Charlie (band)
Encyclopedia
Charlie was a British rock
band
that was formed in 1971 by singer/songwriter Terry Thomas. The group was most active as a recording unit from the mid-1970s through 1986. Charlie never charted in their home country, but had four minor hits in the US: 1977's "Turning To You"; 1978's "She Loves to Be In Love"; 1979's "Killer Cut" and 1983's "It's Inevitable".
The band debuted as a recording act in 1976, with the album Fantasy Girls. They toured the UK in the spring of 1976 as support act to the Dutch progressive rock
band Focus
to promote the album. Their second album, No Second Chance, began the practice of featuring a photograph of a female model as the album's cover. "Turning To You", off that album, became Charlie's first chart hit, peaking at US #96.
The band had a more substantial hit in 1978 with "She Loves to Be In Love," which peaked at #54 in the United States
. The following year, the band again had a minor hit with "Killer Cut", which rose to US #60.
Julian Colbeck
, who had replaced Martin Smith after the first album, departed four albums later in 1980 amid some turmoil. He writes, "Finally, the touring band line-up of Terry Thomas, John Anderson, Eugene Organ, Steve Gadd, and myself ceased operations once Arista
refused to release Here Comes Trouble, and our caring, sharing management company immediately cut off all our money in 1980. That's a whole other story but, for the record, our final gig was in 1979 at the Civic Center in Providence, Rhode Island
on Monday 29 October, alongside Foreigner
." Thomas commented "Arista our new label
in the U.S.
wanted more song
s - our company in the UK
- Trident Audio Productions - refused to put us in the studio
or spend any more money. The UK record company - Polydor - wouldn't release it until it had a U.S. release. Effectively Charlie had no record label
and no money to live on. Eugene and Julian
decided to leave."
In 1982, Terry Slesser
joined the group as new lead singer, while Thomas, still a member of the band, began concentrating more on the instrumentation. In 1983, the group had their most successful hit single, "It's Inevitable", which peaked just inside the US Top 40 at #38. The MTV
music video
featured a rousing pie fight. The accompanying self-titled album was a flop, however, and the band folded.
In 1986, Thomas resurrected the band with a new crew and released In Pursuit of Romance. Thomas writes, "This was basically a contractual album - Steve had gone off to work with Iron Maiden
as a drum tech and John had a job in the telecommunications industry. I ended up making the whole album by myself - it put me in the hospital!"
After a long layoff, in 2009 Charlie released their first album of new material in 23 years, Kitchens Of Distinction. The album began life as a Terry Thomas solo project, but as the finished product included contributions from Martin Smith and Julian Colbeck, the decision was made to credit the CD to Charlie.
Note that in earlier editions of Joel Whitburn
's Billboard chart books, a Charlie album called Fifth Flight is listed as having charted in 1981 at #99. This album did not exist, and never charted—its inclusion in Whitburn's book is either an error or a deliberate copyright trap. In any event, later editions of Whitburn's books (post-2006) make no mention of Fifth Flight.
British rock
British rock describes a wide variety of forms of music made in the United Kingdom. Since around 1964, with the "British Invasion" of the United States spearheaded by The Beatles, British rock music has had a considerable impact on the development of American music and rock music across the...
band
Rock Band
Rock Band is a music video game developed by Harmonix Music Systems, published by MTV Games and Electronic Arts. It is the first title in the Rock Band series. The PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 versions were released in the United States on November 20, 2007, while the PlayStation 2 version was...
that was formed in 1971 by singer/songwriter Terry Thomas. The group was most active as a recording unit from the mid-1970s through 1986. Charlie never charted in their home country, but had four minor hits in the US: 1977's "Turning To You"; 1978's "She Loves to Be In Love"; 1979's "Killer Cut" and 1983's "It's Inevitable".
History
The band was briefly called "Charlie Cuckoo" (after a racehorse), but soon became known simply as "Charlie". Original members included:- Terry Thomas, Lead vocals & guitar
- John Anderson, Backing vocals & bassBass guitarThe bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
- Steve Gadd, DrumsDrum kitA drum kit is a collection of drums, cymbals and often other percussion instruments, such as cowbells, wood blocks, triangles, chimes, or tambourines, arranged for convenient playing by a single person ....
