Sigue Sigue Sputnik
| Sigue Sigue Sputnik | |
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| General information | |
| Genre (s) | New wave , pop , rock & roll |
| founding | 1982, 2000 |
| resolution | 1989 |
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| Tony James, 1986 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Sigue Sigue Sputnik is a band from England that gained greater fame in the mid-1980s with their hit Love Missile F1-11 . The original line-up consisted of Tony James (guitar), Martin Degville (vocals), Neal X (guitar), Chris Kavanagh (drums) and Ray Mayhew (drums).
Band history
founding
Sigue Sigue Sputnik was founded in 1983 by Tony James, the punk rock times in former guitarist in the band Generation X by Billy Idol was. Initially, he invited Andrew Eldritch ( The Sisters of Mercy ) and Annie Lennox , who later became a singer of Eurythmics , to join the new band as singers. However, Eldritch preferred to take care of his band The Sisters of Mercy, founded in 1980 and becoming more and more successful, and canceled. However, James did not want to get involved with Lennox, who was still unknown at the time, because he did not want a woman to lead the singer. Finally he was able to win Martin Degville as a singer.
Debut album
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In 1986 they made their debut with their album Flaunt It and had a hit with Love Missile F1-11 (produced by Giorgio Moroder ), which also appeared on the soundtrack to the film Ferris Makes Blue (later in the computer game Grand Theft Auto: Vice City , which appeared in the 1980s plays). The second release, 21st Century Boy, was almost as successful. What was new for the time was the design of their debut album , which was packed in a very wide sleeve and thus looked more like a book on the shelf, as well as the fact that the "pauses" between the individual song tracks were used as advertising blocks (e.g. for Studio Line by L'Oréal ) were auctioned.
In November 1988 the single Success (number 31 in Great Britain) was released, which was produced by Stock Aitken Waterman . Since the band had been forced to this collaboration by their record company, the single contained a warning: "Non rock and roll product, distributed under pressure". "Sputnik Aitken Waterman" are named as the interpreters on the cover of the single.
After the second album Dress for Excess , however, the original formation fell apart. Tony James joined The Sisters of Mercy as bass player, where he stayed from 1989 to 1991. Chris Kavanagh joined Big Audio Dynamite , and Neal X made another appearance on a Marc Almond album . In 1991 Sigue Sigue Sputnik got together again, in 1992 the band separated again.
In the course of the 1980s revival , Tony James succeeded in calling the band members Neal "X" Whitmore and Martin Degville back together in 2001 and reuniting the band for a third time. They produced the album Pirate Space , which could not follow up on the earlier successes, but was very well received in fan circles.
In August 2003, the two parties Martin Degville and James / Neal X fell out. The background to the separation is unclear. Degville claims that Tony James never paid him fair, and there were rumors of Degville's alcohol addiction. Martin Degville, who is a big name in London's party scene, is trying to build on old successes with his Sputnik2 project. Tony James is dedicated to his new band Carbon Silicon , which he founded together with Mick Jones ( The Clash ).
Band name
Since, in Tony James' opinion, the name of a band was particularly important for the initial success, a lot of time was spent looking for a concise band name for marketing reasons. The name should arouse curiosity in the press. The band was ultimately named after a street gang from Moscow , which the Herald Tribune reported in an article in early 1980.
Optical and acoustic appearance
Sigue Sigue Sputnik was particularly noticeable for her brightly colored clothes, her appearance - despite the punk movement - still very different for the time in terms of piercings , tattoos and hairstyles as well as her deliberately provocative, often tasteless appearance. Therefore the band was often only called "Sick Sick Sputnik" (sick = ill) in the press. The sound was characterized by electronic rhythms and very short, sometimes confused lyrics about an often gloomy future. Initially, Sigue Sigue Sputnik was primarily concerned with attracting attention as quickly as possible and appearing in the press often in order to build up a corresponding, wild punk rock image.
Discography
Albums
- 1986: Flaunt It
- 1988: Dress for Excess
- 1990: First generation
- 1997: First Generation: Second Edition
- 1998: The Ultimate 12 "Collection
- 1999: Flaunt It + Dress for Excess
- 2000: Sci-Fi Sex Stars
- 2001: Piratespace
- 2001: 21st Century Boys: The Best of Sigue Sigue Sputnik
- 2002: Blak Elvis vs. The Kings of Electronic Rock and Roll
- 2003: Ultra Real
- 2007: The Remixes
- 2007: 1984 Flaunt It, Demos + More
Singles
- 1986: Massive retaliation
- 1986: Sex Bomb Boogie
- 1986: Love Missile F1-11
- 1986: 21st Century Boy
- 1986: The 12 "Mixes
- 1987: Rio Rocks
- 1988: Success (as Sputnik Aitken Waterman)
- 1988: Amnesty International Picture Disc
- 1988: Hey Jane Mansfield Superstar!
- 1989: Dancerama
- 1989: Albinoni vs. Starwars
- 2002: Everybody Loves You (vs. Northern Lite )
- 2004: Grooving with Mr. Pervert (The Mixes)
