New Fast Automatic Daffodils

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New Fast Automatic Daffodils
Origin Manchester, England
Genres Alternative rock
Madchester
Years active1988–1995
Labels Playtime / Play It Again Sam / Strange Fruit
Mute Records
MembersAndy Spearpoint (vocals)
Dolan Hewison (guitar)
Justin Crawford (bass)
Perry Saunders (drums)
Icarus Wilson-Wright (percussion)

New Fast Automatic Daffodils (later shortened to New FADS) were an alternative rock group from Manchester, England, active between 1988 and 1995.

Contents

History

Formed in 1988 by Dolan Hewison (guitar), Justin Crawford (bass), Perry Saunders (drums) in Hulme whilst students at Manchester Polytechnic, the line-up was complete when Andy Spearpoint, who at the time was at drama school in Manchester, [1] joined on vocals. The name comes from a poem by Adrian Henri that mixed an advertisement for the Dutch DAF car with the Wordsworth poem [1] I wandered Lonely As A Cloud. Often associated with the 'Madchester' scene of the late 1980s, but never really part of that scene, [2] taking more inspiration from post punk labels such as Postcard Records, the band's debut single, "Lions" was released in 1989 on Playtime Records (then home to Inspiral Carpets), followed the same year by the Music Is Shit EP. In 1990, after the success of their breakthrough single "Big" they signed to Play It Again Sam Records, September of that year seeing the release of "Fishes Eyes", and debut album Pigeonhole appearing in November, which reached the UK top 50. [3]

They developed a brilliant live reputation touring the UK,Europe and the US having secured deals with Mute / Elektra in the States. Further singles followed in 1991 working with legendary Factory Producer Martin Hannett on a rerecorded version of "Get Better". and in 1992 they de-camped to Belgium to work with the equally famous Craig Leon on their second album Body Exit Mind, a more experimental record that was mostly recorded in live takes trying to capture the elusive live performances the band were famed for. Released in October 1992 and reaching No. 57 in the UK it spawned two NME singles of the week with 'Its Not What You Know" and "Stockholm" which became a top 10 college radio hit in the US>. 1994 saw the band shorten their name to New FADS, with 2 EPs released that year, before a final album, "Love It All " in 1995. The band split up in 1995.

The band recorded three sessions for John Peel's radio show, [4] the first two of which were compiled onto an album, The Peel Sessions in 1991. Their song "Big" also reached No. 14 in the Festive Fifty in 1990 [4] and featured on the influential 1990 compilation album Happy Daze. Their lone charting success in the United States was the single "Stockholm", which reached No. 30 on the Billboard Modern Rock charts in 1993. [5]

Singer Andy Spearpoint also flirted with acting, having a small part in Coronation Street . [2]

Post band activities

Andy Spearpoint [6] now lives in Ireland and is embarking on an MA in music. Dolan Hewison [7] is Managing Director of the ad agency Ear to the Ground and has recently released an album under the name Au-Turn. Icarus Wilson-Wright [8] as well as working with Basement Jaxx as a percussionist is also a Video Artist working with Massive Attack and also exhibiting in the Turbine Hall at the Tate Modern. Justin Crawford [9] is one part of DJ duo Unabombers and the infamous Electric Chair night as well as a prolific career as an artist recording solo under the name Only Child.

Discography

Singles

  1. Lions
  2. Fate Don't Fail Me Now
  3. Your Dreams My Nightmares
  1. Beam Me Up
  2. A Man Without Qualities
  3. Music Is Shit parts 1-3

CD version (AMUSE 6CD) contained an extra track Lions, taken from the first 12”

  1. Big 6:13
  2. Big (Baka) 6:30
  3. Big (Instrumental) 6:32
  1. Fishes Eyes 6:46
  2. Fishes Eyes (Underwater) 5:19
  3. White 3:51
  1. Get Better 4:30
  2. Pigeonhole (Edit) 4:52
  3. I Found Myself in Another Room 3:52
  4. Get Better (Version 1) 4:29
  1. All Over My Face 3:53
  2. All Over My Face (Split Decision) 5:20
  3. All Over My Face (Off the Road) 4:56
  4. Why The Hard Man Fail 4:42
  1. Big (Edit) 4:12
  2. Big (Baka) 6:30
  3. Get Better 4:30
  4. Get Better (Extended) 6:30
  5. White 3:50
  1. It's Not What You Know 4:07
  2. Head On 3:28
  3. Beatlemania 4:50
  4. Beautiful 4:40

cd tracks:

  1. Stockholm 5:10
  2. Stockholm (Edit) 4:12
  3. Cannes 4:25

10" tracks:

  1. Stockholm (Demo Version)
  2. It's Not What You Know (Demo Version)
  3. Hexagon Spring
  1. Bong 4:06
  2. It's Not What You Know 4:08
  3. Head On 3:28
  4. Beautiful 4:40
  5. Cannes 4:25
  1. Life Is An Accident 3:02
  2. Every Once In A While (Fuzzy Logic) 6:04
  3. Aches And Pains 3:50
  1. Life Is An Accident 3:02
  2. PSV (VPL) 7:55
  3. Mad Pop 3:03
  1. These Foolish Things 4:31
  2. Every Once In A While 4:15

Albums

  1. Get Better 3:52
  2. Fishes Eyes 7:04
  3. Working for Him 4:17
  4. Part 4 4:13
  5. Big 6:08
  6. You Were Lying When You Said You Loved Me 4:17
  7. Amplifier 3:57
  8. Reprise 3:47
  9. Partial 6:26
  10. Penguins 3:51
  11. I Found Myself In Another Room 3:51
  12. Pigeonhole 6:06

Some vinyl copies of Pigeonhole had a free 7" with a cover of the Velvet Underground's 'I'm Set Free'

  1. Purple Haze 1:46
  2. Man Without Qualities II 3:19
  3. Jaggerbog 3:42
  4. Big 5:32
  5. Get Better 3:25
  6. Part 4 4:29
  7. Man Without Qualities One 4:44
  1. Bong 4:05
  2. It's Not What You Know 4:07
  3. Stockholm 5:12
  4. I Take You To Sleep 3:52
  5. Bruises 6:58
  6. How Much Longer Must We Tolerate Mass Culture? 1:19
  7. Kyphos 4:44
  8. Teenage Combo 0:25
  9. Beatlemania 4:50
  10. What Kind Of Hell Is This? 0:39
  11. American Money 4:28
  12. Missing Parts Of Famous People 1:05
  13. Patchwork Lives 5:08
  14. Music 8:08
  15. Exit Body, Exit Mind 1:02
  1. These Foolish Things 4:31
  2. Life Is An Accident 3:02
  3. Left Right 3:59
  4. Every Once In a While 4:15
  5. Why Waste Your Love 3:35
  6. Monday It Is 4:15
  7. Saxophone 3:35
  8. What I Feel 3:52
  9. PSV 4:15
  10. Kill My Instincts 3:34
  11. Souvenir 1:54

Other appearances

[10]

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References

  1. 1 2 Dawn, Rendee (1991) "Going Down a Storm", Lime Lizard, October 1991, p. 38-40
  2. 1 2 Robb, John (1991) Yellow Peril, SIREN, Issue 5, pp.57-58, Pegasus Publishing Ltd
  3. ↑ Strong, Martin C.: "The Great Alternative & Indie Discography", 1999, Canongate, ISBN   0-86241-913-1
  4. 1 2 "BBC - Radio 1 - Keeping It Peel - New Fast Automatic Daffodils". Bbc.co.uk.
  5. ↑ Billboard, AllMusic
  6. ↑ "BBC - Leeds - all_2gether_now - Carabali". Bbc.co.uk.
  7. ↑ "Dolan Hewison | Beyond Engagement". Archived from the original on 10 July 2010. Retrieved 9 February 2008.
  8. ↑ "The Stage / Features / Backstage / Gig rigging". Archived from the original on 11 June 2011. Retrieved 9 February 2008.
  9. ↑ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 9 December 2007. Retrieved 9 February 2008.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  10. ↑ Roberts, David (2006). British Hit Singles & Albums (19th ed.). London: Guinness World Records Limited. p. 391. ISBN   1-904994-10-5.
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