Teenage Superstars

Last updated
Teenage Superstars
Directed by Grant McPhee
Written byAngela Slaven
Produced by
  • Grant McPhee
  • Wendy Griffin
  • Erik Sandberg
  • Angela Slaven
Starring
Narrated by Kim Deal
Cinematography
  • Grant McPhee
  • Martin Parry
  • Garry Torrance
Edited byAngela Slaven
Distributed by Tartan Features
Release date
  • June 2017 (2017-06)
Running time
107 minutes
CountryScotland
LanguageEnglish

Teenage Superstars is a 2017 film about the Glasgow independent music scene between 1982 and 1992, focusing on the bands that emerged from in and around the city at this point including The Pastels, BMX Bandits, The Soup Dragons, Teenage Fanclub, The Vaselines, The Jesus and Mary Chain and Primal Scream. In doing so, the film also considers the early days of Creation Records and Stephen Pastel, David Keegan and Sandy McLean’s 53rd & 3rd record label. The film follows on chronologically from 2015's Big Gold Dream , also directed by Grant McPhee, with its title taken from The Vaselines song "Teenage Superstars".

Contents

Overview

Teenage Superstars charts a generation of musicians from Glasgow and Lanarkshire from 1982. Broadly speaking, it is chronologically structured, while also tracing the geographical and social connections between some of the bands (for example, the childhood friendship of Sean Dickson, Duglas T. Stewart and Norman Blake, all from Bellshill). The film's story follows the formation of the featured bands, the friendships between them and sharing of band members, the commercial success of The Soup Dragons, Primal Scream and Teenage Fanclub, and the bond between the Scottish and US indie scenes of the early 1990s before the scene they had created gave way to Britpop.

Production

McPhee had originally planned to make a single film - titled The Sound of Young Scotland - about Postcard Records and The Fire Engines, but as production continued, found that "a fuller story was beginning to emerge," and that the story of the Glaswegian scene from 1982, while a continuation of Big Gold Dream, was a story in its own right "which warranted a film in itself." [1]

Release

Teenage Superstars premiered on 22 June 2017 at the Edinburgh International Film Festival, [2] where it was nominated for the Audience Award and Best Documentary, [3] going on to show at Raindance in September of that year. [4] The film is due for a cinematic release in 2018.

Reception

Teenage Superstars has received generally positive reviews, including 4 out of 5 stars in both The List [5] and The Skinny, [6] with The Herald calling it "a real treat for music fans". [7]

It received its cinema premiere in 2018 at the Glasgow Film Festival [8] and was part of the National Museum of Scotland's 2018 "Rip It Up" exhibition, screening at Edinburgh's Filmhouse. [9]

Having completed a successful festival run, the documentary was picked up by Sky Arts, receiving its television premiere on the 23 January 2021. [10] It was highly reviewed as Pick of the Day on The Guardian, The Times and The Telegraph.

Rolling Stone included Teenage Superstars in their 10 Essential British Documentaries alongside The Beatles 'Get Back'. [11]

An interview only companion film, Fast Forward that covers the contemporaneous Edinburgh scene was announced in 2021 [12]

A book called Postcards From Scotland, was released in 2024 which covers the film subject in far greater detail while bringing in the Edinburgh side of the story that was to be covered in the unreleased companion film, Fast Forward. [13]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Creation Records</span> British record label

Creation Records Ltd. was a British independent record label founded in 1983 by Alan McGee, Dick Green, and Joe Foster. Its name came from the 1960s band The Creation, whom McGee greatly admired. The label ceased operations in 1999, although it was revived at one point in 2011 for the release of the compilation album Upside Down.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Alan McGee</span> Scottish music industry executive

Alan John McGee is a Scottish businessman and music industry executive. He has been a record label owner, musician, manager, and music blogger for The Guardian. He co-founded the independent Creation Records label, running it from 1983 until its closure in 1999.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Vaselines</span> Scottish alternative rock band

The Vaselines are a Scottish alternative rock band. Formed in Glasgow, Scotland in 1986, the band was originally a duo between its songwriters Eugene Kelly and Frances McKee, but later added James Seenan and Eugene's brother Charlie Kelly on bass and drums respectively from the band Secession. McKee had formerly been a member of a band named The Pretty Flowers with Duglas T. Stewart, Norman Blake, Janice McBride and Sean Dickson. Eugene Kelly had formerly played in The Famous Monsters.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Teenage Fanclub</span> Scottish alternative rock band

Teenage Fanclub are a Scottish alternative rock band formed in Glasgow in 1989. The group were founded by Norman Blake, Raymond McGinley and Gerard Love, all of whom shared lead vocals and songwriting duties until Love's departure in 2018. As of 2023, the band's lineup consists of Blake, McGinley, Francis Macdonald, Dave McGowan and Euros Childs.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Pastels</span> Scottish indie rock band

The Pastels are an indie rock group from Glasgow formed in 1981. They were a key act of the Scottish and British independent music scenes of the 1980s, and are specifically credited for the development of an independent and confident music scene in Glasgow. The group have had a number of members, but currently consists of Stephen McRobbie, Katrina Mitchell, Tom Crossley, John Hogarty, Alison Mitchell and Suse Bear.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Soup Dragons</span> Scottish alternative rock band

The Soup Dragons are a Scottish alternative rock band of the late 1980s and early 1990s. Named after a character in the 1970s children's television series Clangers, the group is best known for its cover of the Rolling Stones' song "I'm Free", which was a top 5 hit in the United Kingdom in 1990; and "Divine Thing", a top 40 hit in the United States in 1992.

