Les Carter | |
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| Background information | |
| Birth name | Leslie George Carter |
| Also known as | Fruitbat |
| Born | 12 December 1958 London, England |
| Genres | Rock |
| Occupations | Musician, songwriter |
| Instruments | Guitar, vocals |
| Years active | 1970s–present |
| Member of | |
| Formerly of | |
Leslie George Carter, known as Fruitbat (born 12 December 1958) is an English musician who was a member of Carter the Unstoppable Sex Machine.
Carter played in a number of bands during the late 1970s, before meeting Jim Bob (James Neil Morrison) at The Orchestra Pit in Streatham, where their bands The Ballpoints and Dead Clergy used to rehearse. When The Ballpoints' bassist quit at the end of 1980, Les joined the band, who went on to change their name to Peter Pan's Playground. When Peter Pan's Playground split, Carter and Morrison continued to write together and formed the band Jamie Wednesday. [1]
Jamie Wednesday broke up in 1987 after limited success. Jim Bob and Fruitbat stuck together and formed Carter USM, a band in which the two both played guitars and sang while a sequencer and drum machine played backing music. [2] Carter USM had 14 Top 40 singles, one number one album and played over 800 gigs all over the world. [1] A cycling enthusiast, he wore a cycling hat on stage in the early years which became a strong visual trademark for the band. [1] He would often take his bike with him on Carter tours, much to the annoyance of Jim Bob, as detailed in the book, Goodnight Jim Bob. [1]
One of Carter USM's most talked-about moments was when Fruitbat rugby tackled presenter Phillip Schofield on live TV, in front of millions of viewers at the Smash Hits music awards. Schofield made some remarks about the band's performance and Fruitbat has said he was "severely hammered" after drinking a crate of beer supplied by The Farm. [3] The incident made the front pages of many national UK tabloids, and generated infamy for the band. [1]
Carter USM split in 1997, but continued to play semi-regular gigs until bringing the band to a close in 2014. Carter still runs the Carter USM website and fan club and sells band merchandise. He currently lives in Folkestone, and has two current bands: his own, Abdoujaparov, and Nottinghamshire folk/punk band Ferocious Dog, for which he plays guitar. [4] He plays bass in Keith Top Of The Pops & His Minor UK Indie Celebrity All-Star Backing Band. He also performs as Leslie George Carter, singing and playing acoustic guitar. In 2018 he formed Smokin' Donuts with long-time friend Doozer McDooze (Paul Short) after a solo slot turned into a duo slot and they alternately accompanied each other's songs.
Carter presented a weekly music show on Brentwood radio station, Phoenix FM between 2001 and 2011, and again in 2021. [5]
Marcy Playground is an American alternative rock band consisting of three members: John Wozniak, Dylan Keefe (bass), and Shlomi Lavie (drums). The band is best known for their 1997 hit "Sex and Candy".
Counting Crows is an American rock band from the San Francisco Bay Area, California. Formed in 1991, the band consists of guitarist David Bryson, drummer Jim Bogios, vocalist Adam Duritz, keyboardist Charlie Gillingham, multi-instrumentalist David Immerglück, bass guitarist Millard Powers, and guitarist Dan Vickrey. Past members include the drummers Steve Bowman (1991–1994) and Ben Mize (1994–2002), and bass guitarist Matt Malley (1991–2005).
Phoenix FM is a community radio station serving the areas of Brentwood and Billericay, England on 98.0FM and online, covering an area of over 140,000 people.
Carter the Unstoppable Sex Machine were an English indie rock band formed in 1987 by singer Jim "Jim Bob" Morrison and guitarist Les "Fruitbat" Carter. They made their name with a distinctive style of power pop, fusing samples, sequenced basses and drum machines with rock 'n' roll guitars and off-beat wordplay-loaded lyrics. They reached the height of their fame in 1992. Over the following years the band took on new members, reaching a six-piece, but struggled to regain their earlier popularity. They initially split up in 1998 after releasing seven albums.
The Popes are a band originally formed by Shane MacGowan and Paul "Mad Dog" McGuinness, who play a blend of rock, Irish folk and Americana.
James Robert Morrison, known as Jim Bob, is a British musician and author. He was the singer of indie punk band Carter the Unstoppable Sex Machine.
Jamie Wednesday were a British 1980s jangle pop band, formed in Streatham, South London in 1984, that released eight songs on three records between 1985 and 1986. Previously they had been called The Ballpoints, and then they became Peter Pan's Playground, later deciding on the name Jamie Wednesday.
Abdoujaparov are a punk band formed on 19 October 1998 by ex-Carter USM guitarist Les Carter. Abdoujaparov's musical foundation is in 1977 punk rock.
Smash are an English punk rock trio, who enjoyed brief notoriety in the early 1990s in the UK. S*M*A*S*H was formed by Ed Borrie, Salvatore Alessi (bass), and Rob Hague (drums) in Welwyn Garden City in Hertfordshire, England.
