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| scottish musical groups | |
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Altered Images were a popular band who formed in Glasgow , Scotland in 1980 . Ex-school friends with an equal interest in the UK Post Punk scene, Clare Grogan ( Vocals ), Michael 'Tich' Anderson ( Drums ), Tony McDaid ( Guitar ) and Johnny McElhone ( Bass Guitar ), sent a Demo tape to Siouxsie And The Banshees which soon gave themselves a support slot on their ''Kaleidoscope'' tour of 1980. Grogan had previously been seen in the cult film Gregory's Girl . After being championed by legendary DJ John Peel , they quickly garnered enough attention to be offered a deal with Epic Records but mainstream success was not immediate; their first two singles ("Dead Pop Stars", "A Day's Wait") missed the top 40. "Dead Pop Stars" was particularly controversial at the time, sung at the viewpoint of a "has-been" icon with much irony, perhaps badly timed in its release as John Lennon had died shortly before, even though it was recorded prior to his death. It was absent from their studio album releases. With additional guitarist Jim McKinven, they recorded their debut LP, Happy Birthday ( 1981 ) seeing them continue their link with Siouxsie and the Banshees, as the band's bassist Steve Severin produced several tracks on it besides the title track, which became their third single and biggest hit. "Happy Birthday" saw them be catapulted to fame with Grogan standing centre, quirky voice and bubbly character sending the band to number 2 in the singles chart in the summer of that year, establishing the band as one of the biggest New Wave acts around. This was confirmed when they were voted "Best New Group" at the NME awards. After a successful headlining tour they released ''Pinky Blue'' ( 1982 ) showing them following a more Pop route than before, providing two more top 20 hits, "I Could Be Happy" and "See Those Eyes". The album also went top 20, but many critics who supported them previously began to turn sour. Meanwhile, after McKinven and Anderson left to be replaced by multi-instrumentalist Steve Lironi they began to work with pop producer Mike Chapman , providing them with another hit, "Don't Talk To Me About Love". This continued collaboration (and one with Tony Visconti ) was seen with ''Bite'' ( 1983 ), a severe departure from their former dream punk not far removed from Siouxsie to a far more conventional, studio based sound. Grogan pictured on the album's cover sleeve wearing a sophisticated, Movie Star -like dress eluded many fans, and after the album's brief commercial spell, forced her and her band out of the spotlight and to their disbanding, post-tour with David Wilde on drums and Jim Prime on keyboards. After Altered Images Grogan had an attempt at a solo career, signing to London Records with one single and an unreleased album in 1987 . On Television she was significantly more successful however, starring as Kristine Kochanski in the cult BBC Sitcom Red Dwarf , and much later, in EastEnders and Father Ted , and has done a lot of presenting work for VH1 . With Steve Lironi she formed ''Universal Love School'' although no recordings were ever finalised, and again she left the music scene. Johnny McElhone changed hands from guitarist to bassist, first for Hipsway and then for the hugely popular Scottish band Texas . Much to their fans' joy, Altered Images reformed in 2002 for the ''Here and Now'' UK tour, showcasing a revival of popular bands of their era alongside the likes of The Human League , ABC , and T'Pau , and again for some separate shows in 2004 . LINKS DISCOGRAPHY
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