Showing posts with label Gary Numan. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Gary Numan. Show all posts

Monday, February 28, 2022

7 Songs: Gary Numan

Back in the late 70's there were not many bands experimenting with electronic music and Gary Numan was one of the first artists to make a commercial success with new technology driven sound. Kicking off at the height of punk rock, with his band the Tubeway Army, he already made prominence with the influential Are Friends Electric? clearing the path for the electro pioneer Gary Numan as solo artist.


In 1979, Numan released Cars, his most commercial song to date, purely synthesized and drum machine driven which explained the European concept of New wave and anticipated future at the same time. His image of an android like persona, cold and mysterious which perfectly fit the music and the themes around J.R. Ballard and dystopian Sci-Fi. With the decline of synth pop, Numan adapted new music influences like Jazz and funk and his music became more sophisticated. Beyond the 90's, it became loud, adapting industrial and goth styles.

With more than 40 years in the music business, Numan has released more than 20 albums and more than 60 singles and 10 mill records in total. 'Replicas' as well as the debut album 'The Pleasure Principle' and 'Telekon' all reached No1 in the UK. With all the upcoming releases, his popularity started to decline and after his fifth studio album, he left Beggars Banquet and launched his label Numa Records, on which his sixth album 'Berserker' was released. This label continued to release his music as well as from other artist as well with little success.

Along OMD and the Human League, he is considered as the Pioneer of electronic music in the 80's and his influence goes beyond the decade. At one point, his music was even seen as a love child between Kraftwerk and David Bowies Berlin trilogy albums. With the emergence of Nine Inch Nails and Marylyn Manson his music was rediscovered and often cited as an influence. Below is a selection of favorite Gary Numan songs discovered throughout the years under different circumstances.

Are 'Friends' Electric?

Are 'Friends' Electric? was the first hit for Gary Numan and his band Tubeway Army which reached number one in the UK Singles Chart, staying there for four weeks. Sales in particular benefited from the record company's use of a picture disc. It was the first time a band reached No 1 in the UK charts where all band members played electronic instruments and synthesizers. This was also a totally unheard of sound in mainstream chart music in 1979 where technology and alienation was perfectly portrayed with great synth walls and robotic and cold lyrics. The Sugarbabes covered this song and achieved a number one UK hit in 2002.


Cars

After Numan dropped the name Tubeway Army and continued with the same band members as solo artist, he released his debut Cars, his most commercial and biggest hit to date. The song was featured on Numan's debut album 'The Pleasure Principle' and both the song and the album were released in 1979. Similar to Are Friends Electric, this song was avant-garde, futuristic and different from everything else what one could hear in the charts. It was an electronic odyssey with the rhythm section, bass guitar, gloomy and apocalyptic synths and a shot of tambourine. The song was covered twenty years later emphasizing more the guitar sound on it.

We Are Glass

Released as a third single, We Are Glass reached the No 5 in the UK charts and it was also his first official release in the 80's. It was in the fashion of Numan's second album 'Telekon' although it was not originally included on it, only on the album reissue. The sound was enriched with more guitars and even piano and viola and the great effect of hand clapping which was also visualized in the music video. Futuristic as the previous with the Numanoid factor, it was the closest he ever got to Cars with the success factor.

Music for Chameleons

Numan joined the Air Training Corps as a teenager, when he wanted to be either a pilot or a pop star. The sudden popularity in the music only delayed his first dream however delayed until late 1981 when he took a trip around the world in his airplane. Music for Chameleons was composed during the trip and it was the first song that was taken from his third album 'I, Assassin' released in 1982. The song failed to cope with the popularity of the above-mentioned singles but is still one of the favorite Numan tunes.

We Take Mystery To Bed

We are still on the 'I, Assassin' and We Take Mystery To Bed was the second single and the follow up to the above which even charted better. On this track fretless bass and drums play well with the dance groove and the general atmosphere is still dark and reminds of Gary's early work, still less synthetic. According to his biography the song was written about Gary's girlfriend Deb whose letters are also visible in the video. This single was the last top 10 hit for Gary Numan.


Berserker

With the release of his fifth studio album 'Warriors', Gary Numan left Beggars Banquet and for his sixth album he decided to launch his own record label Numa Records on which 'Berserker' was the first long player and also the first single. Numan had full control over the production process and on this album he geared up the synths growing more in the dance genre, with less gloomy bass and more female backing vocals, still keeping the guitars. Despite the solid production neither the album nor the single managed to make an impact on the charts and Numan further wandered off from the mainstream.

My Name is Ruin

Taken from Gary Numan's 21st studio album, 'My Name is Ruin' was the lead single released in 2017. The song is about a man living in a post-apocalyptic world, whose daughter gets taken away from him and his whole life from then on becomes the need to get her back. In fact, Numan's 11-year-old daughter Persia contributes vocals to the track. The album was produced by his long time collaborator Ade Fenton.  The video was recorded in the desolate deserts of southern California.

Below is the link to YouTube playlist with almost all Gary Numan Releases from 1978-2021.

