You Should Hear How Melissa Sings - Part Two

Given the success of ‘Melissa’, there was no reason to change the slickly produced ‘M.O.R.’ (middle of the road) formula, resulting in a further shift from the individual creativity of her early material. Hence 1976’s follow up album ‘Better Days & Happy Endings’ (US#24) featured more of the same lushly recorded ballads, with Manchester again having a hand in writing most of the tracks. ‘Just You And I’ sounded a bit like a reprise of ‘Bridge Over Trouble Water’, and gave Manchester another U.S. top 30 hit (#27), as well as spawning two more minor hits in ‘Rescue Me’ (US#78), and ‘Better Days’ (US#71 - later recorded by Captain & Tennille - see future post). Manchester’s next album was the uninspiring ‘Help Is On Its Way’ (US#60), released late in 1976. The album featured more of the same, with an even greater reliance on third party written songs, none of which matched the standard of Manchester’s earlier work. 1977’s ‘Singin’…’ (US#60) was a collection of popular music standards, and perhaps a couple of misjudged covers of other artist’s songs, including the Beach Boys’ classic ‘The Warmth Of The Sun’ - cover that song at your peril.

By 1978 Melissa Manchester’s career had all but stalled, at least in commercial terms, and was in need of another big hit. Mid year she scored that hit, albeit as a songwriter, with the U.S. #5 ‘Whenever I Call You Friend’, co-written by singer Kenny Loggins, and co-performed by Loggins with Fleetwood Mac’s Stevie Nicks. Perhaps the success of the song gave Manchester the confidence to strike back with her own top 10 single. The song ‘Don’t Cry Out Loud’ was written by Peter Allen, Marvin Hamlisch, and Carole Bayer Sager, and had been a #79 R&B hit on the U.S. charts during 1977 for The Moments (under the title ‘We Don’t Cry Out Loud’). Manchester’s heartfelt take on the song was every bit deserving of a top 10 outcome, and that’s what it got…well just. ‘Don’t Cry Out Loud’ hit #10 on the U.S. charts in late ‘78 (OZ#57), and provided the impetus behind the launch of the album of the same name in early ‘79 (US#33/OZ#75). Unlike her previous couple of albums, Melissa Manchester took a more active role in the song writing side of the project, augmented by a few astutely selected covers. 1979’s ‘Melissa Manchester’ (US#63/OZ#93) once more featured a mix of Manchester originals and covers. She delivered her own version of ‘Whenever I Call You Friend’, but the single releases, including ‘Pretty Girls’ (US#39) and ‘Fire In The Morning’ (US#32), were written by third parties.

In 1980 Melissa Manchester achieved a rare feat, by being the performer behind two Academy Award nominated songs in the same year, ‘Through The Eyes Of Love’ and ‘I’ll Never Say Goodbye’, neither of which were included on the poorly received album ‘For The Working Girl’ (US#68). The album yielded only one minor hit in the Manchester co-written ‘Lovers After All’ (US#54), performed as a duet with Peabo Bryson. Aside from her Oscar nominations, the previous four years hadn’t gone exactly to plan for Melissa Manchester, and it appears that song selection (at least on the part of the label) played a big part in that. Her next single though would become the biggest selling song of her career. ‘You Should Hear How She Talks About You’ was up-tempo pop music at its best, though a million miles away from the material Manchester had forged her reputation on. Co-written by Dean Pitchford (‘Footloose’ etc.), the song debuted on the U.S. charts during May of ‘82, and rocketed to #5, soon after following suit in Australia (#4). ‘You Should Hear How She Talks About You’ also earned Manchester her first Grammy Award for ‘Best Female Pop Vocal Performance’. Unfortunately it was the only track from the album ‘Hey Ricky’ (US#19/OZ#33), produced by Arif Mardin, to attract any interest as a single, with the rest of the set receiving mixed reviews. In relative terms, 1983’s album ‘Emergency’ (US#135) completely flat lined, and found Manchester light years away from her comfort zone, consigned to providing vocal accompaniment to a bunch of formulaic synth-pop tracks. It was Manchester’s final album for the Arista label, bringing an end to a ten year association, which had its ups and downs - pity it ended on such a down. Actually 1983 wasn’t a total write-off in commercial terms for Melissa Manchester, with a couple of minor hit singles in ‘My Boyfriend’s Back’ (OZ#48 - cover of the old Angels’ hit), and ‘Nice Girls’ (US#42).

Manchester moved to MCA for her ‘Mathematics’, the album that is, but neither title track (US#74), nor album (US#144), managed to reignite Manchester’s commercial fortunes. During the second half of the 80s, Melissa Manchester turned her creative talents to script writing and acting, in between recording projects. She appeared in the Bette Midler star piece ‘For The Boys’, and on the popular (though I don’t know why) TV series ‘Blossom’. Her 1989 album ‘Tribute’ was a pleasant selection of popular music standards, including ‘Over The Rainbow’ and ‘La Vie en Rose’, but it appeared that Melissa Manchester’s music muse had moved out, temporarily at least.

