Flesh for Lulu
Encyclopedia
Flesh for Lulu was an Alternative rock
/Gothic
band formed in Brixton
, London
, UK
, and was active between 1982 and 1992. Their music was a mix of the New York Dolls
and Rolling Stones with gothic rock's gloomy atmosphere and aesthetics.
, guitar and vocals), and Glen Bishop (bass), taking their name from an American
cult movie. They signed to Polydor Records
in 1983, and soon thereafter, bassist Glen Bishop left to join Under Two Flags, and was replaced by Kevin Mills (formerly of Specimen
).
The label dropped them a year later after their eponymous first album failed to find any commercial success.
In 1985, the band signed to Hybrid Records and released a mini LP, Blue Sisters Swing, which was produced with Craig Leon. The cover image of two nuns kissing resulted in the album being banned in the United States
and Europe
. Flesh for Lulu then joined Statik records, who released Big Fun City later that year.
The following year, the band signed to Beggars Banquet Records
, and their song "I Go Crazy
" was featured in Some Kind of Wonderful and saw some airplay on American college rock
radio stations. This allowed Flesh for Lulu to sustain a successful tour of the US.
In 1989, "Decline and Fall" followed and became a top 15 hit on the new Modern Rock Tracks
chart. The next year, "Time and Space" written by newest member Del Strangefish became their biggest US hit, hitting the top 10 of the Modern Rock chart, but the song failed to chart on any other US chart. The band were dropped again, and dissolved soon afterwards.
The song "Postcards from Paradise" was covered by Paul Westerberg
as a secret bonus track on his 2002 album "Stereo". Unfortunately, the 'secretness' of the cover meant zero royalties for Flesh, and as the original publishers remain unwilling to provide any accounting to the band, the real extent of their dues in this instance remain unknown. The Goo Goo Dolls
also covered the same song, which will be part of a "deluxe edition" release of their 2010 album Something for the Rest of Us
available on the band's website.
on drums. Columbia Records
signed them, and put them on tour with the Goo Goo Dolls
and Bush
. Their first album was a commercial flop, and the group disbanded in 1998.
Since the breakup of Gigantic, Nick Marsh has released a solo album and performs bourbon soaked gypsy bop and stroll band 'Urban Voodoo Machine' while Rocco joined a band called The Space Police with reggae / jungle artist General Levy
and Italian keyboardist and producer Dr.Cat (Aka Luca Gatti).
In 2007, Gigantic's one and only album, Disenchanted, originally released in 1996 on Columbia Records, was repackaged and reissued on Corporate Risk as Gigantic under the Flesh for Lulu name.
Rocco was featured on the Channel 4
series A Place in Spain: Costa Chaos.
Alternative rock
Alternative rock is a genre of rock music and a term used to describe a diverse musical movement that emerged from the independent music underground of the 1980s and became widely popular by the 1990s...
/Gothic
Gothic rock
Gothic rock is a musical subgenre of post-punk and alternative rock that formed during the late 1970s. Gothic rock bands grew from the strong ties they had to the English punk rock and emerging post-punk scenes...
band formed in Brixton
Brixton
Brixton is a district in the London Borough of Lambeth in south London, England. It is south south-east of Charing Cross. The area is identified in the London Plan as one of 35 major centres in Greater London....
, London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, UK
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
, and was active between 1982 and 1992. Their music was a mix of the New York Dolls
New York Dolls
The New York Dolls is an American rock band, formed in New York in 1971. The band's protopunk sound prefigured much of what was to come in the punk rock era; their visual style influenced the look of many new wave and 1980s-era glam metal groups, and they began the local New York scene that later...
and Rolling Stones with gothic rock's gloomy atmosphere and aesthetics.
History
Nick Marsh (vocals and guitar) and James Mitchell (drums) formed the band and soon recruited Rocco (originally from Wasted YouthWasted Youth (British Band)
Wasted Youth was a punk / post-punk band from London, England, active between 1979 and 1982, which blended early Goth and post-punk with dark acoustic strains of the sort associated with Nick Drake and Syd Barrett. The line-up of the band was Ken Scott , Rocco Barker , Nick Nicole , Darren Murphy ...
