The Call

When Peter Gabriel, Bono, Martin Scorsese , Jim Kerr (Simple Minds), Harry Dean Stanton, Garth Hudson and Robbie Robertson (The Band) all get together for that Friday night poker game, what do you think they listen to? Chances are, it would be something by The Call. Formed in Santa Cruz, CA in 1979, The Call came together after two Oklahoma natives (lead singer Michael Been and drummer Scott Musick) joined forces with two Bay-area musicians (guitarist Tom Ferrier and bassist Greg Freeman). Originally calling themselves Motion Pictures, the foursome played shows around the Bay Area and shopped a demo to various record labels. Ultimately they signed with Mercury Records, a division of Polydor. Hugh Padham, a veteran producer who worked with XTC, The Police and Peter Gabriel, was brought in to produce the bands debut, which was recorded in England. Released in 1982, the self titled debut immediately established The Call as a band that had something to say.


The social conscience of the band was clearly evident in their next studio release, 1983’s “Modern Romans”. This time self-produced, the album was much more of a rock-n-roll record than their debut and the political themes were turned up a notch. It was clear with this record that The Call had found their direction, both musically and lyrically, and it produced their first hit “The Walls Came Down”. Listen to “The Walls Came Down” today and the song could have just as easily been written in 2003 as 1983. Likewise with the song “Turn A Blind Eye”, the hostility Been and the group felt about the social and political world they saw around them was evident:

To the desperate young, turn a blind eye
To the old and lonely, turn a blind eye
To our inhumanity
To our death dealing vanity
To the methods of persuasion, turn a blind eye
To the masters of evasion, turn
To the science of control, turn a blind eye
To a world in chains, turn
To the sellers of illusion, turn a blind eye
To masters of confusion, turn a blind eye
To a hollow culture
To the circling vulture
To lovers of power, turn a blind eye
To the resurrection
To a world in chains, turn
I don't want to get involved
It's not my problem
I'll just ignore it
I don't want to feel this
To the starving children, turn a blind eye
To your own redemption, turn
To the horror of extinction
To a world in chains, turn

“Modern Romans” put the band on the map and they toured behind it for all of 1983 both as a headliner and supporting Peter Gabriel’s “Shock The Monkey” tour.

The relentless touring took its toll on bass player Freeman and, before the group entered the studio in 1984 to record a follow-up, he departed the band. Playing now as a trio proved to be a difficult transition for the remaining members. The result, “Scene Beyond Dreams”, would years later be recalled by Been as his least favorite of the bands early recordings.

The band would waste all of 1985 in a battle to get out of their deal with Polydor, a battle they would ultimately win and by 1986 entered the studio to record their first Electra album “Reconciled”. Also at this time Been would move to bass and keyboard player Jim Goodwin would be added. The year or so the group spent away from playing and recording was evident on “Reconciled”. Gabriel, Jim Kerr and Robbie Robertson would all play or sing on the album. Gone, however, was long time contributor keyboardist Garth Hudson and the effect was a harder, more guitar driven sound. Been’s lyrics would also take a much less confrontational and political direction. Despite having released three full length albums and with the core members of the band playing together for over 6 years to this point, “Reconciled” feels like their debut. The songs have freshness and a sound that had not previously been captured to this point in their career.

Been’s inwardly focused lyrics and the ever evolving sound of the band continued on 1987’s “Into The Woods”. If “Reconciled” felt like a debut, “Into The Woods” was far from a sophomore jinx. The sound of the band became even tighter and if anything Been’s singing and lyrics stand out even more than on any previous record. Been would later call “Into The Woods” his favorite Call recording.

The band stayed away from the studio in 1988. Been, at the suggestion of director and Call fan Martin Scorsese, participated in a screen test for Scorsese’s latest film “The Last Temptation of Christ”, where he was chosen for the role of the Apostle John. Several members of the band, Been included, also spent the summer supporting actor Harry Dean Stanton, who played harmonica and sang cover tunes, on a tour of clubs throughout the US. I actually saw one of Stanton’s shows that summer and like many Call fans am sorry to report that it was too much Stanton and too little Call.


