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. Photo: July 13, 2003.]]Graham Parker (born November 18 1950 in London ) is an English Rock Singer and Songwriter . EARLY CAREER (1960S-1976) In the late 1960s and early 1970s, Graham Parker sang in small-time English bands such as the Black Rockers and Deep Cut Three while working in dead-end jobs like a glove factory and a Petrol Station . In 1975, he recorded a few Demo Tracks in London with Dave Robinson, who would shortly found Stiff Records and who connected Parker with his first backing band of note. Graham Parker and the Rumour (Parker, with Brinsley Schwarz and Martin Belmont on guitars, Bob Andrews on keyboards, Andrew Bodnar on bass and Steve Goulding on drums) formed in the summer of 1975 and began doing the rounds of the British pub rock scene. The band was also augmented at times by a four-man horn section known as The Rumour Brass: John "Irish" Earle (sax), Chris Gower (trombone), Dick Hanson (trumpet), and Ray Bevis (sax). The band's first Album , '' Howlin' Wind '', was released to acclaim in 1976 and was rapidly followed by the stylistically similar '' Heat Treatment ''. A mixture of rock, ballads, and reggae-influenced numbers, these albums reflected Parker's early influences ( Motown , The Rolling Stones , Bob Dylan , Van Morrison ) and contained the songs which formed the core of Parker's live shows -- "White Honey", "Soul Shoes", "Lady Doctor", "Fool's Gold", and his early signature tune "Don't Ask Me Questions", which hit the top 40 in the UK. Parker and the Rumour built a reputation as incendiary live performers: the promotional album ''Live at Marble Arch'' was recorded at this time and shows off their raw onstage style. Like the Pub Rock scene he was loosely tied to, the singer's Class-conscious lyrics and passionate vocals signaled a renewal of rock music as Punk Rock began to flower in Britain. PARKER AS 'ANGRY YOUNG MAN' In terms of establishing a recording career in early 1976, Parker preceded two other " and Joe Jackson . Costello's first single was released in 1977, and Jackson's first solo single in late 1978 -- although Jackson had also been a member of Arms & Legs, which released three non-charting singles beginning in April of 1976, just a month after Parker and the Rumour released their debut single "Silly Thing". Early in his career Parker's work was often compared favorably to Jackson's and Costello's. For decades afterwards journalists would continue to categorize them together, often labelling them with some variation of "Angry Young Men", even long after the artists' work had diverged. Characteristically, Parker would not hesitate to criticize this habit with caustic wit. A NEW DIRECTION (1977) Critical acclaim for the first two albums was generally not matched with LP sales. Graham Parker and the Rumour appeared on BBC television's '' Top Of The Pops '' in 1977, performing their version of The Trammps ' "Hold Back the Night" from The Pink Parker EP, a top 30 UK hit in March 1977. At this point, Parker began to change his songwriting style, reflecting his desire to break into the American market. The first fruits of this new direction appeared on '' Stick To Me '' (1977). The album broke the top 20 on the UK charts but divided critical opinions, particularly with numbers like "The Heat in Harlem" -- the band's longest song at the time. Nick Lowe 's production also came under fire: some critics complained that the band sounded thin and Parker's voice was mixed down, when in fact a studio mishap had compromised the original recordings and forced the group to remake the album on short notice. SQUEEZING OUT SPARKS (1978-1979) An official Graham Parker and The Rumour live album called ''The Parkerilla'', issued in 1978, showed that the Rumour's vibrant live style remained strong, though some critics saw Parker in a holding pattern 2 years after ''Heat Treatment''. It was a crucial juncture for the young musician. Parker had long been dissatisfied with the performance of his US record company, Mercury Records , finally issuing in the 1979 single "Mercury Poisoning", a public kiss-off reminiscent of the Sex Pistols ' "EMI". Energized by his new label, Arista, and the presence of legendary producer Jack Nitzsche , Parker followed with '' Squeezing Out Sparks '', widely held to be the best album of his career. For this album, The Rumour's brass section, prominent on all previous albums, was jettisoned, resulting in a spare, intense rock backing for some of Parker's most brilliant songs. Of particular note was "You Can't Be Too Strong", one of rock music's rare songs to confront the topic of Abortion , however ambivalently. ''Squeezing out Sparks'' is still ranked by fans and critics alike as one of the finest rock albums ever made. '''s " I Want You Back ". The jettisoned brass section, incidentally, would continue to play on other people's records credited as The Irish Horns (on the album London Calling by The Clash) or The Rumour Brass, most notably on Katrina And The Waves ' 1985 hit " Walking On Sunshine ". THE END OF THE RUMOUR (1980) Bob Andrews left The Rumour in early 1980, and was not officially replaced. However, in studio sessions for the next album, Nicky Hopkins and Danny Federici (of The E Street Band ) sat in on keyboards.
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