, guitar and vocals), and Glen Bishop (bass), taking their name from an American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
cult movie. They signed to Polydor Records
Polydor Records
Polydor is a record label owned by Universal Music Group, headquartered in the United Kingdom.-Beginnings:Polydor was originally an independent branch of the Deutsche Grammophon Gesellschaft. Its name was first used as an export label in 1924, the British and German branches of the Gramophone...
in 1983, and soon thereafter, bassist Glen Bishop left to join Under Two Flags, and was replaced by Kevin Mills (formerly of Specimen
Specimen (band)
Specimen are a British band formed in the 1980s. Their music has been described as spanning many different genres of music, including glam, goth, punk and post-punk, and the band is widely credited as one of the pioneers of the Gothic movement, both musically and stylistically.-Early days:The band...
).
The label dropped them a year later after their eponymous first album failed to find any commercial success.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
and Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
. Flesh for Lulu then joined Statik records, who released Big Fun City later that year.
The following year, the band signed to Beggars Banquet Records
Beggars Banquet Records
Beggars Banquet is an English independent record label that began as a chain of record shops owned by Martin Mills and Nick Austin, and is part of the Beggars Group of labels...
, and their song "I Go Crazy
I Go Crazy (Flesh for Lulu song)
"I Go Crazy" is a song by the alternative rock band Flesh for Lulu. It was released on the band's third studio album, Long Live the New Flesh. It was also featured in the movie Some Kind of Wonderful...
" was featured in Some Kind of Wonderful and saw some airplay on American college rock
College rock
College rock is a term that was used in the United States to describe 1980s alternative rock before the term "alternative" came into common usage. The term's use of the word "college" refers to campus radio stations located at institutions of higher education in Canada and the United States, where...
radio stations. This allowed Flesh for Lulu to sustain a successful tour of the US.
In 1989, "Decline and Fall" followed and became a top 15 hit on the new Modern Rock Tracks
Modern Rock Tracks
Alternative Songs is a music chart in the United States that has appeared in Billboard magazine since September 10, 1988. It lists the 40 most-played songs on modern rock radio stations, most of which are alternative rock songs...
chart. The next year, "Time and Space" written by newest member Del Strangefish became their biggest US hit, hitting the top 10 of the Modern Rock chart, but the song failed to chart on any other US chart. The band were dropped again, and dissolved soon afterwards.
The song "Postcards from Paradise" was covered by Paul Westerberg
Paul Westerberg
Paul Westerberg is an American musician, best known as the former lead singer, rhythm guitarist, and songwriter of The Replacements, one of the seminal alternative rock bands of the 1980s. He launched a solo career after the dissolution of that band...
as a secret bonus track on his 2002 album "Stereo". Unfortunately, the 'secretness' of the cover meant zero royalties for Flesh, and as the original publishers remain unwilling to provide any accounting to the band, the real extent of their dues in this instance remain unknown. The Goo Goo Dolls
Goo Goo Dolls
The Goo Goo Dolls are a Grammy-nominated American rock band formed in 1986 in Buffalo, New York, by vocalist and guitarist John Rzeznik and vocalist and bass guitarist Robby Takac. Since the end of 1994, Mike Malinin has been the band's drummer, a position previously held by George Tutuska...
also covered the same song, which will be part of a "deluxe edition" release of their 2010 album Something for the Rest of Us
Something for the Rest of Us
Something for the Rest of Us has received mixed to favourable reviews. Collating 8 reviews, the review aggregator website Metacritic gave the album an average score of 59%, which indicated a "mixed or average" response....
available on the band's website.
Gigantic
In 1996, Nick Marsh and Rocco formed a new band they called Gigantic, recruiting Dave Blair on bass and Al FletcherAl Fletcher
Al Fletcher is an English musician currently the drummer with Die So Fluid. His previous bands include Ultraviolet and Gigantic. He has also performed live and as session musician with ska group The Selecter....
on drums. Columbia Records
Columbia Records
Columbia Records is an American record label, owned by Japan's Sony Music Entertainment, operating under the Columbia Music Group with Aware Records. It was founded in 1888, evolving from an earlier enterprise, the American Graphophone Company — successor to the Volta Graphophone Company...
signed them, and put them on tour with the Goo Goo Dolls
Goo Goo Dolls
The Goo Goo Dolls are a Grammy-nominated American rock band formed in 1986 in Buffalo, New York, by vocalist and guitarist John Rzeznik and vocalist and bass guitarist Robby Takac. Since the end of 1994, Mike Malinin has been the band's drummer, a position previously held by George Tutuska...
and Bush
Bush (band)
Bush are an alternative rock band formed in London in 1992 shortly after vocalist/guitarist Gavin Rossdale and guitarist Nigel Pulsford met in a London nightclub. Realising they shared a love for such diverse artists as the Pixies, Bob Marley, The Jesus Lizard, MC5, Nirvana, Hüsker Dü, and Big...
