The Snowmen (band)

Last updated

The Snowmen
Genres Novelty/children
Years active1981–87
Labels Stiff Records
Past members
  • Martin Kershaw
  • Nick Portlock
  • Jonathan Miller
  • Bob Butterworth

The Snowmen was a novelty band created by Stiff Records in 1981.

Contents

History

In 1981, Ian Dury left Stiff for Polydor Records, [1] and, as a cash-in for the Christmas market, Stiff commissioned session musicians to record a version of the Hokey Cokey with a Dury-soundalike vocal from Martin Kershaw, whose credits included guitar on "Kung Fu Fighting" and "Dance Yourself Dizzy", [2] and playing banjo on 120 episodes of the Muppet Show. [3] The other musicians on the recording were Nick Portlock, Jonathan Miller, and Bob Butterworth. [4]

Stiff enigmatically refused to confirm the identity of the genuine vocalist, [5] leading to speculation that it actually was Dury. [6] For more implausible deniability, Stiff created an antonymous sub-label, called Slack, with a logo based on a pile of nutty slack, on which to release the single; Kershaw and Portlock co-wrote the b-side. [7]

The recording reached the top 20 of the UK and Irish singles charts, and Stiff press officer Nigel Dick, with other staff from the Stiff offices, donned snowman costumes for a video [8] [9] (shot in Brimpton, Berkshire) and appearance on the 17 December 1981 edition of Top of the Pops. [10]

Kershaw re-emerged with a medley single in 1982, [11] this time on Kershaw's own Solid Records label. [12] The Snowmen's final single came in 1986, with a version of the nursery rhyme This Old Man, by which time Dury himself was claiming to be involved, saying he "did it as a joke". [13]

Discography

Albums

YearAlbum UK
1981Hokey Cokey Party: The Album–

Singles

YearSong UK
[14] 		RoI [15]
1981"The Hokey Cokey"1817
1982"Xmas Party"44–
1986"Nik Nak Paddy Wak"80–
"—" denotes releases that did not chart.

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References

  1. ↑ "Albums". The Stage: 9. 19 November 1981.
  2. ↑ "The Snowmen - Nik Nak Paddywack". Left and to the back. Retrieved 24 January 2024.
  3. ↑ "What a record!". Reading Evening Post: 13. 10 December 1988.
  4. ↑ "Unmasked: the singing Snowman". Reading Evening Post: 7. 2 January 1982.
  5. ↑ "Snowman secret revealed". The Stiff Records Story. Retrieved 24 January 2024.
  6. ↑ "Revealed". Coventry Evening Telegraph: 9. 31 December 1981.
  7. ↑ "The Snowmen (2) - Hokey Cokey". discogs. Retrieved 24 January 2024.
  8. ↑ "Dick's resume". Nigel Dick. Retrieved 24 January 2024.
  9. ↑ "Hokey Cokey by The Snowmen". youtube. Retrieved 24 January 2024.
  10. ↑ "17/12/1981". BBC. Retrieved 24 January 2024.
  11. ↑ "The Snowmen (2) – Xmas Party". discogs. Retrieved 24 January 2024.
  12. ↑ "Festive hit for Snowmen". Coventry Evening Telegraph: 28. 9 December 1982.
  13. ↑ "Ian's cracker". Birmingham Evening Mail: 13. 6 December 1986.
  14. ↑ "SNOWMEN". Official Charts Company . "Snowman Melody" is in fact "Xmas Party" with an incorrect name.
  15. ↑ "Irish Charts". Irish Charts. Retrieved 24 January 2024.
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