all this.

The two nights, then, were very different affairs with the Roundhouse proving the better show partially because of the increased intimacy and better atmosphere of the smaller venue.

Highlights? Saturday had an excellent version of "Things Have Changed" with Donnie Herron echoing the riff on violin. "The Lonesome Death of Hattie Carroll" was all bent out of shape but still has power to make you think about humanity’s inability to treat all of society like human beings. There was a powerful and echo-ey version of "The Ballad of Hollis Brown" which was driven by Tony Garnier on double bass. "Po’ Boy" and "When the Deal Goes Down" were full of all that is best about Dylan’s current work and were drawn close to the versions that you would be familiar with from the albums. For me, the best was "Workingman’s Blues #2" with Dylan cherishing each line and obviously enjoying himself. Saturday also produced indistinct, poor versions of "Rollin’ and Tumblin’" and "Honest with Me" so this was far from a flawless show – but it was good.

Sunday was better. Nothing here was fumbled just different degrees of high quality. The older songs "Don’t Think Twice, It’s All Right", "Leopard-Skin Pill-Box Hat", "Tangled Up in Blue", "Like A Rolling Stone" were straightforward enough renditions and kept the crowd on board when perhaps the attention of the casual visitor might be tempted to drift. "Million Miles" and "High water (for Charley Patton)" were rumbling, threatening and apocalyptic. The peaks were "Ain’t Talkin’" and "Tryin’ to get to Heaven" where the lyrics were biting and heartfelt.

So Dylan in London wasn’t quite a triumph but this was a very good weekend indeed for music . He will always divide opinion (for what it counts for, I think it’s probably part of his intention) but for those who get it, these were shows we should be talking about for years to come.

New Albums on the Horizon (and an old title just to spice the pot)

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Two of the artists I respect most have new albums coming in the next few weeks.

First up is Bob Dylan whose new album is due on cd and vinyl on the 28th of April. I think the artwork is dreadful but I’m sure the musical content will be better. It’s called "Together Through Life"

Next is John Foxx who, as I’ve mentioned before, has been working with Robin Guthrie. Their album will also be on cd and vinyl and will appear the first week in May. It’s called "Mirrorball".

On a more personal note, I’ve been working on remastering the sound on three albums for a band from the 70s and 80s called Sad Cafe. I now have a provisional release date for the first of these. The album also called Sad Cafe will be on Renaissance Records in the States on the 21st of April.

I mentioned John Foxx. Another album he has been busy on dropped through my letterbox this morning. This time he’s worked with Steve D’Agostino and Steve Jansen (ex-Japan). I’ve not shown the artwork for this one before so here goes:

Mr Foxx is frighteningly prolific.

What other discs would I recommend at the moment?

Walter Becker – Circus Money (not just because I was involved in the release of this one)
Alice Cooper – Along Came A Spider (oh, another one I was involved in)
Mostly Autumn – Glass Shadows
Bob Dylan – Tell Tale Signs
Revue Noir (Debut EP – featuring Sam Rosenthal from black tape for a blue girl)
Sam Yahel Trio – In the Blink of An Eye
Rubicks – In Miniature
Frankie Valli – Romancing the Sixties (one for the nostalgists – but very good!)
Marie-Juliette Beer – The Garden
Barclay James Harvest – Revolution Days (just happens to feature Ian Wilson and Mike Byron-Hehir from Sad Cafe, did I mention I’ve been remastering for them)
Bob James – Urban Flamingo
Saviour Machine – Legend 1
Son Volt – On Chant and Strum
Danilo Perez – Panama Suite
Richie Furay Band – Alive (Catch my interview with him on Cross Rhythms on the web and in Natural Progressions Magazine in the world of print)

Enough for now………….

