Goodbye Mr Mackenzie | |
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![]() Left to right: John Duncan, Fin Wilson, Rona Scobie, Martin Metcalfe, Shirley Manson, Derek Kelly | |
Background information | |
Origin | Bathgate, Scotland |
Genres | Alternative rock, indie rock [1] |
Years active | 1981–1996, 2019–present |
Labels |
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Members |
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Past members |
Goodbye Mr Mackenzie is a Scottish rock band formed in Bathgate near Edinburgh. At the band's commercial peak, the line-up consisted of Martin Metcalfe on vocals, John Duncan on guitar, Fin Wilson on bass guitar, Shirley Manson and Rona Scobie on keyboards and backing vocals, and Derek Kelly on drums.
The band came to prominence in the early 1980s after releasing two independent label singles, and were signed to Capitol Records. They charted in the UK with their debut album, Good Deeds and Dirty Rags , and single release "The Rattler" but the band were hindered by record company conflicts and failed to break through outside the UK. [2] The band split up in 1993, leaving Manson, Metcalfe, Wilson and Kelly to form Angelfish to continue recording music. Manson left for Garbage in 1994, and Goodbye Mr Mackenzie played their final live show at the end of 1995. [3]
In 2019, Goodbye Mr Mackenzie reformed and embarked on a tour of Scotland. Manson did not join her former bandmates due to work commitments with Garbage. Metcalfe claimed that the band had asked Manson to join them on the tour, claiming that "people do not realise how busy she is". [4]
The band began when Martin Metcalfe moved on from his first band Teenage Dog Orgy [5] in 1984. They were named after author Jean Rhys's 1931 novel After Leaving Mr. Mackenzie . [3]
Their first single was released through a pilot music industry course run by Bathgate College under the Youth Training Scheme, a split-single 7-inch format of "Death of a Salesman" in 1984. Limited to 1,000 copies, and with a track by Lindy Bergman on the flipside, it quickly sold out. [3] Shortly after, they signed a management deal with Precious Organisation, who had just launched another Scottish group, Wet Wet Wet. Precious managed to include both groups on Honey at the Core , a 1986 compilation of up and coming Scottish acts compiled by Glasgow Herald journalist John Williamson, and released the band's first commercial single "The Rattler". The single suffered from a lack of distribution, but received airplay on Radio One and Radio Clyde. A home-made music video for the single was broadcast on The Chart Show . The band also performed "The Rattler" on The Tube . [3] Precious organised an A&R showcase in Glasgow but, as the band did not receive any interest from the labels invited, they chose to leave Precious. [3]
After leaving their management, they released an independent 12-inch single, "Face to Face", in 1987, and signed a major label record deal with Capitol Records. Capitol issued three multi-formatted singles, of which a re-release of "The Rattler" was the most successful, charting at No. 37 in 1989. The label followed up the band's chart debut with Good Deeds and Dirty Rags , which reached No. 23 on the UK Albums Chart. [3] A further single from the album, "Goodwill City", reversed the band's upward trend, stalling at No. 49. Capitol ended the year by releasing Fish Heads and Tails , a mid-price live and B-side compilation, [3] while the band relocated to studios in Berlin to record their second album. While at the studios, the band witnessed the Fall of the Berlin Wall.
The following year, the band were transferred sideways across EMI, from Capitol to Parlophone, who released two new recordings "Love Child" and "Blacker Than Black" (the latter being released across Europe and in North America) as taster singles. Both tracks failed to gain on the chart position set by "The Rattler" a year prior, and in response Parlophone cancelled the planned album release for the group's second set, titled Hammer and Tongs . [6] The band continued to tour heavily, became radio mainstays on Scottish radio and performed at the televised concert "The Big Day" on Glasgow Green.
Gary Kurfirst, who managed Talking Heads and Debbie Harry, bought the band's contract from Parlophone and signed them to his own label, Radioactive, a subsidiary of MCA. Radioactive were keen to release the band's second album, but required a chart friendly track. They completed recording "Now We Are Married", in Edinburgh, and Radioactive issued it as a single ahead of Hammer and Tongs. Both releases again failed to chart, and the group were persuaded to leave the label by their management. [6] Radioactive meanwhile released a compilation of the band's two albums self-titled as Goodbye Mr. Mackenzie in North America, Europe, Australia and Japan.
