Tears For Fears

Tears For Fears (sometimes shortened in TFF ) is a British group with founded success of new wave with the whole beginning of the Années 1980. Since its creation, 26 years ago, Tears For Fears sold more than 22 million albums throughout the world (including more than 8 million only to the the United States).

Biography

Group formed in 1981 with Bath (England) by Roland Orzabal and Curt Smith (both born in 1961), considered wrongly during its first years of existence as a Duo whereas the two accomplices who know each other since adolescence are quickly associated the services of two other active members, namely Ian Stanley and Manny Elias. But if one holds all the same with this concept of Duo, one can say that during the first years of existence of the group, the true “creative pair” was rather consisted Orzabal/Stanley. Moreover, this last will multiply its activities in parallel of TFF like after its departure, by producing artists of international scale such as Lloyd Cole and the Commotions, Tori Amos, The Human League or Have-ha and the Pretenders.

At the origins, before being success with large scales with Tears For Fears, Orzabal and Smith had integrated at the end of the the Seventies (whereas they were hardly 18 years old!) a group compared inopportunely to the movement Ska called The Graduate . This group produced an album, old Acting my , and in particular individual a Elvis should play ska which missed little the Top 100 in England, but functioned better in Spain and with the Netherlands; giving then already to Roland and Curt the occasion to turn in several countries. Following divergences of opinion, the two friends left this group, joining very briefly another formation called Neon , where the members of the future Naked Eyes prevailed. They left this group quickly, forming shortly after History off Headache , finally renamed Tears For Fears .

Roland Orzabal - the true “leader” of the group - gives this name (which one can translate into French, by keeping the rhyme, by " Tears De Peurs") with its training in echo with the psychotherapist Arthur Janov and with its theory of the Primal scream . The purpose of this one whose John Lennon will become a follower, is to look after the psychological disorders of the patient and from of to release it while going back to the source of its faintness, which its birth can sometimes represent symbolically. It should be said that Orzabal and Smith grew in single-parent families, raised by mothers who were to assume only a hearth.

Promising beginnings

After their first individual Suffer the children and Blade shelter (you don' T give coils me) which passes unperceived near the general public, Tears For Fears is with the the United Kingdom an enormous success with the title Mad World fine 1982 (n°3), extracted from their first album to come. The machine is then launched and nothing will stop it.

The 25 March 1983, leaves their first album entitled The Hurting (the wound) produced by Chris Hugues (ex-beater of Adam and the Ants) and Ross Cullum; this one where the Synthétiseur S dominate but in which are also present more “traditional” instruments such as the Guitare, the battery, the Piano and even the Saxophone, is almost entirely composed by Orzabal and largely evokes the sufferings of childhood, the search for oneself and the desire of change, on bottom of the theories of Arthur Janov. It is an immense success in the United Kingdom (n° 1 ) - where the album remains classified besides in the Charts during nearly one year and half without interruption - and a little everywhere in the world grace in particular to two other international tubes, Change and a new version of Pale Shelter (both classified with the Top 5 in the United Kingdom); benefitting moreover from videos clip rather successful with the sometimes strange atmosphere.

Dedication

After these very promising beginnings, the group is lost a little and it is necessary to await fine 1984 to see TFF joining again with success with large scales, thanks to what can be regarded still today as one of largest the Hit S of the the Eighties, even a legendary title: Shout . This piece, composed by Orzabal helped of Stanley, quickly hangs the top of the international charts into 84 - 85 and becomes thus n° 1 in Germany, Australia, with the Canada, the Netherlands, etc but also, during the next summer, with the the United States. In February 1985 is published their second album Songs from the Big Chair - product by Chris Hughes and David Bascombe - which gains from the start an enormous success by being classified n° 1 a little everywhere over the planet (of which the the United States a little later in the year, lasting five weeks consecutive). The title of this album is inspired by an American series diffused at the end of the Années 1970 entitled " Sybil" and which has as a subject the course of an young woman suffering from multiple personalities, which feels safe only near its psychoanalyst, on what it calls " large the chaise" (the big flesh) i.e. the famous couch, one of the typical symbols of the psychoanalysis.

This success is reinforced by the publication in March 85 of another 45 turns and new world tube extracts from this album, the very pop Everybody Wants to Rule the World . This one quickly takes down the first place of the podium in the United States - then fond of delicacies of groups new wave with the Duran Duran - and allows with the passing of years the disc from which it is resulting to be sold on these grounds with more than 5 million specimens, which follows. The Clips vidéos of the songs drawn from the album are then diffused in loop on the recent American music channel, MTV, making at this time of Tears For Fears a true phenomenon. And for the little story, Songs from the Big Chair is one of the first albums to benefit from the format Compact Disc . With this dedication, years 85 - 86 are consequently marked by ceaseless international rounds. In 1986, Tears for Fears supports association " Aid" sport; (derivative of " Live Aid ") with one 45 turns, Everybody wants to run the world , which is in fact a rewriting of their mythical song Everybody wants to rule the world . This new title takes down the fifth place in Signal 40 British. But it is as at the end of this profitable period as Manny Elias leaves the group and becomes a musician of appreciated studio, collaborating in particular with " pointures" such as Peter Gabriel.