She released one album of original material on the Atlantic label during 1995. ‘If My Heart Had Wings’, featured plenty of sweeping ballads, in the Celine Dion tradition, but still represented a shift from her work of twenty years previous. A shift to the minor label Koch, seemed to free up the creative energies of Manchester for her latest album, 2004’s ‘When I Look Down That Road’.

You Should Hear How Melissa Sings - Part One

During my teen years I was sometimes faced with the difficult choice as to which of the latest various artist compilations to purchase. In Australia, these compilation albums generally came out in pairs - Festival/EMI/RCA and subsidiaries would release one, whilst CBS/Polygram/WEA and their subsidiaries the other. More often that not, both albums would be released to coincide with a school or summer holiday period. Sometimes I’d be fortunate enough to be able to purchase both, but on other occasions budgetary considerations meant I’d have to choose just one (and hopefully track down the other album at a later date). In the latter part of 1982 I was fronted with the choice between ‘1982 Up In Lights’ and ‘1982 The Winners’. Check out the link to the fantastic ‘80s Tapes’ website for a full track listing of both albums. For me it came down comparing notes of my half dozen favourite songs from each album. One of the tracks that finally swayed me to make the initial purchase choice of ‘1982 Up In Lights’, was the irresistible dance-pop song ‘You Should Hear How She Talks About You’, by Melissa Manchester. It repeatedly tested the rewind capacity of my trusty old tape deck, not to mention the elasticity limits of the cassette itself. Thankfully, I scored a copy of ‘1982 The Winners’ at a later date.

‘You Should Hear How She Talks About You’ was the biggest hit single of Melissa Manchester’s career, but it wasn’t necessarily indicative of her style and career path as a whole. Manchester was born in the Bronx, New York during 1951, and was exposed to music of all styles from an early age. Her father was the bassoon player with the New York Metropolitan Opera Orchestra, but rather than pursuing a career in classical music, young Melissa was, like so many of her generation, caught up in the appeal and lure of popular music. From the age of fifteen she was performing jingles and popular tunes, and soon thereafter attended the High School of Performing Arts during the late 60s (where she actually studied acting), whilst gaining a job as a staff writer with the Chappell Music publishing company (a career path not unlike Carole King and Carole Bayer Sager).

Following graduation from high school, Melissa Manchester enrolled at the New York University in the early 70s. One of the subjects she took was on the craft of song writing, and included seminars taught by one Paul Simon (not a bad mentor to have). Like many performing arts students, Manchester began working professionally whilst still engaged in her studies. She began singing regularly at New York club venue, whereupon she was ‘discovered’ by Bette Midler - ‘The Divine Miss M’, and her then accompanist Barry Manilow - ‘The Notorious Mr. N’. They hired Manchester to perform as a backing singer during 1971, and during this period she began writing songs with another friend of Bette’s, Carole Bayer Sager (see previous post). During 1972 Melissa Manchester scored a recording gig as the vocalist on a hit novelty song by the then up and coming comedy troupe National Lampoon (they of the ‘Animal House’ and ‘Vacation’ variety). The song ‘Deteriorate’ only reached #91 on the U.S. Hot 100, but it gave Manchester her first taste of chart action.

In 1972 Melissa Manchester was signed to a recording contract of her own, with the independent Bell Records label. With a considerable cache of songs to choose from, many of which were penned with Carole Bayer Sager, Manchester recorded her debut album ‘Home To Myself’, during 1973. She already had established enough of a following for the album to reach #156 on the U.S. charts., with the 1974 follow up ‘Bright Eyes’, peaking at #159, but it would take a romantic ballad from her third album to prove the breakthrough.

After two low key albums for Bell, Manchester was identified by record guru Clive Davis as being one artist who could get his new enterprise Arista off to a flying start. Davis spared no expense in providing the singer with the a high profile production environment for her 1975 album ‘Melissa’. Up until that point, Manchester had sung pretty much her own material, which presented a bit of an eclectic edge stylistically, but for the latest album the name of the game was to get some commercial radio airplay. The track that would prove the catalyst to launch Melissa Manchester’s career to new heights, was the ballad ‘Midnight Blue’. It was your characteristic romantic ballad, with impeccable production values, and a structure that suited Manchester’s vocal range perfectly. ‘Midnight Blue’ peaked at #6 on the U.S. Hot 100 (OZ#78). The album ‘Melissa’ achieved a gold certification (US#12), and also spawned the Philly soul styled hit ‘Just Too Many People’ (US#30). But would the rush for more gold compromise Manchester’s own artistic voice.

Voices Carry 'Til Tuesday

New wave pop-rock quartet ‘Til Tuesday briefly shot to prominence during 1985 (possibly on a Thursday), with their hit single ‘Voices Carry’ playing a memorable cameo role during the end credits of the new wave movement. But they are better known as the band from which critically acclaimed singer/songwriter Aimee Mann hailed from.

Aimee Mann had a pretty eventful childhood. At age four she was abducted by her estranger mother and taken to Europe to live. Mann was back in the U.S. by her teen years, and based in Boston, where she attended the Berklee School of Music. She honed her professional craft playing with a local punk band called the Young Snakes (who released a single EP ‘Bark Along With The Young Snakes’, during 1982), and later had a brief stint with the future Al Jourgensen’s industrial-punk band, Ministry. By 1983 Mann felt it was time to front her own band. Mann had met drummer Michael Hausmann at Berklee, and had been living with him for some time, whilst English born guitarist Robert Holmes, and keyboardist Joe Pesce (that’s Pesce not Pesci) rounded out the quartet.