(Not the AmericanUnited StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
sessionSession musicianSession musicians are instrumental and vocal performers, musicians, who are available to work with others at live performances or recording sessions. Usually such musicians are not permanent members of a musical ensemble and often do not achieve fame in their own right as soloists or bandleaders...
drummerDrummerA drummer is a musician who is capable of playing drums, which includes but is not limited to a drum kit and accessory based hardware which includes an assortment of pedals and standing support mechanisms, marching percussion and/or any musical instrument that is struck within the context of a...
of the same name) - Martin Smith, Backing vocals & guitarGuitarThe guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...
The band debuted as a recording act in 1976, with the album Fantasy Girls. They toured the UK in the spring of 1976 as support act to the Dutch progressive rock
Progressive rock
Progressive rock is a subgenre of rock music that developed in the late 1960s and early 1970s as part of a "mostly British attempt to elevate rock music to new levels of artistic credibility." John Covach, in Contemporary Music Review, says that many thought it would not just "succeed the pop of...
band Focus
Focus (band)
Focus is a Dutch rock band which was founded by classically trained organist/flautist Thijs van Leer in 1969, and is most famous for the instrumental pieces "Hocus Pocus" and "Sylvia"...
to promote the album. Their second album, No Second Chance, began the practice of featuring a photograph of a female model as the album's cover. "Turning To You", off that album, became Charlie's first chart hit, peaking at US #96.
The band had a more substantial hit in 1978 with "She Loves to Be In Love," which peaked at #54 in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. The following year, the band again had a minor hit with "Killer Cut", which rose to US #60.
Julian Colbeck
Julian Colbeck
The current CEO of Keyfax NewMedia, Julian Colbeck is a former professional keyboard player of over 25 years, author of several music-related books and guides, the creator of Twiddly.Bits MIDI loops, the concept designer for the PhatBoy MIDI controller, and producer of several music technology DVDs...
, who had replaced Martin Smith after the first album, departed four albums later in 1980 amid some turmoil. He writes, "Finally, the touring band line-up of Terry Thomas, John Anderson, Eugene Organ, Steve Gadd, and myself ceased operations once Arista
Arista Records
Arista was an American record label. It was a wholly owned subsidiary of Sony Music Entertainment and operated under the RCA Music Group. The label was founded in 1974 by Clive Davis, who formerly worked for CBS Records...
refused to release Here Comes Trouble, and our caring, sharing management company immediately cut off all our money in 1980. That's a whole other story but, for the record, our final gig was in 1979 at the Civic Center in Providence, Rhode Island
Providence, Rhode Island
Providence is the capital and most populous city of Rhode Island and was one of the first cities established in the United States. Located in Providence County, it is the third largest city in the New England region...
on Monday 29 October, alongside Foreigner
Foreigner (band)
Foreigner is a British-American rock band, originally formed in 1976 by veteran English musicians Mick Jones and ex-King Crimson member Ian McDonald along with American vocalist Lou Gramm...
." Thomas commented "Arista our new label
Record label
In the music industry, a record label is a brand and a trademark associated with the marketing of music recordings and music videos. Most commonly, a record label is the company that manages such brands and trademarks, coordinates the production, manufacture, distribution, marketing and promotion,...
in the U.S.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
wanted more song
Song
In music, a song is a composition for voice or voices, performed by singing.A song may be accompanied by musical instruments, or it may be unaccompanied, as in the case of a cappella songs...
s - our company in the UK
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
- Trident Audio Productions - refused to put us in the studio
Recording studio
A recording studio is a facility for sound recording and mixing. Ideally both the recording and monitoring spaces are specially designed by an acoustician to achieve optimum acoustic properties...
or spend any more money. The UK record company - Polydor - wouldn't release it until it had a U.S. release. Effectively Charlie had no record label
Record label
In the music industry, a record label is a brand and a trademark associated with the marketing of music recordings and music videos. Most commonly, a record label is the company that manages such brands and trademarks, coordinates the production, manufacture, distribution, marketing and promotion,...
and no money to live on. Eugene and Julian
Julian Colbeck
The current CEO of Keyfax NewMedia, Julian Colbeck is a former professional keyboard player of over 25 years, author of several music-related books and guides, the creator of Twiddly.Bits MIDI loops, the concept designer for the PhatBoy MIDI controller, and producer of several music technology DVDs...
decided to leave."
