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In the summer of 1984, over a few drinks in a London
pub, FM was formed. Comprising the ex-Samson pair of
bassist Merv Goldsworthy and drummer Pete Jupp, the
formidable Overland brothers – vocalist/guitarist Steve
and lead guitarist Chris; both formerly of Wildlife –
plus the keyboard talents of Philip Manchester, better
known as sci-fi nutcase Didge Digital, the band wrote
six songs. In December of that same year they secured a
recording contract with the CBS/Portrait label.
The first public appearance of FM (not to be confused
with the Canadian band of the same name) was on
Valentine’s Day of 1985, attracting rave reviews. The
debut album, ‘Indiscreet’, wasn’t far behind. A
fully-fledged masterpiece, every single track hit the
spot, and the mega-ballad ‘Frozen Heart’ caused lips to
quiver and tear ducts to moisten whenever it was played.
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‘Frozen
Heart’ was heard in many venues during 1986 and FM hit
the road in Europe supporting Tina Turner, Meat Loaf,
Foreigner, Gary Moore, Status Quo and Magnum, also
opening for REO Speedwagon at London’s Hammersmith
Odeon. At the year’s end they were delighted to accept a
spot with the white-hot Bon Jovi on the ‘Slippery When
Wet’ tour. |
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It seemed that the roadwork was paying off handsomely.
CBS folded the Portrait label and FM switched to Epic.
The Overland brothers were flown to America to write
with hitmaker Desmond Child, returning with a few great
stories and the awesome hard rock anthem ‘Bad Luck’.
Completing the jigsaw, Queensr˙che/Dokken producer Neil
Kernon was engaged to oversee 1989’s ‘Tough It Out’, a
harder-edged second album that saw FM at last realising
the sound they’d envisaged all along.
To promote ‘Tough It Out’ the band set out on a
gruelling 42-date UK tour that would see them returning
to Hammersmith Odeon, this time as headliners (Romeo’s
Daughter were the trek’s special guests). Soon
afterwards, however, Chris Overland decided to leave FM,
his final performance taking place at the sold-out Town
& Country Club.
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In his place, FM recruited Andy Barnett, a guitarist
who’d already been in a prototype line-up of the group
(indeed, if you look closely, Barnett scored a
co-writing credit for the ‘Indiscreet’ song ‘That
Girl’). The impish Londoner brought with him a harder
guitar sound and his influence upon FM’s musical
direction soon became evident. Initially, some were
appalled as Andy went into widdle overdrive, but his
debut with the group, 1991’s ‘Takin’ It To The Streets’
album, was a more than creditable achievement. |
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FM had moved on. There was a new record label – the
well-regarded independent Music For Nations. The loud
suits, flowing cloaks and bouffant hairstyles of the
past were all conspicuous by their absence, likewise the
fluffy keyboards (Didge Digital would parp his last with
the band in late 1991). The quality of the songs more
than compensated, and their reworking of Marvin Gaye’s
‘Heard It Through The Grapevine’ deserved to have been a
hit single.
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But ‘TITTS’ didn’t prepare anyone for the following
year’s ‘Aphrodisiac’, an intoxicating and astounding
collection of heart-wrenching ballads (‘Closer To
Heaven’) and balls-out rockers (‘Breathe Fire’, ‘Blood
And Gasoline’). Foreigner and Journey were now
comparisons you were unlikely to spot in an FM review.
The transition was complete, though the songs still
remained recognisable for their melodic vitality and
Overland’s cool, classy, confident vocals.
Thankfully, everyone emerged unscathed from a tour bus
accident that took place in Belgium, the incident having
little long-lasting effect upon FM’s inherent hunger to
play anywhere and everywhere.
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In undertaking a gigantic string of acoustic dates in
the winter of 1992, FM would prove their rock ‘n’ roll
credentials beyond all reasonable doubt. Combining an
organic musical sound and the band’s unstoppable party
attitude, the 40-odd dates they played covered Europe
and onto Malta, sweeping aside any preconceptions that
might still have remained. Indeed, it was commonplace
for FM to convert disinterested bystanders into
whooping, hollering idiots. The experience is still
available if you pick up a copy of ‘No Electricity
Required’ (also available on long-form video as ‘Live
Acoustical Intercourse’).
With Europe and the Far East finally opening up at last,
a full-time keyboard appointment was made. The affable
Jem Davis had played with Tobruk, Midnight Blue and –
God help him! – UFO. Sadly, the arrangement was to prove
short-lived. In the post-grunge fallout, bands like FM
had become distinctly unfashionable. Under normal
circumstances, the quintet wouldn’t have given a damn
about such a predicament. However, they had begun to
feel as though they were painting themselves into a
corner with aptly titled ‘Dead Man’s Shoes’ album.
Shortly after it’s release, in 1995, the band quietly
slipped away to pursue a variety of other opportunities.
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Some of these projects solidified into albums, and some
did not. Included in the former category are So!,
Shadowman and The Ladder – all worth checking out if you
happened to miss them. However, the individual members
soon discovered it was impossible to get through an
interview without being quizzed about the possibility of
an FM reunion. The re-issuing and re-packaging of most
of their albums on CD simply served to turn up the heat. |
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And so it came to pass. At Nottingham Rock City on 27th
October 2007, after considering (and declining) multiple
previous approaches from the organisers of a melodic
hard rock all-dayer called the Firefest, Merv, Steve,
Pete, Andy and Jem finally played together again in
public for the first time in 12 years. If, like myself, you were
in the sold-out crowd on that fateful night, you will
know what a deeply emotional experience it turned out to
be.
Make no mistake – the band felt it as well.
With stage two of the group’s career about to begin,
they were disappointed to accept the resignation of
Andy Barnett. However, with an exciting new
guitarist on board these plans are now firmly back
on target. Brought into the band at Steve Overland’s
suggestion, Jim Kirkpatrick was already a huge fan
of FM so it was an honour to accept the chance of
joining a group whose records he loved. Kirkpatrick
was blooded at a low-key gig at Wigan’s Winstanley
College in March 2009, followed in more public
fashion by a headline spot at the Firefest VI six
months later, as well as playing on the ‘Wildside’
EP.
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All too aware of the way others have
fallen at the same hurdle, FM have taken
their time in completing a comeback
disc, ‘Metropolis’, which drops in
February 2010. There are a lot of hopes
riding on the band’s sixth full-length
studio outing. On the evidence of what
they’ve delivered since the reunion, I
doubt they’ll disappoint us.
Dave Ling.
Classic Rock magazine
http://www.daveling.co.uk/
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