The newly dubbed ‘Til Tuesday won the Boston based WBCN Rock & Roll Rumble in 1983, and a demo version of the eventual album track ‘Love In A Vacuum’ became a favourite on local Boston radio, which led to them being signed to the Epic label. During the song-writing phase for the group’s first album, Mann and Hausmann’s relationship ended, which inspired Mann to pen many of the love lorn lyrics on ‘Til Tuesday’s debut set. The lead out single was the haunting and emotionally affecting title track, ‘Voices Carry’. The song was backed with a very effective promotional video, which portrayed singer/bassist Aimee Mann struggling to break free of an abusive and domineering partner, and garnered regular airplay on MTV and the like (also earning ‘Til Tuesday a MTV Award for ‘Best New Artist’). ‘Voices Carry’ carried all the way to #8 on the U.S. charts during mid ‘85, and shortly after echoed on the Australian charts at #15. The success and high profile of the debut single, pushed sales for the ‘Voices Carry’ album to #19 in the U.S. (OZ#81). The follow up single ‘Looking Over My Shoulder’ was another emotion charged song, but failed to do much charging on the charts (US#61).

During the period following ‘Til Tuesday’s first album, Aimee Mann became romantically involved with singer/song writer Jules Shear, which helped bring a smidgeon more publicity buzz to the band, who were struggling for a substantive profile in the media. ‘Til Tuesday’s 1986 sophomore album ‘Welcome Home’ (US#49) didn’t manage to do the business of its predecessor, and only spawned the minor hit singles ‘What About Love’ (US#26/OZ#92) and ‘Coming Up Close’ (US#59). The album saw ’Til Tuesday dispense with some of the slicker, high tech production values associated with new wave, and embrace a more personal and folk/rock-influenced sound, which may have damaged its prospects commercially, at least with an audience expecting more of the same.

Following the release of ‘Welcome Home’, keyboardist Joe Pesce left the ‘Til Tuesday home, and was replaced by Michael Montes, with the band’s line-up expanded by the addition of guitarists Jon Brion and Clayton Scoble. In the months following the release of ‘Welcome Home’, Mann’s relationship with Shear dissolved. With ‘Til Tuesday’s fortunes seemingly on the wane, and a difficult period in her personal life to contend with, Mann found herself weighed down to the point of incurring a serious case of writer’s block. A song-writing collaboration with the acclaimed Elvis Costello, helped Mann to re-tune to her creative channels, and once again she poured heart and soul into many of the tracks for ‘Til Tuesday’s introspectively toned third album, ‘Everything’s Different Now’ (produced by Rhett Davies - US#124) - the title track co-written with Matthew Sweet (see future post). Things certainly were different for Mann and her band, as the album only realised one minor hit in ‘(Believed You Were) Lucky’ (co-written with Shear - US#95) in early 1989. However, the album gained very positive reviews, and was later cited as an important stage in Aimee Mann’s development as a songwriter, and a launch pad for her subsequent solo career. Amid entanglements with their record label Epic, and a poor outlook commercially, ‘Til Tuesday parted ways during 1989, though it’s unclear on which day of the week this occurred.

It took Aimee Mann several years to extricate herself from legal hassles with Epic, but in 1993 she released her debut solo album ‘Whatever’ (UK#39) on the Imago label. The album featured some very Beatles-esque tracks, and quickly established a strong cult following for Mann as a singer/song writer of considerable substance. It also yielded the minor U.K. hits ‘I Should’ve Known’ (UK#55), and ‘Stupid Thing’ (UK#45). The Imago label then went belly up, which led to another serious blow to Mann’s fledgling solo career. But she emerged through the litigious wreckage and signed with Geffen for 1995’s ‘I’m With Stupid’ (UK#51). The album featured a more acerbically biting edge to the lyrics, and boasted some high profile guest talent, including Juliana Hatfield and Squeeze mainstays Glenn Tilbrook and Chris Difford.

Over the last decade Aimee Mann has released a further five solo albums, from ‘Bachelor No.2’ (2000-US#48), to ‘@#%&*! Smilers’ (2008-US#32), and the award winning ‘Magnolia’ soundtrack, all of which have further solidified her reputation for recording finely crafted, and emotionally resonant songs. Oh, and Aimee Mann happens to be married to another gifted songwriter and musician in Michael Penn (see earlier post), whilst former ‘Til Tuesday drummer Michael Hausmann is now her manager.

A Twist Of Fate Delivers A Hit For The JoBoxers

Certain songs evoke a strong emotional response, not on any intellectual level, but instinctually, and instantaneously. The 1983 hit ‘Just Got Lucky’, by the Jo Boxers, is one such song. Wherever I am, whatever my prevailing state of mind, ‘Just Got Lucky’ cuts through the static, dissipates the fog, and leaves me feeling energised and refreshed. It has an inherent vibe, so overwhelmingly positive and vivacious, that the effect of the song echoes reassuringly for hours, even days after each listen. Twenty five years after the song first bowled me over with its ‘Boxer Beat’ brilliance, ‘Just Got Lucky’ still retains its charm, verve, and pop-powers of revival.