The band continued to write material; Manson was also given the opportunity to record lead vocals on a number of tracks planned for the band's third album, titled Five . [7] In the end, Manson only featured on a duet, "Normal Boy". The band issued the album on their own Blokshok label.
With relations between MCA and the band's management hitting a low point, the band left MCA. Gary Kurfirst wanted to keep working with the band and suggested they record a whole album with Shirley Manson on lead vocals. After hearing several demos, Kurfirst signed Manson to Radioactive as a solo artist, with Metcalfe, Kelly and Wilson signing the publishing deal. [6] Recording under the name Angelfish, and using some of the newly written material and a previously released Mackenzie B-side, Manson and the group recorded the tracks that would make up the Angelfish album in Connecticut with Talking Heads' Chris Frantz and Tina Weymouth. [6] A lead in track "Suffocate Me" sent to college radio where it was well received. Angelfish and second single "Heartbreak to Hate" followed in 1994. [3] Angelfish toured the United States, Canada, France, Belgium, and co-supported Live on a tour of North America, along with Vic Chesnutt. The music video for "Suffocate Me" was aired on MTV's 120 Minutes . Producer and musician Steve Marker saw the broadcast and thought Manson would be a great singer for his band, Garbage, which also featured producers Duke Erikson and Butch Vig. [8] Manson left Angelfish, and The Mackenzies, to join the group. [3]
Manson left for Garbage in 1994. Derek Kelly, Fin Wilson and Martin Metcalfe formed a new band, Isa & the Filthy Tongues with American singer Stacey Chavis.
In an interview with the Edinburgh Evening News on 4 April 2019, Martin Metcalfe announced that Goodbye Mr Mackenzie would be reforming and would be performing a mini Scottish Tour. [9] Warm up gigs were performed in Dundee on 17 May and Dunfermline on 18 May, followed by full shows in Glasgow at The Garage (venue of their farewell concert) on 22 May, Aberdeen Lemon Tree on 23 May and Edinburgh Liquid Rooms on 25 and 26 May 2019. These shows were followed up by a winter tour of the UK, [10] culminating in a sold out performance at the Glasgow Barrowlands on 20 December. [11]
During interviews to promote their tour, Metcalfe revealed that a number of hurdles had to be overcome to reunite the band, including Duncan's multiple sclerosis and the fact that Scobie had not played keyboard in over 20 years. He described Duncan's ability to relearn his guitar parts in spite of his ongoing health concerns as "something of a miracle". [12] A documentary about the reunion entitled Until the End of the Road was released in 2020. [13]
A live album entitled A Night in the Windy City was released in February 2021 and featured their 2019 performance at the Glasgow Barrowlands. [14]
Albums
Year | Album | Territory | Label | Notes |
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1989 | Good Deeds and Dirty Rags | UK | Capitol Records | Debut album Reached No. 26 on UK Albums Chart [15] |
Fish Heads and Tails | UK | Mid-price live and rarities compilation | ||
1991 | Hammer and Tongs | UK | Radioactive Records/MCA | Second studio album Reached No. 61 on the UK Albums Chart [15] |
Goodbye Mr Mackenzie | International | Compilation of tracks from both albums, remixed | ||
1993 | Live on the Day of Storms | UK | Blokshok Records | Live album |
1994 | Five | UK | Third studio album | |
1995 | Jezebel | UK | Rarities compilation | |
1996 | The Glory Hole | UK | Fourth and final studio album: Manson, Scobie and Duncan do not feature | |
2005 | The River Sessions | UK | River Records | Double live album |
2009 | The Rattler: Live '91 | UK | MD Music Company | Live album (digital release) |
Singles
Year | Song | Peak chart positions | Record label | Album | ||
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UK [15] | EU | US | ||||
1984 | "Death of a Salesman" | — | — | — | YTS | Split-single with Lindy Bergman |
1986 | "The Rattler" | 8 (Indie chart [16] ) | — | — | Precious Organisation | non-album single |
1987 | "Face to Face" | 27 (Indie chart) | — | — | Clandestine | non-album single |
1988 | "Goodbye Mr. Mackenzie" | 62 | — | — | Capitol Records | Good Deeds and Dirty Rags |
"Open Your Arms" | 92 | — | — | |||
1989 | "The Rattler" (re-release) | 37 | — | — | ||
"Goodwill City"/"I'm Sick of You" | 49 | — | — | |||
1990 | "Love Child" | 52 | — | — | Parlophone Records | Hammer and Tongs |
"Blacker Than Black" | 61 | — | — | |||
1991 | "Now We Are Married" | 80 | — | — | Radioactive Records | |
1993 | Goodwill City (live, EP) | — | — | — | Blokshok Records | Live on the Day of Storms |
Hard E.P. | — | — | — | Five | ||
1994 | The Way I Walk (EP) | — | — | — |
An early track, "Skimming Stones", appeared on the 1986 compilation cassette Honey at the Core .