 

…… Mostly Average

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It wasn’t just the promise of tickets waiting for me on the door that drew me back for a second night with Mostly Autumn. I’d enjoyed the first night and I was interested to see how the previous night’s shenanigans would effect the prospect of recording a live album at the Shepherd’s Bush Empire (a venue I don’t like but, hey, I live just round the corner). Would Heather’s "scratchiness" (her term) floor the attempt at making a live album? Would the live album be released with a fill-in vocalist or be aborted all-together? Hey, it’s a hard rock soap……… The answers as always fell somewhere in between the obvious guesses.

Tonight, the band have more than adequate space to flex their musical and physical muscles. Unlike in Mancester, they’re not all stood on top of one another, eight musicians on a stage built for three. The audience can actually see Iain Jennings. Not least because he’s lost the top keyboard of the three on his tower. Anne-Marie Helder can get out from behind her keys when she is playing the flute and Andy Smith can wander the stage at will which makes him look just a little more Spinal Tap than he did last night…..

The setlist is the same as last night on the whole with those songs that were dropped because of Heather’s health mostly restored to the line-up. Eye contact between Josh and her is restored and there is even signs of some humour between the pair. Inbetween song comments are kept to a minimum in the spirit of the intention to capture this for a live recording without too many fake fades being required. The band members still have an irritating habit of leaving the stage when the songs do not require them to be there which looks unprofessional but that is their choice, I guess. All is well, the mix is better than the night before and except for one peculiar moment when Ms. Findlay seems to be asking the sound engineer to take her down in the mix (down???) there is none of the problems from the previous night which could have been interpreted as being a little prima-donna-ish……

And then Heather introduces "Above the Blue" from the new album "Glass Shadows". Now this isn’t my favourite song from that set. To these ears, it all sounds a little too much like the Carpenters. But Heather obviously believes in it. She has dedicated it to her baby and her partner and for her it is obvious that this is one of the key moments of the night. Perhaps it all meant a little too much. The band all left the stage except Anne-Marie who plays delicate and sensitive keys and for the first two verses all is well. But Heather has decided that a snare-drum has been left taut and is causing an intrusive echo or click and all of a sudden the song is off and needs to be begun again. There is some yelling and some semi-humorous comments aimed at the drummer who showed no signs of taking it all personally (I think most would have done). The audience are very much on the band’s side and take it in good spirits and the song is started all over again – for the good of the live recording. There is one moment when the security guard at the front of the stage allows his walkie-talkie to go off mid-song second time around and just for a second I think we’re going to have the same problem again but Heather digs down deep and completes her song. Strange.

The rest of the show goes off mostly without incident. The band are tight, energetic and enthusiastic and, most importantly, unphased by what has gone before. Anne-Marie Helder, still battling with her sounds been way too low in the mix, has real talent and charisma. Olivia Sparnenn takes her moment in the spotlight (smaller tonight) with aplomb. And Bryan Josh masters it all, level-headed, thoughtful, talented.

The first encore, Tearing at the Faerytale, which was missing last night is restored and goes very well indeed. The band are all set for "Carpe Diem" from "Storms Over Still Water" which had been a major highlight the night before when Heather shows Bryan "thumbs down" and the song has to be skipped and the bemused band move on to the final encore. The final encore is a cover of Genesis’ "Turn it on Again". The night before with Olivia having to handle lead at short notice and the band overwhelmed by complex timing, they had murdered this. Tonight, with Heather on vocals but the band still a little at sea, it is a little better. It is fun but not the big finish its meant to be.

So over two nights, Mostly Autumn showed themselves capable of scaling "Half the Mountain" but health (and personnel?) issues kept them from any kind of peak. Whether this is a temporary blip or sees the band heading for winter, only time will tell……..  