JoBoxers’ were led by English based, expatriate American singer Dig Wayne, backed by the Bristol based quartet of Rob Marche (guitar), Dave Collard (keyboards), Chris Bostock (bass), and Sean McLusky (drums). From 1980 to 1982, Marche, Collard, Bostock and McLusky had played together as the backing band Subway Sect, and became the house band at a popular venue near London’s Soho district, under the ‘club’ banner of ‘Cool Bop & Sing’. Mostly they backed singer Vic Goddard, but on occasion played with guest artists like Lady Blue, Bananarama, Johnny Britton (who they’d recorded a single with), and a young American vocalist by the name of Dig Wayne. Such was the popularity of Vic Goddard and the Subway Sect, that they took there regular show on the road, touring with the likes of Bauhaus, The Birthday Party, and Altered Images (see earlier post). Vic Goddard and the Subway Sect also captured their boundless performance energy on the 1982 album ‘Songs For Sale’, before parting ways later that year.

Over the ensuing months all four members of the Subway Sect ran a second hand clothing stall in a local street market, to supplement their income from music. Ex-pat American singer Dig Wayne, was likewise running a stall of his own. Wayne had previously fronted the popular and influential New York based rockabilly band, Buzz and the Flyers (as Buzz Wayne), in the late 70s, before making the move to England, looking to break into the U.K. music scene. Having jammed together on occasions at the ‘Cool Bop & Sing’, Wayne and the lads from Subway Sect, knew they complimented one another well. The quintet shifted their performance base to another local venue Ronnie Scott’s, taking on the new name JoBoxers. The band’s name came about when someone remarked that there seemed be a lot of boxers named Joe - hence JoBoxers.

The chemistry was electric, and JoBoxers soon took their club shows to a new level of surging high energy, soul fused pop. Dig Wayne’s raucous, powerful vocals complimented the tight, pulsating sound of the JoBoxer’s instrumental engine room. The band’s visual image evolved into that of working class, street urchin like personas (and occasionally attitudes followed), attired in caps, bracers, and working boots - not unlike a prior incarnation of Kevin Rowland’s Dexy’s Midnight Runners - see previous post - in fact JoBoxers were big fans of Dexy’s. JoBoxers earned their big break when they appeared on the BBC television series ‘Oxford Roadshow’. The talent scouts at RCA liked what they saw, and signed JoBoxers to a recording deal in late ‘82.

In early ‘83, JoBoxers hit the charts running with their debut single ‘Boxerbeat’. The upbeat song captured the best elements of the band’s live shows, and boasted a great horn section, augmented with the sounds of a live audience to complete the surging, energetic feel - possibly taking its stylistic inspiration from Dexy’s ‘Geno’. Following its February debut, ‘Boxerbeat’ ducked and weaved its way to #3 on the British charts during April ‘83. The Northern soul infused gem ‘Just Got Lucky’ hit the stores and the airwaves in May ‘83, and soon after hit the British charts. It boasted the same kind of irresistible vitality as songs like ‘Town Called Malice’ (Jam), ‘Come On Eileen’ (Dexy’s), ‘Radio’ (Members), ‘Only For Sheep’ (Bureau), ‘Rock The Casbah’ (The Clash), and ‘I’m A Wonderful Thing, Baby’ (Kid Creole & The Coconuts). But there was nothing ‘lucky’ about the fact that JoBoxers had mastered the formula for infectious, inspiring pop-soul - these guys had done the hard yards, rehearsing relentlessly, playing passionately, and earning their collective stripes. Written by bassist Chris Bostock and vocalist Dig Wayne, ‘Just Got Lucky’ got its just deserts, surging to #3 on the British charts in mid ‘83. It also became JoBoxers’ only hit Stateside (#36), and here in Australia, where it bounced on a ball of its own energy to #25 late in ‘83, eventually going on to rack up global sales in excess of 250,000 copies.

JoBoxers released their debut album ‘Like Gangbusters’ during September ‘83. Produced by Alan Shacklock, the set featured a strong selection of JoBoxers’ best numbers, sharpened and refined through their extensive live work. ‘Like Gangbusters’ notched up solid sales in the U.K. (#18), and peaked at #70 Stateside. The next single lifted, was the punk instilled track ‘Johnny Friendly’, reflecting JoBoxers broad musical palette. The single peaked at #31 on the British charts, but the fourth single ‘Jealous Love’, released late in ‘83, only managed a relatively disappointing #72.

JoBoxers took some time to record their sophomore album, and by the time of ‘Skin & Bone’s release in 1985, it seemed the band had lost much of the momentum amassed during 1983. Neither the album, nor lead out single ‘Is This Really The First Time (You’ve Been In Love)’, managed to crack the British charts, which proved to be a huge disappointment to the band. The band had already gone back to the studio to work on tracks for a third album, but before the sessions were completed JoBoxers threw in the towel, and called an end to their three year pop odyssey, but only as a collective.

