The Tourists

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The Tourists
The Tourists 1980.jpg
The Tourists, 1980—L-R: Jim Toomey, Eddie Chin, Annie Lennox, Peet Coombes, and Dave Stewart
Background information
Origin London, England
Genres
Years active1976–1980
Labels
Spinoffs Eurythmics
Past members Dave Stewart
Peet Coombes
Annie Lennox
Eddie Chin
Jim Toomey

The Tourists were a British rock and pop band. They achieved brief success in the late 1970s before the band split in 1980. Two of its members, singer Annie Lennox and guitarist Dave Stewart, went on to international success as Eurythmics. [1]

Contents

Early history

Guitarists Peet Coombes and Dave Stewart were members of the folk rock band Longdancer, [1] which was on Elton John's Rocket Records label. [2] They moved to London, where they met singer Annie Lennox, who had dropped out of a course at the Royal Academy of Music to pursue her ambitions in pop music. [1]

Forming a band in 1976, the three of them initially called themselves The Catch. In 1977, the band released a single named "Borderline/Black Blood" on Logo Records. [1] It was released in the UK, the Netherlands, Spain, and Portugal, but was not a commercial success.

The Tourists

By 1976, they had recruited bass guitarist Eddie Chin and drummer Jim Toomey (without exception, billed throughout his time with the Tourists as Jim "Do It" Toomey), and renamed themselves The Tourists. [1] This was the beginning of a productive period for the band and they released three albums: The Tourists (1979), Reality Effect (1979), and Luminous Basement (1980), as well as half a dozen singles, including "Blind Among the Flowers" (1979), "The Loneliest Man in the World" (1979), "Don't Say I Told You So" (1980), and two hits, the Dusty Springfield cover "I Only Want to Be with You" (1979) [3] and "So Good to Be Back Home Again" (1980), both of which reached the top 10 in the UK. [4]

"I Only Want to Be with You" was also a top-10 hit in Australia [5] and reached number 83 on the US Billboard Hot 100. [6] Coombes was the band's main songwriter, although later releases had the first compositions by Lennox and Stewart. [1]

In 1980, the band signed to the UK branch of RCA Records. [1] They toured extensively in the UK and abroad, including as support for Roxy Music on their 1979 Manifesto Tour. [7] [8] [9] The group disbanded in late 1980. [1]

After the break-up

Coombes and Chin began a new project named Acid Drops [10] but this met with little success, and Coombes, despite originally being the main artistic force behind The Tourists, drifted out of the music business after the disbanding. Lennox and Stewart soon split as a couple, but decided to continue working as an experimental musical partnership, under the name Eurythmics. [11] They retained their RCA recording contract and links with Conny Plank, who produced their first album In the Garden in 1981.

Coombes' death in late 1997 acted as a catalyst for Lennox and Stewart to revive their friendship and musical partnership, after they had previously disbanded Eurythmics in 1990.

Drummer Jim Toomey (no longer using his "Do It" nickname) published the book We Were Tourists in 2018, describing the band's career. [12]

Bassist Eddie Chin died in 2023

Members

Discography

Albums

YearTitle UK
[4] 		AUS
[5] 		SWE
[13] 		Certifications
1979 The Tourists 72——
1979 Reality Effect 236245
1980 Luminous Basement 75——
1984Should Have Been Greatest Hits———
1997Greatest Hits———
"—" denotes a recording that did not chart or was not released in that territory.

Singles

YearTitle UK
[4] 		AUS
[5] 		CAN IRE
[14] 		USA
[6] 		Certifications Album
1979"Blind Among the Flowers"52————The Tourists
"The Loneliest Man in the World"32————
"I Only Want to Be with You"46501383Reality Effect
1980"So Good to Be Back Home Again"8——9—
"Don't Say I Told You So"40————Luminous Basement
"From the Middle Room" [16] —————Promo single
"—" denotes a recording that did not chart or was not released in that territory.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Eurythmics</span> British music duo