Anne-Marie Helder

Iain Jennings

Bryan Josh

Andy Smith and Heather Findlay

Goodnight and Thank you


(Combined) Set list for the last two nights

Fading Colours
Caught In A Fold
Flowers For Guns
Unoriginal Sin
Simple Ways
Evergreen
Winter Mountain
Dark Before The Dawn
Answer The Question
Last Bright Light
<<Above The Blue >> second night
Half The Mountain
Close My Eyes
Broken Glass
Never The Rainbow
Pocket Watch
Spirit II
Heroes Never Die

 

<<Tearing at the faerytale>> Second Night

<< Carpe Diem>> first night
Turn It On Again

Moderately Autumn………

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Friday night found me in Manchester, considering another writing gig and checking out the possible subjects – Mostly Autumn. I understood Saturday night’s show in London was to be recorded for a live album and I wanted to catch this band when they weren’t just so – and it proved to be a good decision.
Mostly Autumn. They are the band who really define what it means to be "indie" and internet-driven. "Indie" not in the sense of any contrived musical style – I’m never sure what that label means in that sense. It seems its possible to be "indie" and the slaves of one of the corporate giants although the equally unpleasant term "britpop" seems to be back to the forefront at the moment. And internet driven not in the sense of Lily Allen who had a large budget to ensure she was discovered on "MySpace" and not in the sense of Sandi Thom whose discovery seems to have lasted for approximately one song but in the sense of a band who have independently launched a succession of reasonably successful albums via that medium and who have created a niche audience for themselves who are clearly with them for the longhaul.

Mostly Autumn. Darlings of the prog rock scene who, thankfully, aren’t really prog rock. Mostly Autumn who gather fans who’d rather watch Pink Floyd but have found the Floyd are Mostly not around anymore. Mostly Autumn – who seem to have passed their peak without ever charting an album – can they ever be more than a second division band?

Friday night at the Manchester University Academy. Eight musicians on the smallest stage of three. All busy tonight. Mostly Autumn are (having gone through a number of personnel changes which perhaps hints at their problems) :

Bryan Josh. band leader. lead and rhythm guitar. vocals. old-style rocker and the one they audience feel is their friend.
Heather Findlay. vocals. guitar. whistle. tambourine. Dresses like Stevie Nicks, looks like Christine McVie.
Anne-Marie Helder. Keyboards. flute. harmony vocals. Her sound is too low in the mix.
Olivia Sparnenn. Vocals. Youngest member who finds herself with extra duties tonight.
Iain Jennings. Keyboards. Didn’t play on the most recent album but is back in the touring band.
Andy Smith. Bassist. Looks like and dresses like Bill Nighy when he was a strange fruit.
Liam Davidson. Acoustic guitar, 2nd lead and rhythm guitar. Another returnee to the fold.
Henry Bourne. Drummer. Solid.

The show, on Friday, got off to a solid enough start with "Fading Colours" but it soon becomes evident that all is not well. There is a sharp exchange of words between Heather Findlay and Bryan Josh and then an announcement that Olivia Sparnenn will stand in for Findlay for the bulk of the rest of the show. Now, Olivia is a strong vocalist (some would say stronger than Heather – check out her own band, Breathing Space) but it is Heather that the audience have come to see and this should have been sorted prior to the show with the show perhaps cancelled until all were well. But this show has been rearranged once already and there is a consideration about that live album show tomorrow night (and the income that will generate) and it seems that Heather has unilaterally decided that her voice must be rested. Certainly there is no eye contact between her and Josh for the rest of the night and it seems that there is a tension amongst the camp.

Internal issues aside, this is a tight show and the fill-in vocalist is more than up for it. Highlights? "Unoriginal Sin", "Evergreen", "Broken Glass", "Carpe Diem", the vocal version of "Spirits of Autumn Past", and a number of others. There are one or two moments when the band get bogged down in their own boogie and you’re caused to think that this is what it might have been like if Saxon had hired Stevie Nicks as their vocalist but they transcend that most of the time.

Josh is not quite the vocalist he is in the studio (where his sound reminds me of the late-Genesis and sometime-Stiltskin vocalist Ray Wilson) but is guitar work is interchangeably forceful and dynamic then thoughtful and provocative. Smith, Davidson and Bourne are a solid backline and rhythm section. Helder is a real talent and Sparnenn handles the change-overs like a pro and excels herself.

