Talk Talk biography
Talk Talk were an English musical group, active from 1981 to 1991. The group had a string of international hit singles including "Today", "Talk Talk", "It's My Life", "Such a Shame", "Dum Dum Girl", "Life's What You Make It" and "Living in Another World".
In their later years the band's commercial appeal receded, but their critical reputation increased as they moved from synthpop to a more experimental form. Their final two albums, Spirit of Eden and Laughing Stock, were highly acclaimed and remain influential to experimental alternative rock genres, especially post-rock.
History
Beginnings and first successes (1981-1983)
Talk Talk began as a quartet consisting of Mark Hollis formerly from
The Reaction (vocals), Simon Brenner (keyboards), Lee Harris (drums) and Paul Webb (bass guitar). In their early years, they were generally associated with the New Romantic movement; more specifically, they were often compared with Duran Duran, as both bands sported a name which was a single word repeated, a Roxy Music-inspired musical direction, and shared the same record label (EMI) and producer (Colin Thurston). The band also supported Duran Duran on tour in late 1981.
The band released their first single, "Mirror Man", on EMI in February 1982. The single was not a success, but was quickly followed by their self-titled single in April 1982 which reached No.52 in the UK. The band's first album, entitled The Party's Over, was released in July 1982. The band had their first UK Top 40 hits with the singles "Today" (UK #14) and a re-release of "Talk Talk" (UK #23). These singles also were hits in some other countries including Ireland, South Africa and New Zealand. The album itself was not a huge success in the UK upon release (reaching No.21), but was later certified Silver by the BPI for sales of 60,000 copies by 1985. However, it was a Top 10 hit in New Zealand.
They were introduced to a much wider live audience in October 1982 when they supported Genesis at their reunion concert with original lead singer Peter Gabriel at Milton Keynes Bowl, England.
Brenner left after the 1983 non-LP single "My Foolish Friend", which was produced by frequent Roxy Music collaborator Rhett Davies. At this point, the band replaced Brenner with unofficial fourth member Tim Friese-Greene, who became Talk Talk's keyboard player, producer, and Hollis' frequent songwriting partner. Although a major contributor to the band's studio output, Friese-Greene did not regularly play with the band during live shows or appear in publicity material.
Worldwide success (1984-1986)
Talk Talk achieved considerable international success in 1984/85, particularly in continental Europe, with the album
It's My Life. The accompanying single "Such a Shame" (a song inspired by the book
The Dice Man) became a Top 5 hit in Austria, Germany, Italy and Switzerland during this period. The title track of the album was also a top 10 hit in Italy, and made the U.S., Canadian, French, German, New Zealand and Netherlands Top 40, and a third single, "Dum Dum Girl", was a success in some European countries and in New Zealand, though the LP and its singles were largely ignored in their native UK.
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