Level 42 are an English jazz-funk band from the Isle of Wight. Formed in late 1979, the group were originally an instrumental outfit consisting of bassist Mark King, keyboardist Mike Lindup, guitarist Rowland "Boon" Gould and drummer Phil Gould. [1] Shortly after their formation, the band were encouraged to add vocals to their music, with both King and Lindup taking on lead vocalist duties. [2] The group's lineup remained constant throughout much of the 1980s, before the Gould brothers left in October 1987. [3] After suffering exhaustion on tour, Boon and Phil were replaced for shows at the end of the year by Paul Gendler and Neil Conti, respectively. [4] Early the next year, King and Lindup enlisted Steve Topping, soon replaced by Alan Murphy, and Gary Husband as their new permanent bandmates, [5] after deciding against continuing with supporting musicians. [6]
Topping left Level 42 due to musical differences after tour dates in early 1988. [7] He was replaced later by Alan Murphy, who debuted on Staring at the Sun later in the year. [8] On 19 October 1989, however, Murphy died of pneumonia resulting from AIDS. [9] The group took a year off before returning to record Guaranteed , on which the three official members worked with guitarists Allan Holdsworth and Dominic Miller. [10] Holdsworth also performed on tour dates in December 1990. [11] Early the following year, before the album's release, Jakko Jakszyk joined as Murphy's permanent touring replacement. [12] After more tour dates, Husband left Level 42 in March 1992. [11] Phil Gould returned in his place the following year, although only for the recording of Forever Now . [13] He was replaced for subsequent tour dates by Gavin Harrison. [14]
After breaking up at the end of their 1994 tour, Level 42 reformed in late 2001 after King secured the rights to use the band name. Joining the frontman were his brother Nathan on guitar, Sean Freeman on saxophone, and returning members Husband (drums) and Lyndon Connah (keyboards). [15] [16] In 2003, an original lineup reunion was attempted by King, Lindup and the Gould brothers (along with frequent contributor Wally Badarou), however after "about four days" of writing new material it "just fell apart". [13] Lindup collaborated with the band again in 2005 to record some keyboard parts for their new studio album Retroglide , [17] before returning on a full-time basis the next year. [18] Billy Cobham substituted for Husband at a number of shows in 2008, [19] [20] before the regular drummer was replaced by Pete Ray Biggin in 2010. [2]
In October 2013, Level 42 released their first new studio material since 2006, the Sirens EP, which introduced new band members Dan Carpenter on trumpet and Nichol Thomson on trombone. [21] The newly expanded horn section later joined the group on tour in 2014. [22]
Image | Name | Years active | Instruments | Release contributions |
---|---|---|---|---|
Mark King |
|
| all Level 42 releases | |
Mike Lindup |
|
| all Level 42 releases from Level 42 (1981) to Forever Now (1994), and from Level 42 at Rockpalast (2005) onwards | |
Nathan King | 2001–present |
| all Level 42 releases from Live 2001 Reading UK (2002) to Live at the Apollo (2004), and from Retroglide (2006) onwards | |
Sean "Skip" Freeman |
| |||
Pete Ray Biggin | 2010–present |
| all Level 42 releases from 1980–2010: 30th Anniversary World Tour (2011) onwards | |
Dan Carpenter | 2013–present |
|
| |
Nichol Thomson |
|
Image | Name | Years active | Instruments | Release contributions |
---|---|---|---|---|
Phil Gould |
|
|
| |
Rowland "Boon" Gould |
|
|
| |
Gary Husband |
|
| all Level 42 releases from Staring at the Sun (1988) to Guaranteed Live (1992), from Live at Wembley (1996) to Live at the Apollo (2004), and from Retroglide (2006) to Live in Holland 2009 (2009) | |
Steve Topping | 1988 | guitar | none | |
Alan Murphy | 1988–1989 (until his death) |
| ||
Lyndon Connah |
|
|
|
Image | Name | Years active | Instruments | Release contributions | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Gary Barnacle |