Thursday, July 31, 2014

Best of 1984 - Top 50 Singles List

The growing popularity of Michael Jackson which started in 1983 also set foot in 1984 especially after the video for "Thriller" was released. Even though the content of the video was controversial at that time, it was also groundbreaking and it revolutionized the music industry and the world of pop by breaking down the racial barriers and transforming the music video into a work of art.
Even at the other end of the Atlantic the 1983 started with a small scandal which involved Frankie Goes To Hollywood who got banned by BBC for almost a year due to the explicit lyrics in the and provocative video for their biggest hit "Relax". Despite this fact, the band managed  to have major success around the world with their debut album "Welcome to the Pleasuredome". This was also the first big success for ZTT Records and three times platinum in the UK. Towards the end of the year the Frankie Goes to Hollywood ban was slowly lifted and "Relax" was the ultimate anthem of 1984 introducing the Frankie Says Relax trend. 
With the growing popularity of MTV, in 1984 the first MTV Music Awards were given away at the  Radio City Music Hall in New York. Among the winners were Michael Jackson, Cyndi Lauper, David Bowie, Herbie Hancock. Madonna has not been up for awards, but manged to make prominence and shake the pop world with her performance at the VMA's. 
Just ahead of Christmas when 1984 was in the fade out, a group of musicians headed by Bob Geldof and Midge Ure got together for a good cause forming Band Aid. This was a group of musicians who recorded a song to raise awareness and funds for the Ethiopian famine in 1983–1985. It included more than 40 musicians and it sold over two million copies around the globe and raised more than $24 million. 
 Towards the end of the year New Gold Dream which could easily be translated as the golden era of new Wave slowly began to vanish and became clear that the new musical term was Pop.

 The following Top 50 represents the result of the 'Best of 1984 - The Album list' from 2014 together with our in-house votes.
 
Updated: 08/2020


01. Bronski Beat- Small Town Boy 
02. Echo & The Bunnymen- The Killing Moon 
03. Talk Talk- It’s My Life 
04. Prince- When Doves Cry 
05. Billy Idol- Eyes Without a Face 
06. Cyndi Lauper- Time After Time  
07. Leonard Cohen- Dance Me to the End of Love  
08. Dead or Alive- You Spin Me Around 
09. Duran Duran- New Moon on Monday 
10. Alphaville - Big in Japan 
11. A-ha- Take on Me
12. Prince and the Revolution- Purple Rain
13. Madonna - Borderline
14. Pet Shop Boys- West End Girls '84
15. Gary Numan- Berserker
16. Siouxsie and The Banshees- Dazzle
17. Eurythmics- Here Comes the Rain Again 
18. Frankie Goes To Hollywood- Two Tribes
19. The Smiths- What Difference Does it Make  
20. The Style Council- Shout to the Top

Tuesday, November 13, 2012

WAW: Actors- Nightlife

Actors is a five piece New Wave band from Vancouver. The group was formed around the core of the singer Jason Corbett earlier this year and they have released several singles including "Post Traumatic Love"/"​Nightlife" that was released in October. We thought that "Nightlife" would be perfect way to start with the music of Actors. You will love this tune, especially if you are a Gary Numan and Roxy Music fan. The video for the song was directed by Richard Pyra and the single is available as a free download via http://actors.bandcamp.com. We hope to have more on Actors soon.


Tuesday, May 15, 2012

Instant Hit: Dramatis- Ex Luna Scientia

Dramatis was Gary Numan's backing band which was formed around the core of Ced Sharpley and Chris Payne. They released a couple of singles and one album before disbanding in 1982. Both, their debut single "Ex Luna Scientia" (From the Moon) and their only album For Future Reference were released in 1981 on 'The Rocket Record Co'. The single was backed bu "Lady D.J." which didn't appear on their album. Gary Numan provided vocals for the song "Love Needs No Disguise" which reached No. 33 in the UK Charts.    
 

Thursday, March 22, 2012

Lost Videos: Gary Numan- Complex

"Comlex" was a second single for Gary Numan which was released in 1979 when Numan also scored his biggest hit to date with the song "Cars". Unlike the most of Gary Numan songs "Complex" featured more conventional acoustic drums, acoustic piano, electric bass guitar, whereas the distinctive lead parts were performed on violin, viola and heavily flanged and reverberated analogue monosynth. The song was released on Beggars Banquet and reached no 6 in the UK charts.

 

Wednesday, June 1, 2011

Gary Numan- New Album and Tour

Gary Numan will release a new album later this summer. His 18th studio album will be called 'Dead Son Rising' and it will be co-produced with Ade Fenton. It will feature a mixture of new songs, instrumental tracks and specially commissioned remixes. The album release will be followed by a UK tour in September. For more news and updates go to http://www.numan.co.uk



Monday, September 20, 2010

Sharpe & Numan 'Automatic' Reissue

'Automatic' is the only album released by Sharpe + Numan in 1989. This was a collaboration between Gary Numan and jazz keyboardist/producer Bill Sharpe who member of the jazz fusion group Shakatak. London-based reissue label Cherry Pop will release an expanded version of 'Automatic' on October 18, 2010 and this reissue will feature extensive sleevenotes by Steve Thorpe, track comments from Bill Sharpe & Gary Numan, lyrics to all tracks, and remastered sound by Tim Turan.

www.cherryred.co.uk

Friday, September 10, 2010

Gary Numan and John Foxx on Back To The Phuture

Mark Jones' 'Back To The Phuture' is to host a special live event on Friday 3rd December 2010 which will see the UK's two synthesizer godfathers Gary Numan and John Foxx share the same bill as live performers for the very first time. With mutual admiration on both sides for a number of years, this show is a development of the professional kinship that began earlier this year when Gary Numan contributed a DJ set with Ade Fention for John Foxx's Short Circuit 2010 event at The Roundhouse. Also featuring will be a live set from Motor plus DJ sets from Mark Jones himself and Richard H Kirk of Cabaret Voltaire. Additional special guests are to be announced.

www.electricity-club.co.uk

Sunday, November 22, 2009

Gary Numan live session with Little Boots

As a part of BBC 6 Music live stand synth legend Gary Numan and electro diva Little Boots and will record a duet. The pair, who have previously expressed an interest in working together, will record the collaboration at Maida Vale Studios in London next month. The collaboration will be broadcast on BBC 6 Music on December 7 and will be available on the BBC Red Button for a week from January 29.
Heaven 17 collaboration with La Roux coming soon.


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