Eurythmics were a British pop duo formed in 1980, consisting of Scottish vocalist Annie Lennox and English musician and producer Dave Stewart. They were both previously in the Tourists, a band that broke up in 1980. They released their first studio album, In the Garden, in 1981 to little success, but achieved global acclaim with their second album, Sweet Dreams (1983). The title track became a worldwide hit, reaching number two in the UK Singles Chart, and number one in Canada and the US Billboard Hot 100. Eurythmics went on to release a string of hit singles and albums, including "Love Is a Stranger", "There Must Be an Angel " and "Here Comes the Rain Again", before splitting in 1990.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Annie Lennox</span> Scottish musician (born 1954)

Ann Lennox is a Scottish singer-songwriter, political activist and philanthropist. After achieving moderate success in the late 1970s as part of the new wave band the Tourists, she and fellow musician Dave Stewart went on to achieve international success in the 1980s as Eurythmics. Appearing in the 1983 music video for "Sweet Dreams " with orange cropped hair and wearing a man's lounge suit, the BBC wrote, "all eyes were on Annie Lennox, the singer whose powerful androgynous look defied the male gaze". Subsequent hits with Eurythmics include "There Must Be an Angel ", "Love Is a Stranger" and "Here Comes the Rain Again".

Peter George "Peet" Coombes was an English guitarist, vocalist, and songwriter. He was the lead singer and primary songwriter of the group The Tourists, the first charting band to feature guitarist Dave Stewart and singer Annie Lennox, who later gained greater fame as the duo Eurythmics.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dave Stewart (Eurythmics)</span> English musician, songwriter and record producer (born 1952)

David Allan Stewart is an English musician, songwriter and record producer, best known for Eurythmics, his successful professional partnership with Annie Lennox. Sometimes credited as David A. Stewart, he won Best British Producer at the 1986, 1987 and 1990 Brit Awards. Stewart was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2020 and the duo were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2022. Outside of Eurythmics, Stewart has written and produced songs for artists such as Ringo Starr, Stevie Nicks, Mick Jagger and Tom Petty.

<i>In the Garden</i> (Eurythmics album) 1981 studio album by Eurythmics

In the Garden is the debut studio album by the British new wave duo Eurythmics. It was released on 2 October 1981 by RCA Records.

<i>1984 (For the Love of Big Brother)</i> 1984 soundtrack album by Eurythmics

1984 (For the Love of Big Brother) is a soundtrack album by the British pop duo Eurythmics. Released on 12 November 1984 by Virgin Records, it was the duo's fourth album overall and contains music recorded by Eurythmics for the film Nineteen Eighty-Four, based on George Orwell's dystopian novel of the same name. Virgin Films produced the film for release in its namesake year, and commissioned Eurythmics to compose a soundtrack.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Never Gonna Cry Again</span> 1981 single by Eurythmics

"Never Gonna Cry Again" is the debut single by the British new wave duo Eurythmics, released in 1981. It was taken from their debut album In the Garden.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Love Is a Stranger</span> 1982 single by Eurythmics

"Love Is a Stranger" is a song by the British pop duo Eurythmics. Originally released in late 1982, the single was commercially unsuccessful, but it was re-released in 1983, reaching the UK top 10. The single was re-released again in 1991, to promote Eurythmics' Greatest Hits album.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This)</span> 1983 single by Eurythmics

"Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This)" is a song by British synth-pop duo Eurythmics. It was released as the fourth and final single from their second album of the same name in January 1983. It was their breakthrough hit, establishing the duo worldwide. It reached number two on the UK Singles Chart in March 1983, and number one on the US Billboard Hot 100 six months later; it was their first single released in the US.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Here Comes the Rain Again</span> 1984 single by Eurythmics

"Here Comes the Rain Again" is a 1983 song by British duo Eurythmics and the opening track from their third studio album Touch. It was written by group members Annie Lennox and David A. Stewart and produced by Stewart. The song was released on 13 January 1984 as the album's third single in the UK and in the United States as the first single.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Thorn in My Side</span> 1986 single by Eurythmics

"Thorn in My Side" is a song by British pop music duo Eurythmics. It was released as the second single from the duo's fifth studio album, Revenge (1986). Written by band members Annie Lennox and David A. Stewart, the song is a cast-off to an unfaithful lover. "Thorn in My Side" was produced by Stewart.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Miracle of Love</span> 1986 single by Eurythmics

