Men At Work biography
Men at Work are an Australian rock band who achieved international success in the 1980s. They are the only Australian artist to have a simultaneous #1 album and #1 single in the United States (Business as Usual and "Down Under" respectively). They achieved the same distinction of a simultaneous #1 album and #1 single in the United Kingdom. The group won the 1983 Grammy Award for Best New Artist, and have sold over 30 million albums worldwide.
History
Origins of the group
Colin Hay emigrated to Australia in 1967 from Scotland with his family. In 1978, he formed a duo with Ron Strykert, which expanded with the addition of drummer Jerry Speiser and Australian progressive rock keyboard player Greg Sneddon. They formed an unnamed four-piece group that would later morph into Men at Work. The band's first experience in the recording studio was recording the music to
Riff Raff, a low-budget stage musical on which Sneddon had worked. Sneddon soon left, to be replaced in late 1979 by saxophonist/flautist/keyboardist Greg Ham. Bassist John Rees completed the band.
International success (1981-1983)
In 1981, Columbia Records signed Men at Work. The band's second single, "Who Can It Be Now", was released in June 1981 and reached #1 on the Australian singles chart in August that year. It rose from #3 to #1 in the week of August 17 on the Australian singles chart. It was #1 for two consecutive weeks. . A subsequent single (a re-worked version of "Down Under") and their first album (
Business as Usual) went to #1. The album also debuted at #1 in New Zealand.
Despite its strong Australian showing, and having an American producer (Peter McIan), Business as Usual was twice rejected by Columbia's parent company in the United States. Thanks to the persistence of the band's management, the album was eventually released in the US and the UK six months after its Australian release. Men at Work toured Canada and the US to promote the album, supporting Fleetwood Mac.
The band initially broke through to North American audiences in the western provinces of Canada, with lead single "Who Can It Be Now?" hitting top 10 on radio stations in Winnipeg as early as May 1982. The band became a top act across Canada in the following months, and Men At Work started receiving top 40 US airplay by August. In October 1982, "Who Can It Be Now?" hit #1 in the US. Then, in November of that year, Business as Usual began a 15-week run at #1 on the US album chart. While "Who Can It Be Now?" was still in the top ten, the second single, "Down Under" was released. It entered the charts at #79; ten weeks later, it was #1. By January 1983, Men at Work had the top album and single in both the US and the UK - a feat never achieved previously by an Australian act. "Be Good Johnny" also received moderate airplay, particularly in the US.
Men at Work won a Grammy Award, winning Best New Artist for 1983 ahead of Asia, Jennifer Holliday, The Human League and Stray Cats. This was the first for an Australian recording act.
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