All-in-all, a difficult night but a good night. It remains to be seen whether the band can overcome those tensions and these setbacks.

Bryan Josh

Heather Findlay

Olivia Sparnenn

The Pleasures of Electricity

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(Ignoring the snow outside)

One of my favourite arists, John Foxx has come up with three new albums for the first half of 2009

The first on the 23rd of February (just in time for my birthday) will be "My Lost City"

Track Listing:

01. Imperfect Hymn
02. Holywell Lane
03. Magnetic Fields
04. Just Passing Through
05. Barbican Brakhage
06. Hidden Assembly
07. Hawksmoor Orbital
08. Piranesi Motorcade
09. City of Disappearances
10. Umbra Sumus
11. Scene 27 – Intro to The Voice Behind The Wallpaper, Trellick Tower 3am

It will be released on Metamatic Records META21CD

_________________________________________

His second release will be a collaboration with Steve Jansen (brother of David Sylvian and formerly percussionist with Japan) and Steve D’Agostino (who joined Foxx on his recent "Metamatic" tour.

The album entitled A Secret Life will be released on the 23rd of March also on Metamatic META22CD. Track listing:

01. A Secret Life (Part 1)
02. A Secret Life (Part 2)
03. A Secret Life (Part 3)
04. A Secret Life (Part 4)
05. A Secret Life (Part 5)
06. A Secret Life (Part 6)

No artwork yet.

_________________________________________

The third album will be another collaboration, this time with former Cocteau Twin, Robin Guthrie. The album will be on Metamatic and will be distributed by Universal. Released on the 4th of May, it will be entitled "Mirrorball".

Carol singing at Christmas

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If anyone is in Hammersmith, London, tomorrow afternoon and evening then look out for a group I’ve organised singing Christmas Carols and collecting money for the homeless of the neighbourhood. Hey, all of this started with a kid who couldn’t find a bed for the night so this is really in the spirit of the occasion.
One gathering of singers will be at Ravenscourt Park tube station and the other just across the road from there. Come along, add your voices if you like and bring your coins and notes to help those who are out in the cold this winter

Ballad of the Sad Cafe

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No, not the Carson McCullers book, but an English band of the 70s and 80s, who for my money were probably the best live band on the circuit for a period of about five years around that time. I met up with their bassist, Des Tong, again, a few nights ago. I’ll tell you their story.

Sad Cafe rose from the ashes of some long forgotten Manchester-based bands like Gyro and some of their members had served time with progressive rockers Mandalaband. They began to tour in late ’76 and were quickly signed to RCA. Their debut album, Fanx Tara came out on the 1st of September 1977. Their line-up at the time consisted of:

Paul Young (Vocalist and percussion) (most decidedly not the "Wherever I lay My Hat" guy but the one who went on to front Mike & the Mechanics)
Ian Wilson (guitars and backing vocals)
Ashley Mulford (lead guitar)
Vic Emerson (keyboards)
John Stimpson (bass)
Tony Cresswell (drums)

Young had been with the Toggery Five in the Sixties and led a band called "Young & Renshaw" as well as cutting some solo singles in the first part of the Seventies. He had swagger and panache that was natural but was coupled with moves he had swiped from Jagger, and an incredible set of pipes gave him some of the best vocals I’ve ever heard. Mulford was developing into a very under-rated but accomplished lead guitar whilst Wilson had a sweet voice and played six and twelve string acoustic as well rhythm electric with ease and style.

The first album included Black Rose, Hungry Eyes and I Believe (Love Will Survive) which were to be staples of their live show for the rest of their time together. However sales were modest although the album made it to no. 56 in the UK chart.

