The Family Cat
Encyclopedia
The Family Cat were a British
independent
band
, formed in Stoke Newington
, London
in 1988. Three members were originally from Cornwall
, one from Plymouth
and one from Southampton
.
s, the mini-album Tell 'em We're Surfin, released on South London independent label Bad Girl Records, and its full-length follow-ups, Furthest From The Sun and Magic Happens, released by Dedicated Records
. The band never quite capitalised on the momentum generated by the success of debut single "Tom Verlaine", which was named 'Single of the Week' by the NME
, although the band's final LP, Magic Happens entered the lower reaches of the UK Albums Chart
and "Airplane Gardens", lasted for one week in the UK Singles Chart
. Mainly The Family Cat would place several singles on the UK Indie Chart
including "Steamroller".
They also grabbed headlines by naming one of their songs "Bring Me The Head of Michael Portillo
". Their music was melodic and radio
friendly, but in spite of critical acclaim the band were unable to reach the heights of Britpop
acts Oasis
and Blur
.
Amongst their cover version
s were The Beatles
' "Across the Universe
", The Rolling Stones
' "Rocks Off
" and Scott Walker
's "Montague Terrace (in Blue)".
for their own Supple Pipe label, entitled "Here Come The Millionaires". They also recorded a full-length LP called 'Nobody Loses All The Time', promo copies of which were circulated but the album never saw official release.
Choosing to concentrate on studio work, Pure Grain changed their name to Jack Adaptor in 2004. Their first, self-titled album was released on Schnitzel Records in November 2004, with a single "No Logos" on the same label. This was followed up by "Road Rail River" (again on Schnitzel) in 2005 and "Right Royal", released on the band's own Supple Pipe label, followed in early 2006. Their album Swimming Pool Lies was released on Imprint Records in November 2008. The band is now Frederick (vocals
) and Christopher Cordoba (all instruments
/production).
.
, Cornwall. The project is musically based and amongst other duties they both teach instruments, and help develop young bands. In 2007 the project formed its own record label, Zebs Records, and have to date released one album; a compilation
of new Cornish acts called The Sound Of Young Cornwall.
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
independent
Indie rock
Indie rock is a genre of alternative rock that originated in the United Kingdom and the United States in the 1980s. Indie rock is extremely diverse, with sub-genres that include lo-fi, post-rock, math rock, indie pop, dream pop, noise rock, space rock, sadcore, riot grrrl and emo, among others...
band
Musical ensemble
A musical ensemble is a group of people who perform instrumental or vocal music. In classical music, trios or quartets either blend the sounds of musical instrument families or group together instruments from the same instrument family, such as string ensembles or wind ensembles...
, formed in Stoke Newington
Stoke Newington
Stoke Newington is a district in the London Borough of Hackney. It is north-east of Charing Cross.-Boundaries:In modern terms, Stoke Newington can be roughly defined by the N16 postcode area . Its southern boundary with Dalston is quite ill-defined too...
, London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
in 1988. Three members were originally from Cornwall
Cornwall
Cornwall is a unitary authority and ceremonial county of England, within the United Kingdom. It is bordered to the north and west by the Celtic Sea, to the south by the English Channel, and to the east by the county of Devon, over the River Tamar. Cornwall has a population of , and covers an area of...
, one from Plymouth
Plymouth
Plymouth is a city and unitary authority area on the coast of Devon, England, about south-west of London. It is built between the mouths of the rivers Plym to the east and Tamar to the west, where they join Plymouth Sound...
and one from Southampton
Southampton
Southampton is the largest city in the county of Hampshire on the south coast of England, and is situated south-west of London and north-west of Portsmouth. Southampton is a major port and the closest city to the New Forest...
.
Career
The band played live for five years and recorded three albumAlbum
An album is a collection of recordings, released as a single package on gramophone record, cassette, compact disc, or via digital distribution. The word derives from the Latin word for list .Vinyl LP records have two sides, each comprising one half of the album...
s, the mini-album Tell 'em We're Surfin, released on South London independent label Bad Girl Records, and its full-length follow-ups, Furthest From The Sun and Magic Happens, released by Dedicated Records
Dedicated Records
Dedicated Records was a British independent record label in the 1990s. It was founded by Doug D'Arcy after leaving Chrysalis Records where he had been Managing Director, later President and director of the Chrysalis group...
. The band never quite capitalised on the momentum generated by the success of debut single "Tom Verlaine", which was named 'Single of the Week' by the NME
NME
The New Musical Express is a popular music publication in the United Kingdom, published weekly since March 1952. It started as a music newspaper, and gradually moved toward a magazine format during the 1980s, changing from newsprint in 1998. It was the first British paper to include a singles...
