This is a great set by "The 4th best band in Hull". Great sound recording, all clear and crisp. The Housemartins was formed by Paul Heaton and Stan Cullimore in 1983. Cullimore answered an ad by Paul in the papers that said "Trombonist needs street musicians around the city". They recruited Ted Key on bass and Dodger on drums which was replaced by Chris Lang. The lineup changed over the years - Ted Key left in 1985 and replaced by Norman Cook (Fatboy Slim) and Chris Lang was replaced by Hugh Whitaker and then was replaced by Dave Hemingway.
They broke into the mainstream by way of the single "Happy Hour" in 1986 that reached #3 on the British charts. At the end of 1986, they got their on #1 single the a capella version of "Caravan of Love" though some some fans rejected this style from the band and accused them of being sell-outs although a cappella material had always been part of the band's repertoire.
The band released two albums - "London 0 Hull 4" in 1986 and "The People Who Grinned Themeselves to Death" in 1987, both under Go Disk Records. "London 0 Hull 4" was re released as a de luxe edition with a bonus disc. I hope I could get a copy of this edition cd in the future. The Band split in 1988 and the members still remained friends and worked on each others projects. Norman Cook will enjoy success in Beats International and as a DJ known as Fatboy Slim while Paul Heaton, Dave Hemingway and Sean Welch formed "The Beautiful South".
The Housemartins sounded as good as their recording with a mix of Marxist ideologies and Christian beliefs thrown in. You know the drill - play this loud and enjoy!
(From left: Dave Hemingway, Paul Heaton, Norman Cook, Stan Cullimore)
1.Think For A minute
2. Heaven Help Us All
3. Over There
4. Sheep
5. Were Not Deep
6. Anxiuos
7. Me And The Farmer
8. Happy Hour
9. I'll Be Your Shelter
Thanks for sharing, brings back great memories of a great weekend in June 86
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