In 1989 The Call returned to the studio to record “Let The Day Begin”. While I like the record and the title song would become the biggest hit of their career, the sound of the band had definitely evolved. It all felt a little safer to me, written and played more with radio in mind. The band was getting older and you could sense their recognition of that fact with “Let The Day Begin”. Likewise with 1990’s “Red Moon”, these were no longer angry young men, but guys with kids and mortgages. Even with acknowledged fan Bono contributing vocals on several tracks, the album sold poorly. While I didn’t much care for “Red Moon” at the time, now that I have a mortgage and two kids of my own, today I appreciate it’s more rootsier sound and introspective lyrics.

Shortly after the release of “Red Moon” and a short tour to support it, The Call took an indefinite hiatus.


In 1992 Michael Been would score and perform the soundtrack for director Paul Schrader’s movie “Light Sleeper”. An off-beat tale of a drug dealer trying to break-free, Been’s music provided the perfect backdrop for the movie. Unfortunately the CD was only released in Europe and is impossible to find.

In 1994 Been released a solo effort entitled “On The Verge Of A Nervous Breakthrough” and the band would reform in 1997, releasing “To Heaven And Back”. Surprisingly, both discs pick up not where "Red Moon" left off but would seem to fit better in the earlier "Reconciled" era. Aside from some slicker production, not much separate these two discs from some of The Call's finest earlier work and are musts for any Call fan.

Michael Been (pictured below, at right) can be found these days touring as a sound engineer in support of his son, Robert Levon Been and his band Black Rebel Motorcycle Club.



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10 Songs by The Call you need to own.

The rules were simple, list 10 call songs everyone must own and chose at least one song from each release. In no particular order, they are:

1. The Walls Came Down - Modern Romans
2. Turn A Blind Eye - Modern Romans
3. The Morning - Reconciled
4. War Weary World - The Call
5. Musta Been OutTa My Mind - To Heaven And Back
6. Let the Day Begin - Let the Day Begin
7. Like You Never Been Loved - Red Moon
8. Tremble - Scene Beyond Dreams
9. Invitation - On The Verge Of A Nervous Breakthrough
10. It Could Have Been Me - Into The Woods

ZERO: Martin Hannett

Martin "Zero" Hannett

Martin "Zero" Hannett was born May 31, 1948 in Manchester, England. An accomplished student, he received a degree in Chemistry from Manchester Polytechnic. While in college he was a member of the campus social committee and was responsible for booking bands that played at the school. After graduation he accepted a job in a laboratory. The lab job was merely a means to an end as he continued to pursue his passion for music by playing bass in several bands and working as a sound man and roadie. Ultimately music won out and he quit his job to run a musicians cooperative, along with friend Tosh Ryan, called Music Force. The cooperative would book shows and rent PA equipment. The cooperative also had a publicity department that would hang flyer's promoting various shows. From the money earned the pair purchased space to achieve their ultimate goal, setting up a recording studio. The pair initially took any recording commissions that came their way, from recording theatres troupes to producing soundtracks for cartoons. By 1976 Hannett and Tosh established, along with others, Rabid Records which they used to promote a local glam rock group called Slaughter and the Dogs who had experienced some local success. Hannett found himself in the right place at the right time. The music scene in Manchester and throughout England was bursting with promise as Punk groups were forming almost daily and each looking for a way to have their music recorded and sold. Hannett's first professional production job, under the name Martin Zero, involved a local Punk group he had booked a few shows for, the Buzzcocks. Lead singer Howard Devoto would later recall that Hannett was chosen for the simple fact that he was the only person they could find that even called themselves a producer. From this effort evolved "Spiral Scratch", a 4-song EP recorded in a dizzying 8 hour period on December 28, 1976. Apart from being one of the first Punk recordings available to the buying public, it established the DIY ethic that exemplified everything that the Punk movement stood for. The highlight of the EP was the song "Boredom", a Buzzcock fan favorite. It also marked the beginning and end for Devoto with the Buzzcocks as he left shortly after the EP's release to form another groundbreaking Punk outfit, Magazine. Four months later Hannett would produce "Cranked Up Really High" by Slaughter and the Dogs on his Rabid label, but the group would break-up shortly thereafter. Hannett now assumed the title of in-house producer for the Rabid label.