, although the band's final LP, Magic Happens entered the lower reaches of the UK Albums Chart
UK Albums Chart
The UK Albums Chart is a list of albums ranked by physical and digital sales in the United Kingdom. It is compiled every week by The Official Charts Company and broadcast on a Sunday on BBC Radio 1 , and published in Music Week magazine and on the OCC website .To qualify for the UK albums chart...
and "Airplane Gardens", lasted for one week in the UK Singles Chart
UK Singles Chart
The UK Singles Chart is compiled by The Official Charts Company on behalf of the British record-industry. The full chart contains the top selling 200 singles in the United Kingdom based upon combined record sales and download numbers, though some media outlets only list the Top 40 or the Top 75 ...
. Mainly The Family Cat would place several singles on the UK Indie Chart
UK Indie Chart
The UK Independent Chart or Indie Chart is a chart of the best-selling independent record releases in the UK.- History :In the wake of punk, small record labels began to spring up, as an outlet for artists that were unwilling to sign contracts with major record companies, or were not considered...
including "Steamroller".
They also grabbed headlines by naming one of their songs "Bring Me The Head of Michael Portillo
Michael Portillo
Michael Denzil Xavier Portillo is a British journalist, broadcaster, and former Conservative Party politician and Cabinet Minister...
". Their music was melodic and radio
Radio
Radio is the transmission of signals through free space by modulation of electromagnetic waves with frequencies below those of visible light. Electromagnetic radiation travels by means of oscillating electromagnetic fields that pass through the air and the vacuum of space...
friendly, but in spite of critical acclaim the band were unable to reach the heights of Britpop
Britpop
Britpop is a subgenre of alternative rock that originated in the United Kingdom. Britpop emerged from the British independent music scene of the early 1990s and was characterised by bands influenced by British guitar pop music of the 1960s and 1970s...
acts Oasis
Oasis (band)
Oasis were an English rock band formed in Manchester in 1991. Originally known as The Rain, the group was formed by Liam Gallagher , Paul "Bonehead" Arthurs , Paul "Guigsy" McGuigan and Tony McCarroll , who were soon joined by Liam's older brother Noel Gallagher...
and Blur
Blur (band)
Blur is an English alternative rock band. Formed in London in 1989 as Seymour, the group consists of singer Damon Albarn, guitarist Graham Coxon, bassist Alex James and drummer Dave Rowntree. Blur's debut album Leisure incorporated the sounds of Madchester and shoegazing...
.
Amongst their cover version
Cover version
In popular music, a cover version or cover song, or simply cover, is a new performance or recording of a contemporary or previously recorded, commercially released song or popular song...
s were The Beatles
The Beatles
The Beatles were an English rock band, active throughout the 1960s and one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed acts in the history of popular music. Formed in Liverpool, by 1962 the group consisted of John Lennon , Paul McCartney , George Harrison and Ringo Starr...
' "Across the Universe
Across the Universe
"Across the Universe" is a song by the English group The Beatles. It was written by John Lennon, and credited to Lennon–McCartney. The song first appeared on the various artists charity compilation album No One's Gonna Change Our World in December 1969, and later, in different form, on Let It Be,...
", The Rolling Stones
The Rolling Stones
The Rolling Stones are an English rock band, formed in London in April 1962 by Brian Jones , Ian Stewart , Mick Jagger , and Keith Richards . Bassist Bill Wyman and drummer Charlie Watts completed the early line-up...
' "Rocks Off
Rocks Off
"Rocks Off" is the opening track on the Rolling Stones' 1972 double album Exile On Main St..Recorded between July 1971 and March 1972, "Rocks Off" is one of the songs on the album that was written and recorded at Villa Nellcôte, a house Keith Richards rented in the south of France during the summer...
" and Scott Walker
Scott Walker (singer)
Scott Walker, born Noel Scott Engel on January 9, 1943 is an American singer-songwriter, musician, record producer, and the former lead singer of The Walker Brothers. Despite being American born, Walker's chart success has largely come in the United Kingdom, where his first four solo albums...
's "Montague Terrace (in Blue)".
Members
- Paul Frederick - (guitarGuitarThe guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...
, vocals) - Tim McVay - (guitar)
- John Graves - (bassBass guitarThe bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
) - Stephen Jelbert - (lead guitarLead guitarLead guitar is a guitar part which plays melody lines, instrumental fill passages, guitar solos, and occasionally, some riffs within a song structure...
