Kernel’s Band of the Month – July 2014 – Teenage Fanclub Crossing the Atlantic Ocean (or any ocean for that matter) is no easy feat. Hundreds of thousands, perhaps even millions, have either died or simply failed to cross this watery monstrosity in every type of vessel from a wooden dinghy to the indestructible (oops) Titanic. The floor of this massive body of water is no doubt littered with the remains of those who have perished trying to make it to the New World – or back home to the Old. In a somewhat similar fashion (thankfully without the accompanying loss of life – or that damn scurvy) an untold number of musicians/bands have attempted with many varying levels of success, to send their music across the great sea – usually heading West. Kernel’s Band of the Month for July 2014 is a band that has tried, and for all intensive purposes failed, to successfully make that tenuous journey from it’s home in Northern Britain to the land now known as the United States of America. This failure does little to diminish the sheer brilliance of the body of work given to us by Belshill, Scotland’s finest export, Teenage Fanclub. In this month of July, in the year of our Lord 2014, we are going to examine the most impressive catalog these amazingly talented Scots have created, and will no doubt marvel at how such a fantastic and talented band could have seen American success so elude them. It certainly isn’t for a lack of damn good songs. July has 31 days. Teenage Fanclub have a song entitled “Ain’t That Enough”. The simple answer is NO! Formed in Belshill, honed in Glasgow, the bands genesis took place in 1989, and featured Norman Blake (Lead Vocals/Guitar), Raymond McGinley (Lead Vocals/Guitar), Gerard Love (Lead Vocals/Bass) and Francis McDonald (Drums). From its inception until today, the band is in the somewhat unique position of having 3 singer/songwriters to draw from. On record, as well as live, Teenage Fanclub switch from one vocalist to the next, a’la The Band, for a triple threat that is clearly the groups greatest strength. All three (Blake, McGinley and Love) are exceptional songwriters, with the result being there is a decided lack of filler to be found anywhere in the bands catalog. Hence the lack of days in July to share the ample wealth of tuneful, engaging and damn catchy music you will soon be humming. For a band that couldn’t break in the U.S., it is certainly worth noting that American-made music is the primary influence for Teenage Fanclub, with the holy trinity of Big Star, The Byrds and The Beach Boys as primary guides. Shortly after forming, the band released its first record, 1990’s “A Catholic Education” on Paperhouse Records. The noisy yet melodic affair turned heads from the start. There was something special in the writing and playing of the band, the music wasn’t complicated, but it was fresh and familiar at the same time, with an almost Stonesy-swagger. “The King”, a halfhearted attempt followed in 1991. Even noisier, and unfortunately less original or tuneful, “The King” still managed to gain critical acclaim and a bit of news with its cover of Madonna’s “Like A Virgin”. That same year, in 1991, at the dawn of the age of grunge, Teenage Fanclub released what many consider to be its masterpiece, “Bandwagonesque”. The record was the bands greatest commercial success in the U.S. (reaching only #137 on the Billboard album charts – the only appearance in the band’s entire history), and made them stars in Britain/Europe. With its effortless Beach Boy style harmonies and its addictive Byrdsian jangle, “Bandwagonesque” appeared on many year end Top 10 lists and was the number 1 album of the year in SPIN Magazines 1991 year end issue. Even though I would disagree that “Bandwaginesque” is the bands best record, its success paved the way for a decade of great creativity. In 1993, TF released “Thirteen” which promptly became the bands first Top 20 record in the UK. Prior to the release of “Thirteen”, McDonald was replaced by Brendan O’Hare on drums. Soon after the record came out, Paul Quinn (Soup Dragons) replaced O’Hare. What followed was the creative peak of 1995’s “Grand Prix” and 1997’s ‘Songs from Northern Britain”. These two near perfect records find the band at the top of its game. “Grand Prix” was the the bands first (and only) UK Top 10, and the aforementioned single “Ain’t That Enough” (from “Songs From Northern Britain”) was/is the bands highest charting hit, reaching number 17 on the British Charts in June of 1997. At that time, Liam Gallagher was quoted, as saying that Teenage Fanclub was the “second best band in the world”. Nirvana’s Kurt Cobain also been quoted saying similar things about TF. The bands next record “Howdy”, came out in 2000. Original drummer McDonald returned for the tour for ‘Howdy” and remains with the band today. In 2002, Teenage Fanclub took a left turn and recorded an entire record with American singer-songwriter Jad Fair (Half Japanese) entitled “Words Of Wisdom & Hope”. The release failed to chart. In addition to working with Fair, Teenage Fanclub has recorded with other artists over its career including De La Soul and Frank Black. After the lackluster Fair record, the band rebounded with 2005’s ‘Man-Made” (number 34 UK) and 2010’s “Shadows” (number 30 UK). To this day, Teenage Fanclub remain quite popular on that side of the pond. Hopefully they will release more material in the future. By the end of July you are going to wonder why you have not heard more from this band. Hopefully you will continue to listen. The first song of the month, “Start Again” (a personal anthem), is a stunning piece of music that soars with hypnotic and gorgeous vocals and some truly inspired guitar work.
Posted on: Tue, 01 Jul 2014 18:59:23 +0000
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