Climie Fisher Rise To The Occasion

Vocalist and songwriter Simon Climie had worked in the music biz since the age of seventeen. His father had been the editor for the U.K. version of ‘Mad Magazine’, but a career in wacky, irreverent comic book humour wasn’t for son Simon. Instead he picked up a guitar, attempted to pick up a piano (but wisely put it back down again), and started writing songs. Climie relocated to London to begin his career as a session musician. Along the way he played in several local bands, honing his craft, initially as a guitarist and keyboardist, but over time he found his true vocation as a vocalist. Eventually Simon Climie came to the notice of talent scouts for the Chrysalis label, and was signed up as a songwriter and session vocalist/kayboardist. In 1983 Nashville based songwriter Denis Morgan found himself attending an Everly Brothers’ concert in London. Following the show he wound up at Stringfellows Club, and it was there that he met up with Simon Climie. It would be a meeting that would yield a string of hits for the Climie/Morgan song writing partnership. Climie continued to work with other songwriters, including on the 1985 top 20 hit ‘Invincible’ by Pat Benatar, and songs recorded by the likes of Smokey Robinson, Leo Sayer, and Nick Lowe (see future Rockpile post). He also struck up a solid working partnership with producer Steve Lillywhite, who often used Climie for vocal, keyboard, and arranging work on productions, including a 1984 solo album from ABBA’s Frida (‘Shine’).

But it was Climie’s work with Morgan that produced the biggest result. They penned a song called ‘I Knew You Were Waiting (For Me)’, and initially pitched it to Tina Turner, Aretha Franklin, and Arista Records supremo Clive Davis. Climie recorded a demo version as a solo effort, but soon after hearing it, Clive Davis opted to have the song recorded as a duet. Aretha Franklin was joined (on record) by George Michael, and in 1987 ‘I Knew You Were Waiting (For Me)’ rocketed to the peak of the U.S. and Australian charts.

The session work eventually led Climie to a chance encounter with Rob Fisher during the mid 80s. Fisher was still with Naked Eyes (officially) at the time, but had begun doing session work on the side. Both he and Climie happened to be working at EMI’s Abbey Road studios at the same time, and were booked to work on the same session (working on Scritti Politti’s ‘Cupid & Psyche 85’ LP - see Dec ’08 post). Afterwards, Climie and Fisher wound up in the bar talking over old Beatles’ songs, and lamenting about the state of popular music. With Naked Eyes on indefinite sabbatical, Fisher was looking for a vocalist to work with, whilst Climie was keen to find someone to both write and record with. It took a year or so for the pair to wind up their other commitments, but in 1986 they began work in earnest on their debut album for EMI. Denis Morgan came on board to co-write several of the album’s tracks, whilst Steve Lillywhite and Stephen Hague shared production duties. In September ‘87 the first single ‘Love Changes (Everything)’ was released in the U.K., initially to little fanfare (#67). Whilst the feel good, synth/pop track failed to attract much attention at home, it did begin to make inroads into European markets. Over the course of late ‘87, early ‘88, ‘Love Changes (Everything)’ made a foray into the top 10 in several European countries, including Germany (#7), and Switzerland (#8). Meanwhile, the second single ‘Rise To The Occasion’ was released and debuted on the U.K. charts late in ‘87. It lived up to its name, and became Climie Fisher’s breakthrough hit at home (#10) in early ‘88.

Encouraged by the European sales for ‘Love Changes (Everything)’, and the success at home of ‘Rise To The Occasion’, Climie Fisher remixed ‘Love Changes (Everything)’ for another assault on the British charts. In early ‘88 the song received a much warmer reception in chilly Britain, and soared to #2 second time around, backed by your archetypal late 80s black and white promo video. Both songs had been lifted from Climie Fisher’s debut set ‘Everything’. The album was overflowing with 80s style synth-pop numbers, laced with a generous amount of ‘blue-eyed’ soul, and a dash of R&B. The formula had worked for a number of British acts during the second half of the 80s, assisting them to make inroads into the U.S. market - think Danny Wilson, The Kane Gang, The Blow Monkeys (see previous posts), and Johnny Hates Jazz, Curiosity Killed The Cat, Wet Wet Wet (see future posts). The remixed ‘Love Changes (Everything)’ became Climie Fisher’s sole U.S. hit during the first half of ‘88, when it peaked at #23, a position one better than here in Australia.

I can recall a hip-hop remix of ‘Rise To The Occasion’ was released during ‘88, but I had purchased the original mix on vinyl 45 earlier in the year, in addition to ‘Love Changes (Everything)’. The remixed ‘Rise To The Occasion’ surged to the top of the South African charts, and rose to the top 20 in Germany, Sweden and Austria. Single number three ‘This Is Me’ (UK#22 - featuring backing vocals by Kirsty McColl) continued a solid run of chart success for Climie Fisher at home, and helped sustain sales for the album ‘Everything’ (UK#14/ US#120), which spawned one final hit single later in ‘88 with ‘I Won’t Bleed For You’ (UK#35).