In 1982, Terry Slesser
Terry Slesser
Terry Slesser is a blues rock singer from Newcastle, England. He is chiefly known for his role as vocalist in ex-Free guitarist Paul Kossoff's band Back Street Crawler, renamed Crawler after Kossoff's death in 1976.- History :In the early 1970s, Slesser joined Beckett, replacing their original...
joined the group as new lead singer, while Thomas, still a member of the band, began concentrating more on the instrumentation. In 1983, the group had their most successful hit single, "It's Inevitable", which peaked just inside the US Top 40 at #38. The MTV
MTV
MTV, formerly an initialism of Music Television, is an American network based in New York City that launched on August 1, 1981. The original purpose of the channel was to play music videos guided by on-air hosts known as VJs....
music video
Music video
A music video or song video is a short film integrating a song and imagery, produced for promotional or artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a marketing device intended to promote the sale of music recordings...
featured a rousing pie fight. The accompanying self-titled album was a flop, however, and the band folded.
In 1986, Thomas resurrected the band with a new crew and released In Pursuit of Romance. Thomas writes, "This was basically a contractual album - Steve had gone off to work with Iron Maiden
Iron Maiden
Iron Maiden are an English heavy metal band from Leyton in east London, formed in 1975 by bassist and primary songwriter Steve Harris. Since their inception, the band's discography has grown to include a total of thirty-six albums: fifteen studio albums; eleven live albums; four EPs; and six...
as a drum tech and John had a job in the telecommunications industry. I ended up making the whole album by myself - it put me in the hospital!"
After a long layoff, in 2009 Charlie released their first album of new material in 23 years, Kitchens Of Distinction. The album began life as a Terry Thomas solo project, but as the finished product included contributions from Martin Smith and Julian Colbeck, the decision was made to credit the CD to Charlie.
Albums
- Fantasy Girls (1976)
- No Second Chance (1977) - US #111
- Lines (1978) - US #75
- Fight Dirty (1979) - US #60
- Good Morning America (1981) - US #201
- Here Comes Trouble (1982)
- Charlie (1983) - US #145
- In Pursuit of Romance (1986)
- Kitchens Of Distinction (2009)
Compilation Albums
- The Best of Charlie (2000)
- Charlie Anthology (2007)
Note that in earlier editions of Joel Whitburn
Joel Whitburn
Joel Carver Whitburn is an American author and music historian.Whitburn founded Record Research Inc. in Menomonee Falls, Wisconsin, in 1970, and put together a team of researchers to examine in detail all of Billboards music and video charts...
's Billboard chart books, a Charlie album called Fifth Flight is listed as having charted in 1981 at #99. This album did not exist, and never charted—its inclusion in Whitburn's book is either an error or a deliberate copyright trap. In any event, later editions of Whitburn's books (post-2006) make no mention of Fifth Flight.
Members
- Terry Thomas: Lead vocals & guitar (1976-1984, 1986, 2009)
- John Anderson: Backing vocals & bassBass guitarThe bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
(1976–1984) - Steve Gadd: DrumsDrum kitA drum kit is a collection of drums, cymbals and often other percussion instruments, such as cowbells, wood blocks, triangles, chimes, or tambourines, arranged for convenient playing by a single person ....
(1976–1984) - Martin Smith: Backing vocals & guitarGuitarThe guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...
(1976–1977, 2009) - Julian ColbeckJulian ColbeckThe current CEO of Keyfax NewMedia, Julian Colbeck is a former professional keyboard player of over 25 years, author of several music-related books and guides, the creator of Twiddly.Bits MIDI loops, the concept designer for the PhatBoy MIDI controller, and producer of several music technology DVDs...
: KeyboardsKeyboard instrumentA keyboard instrument is a musical instrument which is played using a musical keyboard. The most common of these is the piano. Other widely used keyboard instruments include organs of various types as well as other mechanical, electromechanical and electronic instruments...
(1977–1980, 2009) - Eugene Organ: Guitar (1978–1980)
- Shep Lonsdale: Drums (1979)
- Bob Henrit: Drums (1981-1983)
- John Verity: Lead Vocals & guitar (1981)
- Terry SlesserTerry SlesserTerry Slesser is a blues rock singer from Newcastle, England. He is chiefly known for his role as vocalist in ex-Free guitarist Paul Kossoff's band Back Street Crawler, renamed Crawler after Kossoff's death in 1976.- History :In the early 1970s, Slesser joined Beckett, replacing their original...
: Lead Vocals (1982–1984) - Graham BroadGraham BroadGraham Broad is an English drummer who has been playing professionally since the age of fifteen, after attending the Royal College of Music in 1970....
: Drums (1986) - Richard Cottle: Keyboards & saxophone (1986)
- Felix Krish: Bass, keyboards, & backing vocals (1986)
- Linda Thomas: Backing vocals (1986)