Garbage is the debut studio album by American rock band Garbage. It was released on August 15, 1995, by Almo Sounds. The album was met with critical acclaim upon its release, being viewed by some as an innovative recording for its time. It reached number 20 on the US Billboard 200 and number six on the UK Albums Chart, while charting inside the top 20 and receiving multi-platinum certifications in several territories. The album's success was helped by the band promoting it on a year-long tour, including playing on the European festival circuit and supporting the Smashing Pumpkins throughout 1996, as well as by a run of increasingly successful singles culminating with "Stupid Girl", which received Grammy Award nominations for Best Rock Song and Best Rock Performance by a Duo or Group in 1997.
Shirley Ann MansonFRSA is a Scottish musician and actress. She is the lead singer of the Scottish-American rock band Garbage. Manson gained media attention for her forthright style, rebellious attitude, and distinctive deep voice. For the majority of her career, Manson commuted between her home city of Edinburgh and the U.S. to record with Garbage, which originally formed in Madison, Wisconsin; she now lives and works primarily in Los Angeles, while maintaining a second home in Edinburgh.
Angelfish was a short-lived early-1990s Scottish alternative rock group originating from Edinburgh, Scotland, formed as a side-project to Scottish group Goodbye Mr Mackenzie, after keyboardist and backing vocalist Shirley Manson was signed as a solo artist to circumvent the Mackenzies' existing record contract.
Radioactive Records was an American record label. It was formed as a joint venture between talent manager Gary Kurfirst and MCA Records, and it is now out of business. Its catalogue is now owned by Geffen Records and licensed through Universal Music Enterprises.
Angelfish is the 1994 debut and only studio album released by Scottish alternative rock group Angelfish, fronted by Shirley Manson. The Angelfish album was born out of necessity when Goodbye Mr Mackenzie's record distributor MCA expressed interest in recording an album with Manson on lead vocals rather than furthering its commitment to the Mackenzies. The Mackenzies' record label boss Gary Kurfirst signed Manson as a solo artist, with the remaining Mackenzies performing as her backing band to circumvent the band's existing deal with MCA.
Good Deeds and Dirty Rags is the first album from the Scottish group Goodbye Mr Mackenzie. It was released in the UK in 1989. The original LP was released with an accompanying 12" single.
Suffocate Me is an extended play released in 1993 by Scottish band Angelfish. While not charting on any mainstream Billboard charts, "Suffocate Me" was received well on college radio, and was followed up in 1994 by the release of Angelfish's self-titled debut album.
Hammer and Tongs is the second album from the Scottish rock group Goodbye Mr Mackenzie. It was recorded in Germany in 1989, at Berlin's Hansa Ton Studios just as the Fall of the Berlin Wall occurred. The album sat on the shelf for almost 18 months, in which time the band were transferred across EMI record labels, from Capitol to Parlophone, who released two singles from the album in 1990. Parlophone sold the band's record deal to Radioactive Records and MCA, who released Hammer and Tongs in the United Kingdom in early 1991 and encouraged the band to record a new song "Now We Are Married" to promote the release.