Argent were an English rock band formed in 1969 by former Zombies keyboardist Rod Argent. They had three UK top 40 singles: "Hold Your Head Up", which reached number five and spent 12 weeks on the chart, "Tragedy", and "God Gave Rock and Roll to You". Two of their albums charted in the UK: All Together Now, which peaked at number 13 in 1972, and In Deep, which spent one week at number 49 in 1973.
Djamolidine Mirgarifanovich Abdoujaparov is a former professional road racing cyclist from Uzbekistan. Abdoujaparov was a sprinter, nicknamed "The Tashkent Terror" as he was so ferocious in the sprints. His unorthodox and often erratic sprinting caused a number of crashes. He competed in the individual road race at the Olympic Games on two occasions: in 1988 for the Soviet Union and in 1996 for Uzbekistan; he placed fifth in 1988.
Hammersmith Odeon, London '75 is a concert video and the fourth live album by Bruce Springsteen and The E Street Band, released in 2006. It is a full-length recording of their performance on November 18, 1975, at the Hammersmith Odeon in London, during their Born to Run tours. It was first released as a DVD on November 14, 2005, as part of the Born to Run 30th Anniversary Edition package, and then several months later on February 28, 2006, released as an audio CD. The album was reissued on vinyl for the first time for Record Store Day on April 22, 2017.
I Blame the Government is the final studio album by Carter the Unstoppable Sex Machine. It was released on Cooking Vinyl Records in 1998, and reached #92 on the UK charts.
30 Something is the second album by Carter the Unstoppable Sex Machine, released in 1991 on Rough Trade Records. It was recorded in 20 days on 8-track, costing only £4,000. The album was given a 10/10 review in NME, which described 30 Something as a "brilliant, bold record". It was prefaced with a single "Anytime Anyplace Anywhere", which was a major indie hit and also included on the album.
Post Historic Monsters is the fourth album by Carter the Unstoppable Sex Machine. It reached No. 5 on the UK Charts becoming the band's second highest album after 1992 - The Love Album which reached No. 1. The album featured two singles "Lean On Me I Won't Fall Over", which reached No. 16 on the UK charts, and "Lenny And Terence," which reached number 40. The band recorded the album with co-producer and engineer Simon Painter and worked in a much more spontaneous approach than before, to an extent that even saw the band crafting songs from accidental pieces.
Subliminal Girls are a London based pop punk/disco band.
Worry Bomb is the fifth studio album by English indie rock band Carter the Unstoppable Sex Machine, released in 1995. It reached number nine on the UK Albums Chart. It included a limited-edition CD of the live show Doma Sportova...Live at Zagreb, recorded on 20 May 1994.
101 Damnations is the debut studio album by English rock band Carter the Unstoppable Sex Machine, released on 15 January 1990 through Big Cat Records. After playing in different bands, James Robert "Jim Bob" Morrison and Les "Fruitbat" Carter formed Bob and played their first show in August 1987, before changing the name to Carter the Unstoppable Sex Machine. Over the next year, they played various shows across London before signing to Big Cat; with shows further north of the city in early 1989, a fanbase started building. The duo recorded their debut album with producer Simon Painter at Important Notice Studios, which was a garage on Painter's property, in Mitcham, South London. 101 Damnations is a punk rock and glam rock album that merges the styles of David Bowie and Pet Shop Boys, alongside loud guitars, drum machines and samples taken from films and TV shows.
The Newcranes are a British folk punk band, formed in Derby, England. They are frequently compared to the Levellers and other contemporary folk-rock groups such as The Men They Couldn't Hang. The Newcranes quickly became a popular band on the early 1990s touring circuit. They signed with French label Musidisc Records and recorded their debut album, Frontline, which garnered critical acclaim and won the band many followers. They subsequently supported The Mission, Stiff Little Fingers, Bob Dylan and The Saw Doctors, and went on to release several more EPs. The band disbanded in 1996 after several line-up changes. In 2018, the principal songwriter Mark Simpson, along with bass player Bob Rushton and drummer Marcus Carter decided to reignite the band after a campaign by fans. They recruited Jonny Wallis and Julian Butt and, on March 2019, they played a well-received reunion show at The Venue in Derby. The band have gone on to play festivals throughout the UK including Bearded Theory, Wickham Festival and Boomtown.
In 2022 Marcus Carter decided to leave the band to concentrate on other projects, Giles Henshaw took his place as the master of the beat.
Ferocious Dog are an English folk punk band from Warsop, Nottinghamshire, England. The band has headlined tours of the UK and Europe, performed in Dubai, festivals such as Bearded Theory, Alchemy, Deerstock, Farmer Phil's Festival, Splendour and Beautiful Days, and toured in support of New Model Army, The Levellers and The Wonder Stuff. In 2015 the band played in the Field of Avalon at Glastonbury Festival, attracting the third largest crowd to the stage over the course of the weekend.
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