The individual members all continued their commitment to music, at least initially. Drummer Sean McLusky joined guitarist Rob Marche in the indie-dance outfit If?, alongside Paul Wells. Bassist Chris Bostock joined Eurythmic Dave Stewart’s extracurricular enterprise The Spiritual Cowboys. Keyboardist Dave Collard continued to back singer Dig Wayne, on Wayne’s solo endeavours. In 1987, Wayne released his debut solo album ‘Square Business’, which spawned the single ‘Mastermind’, but when neither album or single made the charts, Wayne turned his creative focus to acting. Still based in London, he appeared in several West End stage productions, then in ‘95 moved back to the U.S. to pursue acting work in L.A.

To the where are they now file - drummer Sean McLusky works in band management and promotion; singer Dig Wayne still turns his hand to acting on occasion, but primarily he has returned to his first love of music. He now fronts the act Dig Wayne and the Chisellers, and regularly tours the U.S. and Europe. He released the album ‘Shack Rouser’ in 2006; after his stint with The Spiritual Cowboys, bassist Chris Bostock became a record producer, worked with The Style Council and Shakespear’s Sister, and started his own independent label. Bostock recently gained a degree in I.T. and started the official JoBoxers website; guitarist Rob Marche continued playing in his band Earl Brutus, in addition to much session work; after working with Dig Wayne, keyboardist Dave Collard toured and recorded with the likes of The The and Lisa Stansfield.

‘Just Got Lucky’ experienced a revival of sorts via its inclusion in the hit 2005 comedy film ‘The 40 Year Old Virgin’ (with Steve Carell). A 2006 anthology, titled ‘Essential Boxerbeat’, was released on Sony BMG, bringing renewed accessibility to the band’s earlier recordings. According to an interview with bassist Chris Bostock in 2007, the previously unreleased third JoBoxers’ album is being pieced together for a planned future release. The official JoBoxers website is worth checking out here:
http://www.joboxers.net/index.html

Cramped Sleeping Quarters Inspire A #1 Hit

Perhaps realising his error on the ‘Tales Of Illusion’ album, Young returned to the familiar Fox formula for the band’s next single ‘S-S-S-Single Bed’, released in the first half of ‘76. Noosha assumed lead vocal duties, aside from the Kenny Young delivered ‘talk box guitar’ section of the song. ‘S-S-S-Single Bed’ stormed into the British charts in April ‘76, and found a place to lay its weary head at #4. Australia adopted Fox as its own and ‘S-S-S-Single Bed’ streaked to #1 in August ‘76. It spent three weeks at the summit, and went on to become the 8th biggest selling single in Australia for 1976. On the back of the phenomenal success of ‘S-S-S-Single Bed’, Fox’s first two British hits, ‘Only You Can’ and ‘Imagine Me Imagine You’, were released as a double-A side single in Australia, and reached #16. An Australian released album titled ‘S-S-S-Single Bed’ (#22), was an amalgamation of Fox’s first two 1975 albums.

In early 1977 Fox finally unveiled their third album ‘Blue Hotel’, this time featuring Noosha as lead vocalist on every track. When Kate Bush emerged on the scene later in the year, comparison’s were drawn between the shrill, high pitched vocal styles of both singers, but Noosha’s delivery was more languid. Kenny Young was again the main creative force in terms of writing and production, though guitarist Herbie Armstrong contributed to the mix. ‘S-S-S-Single Bed’ was included on the album, in fact it was the opening track, but the next single ‘My Old Man’s Away’, missed the charts completely. Reportedly the rest of the album was a bit of an eclectic mix, oscillating between slickly produced soft rock, through progressive rock, to straight pop. Whatever the balance, good or bad, the public at large didn’t choose to spend 45 minutes at Fox’s ‘Blue Hotel’.

Following the disappointing reception for ‘Blue Hotel’, Noosha left Fox to pursue a solo career. Given her strong association with Fox, the singer adopted the name Noosha Fox for her first single ‘Georgina Bailey’. The song, written and produced by Kenny Young, reached #31 on the British charts late in 1977 (OZ#91). A Noosha Fox album was in the works, but was shelved indefinitely. Her next single, ‘The Heat Is On’ (not of the Glenn Frey variety), surfaced in 1979, but it froze on release.

Meanwhile, Kenny Young and Herbie Armstrong maintained musical ties in a new band called Yellow Dog (taking their name from the W.C. Handy standard 'Yellow Dog Blues'). They scored a major hit in both Britain and Australia with the quirky pop rock number ‘Just One More Night’. Lyrically it featured a similar theme to Carole Bayer Sager’s ‘You’re Moving Out Today’ (see previous post), with equivalent acerbic humour, from a male perspective. As mentioned, the track’s previous incarnation was on Fox’s ‘Tales Of Illusion’ album (where Young actually handled the vocals). The song was given an overhaul, and peaked at #8 in Britain, and #6 in Australia in mid ‘78. It was lifted from Yellow Dog’s second album ‘Beware Of The Dog’ (OZ#50 - they had released a self titled effort in late ‘77). The follow up single ‘Wait Until Midnight’ didn’t quite have the snarl of its predecessor, peaking at #54 in the U.K. and #74 in Australia. Yellow Dog released one final album in 1981, titled ‘Stranger In Paradise’, but they retired to the kennel soon after. Herbie Armstrong later worked extensively with Van Morrison, and Fox keyboardist Pete Solley went on to be a much in demand producer (Jo Jo Zep, The Sports, The Romantics, Oingo Boingo - see previous posts), and recording with the likes of Eric Clapton, Whitesnake, Procol Harum, and Al Stewart (see Dec post).

