Aztec Camera

Aztec Camera was a group founded in 1980 by the author type-setter Roddy Frame, then 16 years old. It continues a career in solo now.

Biography

The first individual ones of Aztec Camera were published by the label Postcard Records of Glasgow, and were classified in the independent charts. Roddy Frame (song, guitar) was then accompanied by Campbell Owens with low and Dave Mulholland with the battery. As of the beginnings Roddy Frame was the only permanent member of the group, thus front even the recording of the first album several beaters followed one another within Aztec Camera, initially Stephen Daly of Orange Juice, then Colin Auld and Patrick Hunt.

The group signed with Rough Trade Records which left the album High Land, Hard Rain in 1983. The station of beater returned to David Ruffy, old of The Ruts, and the disc was produced by John Brand, which worked inter alia for The Go-Betweens and Eyeless in Gaza. They occurred in first part of Elvis Costello at the time of her American round. The guitarists Craig Gannon (who belonged to the Bluebells and later collaborated with Morrissey and Terry Hall) then Malcolm Ross of the group Joseph K, lent successively strong hand to Aztec Camera in round. The album Knife , published in 1984 by the label WEA, was produced by Mark Knopfler, guitarist Dire Straits. At the time of the rounds which followed to Europe, in the United States and Japan, Aztec Camera was joined by Eddie Kulak with the keyboards.

Love , which became the greatest business success of Aztec Camera, appeared after a three year old bracket. Name Aztec Camera was preserved although Roddy Frame is only accompanied by musicians by studio. The beater David Ruffy and the clavierist Eddie Kulak joined again with Aztec Camera at the time of the round, the formation setting-up by Frame was quite different from the small group independent of the beginnings and included/understood in very nine musicians.

Stray left in 1990, on individual the Good Morning Britain Roddy Frame was accompanied by the former guitarist by the Clash Mick Jones. The fifth album Dreamland was by-product by Roddy Frame and the Japanese type-setter Ryuichi Sakamoto in 1993. After the exit of the album Frame left once again in round, but only accompanied by a pianist and a box at rate/rhythm. In 1995 Frestonia was the last album published under the name of Aztec Camera.

Discography

Individual

Just Like Gold (1981, Postcard)
Mattress off Wire (1981, Postcard)
Pillar to Post (1982, Rough Trade)
Oblivious (1983, Rough Trade)
Walk Out to Winter (1983, Rough Trade)
All I Need is Everything (1984, WEA)
Still one Fire (1984, WEA)
Deep & Wide & Tall (1987, WEA)
How Men Are (1988, WEA)
Somewhere in My Heart (1988, WEA)
Working in has Goldmine (1988, WEA)
The Crying Scene (1990, WEA)
Good Morning Britain (1990, WEA)
Spanish Horses (1992, WEA)
Dream Sweet Dreams (1993, WEA)
Birds (1993, WEA)
Sun (1995, WEA)

Albums

High Land, Hard Rain (1983, Rough Trade)
Knife (1984, WEA)
Coils (1987, WEA)
Stray (1990, WEA)
Dreamland (1993, WEA)
Frestonia (1995, WEA)

Compilations and various

Aztec Camera (mini-album live, 1985, WEA)
The Best off Aztec Camera (1999, WEA)
Deep and Wide and Tall: The Platinum Collection (2005, WEA)

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