Hannett in studio

For the remainder of 1977 into 1978 Hannett would working with an assortment of groups, all meeting with little to no success. In the Spring of 1978 he went into the studio with a Manchester University drama student Graham Fellows who, recording under the name Jilted John, would release a single entitled "Jilted John". The tried and true story of young love come and gone was an instant hit and, shortly after being snatched up by recording giant EMI, went to number 4 on the national charts. The single ultimately sold over a quarter of a million copies and gave Hannett his first true hit and established his name as a producer. Next Hannett found himself in the studio with art-punk John Cooper Clarke (right), the English Punk version of Bob Dylan. Hannett would produce a handful of singles and several albums for Clarke over the next several years that ultimately led to Clarke getting a major label deal with Epic. During this time Hannett would also form, along with keyboardist Steve Hopkins, The Invisible Girls, to act as Clarkes backing band. Hannett would use The Invisible Girls to support a number of artists throughout the remainder of his career, including former Velvet Underground member Nico and ex-Penetration lead singer Pauline Murray.

The use of electronic effects, be it drum machines, digital delay or other non-musical elements were a trademark of any Hannett produced recording. This was no more evident than on his work with Joy Division (right). Hannett, now producing for the Factory record label (which he helped co-found with Tony Wilson), had his first experience with Joy Division in 1979 and the recording of their groundbreaking debut album "Unknown Pleasures". Initially reluctant to use any synthesizers, Hannett convinced the group to include them on the record. The results stand as the seminal Hannett recording, employing the various electronic devices and non-musical noise, such as breaking glass, to augment the bands classic post-punk style. Hannett would go on to produce every studio track recorded by Joy Division. The suicide of Joy Division lead singer Ian Curtis hit Hannett hard. While most of the members of Joy Division were indifferent to Hannett's use of electronics to frame the bands sound, Curtis was always a strong ally (Hannett was portrayed by actor Ben Naylor in the Ian Curtis biopic "Control" released this past year).

During this period of his career Hannett's use of drugs, especially heroin, began to escalate. Despite his personal shortcomings, his work with Joy Division still made him a producer of choice. 1979 to 1981 were the high water mark of his creative output. A young Irish band, inspired by his work with Joy Division, sought Hannett out to produce there second single. In May, 1980 Hannett entered a Dublin studio with U2 to begin work on recording and the result, "11 O'Clock Tick Tock", would be his one and only collaboration with the group. Hannett's working relationship with the band was tenuous and the band would eventually utilize Steve Lillywhite for the remainder of the debut album "Boy", which was released toward the end of 1980. The experience was so bad that the group would leave "11 O'Clock Tick Tock" off the album all together. Around the same time the Psychedelic Furs would call Hannett's number, having been inspired by his work with John Cooper Clarke, asking him to produce 4 songs initially slated to be issued on an EP. The EP fell through but two of the songs, "Susan's Strange" and "Soap Commercial" would later be included on the groups self-titled debut album upon it's release in the United States. Hannett would work with the group a year later, steering the song "Pretty in Pink" during the recording of their follow-up effort "Talk Talk Talk" in 1981. Studio sessions with old Buzzcock acquaintance Devoto would follow, producing Magazine's (left) third full length album "The Correct Use of Soap" as well as singles by Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark ("Messages"), London based band The Only Ones ("Oh Lucinda"), and Wasted Youth ("Rebecca's Room"). Hannett was as known for his stubbornness and dictatorial production style as he was for the electronic and digital sounds he added to each recording he was associated with.



The years from 1982 to 1988 would come to be known as Hannett's darkest. Becoming more unpredictable, deeply in debt and harboring a profound drug problem, Hannett disappeared from the recording studio. A prolonged law suit with Factory over missing wages cost him another two years and he would not reappear in the studio until the late 1980's. Having kicked heroin, he patched up his differences with Factory and eventually worked with the Happy Mondays in 1988 ("Bummed") and Kitchens of Distinction in 1990 (the single "Quick as Rainbows"). But he his earlier success would elude him, primarily due to his heroin habit having given way to his abuse of alcohol. His heavy dependence on alcohol further deteriorated his mental and physical health, effectively ending his recording career. He died on April 18, 1991 of heart failure.