| saxophone |
| Barnacle toured with Level 42 during the 1980s and 1990s, and featured on several studio albums. [23] | |
Krys Mach | 1984–1988 |
| Mach took over from Barnacle in 1984, and remained part of the touring band until Barnacle's return. [23] | ||
Annie McCaig | 1985–1992 | backing vocals | Guaranteed (1991) | McCaig joined the touring band after the release of World Machine , appearing on several albums and tours. [23] | |
Paul Gendler | 1987 | guitar | none | Following the Gould brothers' departures, Gendler and Conti filled in for remaining tour dates later that year. [4] | |
Neil Conti | drums | ||||
John Thirkell | 1988–1994 | trumpet |
| Thirkell was added to the group's touring lineup as its first trumpeter in 1988, once Barnacle had returned. [23] | |
Allan Holdsworth | 1990 (died 2017) | guitar | Guaranteed (1991) | After the death of Alan Murphy in 1989, Holdsworth recorded on Guaranteed and subsequent tour dates. [11] | |
Jakko Jakszyk | 1991–1994 |
| Jakszyk joined after Holdsworth's short stint in the group, remaining until the band broke up in 1994. [12] | ||
Gavin Harrison | 1994 | drums | none | Following Phil Gould's second departure, Harrison performed drums on the 1994 Forever Now tour. [14] | |
Billy Cobham | 2008 | Cobham substituted for Gary Husband during 2008, when the regular drummer was unavailable. [19] [20] |
Image | Name | Years active | Instruments | Release contributions |
---|---|---|---|---|
Wally Badarou |
|
| all Level 42 releases from Level 42 (1981) to Forever Now (1994) | |
Leroy Williams | 1981–1982 |
|
| |
Dave Chambers | tenor saxophone | |||
Pete Wingfield | 1982 | clavinet | The Pursuit of Accidents (1982) | |
Pete Jacobson | synthesizers | |||
Paulinho da Costa | 1983 | percussion | Standing in the Light (1983) | |
Andrew Woolfolk | soprano saxophone | |||
Steve Sidwell | 1988 | trumpet | Staring at the Sun (1988) | |
Dominic Miller | 1988–1991 | guitars |
| |
Danny Blume | 1993–1994 | Forever Now (1994) | ||
Miles Bould | percussion | |||
Mitey | voice | |||
Derek Watkins | trumpet | |||
Stuart Brooks | ||||
Richard Edwards | trombone |
Period | Members | Releases |
---|---|---|
Late 1979 – October 1987 (Classic Lineup) |
|
|
October 1987 – early 1988 |
| none – live performances only |
Early 1988 |
| |
Early 1988 – October 1989 |
|
|
October 1989 – late 1990 |
|
|
December 1990 |
| none – live performances only |
Early 1991 – March 1992 |
|
|
Early 1993 – mid-1994 |
|
|
Mid – late 1994 |
| none – live performances only |
Group inactive 1994–2001 | ||
Late 2001 – May 2006 |
|
|
May 2006 – February 2010 |
|
|
February 2010 – late 2013 |
|
|
Late 2013 – present |
|
|
Level 42 are an English jazz-funk band formed on the Isle of Wight in 1979. They had a number of UK and worldwide hits during the 1980s and 1990s.
Mark Raymond King is an English musician. He is the lead singer and bassist of the jazz-funk band Level 42. King is known for his slap style of playing the bass guitar, with MusicRadar describing him as "the guy who put the slap in pop during the 80s". King received a BASCA Gold Badge Award in October 2015 in recognition of his contribution to British music. He won the "Outer Limits" award at the 2017 Progressive Music Awards.
Philip Gabriel Gould is a British drummer, songwriter and singer from the Isle of Wight in southern England. He founded the band Level 42 with Mark King.
Running in the Family is the seventh studio album by British band Level 42, released in 1987. It features the UK hit singles: "Lessons in Love", "Running in the Family", "To Be with You Again", "It's Over" and "Children Say". All five singles peaked in the Top 10 in the Netherlands. "Lessons in Love" peaked at No. 1 in Germany, South Africa, Switzerland and Denmark. This was the last Level 42 album of the 1980s to feature brothers Phil (drums) and Rowland 'Boon' Gould (guitar) who had cited dissatisfaction with the musical direction of the band and exhaustion as departure reasons.
Level 42 is the debut album released in August 1981 by the British group Level 42.
