Band / Artist
Fast Cars
"WE WERE GONNA BE SO BIG IN JAPAN, AND THEN WE'D CONQUER THE WORLD"
A line from the last song FAST CARS ever wrote back in November 1980, just before they split up, which was only weeks after the triumphant gig supporting The Jam at the Apollo Theatre in Manchester.
The irony is, 21 years later, the song from which the line was taken "Everyday I make another mistake" (the lyrics about the frustrations and pitfalls of the music business that led the band to split up), was released in Japan, as the band's follow up to their 1st single "The Kids Just Wanna
Dance" which was released back in 1979. There was a huge demand for the single which sold out the 1000 copies made in weeks.
Completely oblivious to it all, FAST CARS had been hailed as "The Kings of Powerpop" and "The Best British Powerpop Band" in Japan for years and on July 20th 2001, they headed out there to play two dates at Tokyo's prestigious Studio Jam Club.
The original single has been changing hands amongst record collectors all over the world for up to £250 a time, which led to the band signing to specialist record label, DETOUR RECORDS, who released the single "Everyday I
make another mistake" and a 16 track album "Coming ... ready or not !" in August 2001.
Immediately before the band went to Japan they played a one-off gig at "The Band on the Wall" in Manchester on Friday, 13th July 2001. The last time they played there was in 1979, with Mick Hucknell's Frantic Elevators (Mick of Simply Red).
It has been said they were probably one of the most underrated bands around from the Manchester scene in the late Seventies, they rehearsed at T J Davidson's alongside The Buzzcocks, Joy Division, The Fall, Slaughter and
the Dogs et al, played with most of the above, and also the likes of XTC, The Rezillos, Dillinger, The Chords and The Jam.
Fast Cars recorded with Martin (Zero) Hannet at Strawberry Studios at the same time Joy Division were recording Unknown Pleasures (they used their downtime during the night!). They had their single played on daytime Radio
One, appeared on Tony Wilson's Granada T.V. programme "What's On" played key venues up and down the Country including the legendary Marquee Club on Wardour Street, London.
They were very nearly signed by The Jam's A & R man at Polydor, Dennis Munday, they recorded demos at Phonogram's London Studio but it never quite happened ...
21 years later and FAST CARS went back in the studios to re-mix some of their old tunes and along with some of the original demo's an album that celebrates the history of one of Manchester's best kept secrets, FAST CARS are COMING ... READY OR NOT ! was released.
And it's not finished yet!!! ......... they have carried on playing and had two singles released in Japan in 2002 on 1977 Records, "Here we are today" and "Turn on the radio" the former written in 1980 the latter 2001.
Released on 9th May, 2005 was a live CD taken from the tape recorded on the PA desk at the Deeply Vale Music Festival in Lancashire, August 1979. This features the raw teenage Fast Cars not heard in over 25 years. The recording
has nothing added and nothing taken away. It has been released on Ozit Records UK, the festivals also became the subject of a TV documentary broadcast in November 2004.
Another Fast Cars demo from 1979 was found in a box containing the original version of "I won't be coming home" - (Just another day), and 2 unreleased songs, this attracted interest from Rave Up Records in Italy nd in September
they released 500 copies on vinyl, also inviting the band to play at the "Road to ruins" festival in Rome, on the 19th of November.
During 2007 they hope to release another album entitled "WELL ... YOU STARTED IT!!" featuring some old songs and some written now including the single "Best Friend" written in 2002, Penthouse Monkeys, Piece of England, Instant Popstars, to name a few !