"The Miracle of Love" is an electropop ballad recorded by British duo Eurythmics. It was written by Eurythmics members Annie Lennox and David A. Stewart and produced by Stewart. The track was released as the third single from the duo's sixth album Revenge in the UK. It was not released as a single in the United States.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">I Need a Man (Eurythmics song)</span> 1988 single by Eurythmics

"I Need a Man" is a song recorded by British pop music duo Eurythmics. It was written by band members Annie Lennox and David A. Stewart and produced by Stewart. Taken from their sixth album, Savage (1987), the song was released in May 1988 by RCA Records as the third single in the UK and the first single in the United States.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Angel (Eurythmics song)</span> 1990 single by Eurythmics

"Angel" is a song by British pop duo Eurythmics from their seventh studio album, We Too Are One (1989). It was written by band members Annie Lennox and David A. Stewart and produced by Stewart and Jimmy Iovine. The song was released as the album's fourth UK single on 23 April 1990, and would be the duo's final single for almost a decade. It was also released as the second single from the album in the United States.

Eddie Chin was a Singaporean-born Malaysian-American-British musician who was bassist with the British rock and pop band The Tourists.

<i>Reality Effect</i> 1979 studio album by the Tourists

Reality Effect is the second album by the British band the Tourists, released in 1979.

David Freeman is a British singer, musician and songwriter, best known for being a member of the new wave duo the Lover Speaks during the 1980s.

<i>The Tourists</i> (album) 1979 studio album by the Tourists

The Tourists is the debut album from the British band the Tourists, released in 1979. The album peaked at No. 72 in the UK Albums Chart.

<i>Luminous Basement</i> 1980 studio album by the Tourists

Luminous Basement is the third and final studio album from the band the Tourists, released in 1980. The album peaked at #75 in the UK, lasting within the Top 100 for one week. One single was released from the album, "Don't Say I Told You So" peaked at #40 in the UK.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">So Good to Be Back Home Again</span> 1980 single by The Tourists

"So Good to Be Back Home Again" is a song by British band The Tourists, released in February 1980 as a single from the band's second album Reality Effect. It peaked at number 8 on the UK Singles Chart.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Colin Larkin, ed. (1997). The Virgin Encyclopedia of Popular Music (Concise ed.). Virgin Books. p. 1186. ISBN   1-85227-745-9.
  2. ↑ Farber, Jim (13 February 2016). "Dave Stewart: 'What Annie Lennox and I went through was insane'". The Guardian. Retrieved 2 October 2018.
  3. ↑ Mason, Stewart. "The Tourists: Artist Biography". AllMusic. Retrieved 2 October 2018.
  4. 1 2 3 "Official Charts > Tourists". The Official UK Charts Company . Retrieved 16 November 2016.
  5. 1 2 3 Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992. St Ives, N.S.W.: Australian Chart Book. p. 311. ISBN   0-646-11917-6.
  6. 1 2 "Billboard > Artists / The Tourists > Chart History > The Hot 100". Billboard . Retrieved 16 November 2016.
  7. ↑ "Tourists - Support For Roxy Music". Eurythmics-ultimate.com. Archived from the original on 8 November 2019. Retrieved 29 September 2019.
  8. ↑ "Tours: 1979 Roxy Music Manifesto". VivaRoxyMusic.com. Retrieved 2 October 2018.
  9. ↑ Ellis, Lucy (2001). Annie Lennox: The Biography. London: Omnibus Press. p. 109. ISBN   0711979863.
  10. ↑ Rose, Cynthia (7 March 1981). "Eurythmics: We're Not Tourists, We Live Here". NME. TI Media Limited. Retrieved 2 October 2018.
  11. ↑ [ dead link ]
  12. ↑ "Search | Austin Macauley Publishers". austinmacauley.com.
  13. ↑ "swedishcharts.com > The Tourists in Swedish Charts". Hung Medien. Retrieved 19 September 2009.
  14. ↑ "The Irish Charts – All there is to know > Search results for 'Tourists'". Archived from the original on 10 May 2017. Retrieved 16 November 2016.
  15. ↑ "BPI > Certified Awards > Search results for 'Tourists' (from bpi.co.uk)". Imgur.com (original source published by British Phonographic Industry). Retrieved 16 November 2016.
  16. ↑ Promotional single, only released as a bonus with Luminous Basement album.
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