Changes of course

For this triumph, it is however necessary to await 1989 to see appearing a new album of TFF, The Seeds off Coils , album for which they again solicit the producer David Bascombe (who had signed the realization of " partly; Songs from the big flesh "). This new disc is resolutely directed towards musics less marked by the électropop of the beginnings and almost makes the good share with environments “jazzy” sometimes, with in particular the participation on certain titles - whose Woman in chains celebrates it (classified with the Top 25 in France, Italy, in the Netherlands, etc) - of a singer Soul , Oleta Adams, met in the United States during the famous rounds 85-86; and whose Orzabal will produce besides successfully the first album solo. The Seeds off Coils (where one finds also Phil Collins and Manu Katché as beaters, and for the last time on an album of the group, Ian Stanley) is preceded by individual very “the Beatles that”, Sowing the Seeds off Coils , which squatte top of world classifications during several weeks (#2 in the United States and in Italy for example, #3 in the Netherlands and #5 in the United Kingdom). And if the 45 following turns do not obtain discounted international success, the album is a great commercial success all the same being sold to several million specimens and being classified with the Top 10 in many countries; however in the United States this disc impacts less in the charts than its predecessor, reaching nevertheless the 8th place with the Billboard 200.

It is as at this time as the first true tensions appear between Orzabal and Smith, the first reproaching the second for having contributed only by far - what is not completely false - to “work TFF”. That thus leads to the official departure of Smith in 1991 which launches out then in a career solo, it should well be said, without much echo.

Orzabal remains alone with the orders - what was always some share besides thus - and publishes after the compilation of 1992, two albums, Elemental in 1993 - which contains the last tube in date, with the international level, of Tears For Fears: Station-wagon it down again (classified with the Signal 25 in France, in the United States, in Italy, in the Netherlands, in the United Kingdom, etc) - and Raoul And The Kings Of Spain in 1995, which does not meet the same success - far from there - which their mythical predecessors. The following year, a compilation of scarcities and faces B, Lead Martial & Lunatic , is published, on which one finds an extraordinary resumption of the Ashes to Ashes of David Bowie, magistralement interpreted by Orzabal; then, more nothing separately the remasterized republication of the first albums and the publication of some more or less official compilations.

Lastly, almost nothing because in 1999, Roland Orzabal produces any more the first international album, Love in has time off science , of a Icelandic artist - of Italian origin - up to that point confined in its native land, Emilíana Torrini; and in 2001 publishes an album rather successful Tomcats Screaming Outside under its own name. Then in 2002, two American artists, Gary Jules and Michael Andrews, take again their first tube Mad World in one moving version which is used in mythical film Donnie Darko , with besides another piece of TFF, Head over Heels (left initially in 1985, and classified at the time #3 with the United States, #8 with the Canada and #12 in Great Britain). This recovery published as individual in the United Kingdom reached there the first place of the charts during three weeks consecutive, fine 2003! ; and indirectly with the group its first n° 1 is worth on its own grounds, which had never arrived (better place, n°2 for Everybody Wants to Rule the World in 1985).

Meeting again

And surprised, one announces for 2004 the meeting again of Orzabal and Smith. That is concretized by a new album very inspired entitled Everybody Loves has Happy Ending , logical musical continuation of the The Seeds off Coils of 1989 (their last album together) with very pop titles like Closest Thing to Heaven or Call me Mellow . A world tour follows in 2005. This one passes by France on June 18th of this year when the group (with 4 other artists) gives a concert to the Parc of the Princes to Paris within the framework of a festival organized by a radio - Europe 2 - in front of several tens of thousands of people. This televised spectacle gives place to the publication beginning 2006 of an album live (decorated of three titles " Studio " news) entitled Secret world ( CD and DVD ) published by the French recording company of the group and mainly distributed, initially, in this country like in Belgium and Switzerland.

More recently, the group played within the framework of the Nights off the Proms in Belgium and in the Netherlands - among other artists - during which it could interpret some of its successes accompanied by an orchestra philarmonic; the same event having to reproduce in spring 2007 in France.

Initial members

Complementary members

  • Mel Hakes: saxophone (of 1983 to 1985)
  • William Gregory: saxophone (of 1985 to 1990)
  • Neil Taylor: guitar (of 1984 to 1990)
  • Andy Davis: keyboards (of 1983 to 1990)
  • Oleta Adams: song (of 1988 to 1995)

Discography

This discography relates to the albums and individual of Tears for Fears such as they were published in the chronological order in the United Kingdom except for individual the Mothers talk (US remixed individual) , Elemental and Closest thing to heaven (first edition), like for compilation Shout: the very best off Tears For Fears and the album Everybody coil has happy ending (first edition) firstly left to the United States, and except the album Secret world , mainly left to France.

Albums & Individual

  • Elemental , (June 2nd, 1993)

Live

  • Secret World , (February 27th, 2006)

Compilations and Best Off

  • Lead Martial & Lunatic , (August 1st, 1996)

Albums Solo

See too

Vidéos

Vidéos of some the their most outstanding successes, on YouTube.

  • Mad world

  • Change
  • Shout
  • Everybody wants to rule the world
  • Sowing the seeds off coils
  • Break it down again

The version of " Mad World" by Gary Jules is also used for the publicity of Gears off War, the last hit on Xbox 360.

  • GEARs Off war

Some groups, English and others, resulting from the same current

External bonds

  • the official site of insipid TFF
  • Memories, the site with all infos on the discs of the group
  • Classification in Hits of TFF
  • Site exclusively in French, translations, current events, detailed biography etc…

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