Tears For Fears
School friends Roland Orzabal and Curt Smith formed Tears For
Fears after they had spent their teenage years in bands together,
including a Mod/Ska revivalist combo called Graduate
who issued records on the Precision label, including the novelty
single, Elvis Should Play Ska.
After Graduate split in 1981, the duo recorded demos as History
Of Headaches. Their new name, Tears For Fears, was drawn from
(primal scream therapist) Arthur Janov's book Prisoners Of
Pain. They signed to Phonogram Records in 1981 while other
synthesizer bands, including The Human
League and Depeche Mode, were
breaking through into the pop field.
During this time the duo was augmented by Ian Stanley on
keyboards and Manny Elias on drums. Their first two singles, Suffer
Little Children and Pale Shelter, were morose and
unsuccessful but Mad World, produced by former Adam
& The Ants drummer Chris Hughes, made number three in the
UK charts in November 1982.
Curt Smith, dressed in long overcoats and sporting a pigtail,
was touted in the UK as a vaguely alternative teen idol. The
Hurting showcased a thoughtful, tuneful band and it topped
the UK charts, supplying further Top 10 singles with Change and
a reissued Pale Shelter. By Songs From The Big Chair
Orzabal was handling most of the vocal duties and had taken on the
role of chief songwriter.
Shout and Everybody Wants To Rule The World
were number 1 hit singles in the USA, and the album also reached
number 1. The song, Everybody Wants To Rule The World was
adopted as the theme tune for the Sport Aid famine relief event in
1986 (with a slight change in the title to Everybody Wants To
Run The World), giving the band massive exposure.
Tears For Fears took a lengthy break after 1985 and reappeared
four years later with a highly changed sound on The Seeds Of
Love. They shunned their earlier electronic approach and
attempted to weave together huge piano and vocal chords in a style
reminiscent of The Beatles.
Its release was delayed many times as the pair constantly
remixed the material. The album featured unknown American vocalist
Oleta Adams, who the duo had discovered singing in a hotel bar in
Kansas City. Orzabal later produced her debut album.
Both the album and single, Sowing The Seeds Of Love,
were Top 10 hits in the UK and USA, but the lavish arrangements
did not receive the same critical approval. The chart failure of
subsequent singles marked the beginning of the end for the band as
a commercial force.
Shortly before the release of 1992's greatest hits set, Smith
left Tears For Fears to begin a solo career (renaming himself
Mayfield in 1998). Retaining the name of the band, Orzabal
released Elemental, the first album to be completed after
Smith's departure.
A muted response greeted Raoul And The Kings Of Spain
in 1995. Orzabal's solo debut, released six years later, was a
much more satisfying release, but failed to match the commercial
impact of Tears For Fears.
The inevitable reunion was announced in 2003, with Orzabal and
Smith signing a new recording contract with Arista Records.
|