In 1980, between Yellow Dog albums, Kenny Young reunited with Noosha Fox, and a reformed Fox released the single ‘Electro People’, their take on a new wave synth-pop track. It was heard as a theme tune for the Kenny Everett Show, but didn’t garner much airplay otherwise. That was where the Fox reunion ended, and Noosha Fox returned to her solo career. She released two more single during 1981, ‘More Than Molecules’ and ‘Hot As Sun’, neither of which managed to react with any heat. Soon after she withdrew from the music business for the remainder of the 80s. She recorded some new material with Fox (the band) in the early 90s, but it remained unreleased until 2004, when it was included as bonus material on a CD reissue of the ‘Tales Of Illusion’ album. There is an official Noosha Fox website in development, well at least it was as of two years ago. Maybe if it ever gets properly up and running, we’ll learn more of what Noosha Fox has been up to over the last 25 years - selling S-S-S-Single Beds?

Fox By Name, Fun By Nature

One of the biggest hits on the Australian charts during 1976 was the funk tinged pop song ‘S-S-S-Single Bed’, by the British group Fox. The lead singer, and obvious focal point, of Fox was Noosha, whose sensuous, breathless vocal style, no doubt added a unique quality to the group’s sound. I was just shy of my eighth birthday when ‘S-S-S-Single Bed’ rocketed to #1 in Australia, and I have vague recollections of the video clip on TV (yes on ‘Countdown’), but I don’t recall hearing at the time that Noosha herself, was an Australian. I also wasn’t aware of her background in music with American writer/producer, and Fox founder, Kenny Young.

Kenny Young had been serving up hits by other artists for more than a decade. He penned The Drifters 1964 hit ‘Under The Boardwalk’ (US#4), and throughout the 60s his name regularly cropped up in the writers credits for several other high profile artists, including Herman’s Hermits, Wayne Newton, Ronnie Dove, Paul Revere & The Raiders and Nancy Sinatra. Young had also worked as a producer, and had collaborated on and off with a young Australian singer by the name of Susan Traynor. Traynor was an uncredited member of the R&B vocal group, The Charmettes. They scored a minor hit in 1963 with ‘Please Don’t Kiss Me Again’ (US#100). Both Traynor and Young relocated to Britain in the late 60s, and in 1968 Young penned the UK#13 hit ‘Captain Of Your Ship’ by Reparata and the Delrons. He then played a pivotal role in the career of Northern Irish singer Clodagh Rodgers. Young discovered Rodgers via a TV show, and went on to write and produce several hits for her, including 1969’s UK#3 ‘Come Back And Shake Me’. During their three year partnership, Rodgers recorded demos for several of the songs that would later surface on Fox albums.

While Young was laying the foundations for his future Fox assignment, Susan Traynor had been a member of a folk group called Wooden Horse, who recorded two low key albums before retiring to a large dewy meadow. Kenny Young recalled his previous working relationship with the young Australian singer, and in 1973 he invited S-S-S-Susan Traynor to provide some vocals on his own solo album ‘Last Stage For Silver World’, though she was credited rather anonymously as ‘Amanda’. Having written and produced for other artists, Young had gained confidence through recording two solo albums - he was now ready to assemble a band of musicians to take on the pop charts in earnest.

He recruited a young Irish singer/guitarist called Herbie Armstrong, along with Pete Solley (keyboards, ex-Paladin), Gary Taylor (bass), Jim Frank (drums), and the natural choice for a female lead vocalist was of course Susan Traynor. Traynor adopted the moniker of Noosha specifically for the new band, which was to be called Fox. The newly named Noosha took on the look of screen siren Marlene Dietrich, and her glamorous, elegant image would act as an effective visual juxtaposition to the other lads pub rocker regalia.

Kenny Young, who also provided vocals/guitar to the Fox mix, already had a considerable cache of songs to choose from, and penned some new numbers with guitarist Herbie Armstrong. Among those co-written by Young and Armstrong, was Fox’s first single ‘Only You Can’, released on the GTO label in early ‘75. The song had a sultry, reggae infused glam-pop style, that served as a perfect vehicle for Noosha’s purring vocal style. ‘Only You Can’ debuted on the British charts in February ‘75 and moved like a fox to #3. Soon after the song was released in Australia, though with this first release it was titled ‘Only You’, and only reached #68. It should be noted there had been an Australian band, also called Fox, who had charted just a year before with a minor hit called ‘Who Do’ (OZ#97). ‘Only You Can’ was also issued in the U.S., but only achieved a modest #53 in the second half of 1975.