Second album, Misplaced Ideals, trod a similar path in musical style and sales (peaking at no. 50 on the charts) but the big breakthrough seemed far away. Their reputation as a great live band had begun to spread and one of their performances was filmed for a broadcast entitled "An Evening with Sad Cafe" which mooched around the late night TV schedules for the next few years and was eventually commercially released after Gary Numan and Blondie had made that a viable option.

The album, released in April ’78, contained Restless and On with The Show which also became live favourites. In early ’79, a lesser cut "Run Home Girl" suddenly became a success in the U.S. Billboard charts rising to 71 on the Hot 100 – dragging its mother album on to the top 100 U.S. albums too. The band were surprised to have broken in the States but more significantly it raised their profile in the UK where they were given a prominent slot on the Old Grey Whistle Test and all was set for a big year in ’79. A saxophonist simply known as Lenni became a regular fixture in the live band and by 1980 was a fully-fledged member.

Drummer Cresswell called it a day just as they were about to begin work on their third album and was replaced by the (in my opinion) more accomplished Dave Irving. Eric Stewart of 10cc was drafted into produce and the third album "Facades" was the one to break them big, albeit for a short time. The big hit from the album, Everyday Hurts (which reached number three in the UK charts in September 1979) was both a blessing and a curse. It meant that when ever the band’s sales dipped (which was often) the record company would request another piano ballad. The band became more associated with that song than the swaggering rockers which were their forte.

The album peaked at number 8 in the UK staying on the chart for nearly half a year. The songs were less fusion-orientated and had more catchy riffs of the kind that Eric Stewart’s band had made their mark with. 3 more hits came from the record. Strange Little Girl reached 32; My Oh My peaked at 14; and Nothing Left Toulouse stuttered as far as 62. None of these troubled the singles charts in the U.S. and the album stalled at 146 on the Billboard list.

For their self-titled fourth album, Stewart again filled the producer’s chair but either the band accorded him less space or he was more complacent in his approach. This album was a little more workmanlike. It gave them two UK hits La-di-da (no.41) and I’m in Love Again (no.40) but they were already beginning to fade from the memories of the pop scene whilst the rock crowd continued to lap up their tours. La-Di-Da became their second minor U.S. hit reaching no. 78. The album peaked at 40 and 160 respectively, in the UK and US charts. Attempts to break the band in the Netherlands and West Germany didn’t bear much fruit and the record company began to lose patience.

To add to the problems, this incarnation of the band began the process of breaking apart. Ashley Mulford was spending increasing amounts of time outside the country as a romantic liasion began to deepen. John Stimpson simply didn’t want to be in the band anymore and set out for a career in music management. Des Tong became the new resident bassist and the band began to fret about the situation with its lead guitarist.

The band owed RCA one more album and a live set "Sad Cafe Live in Concert" was released in the Spring of 1981. This was coupled with an appearance on the ITV series Rockstage which emphasised what a potent force they were. Recorded whilst Stimpson was still on bass, the album was a virtual greatest hits allowing the Johnny-Come-Latelys to hear the great songs form the first two albums in their natural environment. It outsold the last studio record in the UK and reached 36 on the album charts. A single led by the live recording of Black Rose failed to make an impact.

In a decision which was to impact the rest of their career, the band ended into a complicated arrangement which saw Polydor become responsible for their future UK releases even though they had already signed a deal with Swansong in the U.S. (who had handled the release of the self-titled album Stateside). Complicated contracts are often a bad idea and this one was to surround the band with litigation for the next 4 years as the labels squabbled about who owned albums by them.

In the Autumn of 81, they released Ole, which was only a minor success in the UK (no. 72) and was ignored in the rest of the world. The singles were Misunderstanding and Follow You Anywhere. The latter got more airplay than the former but nothing sold. Mulford was missing from most of the recording with a number of guest guitarists filling the holes. One of these, Mike Hehir, would become a full member by the time of another hugely successful tour. Great live band who couldn’t sell records was shortly to become great live band who couldn’t release records. The courts decided the band should release no more albums until the ownership of their work was clarified.