Five is the third album from the Scottish group Goodbye Mr Mackenzie and was self-released in 1994 by the band on their own label Blokshok Records. It has a rougher edge to it than their two previous major label albums, partly due to Martin Metcalfe being inspired by grunge music and The Pixies. The album was supported by the extended play release of "Hard" as a single. Five failed to revive interest outside of the band’s existing fanbase. Metcalfe later explained: "We turned to a harder sound and radio wasn’t prepared to play it".
Goodbye Mr. Mackenzie is a 1988 single by Scottish alternative rock group Goodbye Mr Mackenzie. It was their debut major label single, recorded for EMI's Capitol Records, following a string of well-received independent releases. Supported by the band performing the single live on national music show The Tube, "Goodbye Mr. Mackenzie" was the band's first single to reach the Top 75 of the UK Singles chart, when it peaked at #62 on its third week of release. The music video was directed by John Scarlett-Davis and produced by Nick Verden for Radar Films.
"The Rattler" is a 1986 song by Scottish alternative rock group Goodbye Mr Mackenzie and has become their most enduring track, often referred to as a "lost classic" of the Scottish music scene. The song was often described as "Springsteen-esque", even though the song had not been inspired or written in that way.
This is a list of the discography of Scottish recording artist Shirley Manson, who has performed as the lead singer of American rock band Garbage since 1993. Prior to joining Garbage, she was a backing vocalist and keyboard player for Goodbye Mr Mackenzie from 1981–1992. The band had one UK Top 40 single, "The Rattler", and a string of UK Top 100 singles – "Goodbye Mr. Mackenzie", "Love Child", "Blacker Than Black" and "Now We Are Married".
"Open Your Arms" is a 1988 single by Scottish alternative rock group Goodbye Mr Mackenzie. It was their second major label single recorded for EMI's Capitol Records.
"Goodwill City" is a 1989 single by Scottish alternative rock group Goodbye Mr Mackenzie. It was their final single release for EMI's Capitol Records, and released as a double A-side with a cover version of Iggy & The Stooges' "I'm Sick of You". "Goodwill City" was written by Martin Metcalfe and Derek Kelley, in response to their hometown of Edinburgh's reaction to the 1980s AIDS epidemic.
"Blacker Than Black" is a 1990 single by Scottish alternative rock group Goodbye Mr Mackenzie. "Blacker Than Black" was the band's second and final single release under the Parlophone label, and preceded its parent album Hammer and Tongs by almost a year. In 1991, after Goodbye Mr Mackenzie had signed to Radioactive Records, "Blacker Than Black" was remixed and released as an international single and featured on their debut international album release, also titled Goodbye Mr Mackenzie.
"Love Child" is a 1990 single by Scottish alternative rock group Goodbye Mr Mackenzie. It was their debut single release for EMI's Parlophone record label. "Love Child" was taken from the band's second studio album Hammer and Tongs which was released the following year.
"Now We Are Married" is a 1991 single by Scottish alternative rock group Goodbye Mr Mackenzie. It was their first single release for Gary Kurfirst's Radioactive Records label after their record deal was bought from Parlophone, and followed the previous year's singles "Love Child" and "Blacker Than Black". The "Now We Are Married" single immediately preceded the release of the band's second studio album Hammer and Tongs.
"Face to Face" is a 1987 single released by Scottish alternative rock group Goodbye Mr Mackenzie. It was their third independent single release, and their last before signing a major label deal with EMI's Capitol Records.
The Way I Walk is a 1994 extended play single by Scottish alternative rock group Goodbye Mr Mackenzie.
Jacob's Ladder is the first album from the Scottish group the Filthy Tongues and was self-released in 2016 by the band on their own label Blokshok Records, in association with Neon Tetra. The album follows Addiction and Dark Passenger, two records recorded by an earlier incarnation of the band known as Isa & the Filthy Tongues, as well as following the albums released by the members earlier major label bands Goodbye Mr Mackenzie and Angelfish.