Fox’s second single ‘Imagine Me Imagine You’ (another glam-pop effort), commenced its run at the U.K. charts in May ‘75, and consolidated the profile of the group, peaking at #15. At the same time Fox unveiled its eponymous debut album (UK#7), recorded at Sarm Studios. The album featured the first two singles, and a sumptuous version of the old Kitty Lester song ‘Love Letters’. Young spared no time and expense in providing a slick production palette. A central lyrical theme matched the sensual, and at times exotic musical style, creating a seamless symmetry with Noosha’s vocals. The third single, ‘He’s Got Magic’, performed well in parts of Europe, but missed the British charts. The Fox profile was boosted further by the group’s cameo appearance in the comedy-musical film ‘Side By Side’, directed by Australian Bruce Beresford - it would be interesting to know how that collaboration came about.

Before the end of ‘75, Fox released their second album ‘Tales Of Illusion’. The album proved to be an error in judgement by Kenny Young, who positioned Noosha as background vocalist for half the tracks, and took on the vocal duties himself. Noosha’s unique vocal style had already become synonymous with Fox, and the album left listeners, and critics alike, straining to make the connection with Fox’s first effort. ‘Tales Of Illusion’ missed the charts completely, and failed to yield any hit singles. There are two things worth noting about ’Tales Of Illusion’ - Queen’s Roger Taylor provided backing vocals on the track ‘Survival’ (Queen happened to be recording the album ‘A Night At The Opera’ in the studio next door); and the album featured an early version of ‘Just One More Night’, which Young would revisit a few years later, though with a different band.

Captain Sensible By Name, Not By Nature

The early 80s witnessed a surge in wacky, zany, goofy, nonsensical songs on the charts (at least in Australia and the U.K.). It’s customary to refer to these hits as ‘novelty’ songs, but to my mind, in some cases the term doesn’t give due respect to the genuine musical craft behind these songs. Of course in other instances ‘novelty’ doesn’t go far enough to reflect the frivolous, throwaway nature of the music - IE. trash might be more apt. But I refuse to write about trash here at Retro Universe - I may be inclined to write a lot of trash, but I refuse to write about it. So, if I choose a ‘novelty’ song to write about, it needs to meet a few pre-conditions. Firstly, I have to like the song - strictly subjective I know. Secondly, the song has to contain some fundamental musical quality - largely subjective too. Thirdly, the artist behind the song needs to have an interesting story - at least mildly interesting (I can only embellish so much). Any song that contains industrial machinery sound effects, and is by a guy calling himself Captain Sensible, gets my seal of approval.

Captain Sensible wasn’t born a Captain, and quite possibly didn’t display very many sensible traits. But his birth name Ray Burns, doesn’t sound very cutting edge, angry young punk-like - come to think of it, neither does Captain Sensible. But that didn’t stop the Captain from being a key member of seminal British punk rock outfit The Damned. Previously the Captain had played in a couple of low key groups, the Johnny Moped Band, and a covers act called Oasis (not of the Gallagher Brothers variety). By way of a series of comings and goings, the Captain was proffered an invite to join guitarist Brian James and drummer Rat Scabies (now there’s a punk name!), in a punk rock collective, that for a brief while, went by the name Masters of the Backside. The name was perhaps a little too cheeky, so they became The Damned. A young American singer by the name of Chrissie Hynde (Pretenders) fronted them briefly, but a former gravedigger by the name of Dave Vanian was eventually recruited as their vocalist. The Captain filled a variety of roles during his tenure with The Damned, from guitar to bass to keyboards, and soon became known for his trademark red beret, and prodding front row spectators with his bass (the other members of The Damned all had their own idiosyncrasies).

After two albums (the first applauded, the second lambasted), The Damned more or less fell apart during 1978, with various members getting distracted by side projects. During this period Captain Sensible formed a short lived band called King (no connection with the band from a few posts back), but by early ‘79 the Captain, Scabies, and Vanian had reformed as a band, with new vocalist Algy Ward (later replaced by Paul Grey) - though as departed vocalist Brian James owned the rights to the name ‘The Damned’ - they took on equally sunny moniker of ‘The Doomed’, though James eventually relented to allow them The Damned designation once again. The next few years represented a successful period for The Damned in commercial terms (through a more pop-savvy edge), though the line-up continued to be fluid.

Following a low flying debut single in 1981 titled ‘This Is Your Captain Speaking’, in 1982 Captain Sensible signed a solo recording deal with A&M, whilst still active with The Damned, and openly declaring his ongoing loyalty to the band. The Damned had been moving in an increasingly mainstream pop-rock direction, as illustrated on the Captain’s final outing with the band later in ‘82 on the album ‘Strawberries’. But nothing could have prepared hard core fans of The Damned, for the Captain’s first solo single ‘Happy Talk’. From opening for the Sex Pistols, to recording a quaint, chirpy little show tune that had featured originally in the 1958 film musical ‘South Pacific’, and was penned by the legendary American song writing team of Rodgers & Hammerstein - that‘s quite the quantum leap. ‘Happy Talk’ made its cheery debut on the British charts in June ‘82, and after a solid entry at #33, made a giant jump to #1 in its second week on the charts (a rare feat in those days). Backing vocals for ‘Happy Talk’ were credited to a trio of female singers called the Dolly Mixtures, and possibly the parrot perched on the Captain’s shoulder in the promo clip. ‘Happy Talk’ wasn’t greeted with the same fervour in Australia, but still achieved a creditable #35 nationally. I can recall Molly Meldrum playing a snippet of the song in one of his ‘Humdrum’ segments on ‘Countdown’, with an expression of bewilderment. Captain Sensible wasn’t the first wacky/zany ‘Captain’ to chart in Australia, as there was a local band in the early 70s called Captain Matchbox Whoopee Band, he scored with a few minor hits.