Earning their living by touring, they were on the road almost all of 1982. 1983 eventually saw a single release (albums were a no-no) as Charisma released "Keep Us Together" which reached no. 76 in the bubbling under section of the Record Mirror. A young journalist by the name of Darren Hirst was commissioned by Sounds to go and talk to the band for a feature but nothing helped restore the missing sales. By the following year, the baton for single releases passed to Virgin who released "Why Do You Love Me Like You Do". More touring and spots at Reading and Glastonbury Festivals had enhanced their live reputation even further but their sales increased not a jot. The band played some farewell gigs, persuaded RCA to release a "Best of" package and called it a day.

Paul Young, by now, had another problem to deal with. A singer had risen to prominence using the same name – something that couldn’t happen in the acting world because of Equity was entirely permissible in the music world even though Sad Cafe’s Young had recorded solo singles using that name more than a decade before. He recorded a single with Ian Devaney and christened himself Devaney Young. He made another disc as YPY (which he said stood for young Paul Young). Neither sold and he needed the income when he was invited to cut some lead vocals for Mike Rutherford of Genesis’ new side-project. They eventually released an album called Mike & the Mechanics which sold well – particularly in the States – and Young and Paul Carrack were invited to share vocals in the band for the long haul but that’s another story.

Ironically, at the same time, the legal wrangle regarding Sad Cafe’s ability to release albums was settled and Young decided that he should reform the band. Of the four remaining long standing members two declined. Vic Emerson and Dave Irving had had enough for now. Young and Ian Wilson decided to press on regardless and invited Tong and Lenni to record too. Augmented by some sidemen and a new drummer, Jeff Seopardi, the band recorded "Politics of Existing" which gathered in the singles from 83 and 84 and an album’s worth of new material. It was released in late 1985 but made little impact. Two singles – Refugees (written by new man, Seopardi) amd Only Love, were equally unsuccessful. In the States, "Why Do You Love Me Like You Do" was retitled "Heart" and gained some notice as a single.

Working hard was deemed to be a solution to the lack of sales and Ashley Mulford rejoined the lineup for a 1986 tour of the UK. Ex-Grand Prix keyboardist, Phil Lanzon who was currently a member of the Sweet, moonlighted on keyboards. However, the tour wasn’t as commercially successful as their previous outings and the renewed energy was short-lived.

The band was to have one last stab with 1989’s album "Whatever it Takes" and its single "Take Me (Heart and Soul). Whilst once again an album which displayed excellent songwriting and musicianship, it was if anything even more overlooked than its predecessor. For this set, Young, Wilson, Tong and Lenni were augmented by sidemen Steve Pigott (keyboards) and Paul Burgess (drums). Ashley Mulford disappeared as quickly as he’d returned and was once more replaced by Mike Hehir. Vocalist Alistair Gordon who would be helped by Young in his band "Radio Silence" became the band’s first full-time backing vocalist. This band played a couple of home town gigs to promote the record before drifting apart.

That really is the end of the band’s story. Where are they now? After continued success with Mike and the Mechanics, Paul Young died suddenly of a heart attack in July 2000. Ian Wilson and Mike Hehir are now part of Les Holroyd’s latest version of Barclay James Harvest. Des Tong is part of Alvin Stardust’s touring band and was my inspiration for this article. Ashley Mulford plays the blues in Germany. Vic Emerson did some work with 10cc but I lost track of him after that. Dave Irving runs the band’s official website at www.sadcafe.co.uk to which I have contributed as I can. Alistair Gordon produces a number of bands and singers now that his own band, the rather excellent "Radio Silence" seems to have folded. The bands two most commercially successful albums "Facades" and "Misplaced Ideals" have been re-released in the States by Renaissance Records (who I am currently badgering about the rest of the band’s back catalogue). It won’t be as good as seeing them live but as that is no longer possible, you should do yourself a favour and buy them.