) - Kevin Downing - (drumDrumThe drum is a member of the percussion group of musical instruments, which is technically classified as the membranophones. Drums consist of at least one membrane, called a drumhead or drum skin, that is stretched over a shell and struck, either directly with the player's hands, or with a...
s)
Albums
| Year | Album | Billboard 200 Billboard 200 The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists... |
UK Albums Chart UK Albums Chart The UK Albums Chart is a list of albums ranked by physical and digital sales in the United Kingdom. It is compiled every week by The Official Charts Company and broadcast on a Sunday on BBC Radio 1 , and published in Music Week magazine and on the OCC website .To qualify for the UK albums chart... |
Top Digital Albums | UK Indie Chart UK Indie Chart The UK Independent Chart or Indie Chart is a chart of the best-selling independent record releases in the UK.- History :In the wake of punk, small record labels began to spring up, as an outlet for artists that were unwilling to sign contracts with major record companies, or were not considered... |
Label Record label In the music industry, a record label is a brand and a trademark associated with the marketing of music recordings and music videos. Most commonly, a record label is the company that manages such brands and trademarks, coordinates the production, manufacture, distribution, marketing and promotion,... |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1989 | Tell Em We're Surfin | - | - | - | 6 | Badgirl |
| 1992 | Furthest From The Sun | - | 55 | - | Dedicated Dedicated Records Dedicated Records was a British independent record label in the 1990s. It was founded by Doug D'Arcy after leaving Chrysalis Records where he had been Managing Director, later President and director of the Chrysalis group... |
|
| 1995 | Magic Happens | - | 84 | - |
Singles/EPs
- "Tom Verlaine" (1989) Bad Girl (7-inch flexi-disc/12-inch) (UK IndieUK Indie ChartThe UK Independent Chart or Indie Chart is a chart of the best-selling independent record releases in the UK.- History :In the wake of punk, small record labels began to spring up, as an outlet for artists that were unwilling to sign contracts with major record companies, or were not considered...
#6) - "Remember What It Is That You Love" (1990) Bad Girl
- "A Place With No Name" (1990) Bad Girl
- "Colour Me Grey" (1991) Bad Girl
- "Jesus Christ" (1991) Clawfist
- "Steamroller" (1992) Dedicated
- "River of Diamonds" (1992) Dedicated
- "Airplane Gardens" (1993) Dedicated (UKUK Singles ChartThe UK Singles Chart is compiled by The Official Charts Company on behalf of the British record-industry. The full chart contains the top selling 200 singles in the United Kingdom based upon combined record sales and download numbers, though some media outlets only list the Top 40 or the Top 75 ...
#69) - "Springing the Atom" (1993) Dedicated
- "Wonderful Excuse" (1994) Dedicated/RCA (UK #48)
- Goldenbook EP (1994) Dedicated/RCA (UK #42)
Paul Frederick
Frederick later formed Pure Grain, who made one EPExtended play
An EP is a musical recording which contains more music than a single, but is too short to qualify as a full album or LP. The term EP originally referred only to specific types of vinyl records other than 78 rpm standard play records and LP records, but it is now applied to mid-length Compact...
for their own Supple Pipe label, entitled "Here Come The Millionaires". They also recorded a full-length LP called 'Nobody Loses All The Time', promo copies of which were circulated but the album never saw official release.
Choosing to concentrate on studio work, Pure Grain changed their name to Jack Adaptor in 2004. Their first, self-titled album was released on Schnitzel Records in November 2004, with a single "No Logos" on the same label. This was followed up by "Road Rail River" (again on Schnitzel) in 2005 and "Right Royal", released on the band's own Supple Pipe label, followed in early 2006. Their album Swimming Pool Lies was released on Imprint Records in November 2008. The band is now Frederick (vocals
Human voice
The human voice consists of sound made by a human being using the vocal folds for talking, singing, laughing, crying, screaming, etc. Its frequency ranges from about 60 to 7000 Hz. The human voice is specifically that part of human sound production in which the vocal folds are the primary...
) and Christopher Cordoba (all instruments
Musical instrument
A musical instrument is a device created or adapted for the purpose of making musical sounds. In principle, any object that produces sound can serve as a musical instrument—it is through purpose that the object becomes a musical instrument. The history of musical instruments dates back to the...
/production).
Steve Jelbert
Jelbert is currently working as a freelance journalist based in London, often writing for The TimesThe Times
The Times is a British daily national newspaper, first published in London in 1785 under the title The Daily Universal Register . The Times and its sister paper The Sunday Times are published by Times Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary since 1981 of News International...
.
Tim McVay and Kevin Downing
McVay and Downing are working at Zebedees, a youth development centre in TruroTruro
Truro is a city and civil parish in Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. The city is the centre for administration, leisure and retail in Cornwall, with a population recorded in the 2001 census of 17,431. Truro urban statistical area, which includes parts of surrounding parishes, has a 2001 census...
, Cornwall. The project is musically based and amongst other duties they both teach instruments, and help develop young bands. In 2007 the project formed its own record label, Zebs Records, and have to date released one album; a compilation
Compilation album
A compilation album is an album featuring tracks from one or more performers, often culled from a variety of sources The tracks are usually collected according to a common characteristic, such as popularity, genre, source or subject matter...
of new Cornish acts called The Sound Of Young Cornwall.