French Lessons (1979-1984)

Wirral based pop rock band, formed in 1979 by Rob Cross (keyboards), Doug Halligan (bass and vocals), Ron Roberts (guitar) - both former members of Cops in Dieguise - and Tony Hall (vocals). Colin Roberts, the band’s original drummer was replaced by Keith Butler (former Fallen Heroes) in 1981. The band were regulars on the local music scene and winners or runners up of various local and national competitions, developing quite a large local following.
French Lessons privately released two cassette albums. Homework was recorded at SOS Studios, in Liverpool, between August 1981 and March 1982 and produced by Pete Coleman.

Homework (1982)
Side 1:
- Anytown
- Poor Little Rich Girl
- Social Insecurity
- Planet 3
- Nursery Crimes
Side 2:
- Timebomb
- Willie the Kid
- Don't believe in rainbows
- Badlands

Reel Music is the band’s second album. Side one of was recorded at Corndon House Studios in December 1982. Side two was recorded at Amazon Studios, Liverpool, in November 1982. All tracks where mixed and mastered at Corndon House Studios, in December 1982.

Reel Music (1983)
Side 1:
- Only a broken heart
- Return of the kid
- The jogger
- Midnight cabaret
- Don't believe in rainbows
Side 2:
- Protect and survive
- Mr. Zero
- Anonymous
- Dream Street

In 1984 the band released their first single (the double A-sided Red Light Girls/Ticket to nowhere).

More information about the band and audio files can be found here
(see also: http://www.frenchlessons.org.uk/ )

Keep It Dark (1984-1986)

Keep it Dark is a pop-rock three-piece formed in 1984 by songwriter Jimmy Barrett (vocals, guitars), Paul ‘Reo’ Reason (guitars, vocals, former Ex Post Facto, later US Companion), and Paul Stewart (drums), later replaced by Brian Rawling (former 3D). According to some sources, Terry Kilfoyle (former Asylum, later Big Still, Seconds Out) was added to the line-up on bass at some point. The band played quite extensively the local circuit before getting to eventually release their material on vinyl in1986. The first single (The Dreamer b/w Outsider + What do We Need) was issued in March 1986, soon to be followed by their second one (Don’t Surrender b/w Far from Home + It’s over). Both a-sides were then to appear on the band’s first (and only) Lp.

1st Down And Ten (1986)
Side A:
- Better Than Me
- Don't Surrender
- If You Be Mine
- Be The One
- Who Can Say
Side B:
- Dreamer
- Lost Love Forever
- The Outsider
- Far From Home
- Fish Out Of Water

One of the first pieces written about Keep it Dark (Next 14, May 1984) described the band’s live performance as follows:
‘From the sound of this first set by his [Jimmy Barrett] band Keep it Dark, both ears have been well tuned to American AOR for quite a while. […] It’s a sign for all those of you who will confess to listening to CSNY or Bob Dylan to pull up a chair and hear that sort of thing done well.
‘Jimmy reckons he’s been at it ten years himself, and thinks he’s cracked it with this line up. To be honest, the band lapsed too often into dull conventionalism – I heard half a dozen familiar chord changes through the night. But that, and the somewhat samey and one paced arrangements, are bound to change with more time together, and the background in musicianship and confidence is there to encourage experimentation.’


The American press reviewed as follows:
‘Liverpool, England, has spawned yet another pop band that has made its way to the United States after gaining a following at home. Keep It Dark was formed after singer Jimmy Barrett and guitarist Reo Reason saw each other playing in British clubs and decided they had a lot in common musically.
Their debut U.S. release is a modern pop blend of electronic keyboards, horns, guitar and a steady driving drum beat. Keep It Dark`s sound is more of a mesh of pop/rock style than raw-roots rock.
Side 1`s Dreamer is a medium-paced tune with Barrett backed up by a David Sanborn style saxophone. Most of the album`s cuts have a highly produced, studio mixed sound, which is something of a surprise since this band`s success started on the club circuit.
Keep It Dark keeps a pretty steady sound throughout, never really kicking in, and making it hard to decide just what they`re trying to say.’
(see here)

keep it dark

Doof - Exist (1982)

In 1982 Philip Johnson (see relevant post) collaborated with Paul Platypus (Exhibit A, Twelve Cubic Feet) on the project Doof, releasing the 10" mini-LP Exist:

Doof / Exist (1982)

- Treat Me Like (The Man I Am)
- Brighton, Pt.1
- Nine Years Old
- Brighton, Pt.2
- On It In It
- Treat Me Like (The Man I Am)

Abouth his music, in 1985 Johnson says:
‘My music is an uncommon mixture of musical styles – I didn’t deliberately make it that way, I just like different things andit seems natural to me to put them together, but I’ve always been identified with the ‘experimental’ end of things, like most people who release cassettes. I find what I do hard to describe, and I don’t really want to describe it, I want to surprise listeners, and I want to be able to annoy or amuse or excite or move or confuse them, or create several feelings at once’

doof

Philip Johnson

Philip Johnson is an avantgarde artist who started making music in autumn 1978 and released his first cassette (54 Minutes of P. Johnson) in 1979, one of the earliest participants in the British independent cassette scene. Between 1979 and 1981 he released about 20 cassettes, until 1981 when Johnson became a partner in Namedrop, a short-lived independent record label (which also released Johnson full-fledge Lp ‘1982 – Youth the Morning’). When Namedrop collapsed Johnson went back to releasing cassettes and providing tracks for compilations, mostly cassette compilation (among which Blues Vol. 2, released by Alan Gill’s Bopadub records). In 1981 Johnson released material also under various pseudonyms such as Ancient Regime, the Barringtons, Flower Perverts.

In the folder:
From the compilation We Couldn’t Agree on the Title (1982):
- The Bridewell
- Anaesthetic

From Three Minute Symphony (1984):
- Always Behind You

here