Forever Now is the 10th studio album released by British pop musical group Level 42, released in March 1994. There were two releases of the album with different track-listings and cover art. The first release in 1994 on RCA Records has 11 tracks. In 1996, the album was re-issued by the label Resurgence, with 15 tracks including six additional tracks, but without the songs "Tired Of Waiting" and "All Over You". Also, some of the songs on this version varied in length from those on the RCA release, and the track "Billy's Gone" was completely remixed. The Resurgence album was re-released in 2009 by the label Edsel, as a double CD, bringing "Tired Of Waiting" and "All Over You" back to the track-listing again, and also adding extended remixes of "All Over You", "Forever Now", "Learn To Say No" and "Love In A Peaceful World". The sleeve notes for the reissue state that the Resurgence version of the album contained the original intended track- listing.
Retroglide is the eleventh studio album by English jazz-funk band Level 42. It was released 12 years after their previous album and reached the UK Top 80. It is a mix of electronica with Level 42's traditional blend of funk and pop. The album is notable for featuring songs written by Boon Gould, the band's original guitarist and bassist/vocalist Mark King.
Gary Husband is an English jazz and rock drummer, pianist, keyboard player and bandleader. He is also a composer, arranger and producer.
Michael David Lindup is a musician best known as the keyboard player and falsetto-voiced singer who joined Mark King and brothers Phil and Boon Gould to form the British jazz-funk/pop rock band Level 42.
Guaranteed is the ninth studio album by the British musical group Level 42, released in 1991, their first album of the 1990s. The album was released by RCA records and it was the first Level 42 studio album released by a label other than Polydor.
True Colours is the fifth studio album by the English jazz-funk band Level 42, released on 5 October 1984 by Polydor Records. Beyond the band's native United Kingdom, the album was released in 10-plus other countries, including Japan, Germany and the United States of America. The album peaked at #14 in the UK Albums Chart.
Staring at the Sun is the eighth studio album by British jazz/funk band Level 42, released in 1988. The album includes the singles "Heaven in My Hands", "Take a Look" and "Tracie".
Level Best is a compilation album featuring the most successful singles by the English band Level 42. It was released at the end of 1989, marking a decade since the band's beginnings.
The Very Best of Level 42 is a greatest hits album by English jazz-funk band Level 42. It features a chronological track listing of the band's hit single releases from 1981 to 1994.
"Guaranteed" is a song by English jazz-funk band Level 42. It was released in August 1991 by RCA Records on the album of the same name (1991). It was the group's first single of the 1990s, and came two years after the group's previous single, "Take Care of Yourself".
"Heaven in My Hands" is a song by English jazz-funk band Level 42, released in August 1988 as the first single from their eighth studio album, Staring at the Sun (1988). It reached number 12 on the UK Singles Chart. It was the first Level 42 single not to feature the Gould brothers, Boon and Phil, following their departure from the band the previous year. However, Boon did write the song's lyrics.
"Tracie" is a song by English jazz-funk band Level 42, written by Gary Husband and Mark King, and recounts King's times with his childhood sweetheart, Tracie Wilson. It appeared on the band's 1988 album Staring at the Sun, and features keyboardist Mike Lindup playing harmonica.
The Definitive Collection is a greatest hits album by English jazz-funk band Level 42, released in June 2006. The album peaked at number 20 on the UK Albums Chart.
Past Lives – The Best of the RCA Years is a compilation released in 2007 by English jazz-funk band Level 42. The compilation has the greatest songs of the period 1991–1996, in which the band was with the label RCA/BMG. All songs were released on the studio albums Guaranteed (1991) and Forever Now (1994).
"Take Care of Yourself" is a song by English jazz-funk band Level 42, released on the compilation album Level Best in 1989. It was the last song recorded with guitarist Alan Murphy, who died on 19 October 1989, three days after the single was issued. The music video is a retrospective of rock styles from the 1960s through to the '80s, and features state-of-the-art animation. In some ways it is reminiscent of the video "We Close Our Eyes" by Go West. Mike Lindup, Gary Husband and Mark King appear several times dressed as hippies, punks and heavy metal musicians. Murphy did not appear in this video, but does appear in a video alongside King, Lindup and Husband recorded for RTL Veronique a few days before his death.