Links:

Martin Hannett: http://www.martinhannett.co.uk/bio.htm http://www.discogs.com/artist/Martin+Hannett
Factory Records: http://www.factoryrecords.net/ http://www.partypeoplemovie.com/
Buzzcocks: http://www.buzzcocks.com/
Joy Division: http://www.incubation.ch/ http://members.aol.com/lwtua/joydiv.htm http://www.enkiri.com/joy/joy_division.html http://www.controlthemovie.com/
Magazine: http://shotbybothsides.com/
John Cooper Clarke: http://www.johncooperclarke.com/

Who, What, When, Where and Why: Au Pairs

Political unrest, sexual politics, emotional instability and women’s rights: rarely has one band been influenced by a wider variety of personal and societal factors than the Au Pairs (http://www.myspace.com/aupairs). Formed in Birmingham in 1979, the Au Pairs (http://www.comnet.ca/~rina/aupairs.html) burned bright for a mere four years, from 1979 to 1982, but left a lasting impression on a number of music scenes over the years. Influencing the style of the alternative era Pixies (http://www.pixiesmusic.com/), heard in riot grrl groups like Sleater-Kinney (http://www.sleater-kinney.com/) and singled out by current day punk revivalists Chicks on Speed (http://www.chicksonspeed.com/) and The Rapture (http://www.therapturemusic.com/), the Au Pairs had an impact.

Lesley Woods (vocals and guitars), Jane Munro (bass), Paul Foad (guitar and vocals) and Pete Hammond (drums) formed the nucleus of the band. But it was Woods who gave the group their distinct voice. A well read feminist and unabashed lesbian (at a time when few women in the punk scene were officially “out”) Woods singing had range that clearly conveyed the emotional roller coaster found in each song. While Woods may have been the driving force behind the Au Pairs, both musically and emotionally, it was the songwriting (a chore shared by all members) that set them apart. Songs like “Come Again” (http://www.houseoflyrics.com/lyrics/au_pairs/come_again.html), “Diet” (a women’s place in the world) and “It’s Obvious” (gender relations) placed sex and the battle between the sexes clearly in the forefront. But the message didn’t just stop with sex. Songs such as “Armagh” dealing with the fire brand topic of the political and religious tensions in Northern Ireland and “America” which attacked the Reagan government’s use of military power, set the band apart from many of their contemporaries in the second wave of punk rock. This was songwriting using both the big and little head.

And then, it was over. After touring continuously behind their second full length release “Sense and Sensuality”, the band disintegrated. First Munro left, citing Woods increasing emotional instability. Preparing to head into the studio to record their third album the group, now including Graham Hamilton (trumpet), Nick O’Connor (bass) and Carla Tivey (keyboards/vocals), officially broke up when Woods failed to appear for a show in France. The third album, slated to be produced by U2 (http://www.u2.com/) collaborator Steve Lillywhite (http://www.answers.com/topic/steve-lillywhite), never saw the light of day.

Discography:
Playing With a Different Sex, Human Records, released May 1981
Sense and Sexuality, Kamera Records, released August 1982
THE VERY BEST OF THE AU PAIRS, Cherry Red Records (http://www.cherryred.co.uk/), released 1999

The band also was one of the featured artists in the seminal concert movie of the time "URGH! A Music War" (http://www.urgh-dvd.com/index.html).



The Ten:
My periodic list of songs you can't live without. Call it my "deserted island" list, but remember, when we're all stuck on that island, don't blame me if you don't have them (and no, I won't let you borrow my ipod).

1. Come Again - Au Pairs
2. Take This Town - XTC
3. Silver Rocket - Sonic Youth
4. Leaders of Men - Joy Division
5. Rev It Up - Jerry Harrison
6. Love To Hate Love - Eleventh Dream Day (right)
7. Borstal Breakout - Sham 69
8. Waterfront - Simple Minds
9. Pulse - Psychedelic Furs
10. Cameras In Paris - The Fixx