Ultravox were a British new wave band, formed in London in April 1974 as Tiger Lily. Between 1980 and 1986, they scored seven Top Ten albums and seventeen Top 40 singles in the UK, the most successful of which was their 1981 hit "Vienna".
William Lee Currie is a British violist, violinist, pianist, keyboardist, and songwriter from Huddersfield, England. He is best known for his work with new wave band Ultravox, who achieved their greatest commercial success in the 1980s.
Chris Cross is an English musician, best known as the bass guitarist in the new wave band Ultravox.
John Foxx is an English singer, musician, artist, photographer, graphic designer, writer, teacher and lecturer. He was the original lead singer of the new wave band Ultravox, before leaving to embark on a solo career in 1980 with the album Metamatic.
Metamatic is the debut solo album by John Foxx, released in 1980. It was his first solo project following his split with Ultravox the previous year. A departure from the mix of synthesizers and conventional rock instrumentation on that band's work, Metamatic was purely electronic in sound. The name 'Metamatic' comes from a painting machine by kinetic artist Jean Tinguely, first exhibited at the Paris Biennial in 1959. The album peaked at #18 on the UK Albums Chart.
"Vienna" is a song by British new wave band Ultravox from their 1981 fourth studio album of the same name. It was released as the album's third single on 9 January 1981 by Chrysalis Records and features Midge Ure singing the lead vocal.
Ha!-Ha!-Ha! is the second album by British pop group Ultravox, at that time known as "Ultravox!", with an exclamation mark, as a nod to Neu!. Although the group would later achieve fame and commercial success with lead singer Midge Ure the band was, in 1977, led by singer/songwriter John Foxx who was accompanied by guitarist Stevie Shears, drummer Warren Cann, bassist Chris Cross and keyboard/violist Billy Currie.
The Garden is a 1981 album by John Foxx, the follow-up to his debut solo album Metamatic, released the previous year. By comparison, it features more diverse instrumentation and romantic stylings.
Warren Reginald Cann is a Canadian drummer, drum machine programmer and songwriter, best known as a founding member of the British new wave band Ultravox, for which he has been one of the main songwriters.
Ultravox! is the eponymous debut studio album by British new wave band Ultravox!. It was recorded at Island Studios in Hammersmith, London in the autumn of 1976 and produced by Ultravox! and Steve Lillywhite with studio assistance from Brian Eno. It was released on 25 February 1977 by Island.
Systems of Romance, released on 8 September 1978, is the third album by British new wave band Ultravox. It was the final recording for the group with original lead singer, lyricist and co-composer John Foxx, and their first album without guitarist Stevie Shears, who had left the band. Shears was replaced by Robin Simon, making his first and only appearance on an Ultravox album. Though not a commercial success, Systems of Romance had a significant influence on the electropop music that came after it.
U-Vox is the eighth studio album by British new wave band Ultravox, released on 9 October 1986 by Chrysalis Records. It was the band's fifth album during the Midge Ure era, and the final one featuring the band's 1979 lineup, with the exception of Warren Cann, for nearly 26 years. The Ure-era lineup would eventually reform in 2008. It was also the last Ultravox album to reach the top 10 of the UK Albums Chart, peaking at number nine.
Extended Ultravox is an Ultravox compilation of 12" extended versions of various Ultravox singles from the years 1980–1986. The album was released in 1998.
Vienna is the fourth studio album by British new wave band Ultravox, first released on Chrysalis Records on 11 July 1980. The album was the first made by Ultravox with their best-known line-up, after Midge Ure had taken over as lead vocalist and guitarist following the departures of John Foxx and Robin Simon, and it was also the group's first release for Chrysalis. Vienna was produced by renowned German producer Conny Plank who had also produced Ultravox's previous album Systems of Romance, and mixed at Plank's studio near Cologne, Germany. In terms of sales, the album had a slow start, but the release in January 1981 of the title track as the third single from the album heralded the band's commercial breakthrough worldwide and led to healthy sales throughout 1981. Vienna peaked at number 3 in the UK Albums Chart and reached the top ten in Australia, New Zealand and several European countries.
Robin Simon is a British guitarist who was a member of Ultravox, Magazine and Visage.
Stevie Shears is an English musician known for playing in the rock bands Tiger Lily and Ultravox!, as well as being part of the bands Faith Global and Cowboys International.
Tiger Lily was a short-lived glam rock band and the seed of Ultravox!. It was founded in London in April 1974 by Royal College of Art student Dennis Leigh (vocals), who left his northern industrial environment in Lancashire, Chris St. John (bass), another college student who previously played with Stoned Rose, and Stevie Shears (guitar), a Dagenham based musician. The following month, British-Canadian drummer Warren Cann (drums), who was recently rejected as a band member by Sparks, joined the band, followed by William Currie, named Billy Currie, who was in a theatre band, later in the year.
"ROckWrok" is a single by the post-punk band Ultravox!, released on 7 October 1977 by Island Records. It was the last British non-free single released from the Ha! Ha! Ha! album and featuring Stevie Shears as guitarist. The next non-free single was Frozen Ones, released only in Germany shortly afterwards.
Retro was the only EP (7") by Ultravox, then Ultravox!, released on 10 February 1978. It was the last recording released by the band as Ultravox!. Also this was the last disc featuring original guitarist Stevie Shears, who left the band after its release.
The Island Years is a compilation by Ultravox, released in 1999 by PolyGram and Spectrum labels. It contains songs from their three first albums, when John Foxx was the group's vocalist and frontman, and another two guitarists, Stevie Shears and Robin Simon were with them. The album is a compilation of the band's early years, before Midge Ure became a member, and the band scored a number of hits in the 1980s.
