Ash - 1977
- FaceOff - עימות חזיתי
- 7 days ago
- 3 min read
Written By: Moti Kupfer
Release date - 06.05.1996
In the summer of 1995, while most 18-year-olds were nervously waiting for their exam results, three teenagers from Downpatrick, Northern Ireland, Tim Wheeler (vocals, guitar), Mark Hamilton (bass), and Rick McMurray (drums), had already released their fifth single.
Their punchy pop-punk track "Girl from Mars" surprised everyone when it entered the UK charts just outside the Top 10. Less than a year later, "Ash" had become the most promising and explosive Northern Irish band in the UK, with their debut album "1977", released on May 6, 1996.
As early as 1989, Wheeler and Hamilton formed a band called "Vietnam" (alongside three other members), playing covers of "Iron Maiden". Two years later, an unknown band from Seattle called "Nirvana" ignited their desire to develop a sound of their own.
They realized they did not have to be highly skilled musicians to be good at it, as Tim Wheeler later explained.
By early 1992, vocalist Gareth Hutchinson, guitarist Malcolm King, and drummer Andy McLean had left the group, and Wheeler and Hamilton decided to form a punk band.
Wheeler took on vocals and guitar, while Hamilton played bass. They spent two weeks writing original material in Wheeler’s bedroom. In the summer of 1992, drummer Rick McMurray joined after Wheeler approached him during a school play and invited him for a jam session at his house, which led to their first demo "Solar Happy".
They chose the name "Ash" randomly, picking the first word they liked from a dictionary. Their debut single "Jack Names the Planets" was released in February 1994, and two months later, "Ash" traveled to London for a promotional campaign. Several major labels showed interest before they signed with "Infectious Records".
Since Wheeler and Hamilton were only 17 at the time, their parents had to sign the contract on their behalf, along with their school principal, Jack Preece.
Two additional singles preceded the release of their mini-album "Trailer", which finally came out in October 1994.
In preparation for their debut album, the band met with several producers, including Phil Vinall, who had worked with "The Auteurs". Wheeler, however, preferred Mark Waterman, having become familiar with his work on "Nowhere" by the shoegaze band "Ride".
Eventually, producer Owen Morris was chosen, who had worked in late 1994 with "The Verve" on their second album "A Northern Soul" (1995).
Wheeler said they wanted a young and cool producer, and they chose Morris after learning he was influenced by artists they loved, such as David Bowie, "T. Rex", and "Thin Lizzy".
"Ash" began recording the album "1977" on New Year’s Day, named after the birth year of two of its members and the release year of the film "Star Wars".
Although the process was initially planned to last six weeks, it ultimately stretched to three months.
Musically, "1977" was described as Britpop blended with power pop, garage rock, and pop rock, incorporating elements of glam rock, punk, and grunge.
In a 2020 interview, Wheeler explained that being labeled as Britpop felt automatic due to their British origins, but in reality, they were more influenced by American music than British.
Most of the album’s songs were written by Tim Wheeler and revolve around teenage romance and heartbreak, childhood memories, desires, and missed sexual opportunities. The track "Kung Fu", written about martial arts film star Jackie Chan, was featured in advertisements and the end credits of Chan’s film "Rumble in the Bronx".
Interestingly, the fourth and fifth singles, "Goldfinger" and "Oh Yeah", became the most successful, reaching numbers 5 and 6 on the UK charts, while "1977" itself topped the UK Albums Chart.
The album cover features a photograph discovered by Dutch photographer and graphic designer Brian Cannon, who found it in a book he purchased in Amsterdam and showed it to the band, who immediately liked it.
According to Cannon, it was extremely difficult to obtain permission to use the image, as the photographer had passed away and they had to track down his wife to secure the rights.
For Listening: Spotify, Apple Music
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