Elanø B ‎- Diane (1981)

b/w Too Late 

Luton band [1980-83] started as The Allies (according to the local press) became Decoy then changed their Musical Direction*, Bass player & name to Elanø B.

 

 

Terry Jeff Tim Jon Tubbs

Jeff Cockfield (Voc) later in Under The Sun 

Tim Torode (Guitar Voc)
Terry Gittins (Guitar, Keys)
Jon Rolland (Bass Voc)
Tubbs (Drums)

Photography by Michael A. Spiller

 

*From New Wave/Powerpop to a more Post Punk/Funk sound. Listen to their Excellent 1980 Demos recorded at Quest Studios here

Sounds & Scans + Extras

 

Tranzista - Better Beware (1980)

B1 Time Of My Life
B2 (Are You) In The Mood?

Great New Wave / Powerpop from this Cambridge 4 peice [1980-83]

Gary Frederick Butcher (Voc Guitar)  Ex Highway
Jim Simpson (Bass)  
Andy Northfield (Keyboards Voc)  Ex Highway
Jerry Alpress (Drums Voc)  

Discography
1980 7" Better Beware //Time Of My Life /(Are You) In The Mood? - Land Speed Records [SRS 31]
1981 VA - MoonToon One - Nimbus Records [Mac 001] [Caught In the Act] 
1983 7''  Heaven With Her //Dangerous Thoughts - Atlantic ‎[A 9815]
1983 12'' Heaven With Her //Dangerous Thoughts /Roll On Friday - Atlantic ‎[A 9815 T]

Other Tracks Recorded but not released were :

Jim Jerry Gary Andy

Argyle Street /Incognito /Lookaway /Popular /Small Man Big World /Good For Nothing /Auntie Hazel /White Lies /Winter /Yesterday's Gone /Cloud 9 /Scared Of The Dark /So Uncertain /Prisoner /We Are The Shotgun Gang /Spying For The Russians /She Don't Care

Useless Info - I've Read Gary Butcher was later in {Diss Based Goth Band} Dead Pianos [Released - All Hallows / Motionless 7'' DEA1 - 1986] Personally I think someone maybe getting their "Garys from the South-East" mixed up.

Discography +

The Mess - Tried And Tested (1981)

b/w I'm Falling

Nice Punky Powerpop from this Leeds 3 peice (1977-82)

Phil Mayne (Voc Guitar)

Choc (Bass Voc)

Mat Higgins (Drums Voc)

Mat Higgins was replaced by Carl Rosamond sometime between the 45 being Recorded [September 1980] & it's Release [March 1981]

Info is from Issue 14 of Bradford's Wool City Rocker. A Pdf is included in the download if you want to read the full article. There is also a (non)reveiw of the 45 by Tino Palmer.

Useless Info - If you Google Phil Mayne & Carl Rosamond You'll find they are still going strong & supporting the local Leeds area.

Sounds & Scans

Really Useless Info - This blog has been going 10 years today - If anyone's interested!

The Moderates - Yes to the Neutron Bomb (1981)

b/w Bus Girl

Great Merseyside based New Wave band [1978-82]

The Moderates seem to have started as something of an ad hoc, Art School student band [Some of them being Part-time staff at the Everyman Bistro]

Possibly inspired by Deaf School’s theatricality, their gigs would involve poetry readings, the odd novelty song and the lengthy ramblings of one Dame Looney [A mention of the band in Record Mirror {26 May 1979} gives the line-up as John Brady (Voc), Heidi & Sharon (Voc), Basil (Bass), Bernie (Guitar), Satie (Keys), Sigger (Drums)] Soon enough though the line-up settled and the band became a tighter outfit, ditching the peripherals to focus on the songs.