Brendan O'Hare is a Scottish multi-instrumentalist musician, primarily known for being the drummer in the rock band Teenage Fanclub from 1989 until early 1994, and a member of and collaborator with Mogwai.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">BMX Bandits (band)</span> Scottish pop rock band

BMX Bandits are a Scottish guitar pop band formed in Bellshill in 1986. Led by songwriter and lead vocalist Duglas T. Stewart, their music is heavily influenced by 1960s pop. They have shared members with numerous other local bands, including Teenage Fanclub and the Soup Dragons. BMX Bandits were a favourite band of Kurt Cobain, who said "If I could be in any other band, it would be BMX Bandits". In 2011, they were the subject of the documentary Serious Drugs: A Film About BMX Bandits.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Edinburgh International Film Festival</span> Movie festival in Scotland

The Edinburgh International Film Festival (EIFF), established in 1947, is the world's oldest continually running film festival. EIFF presents both UK and international films, in all genres and lengths. It also presents themed retrospectives and other specialized programming strands.

The Bowlie Weekender was a music festival curated by Belle & Sebastian at the Pontin's Holiday camp in Camber Sands, Sussex between Friday 23 and Sunday 25 April 1999.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Norman Blake (Scottish musician)</span> Scottish singer, songwriter and musician

Norman Blake is a Scottish singer, instrumentalist and songwriter in the Glasgow-based band Teenage Fanclub.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Frances McKee</span> Musical artist

Frances McKee is a Scottish singer and songwriter known best for her work in the Scottish indie band The Vaselines.

James Lambie is a contemporary visual artist, and was shortlisted for the 2005 Turner Prize with an installation called Mental Oyster.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Eugene Kelly</span> Musical artist

Eugene Kelly is a Scottish musician who is a member of the group The Vaselines, a founding member of the now disbanded Eugenius and has had a number of solo releases.

Sandra Alland is a Glasgow-based Scottish-Canadian writer, interdisciplinary artist, small press publisher, performer, filmmaker, and curator. Alland's work focuses on social justice, language, humour, and experimental forms.

Big Gold Dream is a 2015 film documenting the story of Scotland's post-punk scene, focusing on record labels Fast Product and Postcard Records. Directed by filmmaker Grant McPhee, the film's name is taken from the 1981 Fire Engines single of the same name, the final release on the Pop Aural label.

Tartan Features is a filmmaking network and distribution platform based in Scotland. It supports the production of micro-budget feature films.

Grant McPhee is a Scottish film director, cinematographer and writer. His films include the music documentaries Big Gold Dream, Teenage Superstars and the drama, Far From the Apple Tree starring Sorcha Groundsell. He won the prestigious audience choice award in 2015 for his film Big Gold Dream at the 2015 edition of the Edinburgh International Film Festival. In 2022, he co-wrote the book, Hungry Beat, an oral history of Scottish Post-Punk music which was published by White Rabbit Books.

Postcards From Scotland is a 2024 book by Scottish film director Grant McPhee that covers Scotland's 1980's and 1990's independent music scene. It focuses on the stories of The Pastels, Shop Assistants, The Jesus and Mary Chain, Primal Scream, The Soup Dragons, BMX Bandits, The Vaselines, Eugenius, Jesse Garon, and the Desperadoes, Finitribe, The Motorcycle Boy, The Big Gun, and Rote Kapelle.

References

  1. ↑ "Teenage Superstars – An Interview with Grant McPhee". For Malcontents Only. 2016-09-10. Retrieved 2018-06-08.
  2. ↑ "Teenage Superstars". www.edfilmfest.org.uk. Retrieved 2018-06-06.
  3. ↑ "Edinburgh International Film Festival unveils 2017 line-up". Screen. Retrieved 2018-06-08.
  4. ↑ "Teenage Superstars". calendar.raindancefestival.org. Retrieved 2018-06-06.
  5. ↑ "Teenage Superstars". The List. 2017-06-28. Retrieved 2018-06-06.
  6. ↑ "Teenage Superstars review: Scottish music doc - The Skinny" . Retrieved 2018-06-06.
  7. ↑ "Edinburgh International Film Festival reviews:Teenage Superstars; Godspeed; Sexy Durga". HeraldScotland. 26 June 2017. Retrieved 2018-06-06.
  8. ↑ "Teenage Superstars | Glasgow Film Festival". Glasgow Film Festival.
  9. ↑ "Teenage Superstars | Filmhouse" (PDF).
  10. ↑ "TV tonight: the story behind the golden age of Scottish indie". The Guardian. 2021-01-23. Retrieved 2021-05-02.
  11. ↑ O'Neill, Lauren; joegoggins (2022-02-24). "The essential British music documentaries you need to watch". Rolling Stone UK. Retrieved 2023-01-03.
  12. ↑ McPhee, Grant (2021-10-23), Fast Forward (Documentary), Digital Onset, retrieved 2023-01-03
  13. ↑ Louder Than War article on Postcards From Scotland.
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