During the second half of ‘88 Simon Climie and Rob Fisher returned to the recording studio to begin work on their second album. The single ‘Love Like A River’ (produced by Julian Mendelsohn) was released in the interim, and flowed steadily up the British charts before becoming becalmed at #22 early in ‘89. Climie Fisher’s sophomore album ‘Coming In For The Kill’, had been recorded over the course of almost a year, across New York, Los Angeles and London. Denis Morgan once again proved a key collaborator in the song writing stakes, with the legendary Lamont Dozier penning the title track. ‘Coming In For The Kill’ notched up respectable sales in the U.K. (#35) during 1989, but was missing that killer track to sustain Climie Fisher’s pop profile. It spawned just one minor hit single, with ‘Facts Of Love’ scratching around at #50 on the British charts late in ‘89, whilst the follow up singles ‘Fire On The Ocean’, and ‘It’s Not Supposed To Be That Way’ signalled the end of Climie Fisher’s dream run on the charts. The duo were still penning songs for other artists during this period, and contributed the track ‘When Love Turns To Blue’ for Dusty Springfield. A U.K. and European tour over the course of late ‘89-early ‘90, proved somewhat of a farewell jaunt for Climie Fisher, and the duo pulled up stumps soon after (sorry, I’m watching the cricket while I write this).

Rob Fisher continued to write/produce, and do session work for other artists, and established his own recording studios called ‘The Stone Room’ during the 90s. He had penned some new material for work on an album when, sadly, he died in August 1999 as a result of complications from stomach surgery. Simon Climie recorded a solo album in 1992, titled ‘Soul Inspiration’, which yielded a minor U.K. hit with the title track (#60). Climie then focussed on production duties during the mid 90s, and worked for artists such as Eternal (‘Power Of A Woman’), MN8 (‘Freaky’), and Louise (‘Naked’). He then embarked on a producing/writing partnership with Eric Clapton, firstly under the pseudonym TDF, which was an acronym for ‘Totally Dysfunctional Family’, and resulted in the 1997 album ‘Retail Therapy’. Simon Climie then played a key role in Clapton’s critically acclaimed 1998 album ‘Pilgrim’. More recently he worked on the 2006 Eric Clapton/J.J. Cale album ‘Road To Escondido’, produced the 2005 Cream reunion performance at Royal Albert Hall, and produced the ‘Motown’ series of albums for Michael McDonald.

From Naked Eyes To Climie Fisher

For a professional musician, an amateur musician, any kind of musician, to score one top ten hit as a member of a duo is something of note. For that same musician to score more than one top ten hit, with more than one duo (uno duo?), is a rare and striking feat. Songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Rob Fisher achieved just such a phenomenon during the 1980s with British duos Naked Eyes and Climie Fisher.

Naked Eyes first opened upon the world during 1982, though they had already been lit up two years previous as the group Neon. Singer Pete Byrne (not to be confused with the Dead or Alive variety) had started his professional music career during the mid 70s in another duo, with Jeff Starrs, playing local pubs and clubs in and around the Bath area in the U.K. Byrne then recorded a couple of low key albums in the late 70s with a group called Interview, prior to forming the band Studio, with Clive Wright, Richard Fenton and Stash. Studio only released a couple of singles before going their separate ways (Wright went on to work with Cock Robin - see previous post). Similarly, Rob Fisher had worked with a number of professional units over the second half of the 70s, including The Xtians and Whitewing. As fate would have it, and it so often does, both Byrne and Fisher found themselves bandless in late ‘79, and sitting together in a local pub. Between pints and chips, the pair decided to join creative forces and form a new musical enterprise.

Neon, who initially comprised Byrne (vocals) and Fisher (keyboards), recorded the single ‘Making Waves’ in late 1980. During the first half of 1981 Neon’s live (and studio) line-up was expanded to feature Neil Taylor (guitar), Manny Elias (drums), and a young bassist named Curt Smith. The band were essentially a pop-rock outfit during this period, and around mid ‘81 Taylor left, to be replaced by guitarist Roland Orzabal. Neon recorded several more tracks over the course of 1981, and released one more single titled ‘Communication Without Sound’. Despite the considerable pool of talent at their disposal, Neon failed to shine on the charts, and before the end of ‘81 the lights went out on the band. Curt Smith and Roland Orzabal went on to form a little duo of their own called Tears For Fears (see future post), whilst Byrne and Fisher decided to continue working together as Naked Eyes.

During their time together with Neon, the pair had written a stack of material, but during the recording sessions for some demo tracks, they made the decision to record a cover of a classic 60s hit as their debut single. Both had a love for the great girl singers of the era, like Dusty Springfield, Dionne Warwick, Cilla Black and the like, and in the end they settled for an updated take on a former #1 hit for Sandie Shaw. Alongside several original songs, Naked Eyes’ version of ‘(There’s) Always Something There To Remind Me’, retitled as ‘(Always) Something There To Remind Me’, helped snare the duo a recording contract with EMI during May of ‘82. The name Naked Eyes actually arose out of nothing more complex than something that suggested ‘two’ or ‘duo’, and given some of the alternative monikers considered (‘Boulevard Credibility’), it seems a wise choice in 20/20 hindsight.

