The Fixx

The Fixx biography

The Fixx is an English rock band formed in London in 1979. Their hits include "One Thing Leads to Another," "Red Skies," "Stand or Fall," "Saved by Zero," "Sign of Fire," "Are We Ourselves?," "Secret Separation," "Driven Out," "How Much Is Enough?," and "Deeper and Deeper," which was featured on the soundtrack of Streets of Fire.

College friends Cy Curnin on vocals and Adam Woods on drums formed the group in London in 1979, initially calling themselves The Portraits. The pair placed an ad for additional members, and recruited keyboardist Rupert Greenall, guitarist Tony McGrail and bassist Charlie Barret. Under the name The Portraits the band issued two singles for Ariola Records: "Little Women" (1979), and "Hazards In The Home" (1980).

Later in 1980, McGrail left. At this point, the band added guitarist Jamie West-Oram (formerly of Phillip Rambow's band) and changed their name to The Fix. This iteration of the band recorded for 101 Records, releasing their first single ("Lost Planes") in February 1981. This track, along with several live tracks issued by 101 on various compilations, received some radio exposure on the BBC.

The Fix's raised profile eventually led to the group being offered a contract by MCA Records. Worried about the potential drug-user implication of the band's name, MCA insisted on a name change before signing them to the label. A compromise was reached as the band altered the spelling of their name to The Fixx, and a deal was duly inked.

Barret left The Fixx just after the recording of their first album, Shuttered Room, in 1982. This album featured the band's initial hits, "Stand or Fall" and "Red Skies," both of which charted in the US and the UK. The band found particular success in Canada, where "Stand or Fall" was an immediate top 10 hit.

Barret was replaced on bass by Alfie Agius for the Shuttered Room tour. Agius' stay in the band was short-lived, though, as he left during the 1983 recording of their next album Reach the Beach, after having recorded four tracks. Agius is credited as co-writer on all the album's tracks, but the group for this album was officially credited as a quartet (Curnin, Greenall, West-Oram and Woods).

Reach the Beach became (and remains) the group's most commercially successful album. Agius' bass work is featured on the album's first two singles "Saved by Zero" and "One Thing Leads to Another." Both these singles cracked the US top 40, and "One Thing Leads To Another" became the band's biggest-ever hit (#3 Canada, #4 US). It was during these sessions that bassist Dan K. Brown joined the band. Brown played bass on the third single, "The Sign Of Fire" and continued with the band on its subsequent tour.

The 1984 album Phantoms contained the hits "Are We Ourselves" and "Sunshine In The Shade." Another song from the period, "Deeper And Deeper," was released as the B-side of "Are We Ourselves" (and also appeared in an edited version on the soundtrack for the film Streets of Fire). This track received substantial airplay on US modern rock radio stations.

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