John Brady (Voc Keys),

Heidi Kure (Voc)

Tom Gould (Guitar)

Bobby Carr (Guitar, Violin) ex Those Naughty Lumps, Tontrix, Pre Surreal Estate

Martin Cooper (Bass) ex Those Naughty Lumps  Pre O.M.D & Godot

Phil Allen (Drums) ex Big in Japan, Pre Love Look Away

With Help from Bob Moren (Sax on High Heel Shoes)

Discography

09/1979 VA - Street To Street [A Liverpool Compilation] LP [I Don't Want To Go Bald]

12/1979 12" Fetishes EP [High Heel Shoes / Yes To The Neutron Bomb / Don't Be Silly / Sun Tan] - Open Eye Records [OE EP-1001]'

03/1981 Peel Session [What's That Sound (For What It's Worth)/ Nightlife /Housewife For Life /Emile]

04/1981 7" Yes To The Neutron Bomb / Bus Girl -  Hyped Records [BMRB-51]

02/1982 7" For What It's Worth / Emile - Hyped Records [BMRB-53] (

Line-up change for the Peel Session & 2nd 45

Mike Percy (Bass) pre Dead or Alive

John Potter (Drums)

Useless Info 1 - The Moderates Supported The John Peel Radio Roadshow @ Liverpool University Mountford Hall on 02-09-1978

Useless Info 2 - Phil Allen is the brother of Enrico Cadillac Jr. [AKA Steve Allen] frontman of Deaf School.

Useless Info 3 - Martin “Armadillo” Cooper took over Aunt Twacky’s Tea Shop in the Pun School building re-naming it The Armadillo Tea Rooms. He still enjoys a position of great respect in Liverpool’s culinary arena.

Useless Info 4 - The Moderates played to a crowd of over 200 in the Armadillo Tea Rooms, on the same night as U2 [playing the UK for the first time] struggled to attract 60 people to the club across the road.

Below are Tom Gould’s recollections of reconvening in the studio to re-work on ‘Yes to the Neutron Bomb’ for a single release.

‘We were offered a contract by Greensleeves records (biggest reggae label), as ska had taken most of their customers, so they wanted to sign some ‘white pop bands’. They set up a subsidiary label called ‘Hyped Records’ for ours and a band [Close Rivals] from Birminghams’ releases, booking us into a 24 track recording studio in London. During the session we realised that they didn’t really know what they were doing, as previously they bought finished tracks from studio’s in Jamaica. This is where we recorded the second version of ‘Yes to the Neutron Bomb’ and ‘Bus Girl’ (Bus Girl was about taking late night bus journeys in Liverpool, as there always seemed to be a young girl standing at the front of the bus talking to the driver – bus groupies?).

Our experience in the studio was awful as we also had an engineer who thought he was the greatest producer in the world, but was more of a hindrance than any help, so the recordings were pretty bad. At the end of the original ‘Yes to the Neutron Bomb’ on ‘Fetishes’, the explosion was created by four of us holding the keys down on the keyboard, which was plugged into a guitar amp with the settings for distortion, reverb, presence and volume on full, so most of the noise was feedback. On the second recording, the engineer could not reproduce it, he used a pretty weak explosion from a sound-effects record instead which sounded really crap!’

Full Discography & Extras

Feel free to leave any extra info/comments below

Finally 

09 April 1981 : After playing Yes To The Neutron Bomb on his show John Peel quipped 'We're thinking of getting one for the shrubbery actually.')

Brick Cocktail - Sunday Afternoon (1984)

b/w Borderline

Nice Indie/Folk on the A-side from this (I'm Presuming*) Yorkshire based band

All I can tell you is that they were Recorded in 1983 & Penned by 

S. Clow &  B. Lumley

Sleeve Design By D.C. Jnr

Borderline was Recorded @ Lion Studios* Produced Engineered by Tony Bonner

Sunday Afternoon was Recorded @ Studio 2 Engineered by Richmond / Lee

* "Lion Studios" was an 8-track recording studio in Aire Street, Leeds.

Sounds & Scans

Leave A Comment if you can add some info

The Spoil - Dream On! (1983)

b/w On The Other Side Of A Dream

2 lovely slices of Mod /Psych From these Hull College of Art & Design students that would have easily fit on the Another Spalsh Of Colour Expanded re-release from a few years ago.