. Their first album was a commercial flop, and the group disbanded in 1998.
Since the breakup of Gigantic, Nick Marsh has released a solo album and performs bourbon soaked gypsy bop and stroll band 'Urban Voodoo Machine' while Rocco joined a band called The Space Police with reggae / jungle artist General Levy
General Levy
General Levy is a London born ragga vocalist, regularly employed on studio tracks by drum and bass DJs. He is best known for the track "Incredible" which he recorded with M-Beat.-Biography:...
and Italian keyboardist and producer Dr.Cat (Aka Luca Gatti).
In 2007, Gigantic's one and only album, Disenchanted, originally released in 1996 on Columbia Records, was repackaged and reissued on Corporate Risk as Gigantic under the Flesh for Lulu name.
Rocco was featured on the Channel 4
Channel 4
Channel 4 is a British public-service television broadcaster which began working on 2 November 1982. Although largely commercially self-funded, it is ultimately publicly owned; originally a subsidiary of the Independent Broadcasting Authority , the station is now owned and operated by the Channel...
series A Place in Spain: Costa Chaos.
Singles
- "Roman Candle" (1983, Polydor)
- "Subterraneans" (1984, Polydor)
- "Restless" (1984, Polydor)
- "Baby Hurricane" (1985, Statik)
- "Idol" (1986, Beggars Banquet)
- "Siamese Twist" (1987, Beggars Banquet)
- "Postcards from Paradise" (1987, Beggars Banquet)
- "I Go CrazyI Go Crazy (Flesh for Lulu song)"I Go Crazy" is a song by the alternative rock band Flesh for Lulu. It was released on the band's third studio album, Long Live the New Flesh. It was also featured in the movie Some Kind of Wonderful...
" (1987, Beggars Banquet) - "Time and Space" (1990, Beggars Banquet)
Albums
- Roman Candle EP (1983, Polydor)
- Roman Candle (10:18)
- Coming Down (4:03)
- Lame Train (4:56)
- The Power of Suggestion (3:45)
- Flesh for Lulu (1984, Polydor)
- Restless (4:37)
- Dog Dog Dog (5:20)
- Hyena (3:52)
- Coming Down (3:43)
- Jigsaw Puzzle (4:48)
- Subterraneans (5:16)
- Brainburst (5:20)
- Peace and Love (3:35)
- So Strong (3:26)
- Heavy Angel (4:35)
- Big Fun City (1985, Statik)
- Baby Hurricane (3:13)
- Cat Burglar (2:56)
- Let Go (3:00)
- Vaguely Human (3:22)
- Rent Boy (4:39)
- Golden Handshake Girl (4:04)
- In Your Smile (3:29)
- Blue (2:15)
- Landromat Kat (3:05)
- Just One Second (3:07)
- Blue Sisters Swing EP (1985, Hybrid)
- Seven Hail Marys (4:50)
- Death Shall Come (5:10)
- I May Have Said You're Beautiful, But You Know I'm Just a Liar (2:44)
- Who's in Danger? (2:54)
- Black Tattoo (3:35)
- Long Live the New Flesh (1987, Beggars Banquet UK, Capitol US)
- I Go Crazy (3:50)
- Postcards from Paradise (3:36)
- Hammer of Love (3:46)
- Siamese Twist (4:12)
- Sooner or Later (3:14)
- Lucky Day (3:03)
- Sleeping Dogs (3:57)
- Good for You (3:36)
- Crash (4:27)
- Way to Go (4:17)
- Dream On, Cowboy (5:07)
- Plastic Fantastic (1989, Beggars Banquet UK, Capitol US)
- Decline and Fall (4:27)
- House of Cards (4:42)
- Time and Space (3:58)
- Every Little Word (4:27)
- Slowdown (4:34)
- Highwire (3:47)
- Slide (3:43)
- Day One (4:33)
- Choosing You (2:06)
- Stupid on the Street (4:08)
- Avenue (4:16)
- Plastic Fantastic (4:51)
- Gigantic (2007) (reissue under Flesh For Lulu name)
- Spanish Nightmare Vendetta (4:28)
- Tame Me (4:20)
- In Your Hair (2:49)
- Disenchantment (3:46)
- To Die For (3:42)
- Throw You Out My Window (3:37)
- She Was Always Mad (3:57)
- Enemy (3:02)
- She's From Heaven (4:42)
- Hypermania (3:53)
- All You Need (5:10)
- Killing My Buzz (2:18)
- Psycho Fiasco (3:23)