The follow up single to set sail from the Captain, was the quirky, funky little pop number ‘Wot’, or what, if you want to be grammatically correct. This was the song that caught my attention, by way, not just of the song, but the comically entertaining promotional video. Both song and video kick off with the sound of an industrial pile driver. The racket awakens our good Captain from his comfortable slumber. He’s staying in a hotel, and so the remainder of the clip follows him wandering around the hotel, looking for a solution to the incessant noise. The Dolly Mixtures make a return, and the Hotel manager bares a striking resemblance to one Basil Fawlty. An Adam Ant look-a-like makes a cameo appearance in the hotel foyer, before a rather agitated Captain unceremoniously pushes him aside. The funky base line and charmingly quirky lyrics, delivered in a rap parody fashion, combine to make ‘Wot’ a great song in my book. It didn’t set the charts on fire (UK#26/OZ#30), but did hit #24 on the U.S. Club Play singles chart, and has subsequently become a bit of a cult classic of the 80s era. Both singles were lifted from Captain Sensible’s debut album ‘Women And Captain First’ (you’ve got to love that title), which peaked at #64 on the British charts.

Captain Sensible recorded his second album ‘Power Of Love’ in late ‘83. The album’s first single was the politically overt ‘Glad It’s All Over’, an anti-war song, or more specifically an anti-Falklands’ War song. It was actually released as a double-A side with ‘Damned On 45’, a medley of fourteen Damned songs and ‘Happy Talk’. The single probably owed its success more to ‘Damned On 45’, achieving #6 on the British charts in the first half of ‘84. The follow up singles during 1984 were more low key performers, ‘There Are More Snakes Than Ladders’ (UK#57), and ‘The Hokey Cokey’ (UK#71), the latter was a charity record in aid of the Great Ormond Street Children’s Hospital. 1984 also saw the first U.S. release for Captain Sensible, with the album ‘A Day In The Life Of Captain Sensible’, which was a compilation of selected tracks from his first two British albums. The anti-Christmas novelty song ‘One Christmas Catalogue’ didn’t manage to upset too many people’s festivities in late ‘84.

By 1984 the good Captain made the decision to part company from The Damned, and focus fully on his solo career. The musical directions for both artists were increasingly divergent, and press speculation had been rampant for some time over whether or not there would be a split. Captain Sensible was also becoming increasingly outspoken about issues of political and social conscience (not really something The Damned did much of). He gained a reputation for his strong anti-war beliefs (as illustrated by ‘Glad It’s All Over’), and his devotion to vegetarianism. He later released the single ‘Wot, No Meat’, which got some media attention in the U.K.

Following Captain Sensible disembarking from the ship of The Damned, Grey, Vanian and Scabies carried on with new bassist Bryn Merrick, and later scored a major hit with a cover of the Barry Ryan classic ‘Eloise’ in 1986 (UK#3), before calling a halt to proceedings after a 1989 farewell tour. That same year Captain Sensible released the album ‘Revolution Now’, via the Deltic label. The good Captain sailed a bit off course with this one, and attempted to mash dance rock, and new wave psychedelia, with a side order of Northern soul, but it’s all a bit disjointed and overly ambitious. He continued to record throughout the 90s, the highlight proving to be the critically acclaimed live set ‘Live At The Milky Way’ (1994), which captured Sensible and his band, Paul Gray (bass), Malcolm Dixon (keyboards), and Garrie Dreadful (drums), at their wild and wacky best; the lowlight being the dysfunctional double album ‘Meathead’ (1995). 1998’s ‘The Universe Of Geoffrey Brown’ was an attempt at a concept album, and reportedly achieved a more palatable balance between ambition and realisation.

In 1996 Captain Sensible reboarded the now refloated Damned. He has continued to play and record with them over the last twelve years, with their most recent collaboration being the November 2008 album ‘So What’s Paranoid?’. He must have wondered at times which band he was on stage with, as he’s also toured with another side project called the Punk Floyd, and is a member of the occasional supergroup Dead Men Walking, also featuring Mike Peters (The Alarm), Kirk Brandon (Spear Of Destiny), and Slim Jim Phantom (Stray Cats - see future post).

In addition to his recording career as a solo artist, and with The Damned, Captain Sensible became quite the all-round celebrity over the years. He’s appeared as a spokesman for the breakfast cereal Weetabix, and made countless appearances, in character, on variety and children’s TV shows. Ray Burns has also taken on another alter-ego on occasion called Percy Pavilion, who has released several novelty song’s relating to the sport of cricket. In 2006 Captain Sensible ordered the formation of a new political party called the Blah! Party - no doubt there’s a mix of the serious and the nonsensical in the initiative, as there is with most everything Captain Sensible does.