‘(There’s) Always Something There To Remind Me’ had spent three weeks atop the British charts in late ‘64 for Sandie Shaw (US#51/OZ#13), but the Burt Bacharach/Hal David penned song first charted for Lou Johnson (US#49) earlier in 1964. The track continued to return regularly to the charts over the next few years, for Dionne Warwick and R.B. Greaves. Producer Tony Mansfield (worked with Captain Sensible - see earlier Jan ’09 post) was brought on board to work with Naked Eyes in polishing their take on ‘(Always) Something There To Remind Me’ at the Abbey Road studios. It was a logical first choice as the debut single for Naked Eyes, but surprisingly when it was released during September ‘82, their synth-pop version of ‘(Always) Something There To Remind Me’ missed the charts completely. During those first Abbey Road sessions, Naked Eyes also recorded the track ‘Voices In My Head’. It was released as the duo’s second U.K. single release in January ‘83, but despite being backed by a quirky video, it too failed to find a voice on the charts. As a curiosity, one other song to emerge from those early sessions was titled ‘Home’. It was actually credited to Planet Ha Ha, a pseudonym for Fisher and Mansfield, and was released in the U.K. in late ‘82 in an attempt to cash in on the popularity of the film ‘E.T.’. Suffice to say, ‘Home’ didn’t find a home on the charts.

Undeterred, Naked Eyes continued work on their debut album over the course of the English winter of ‘82/’83, completing much of the material in the same studios used by The Beatles. Byrne and Fisher handled most of the roles, with producer Mansfield contributing on guitar, and drummer Phil Towner playing on the track ‘Emotion In Motion’ (not the Ric Ocasek son) - a drum machine by the name of Linn handled the other tracks (it was the 80s after all). By early ‘83 ‘(Always) Something There To Remind Me’ was receiving regular airplay on the still fledgling MTV network. The music video was suitably impressive, and featured something that was more common place to 80s music videos - a storyline that was actually relevant to the song’s lyrics. I’ve always been struck most by the song’s explosively symphonic intro of drums and ‘wedding bells’ - should a song’s crescendo come at the beginning? ‘(Always) Something There To Remind Me’ broke on the U.S. charts during March of ‘83, and worked its way steadily to a peak position of #8 before mid year. Soon after the track burst onto the Australian charts, eventually going one better than its U.S. peak (#7), but disappointingly ‘(Always) Something There To Remind Me’ stalled at #59 on the British charts.

While ‘(Always) Something There To Remind Me’ was still climbing the charts, Naked Eyes released their debut album ‘Burning Bridges’ (released as ‘Naked Eyes’ in the U.S.). Whilst ‘Burning Bridges’ failed to generate even a spark on the British charts, it racked up solid sales in the U.S. (#32/OZ#88), and spawned two more hit singles. The second single ‘Promises, Promises’ coincidentally shared its title with another Bacharach/David hit (1968 for Dionne Warwick), but that’s where the comparison in style ends. ‘Promises, Promises’ did manage to deliver on its promise in the U.S. (#11), though in Australia, Naked Eyes would be consigned to one hit wonder status. ‘When The Lights Go Out’ (US#37) hit the airwaves (and charts) late in ‘83, rounding out a promising year for Naked Eyes.

On the back of such a well received debut album, most artists would have undertaken an extensive tour to consolidate their new found profile, but Fisher and Byrne were encouraged (by the label) to re-enter the recording studio in preparation for a follow up album. In mid ‘84 the first single harvested from the latest sessions was released. ‘(What) In The Name Of Love’ (produced by Arthur Baker) hit the U.S. charts in August ‘84, but the song couldn’t manage to ascend beyond a modest #39. Shortly after Naked Eyes’ sophomore album ‘Fuel For The Fire’ was unveiled. Mansfield continued to handle most of the production duties, but the album failed to spawn any follow up hits, and coughed and spluttered its way to #83 on the U.S. charts.

Rob Fisher and Pete Byrne had written some material for a proposed third Naked Eyes album, but soon after made the decision to put the project on indefinite hiatus, and pursue other endeavours. Peter Byrne went on to work as a session singer and songwriter for more than a decade, working with the likes of Stevie Wonder along the way. In 2001 he released the solo album ‘The Real Illusion’, which featured several of the tracks he had written with Fisher for the unrealised third Naked Eyes album. Byrne resurrected the Naked Eyes brand name in 2007 for a new album titled ‘Fumbling With The Covers’, and an extensive touring schedule. The Byrne led Naked Eyes are due to release a new album in 2009, with the working title ‘Piccadilly’. Following Naked Eyes closing, Rob Fisher also worked as a session musician (working with The Alarm, Billy Ocean - see previous post, and Communards - see future post), before turning his creative energies toward a new duo project, with a vocalist called Simon Climie - stay tuned for that chapter of the Rob Fisher story.