Dale Gascoigne (Voc Guitars)

Tony Patrick (Guitars Voc)   aka Hull’s Macaronman

Mike Wilson (Bass Voc)

Karl Lilley (Drums)

On the label Thanks go to

Ken Giles (Label Owner Producer)

Ken Lake

Dave Hemingway (Velvetones / Housemartins - Drummer, The Beautiful South - Voc) 

Saul Davies (James - Guitar/Violinist)

Tim Allison

Dave Iles

Useless Info - Recorded 1982 By Ken Giles @ KSL Studios Bridlington 

Sounds & Scans

As always if you can add any info please leave a comment

The News - 50% Reduction (1980)

 

b/w High Society

Great XTC soundalikes from this Yorkshire (Sheffield?) based 4 peice

Alan Quinn (Voc Bass) RIP
Trevor Midgley (Guitar Voc) later in the Tubeless Hearts        
Roger Harrison (Drums) RIP
Ivor Drawmer (Keys Voc)                

 

Discography
30-05-1979 Peel Session : 50% Reduction / High Society / Advertise / Brain Drain
04-04-1980 7'' : 50% Reduction / High Society - Polydor ‎[POSP 129]
15-08-1980 7''  : Modern Toys / Feed The Meter - Polydor ‎[POSP 152]

The Peel Session Was Recorded 30-05-1979 [Aired 07-06-1979] @ Maida Vale Studio 4 & Produced / Enginneered by John Sparrow & Nick Gomm

Both 45's were produced by Jon Astley            


Pre-News
Alan Quinn was in Global Village with Bill Nelson (Guitar/Voc - Pre-Be Bop De Luxe) & Bryan Holden (Drums)
Trevor Midgley Go Here
Roger Harrison was in Quinceharmon* / New Jersey Turnpike* / The Whales / Tyke
Ivor Drawmer was in Quinceharmon* / New Jersey Turnpike*

*Others in the band were Bob Holt (Voc) Pete Jowle (Guitar) Ross Grant (Bass)

Post-News
Alan Quinn auditioned for Bill Nelson's Red Noise [Rick 'Pinky' Ford got the job] although he did get the Bill Nelson & The Practical Dreamers Job
Trevor Midgley Go Here
Roger Harrison ?
Ivor Drawmer Go Here

Full Discography & More

If you can add anything to this post please leave a comment

Finally thanks go to Mr Obscure who put the Peel session up on his website last month   

Sits Vacant ‎– Alone In The Dark EP (1981)

A1 - Alone In The Dark    
A2 - Nowhere To Run    
B1 - Vacancies        
B2 - It's Too Late 

Nice Post-Punk by this 4 peice from Barrow-in-Furness, Cumbria. 

Mike J McCusker (Voc)       
Andrew K Willison (Guitar)       
Mark P Toole (Bass, Voc)       
Paul Montague (Drums)      

The Band possibly formed late 1978/early '79 with a brief stint In Late '79 Becoming 100 Faces* (Mod Revival Band) before reverting back to Sits. Vacant in 1980 & Recording / Releasing this EP at Linden Sounds studio in Shap in 1981

In 1983 They transformed into Indoor Fireworks then finally The Tier Garden [disbanding 1988] along the way [1985] they helped out Perfect Circle.

Useless Info - The name Sits. Vacant was inspired by the employment pages of the Evening Mail (local Newspaper) at the time.

*More Info & Photos on 100 Faces here

Sounds & Scans

Soho Dynamos - Neon Jungle (1981)

b/w Jungle Rumble

To follow on from the last post here is another London based Nick Cola related 45

This time featuring two ex-Tigers members:

Tony Jacks - Voc, Guitar,

Nick Cola [Coler] - Keyboards.

That's pretty much all the info I have apart from they worked together again as ‘Wise Guise’ for some releases in 1984/85 (where Al Price gets a writing credit again)

Useless info

Nick Coler was a prominent member [2000–2010] of the music production team Xenomania,

Sounds & Scans

Bandzai! - Zig-Zag (1983)

b/w Solid Security (Gun For Hire)

Nice Mod Powerpop with a ska backbeat from this 5 peice London based band - For some reason Zig-Zag Reminds me of Graduate (Elvis plays Ska)

 

I have 4 nanes from the song writing credits

Nick Cola - (Keyboards)

Camaro

Corvette

Al Price - (Songwriter not Musician)

7'' Discography

26-03-1982 - Tokyo Nights / East-West - Stingray Records [STZ-1]

??-01- 1983 - Zig-Zag / Solid Security (Gun For Hire) - Slipped Discs ‎[OOPS 11]

[their 1st 45 is a little to synth-pop for my tastes]

As always if you can add some more info please leave a comment

Sounds & Scans