Translator (band)
Encyclopedia
Translator is a San Francisco rock
band that had success during the 1980s. They created a sound that spanned updated British Merseybeat
and stripped-down punk-like rock to psychedelia. Inspired by the Beatles
and 1960s California
folk-rock bands such as The Byrds
, their guitar-based music was very popular during the early 1980s on non-commercial campus radio
and new wave music
stations. But unlike similar groups including R.E.M.
, Translator did not get much exposure on mainstream classic rock
radio. The group's stripped-down music
and sometimes ironic and disturbing existentialist
lyrics also helped to make them a significant influence on the alternative rock
of the 1990s.
in 1979 when singer/songwriter/guitarist Steve Barton
linked up with Larry Dekker on bass and Dave Scheff on drums. A second singer/songwriter/guitarist, Robert Darlington, joined soon after and completed the lineup. The combination of 2 talented songwriters and a powerful energetic rhythm section became the key to their success.
Translator then relocated to San Francisco where they were signed to Howie Klein
's independent label, 415 Records
, on the strength of the demo tape they sent to college radio station KUSF
: the loose and rambling yet laconic "Everywhere That I'm Not
" has remained the band's signature tune. The song was featured on Translator's debut album Heartbeats And Triggers
, which was recorded with the widely respected producer David Kahne
. As a result of 415 Records' national distribution arrangement with Columbia Records
the debut album received strong promotion and became an underground and College radio hit in 1982. “I remember being on our first tour when we were playing at the Ritz (in New York) and thinking no one was gonna come,” recalled Barton. “And I remember coming around the corner and seeing this line going out the door and down the block and it was like ‘Oh my God...we sold the place out!’
Between 1983 and 1986 the band completed 3 more albums for the same label. They received some airplay for "Un-Alone", from the second album No Time Like Now
(1983), once again produced by Kahne. The self-titled third album Translator
(1985) contained fan-favorites "Gravity" and "O Lazarus". The fourth Evening of The Harvest
(1986) featured "Standing In Line" and "Stony Gates of Time." For the third and fourth albums Translator worked with another top New Wave producer, Ed Stasium
. Though the later albums contained consistently strong original songs none got as much recognition as the debut.
Translator's music continued to have underground appeal and was featured on at least 3 different compilation albums during the 1980s and 1990s. In 2007 all four original albums were re-issued on CD by Wounded Bird Records
with previously released bonus tracks. This series made their entire 1980s work on CD for the first time. In May 2008 the 2 CD collection Different Time was released. It contains previously unavailable demos, studio out-takes and live recordings spanning 1979 to 1986, with one track from 1996.
In 1996, ten years after their official breakup, the band was paid its highest compliment when Beatles fans mistook their take of the instrumental "Cry for a Shadow
" for a new recording by the Fab Four from the Anthology
sessions (in fact it was a Translator B-side
from 1983.)
Translator continues to reunite on occasion, including the South By Southwest festival in Austin in 2006, and shows in Los Angeles and a sold out date at Slim's in San Francisco in September 2009. The band is still releasing music, including a planned record of previously unreleased fully produced songs from 1993. Barton works as a solo recording artist. His brand new 2011 album is titled "Projector". It was produced by Marvin Etzioni from Lone Justice
and was recorded and mixed on tape. Steve plays all the instruments on this one. The album is made up of songs written in the aftermath of Steve's dad's passing in 2009. In 2010 he released a 20-song CD titled "Gallery" featuring tracks from his three solo albums, plus four brand new songs with his solo band, Steve Barton And The Oblivion Click (Steve Barton, Robbie Rist
, Derrick Anderson). Scheff has continued drumming, most recently with the orchestra at Teatro ZinZanni
, on a 2008 summer UK tour with Dead Kennedys
and, with Larry Dekker, guitarist Peter Wiley and keyboardist and singer Cynthia Haagens in Bang Bang Men. Robert Darlington published a collection of his poetry titled "Ether". Larry Dekker continues to supply his powerful melodic bass playing for various bands.
Rock music
Rock music is a genre of popular music that developed during and after the 1960s, particularly in the United Kingdom and the United States. It has its roots in 1940s and 1950s rock and roll, itself heavily influenced by rhythm and blues and country music...
band that had success during the 1980s. They created a sound that spanned updated British Merseybeat
Beat music
Beat music, British beat, or Merseybeat is a pop and rock music genre that developed in the United Kingdom in the early 1960s. Beat music is a fusion of rock and roll, doo wop, skiffle, R&B and soul...
and stripped-down punk-like rock to psychedelia. Inspired by 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...
and 1960s California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
folk-rock bands such as The Byrds
The Byrds
The Byrds were an American rock band, formed in Los Angeles, California in 1964. The band underwent multiple line-up changes throughout its existence, with frontman Roger McGuinn remaining the sole consistent member until the group disbanded in 1973...
, their guitar-based music was very popular during the early 1980s on non-commercial campus radio
Campus radio
Campus radio is a type of radio station that is run by the students of a college, university or other educational institution. Programming may be exclusively by students, or may include programmers from the wider community in which the radio station is based...
and new wave music
New Wave music
New Wave is a subgenre of :rock music that emerged in the mid to late 1970s alongside punk rock. The term at first generally was synonymous with punk rock before being considered a genre in its own right that incorporated aspects of electronic and experimental music, mod subculture, disco and 1960s...
stations. But unlike similar groups including R.E.M.
R.E.M.
R.E.M. was an American rock band formed in Athens, Georgia, in 1980 by singer Michael Stipe, guitarist Peter Buck, bassist Mike Mills and drummer Bill Berry. One of the first popular alternative rock bands, R.E.M. gained early attention due to Buck's ringing, arpeggiated guitar style and Stipe's...
, Translator did not get much exposure on mainstream classic rock
Classic rock
Classic rock is a radio format which developed from the album-oriented rock format in the early 1980s. In the United States, the classic rock format features music ranging generally from the late 1960s to the late 1980s, primarily focusing on the hard rock genre that peaked in popularity in the...
radio. The group's stripped-down music
Music
Music is an art form whose medium is sound and silence. Its common elements are pitch , rhythm , dynamics, and the sonic qualities of timbre and texture...
and sometimes ironic and disturbing existentialist
Existentialism
Existentialism is a term applied to a school of 19th- and 20th-century philosophers who, despite profound doctrinal differences, shared the belief that philosophical thinking begins with the human subject—not merely the thinking subject, but the acting, feeling, living human individual...
lyrics also helped to make them a significant influence on the alternative rock
Alternative rock
Alternative rock is a genre of rock music and a term used to describe a diverse musical movement that emerged from the independent music underground of the 1980s and became widely popular by the 1990s...
of the 1990s.
History
The four-piece band was formed in Los AngelesLos Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
in 1979 when singer/songwriter/guitarist Steve Barton
Steve Barton (musician)
Steve Barton is an American rock musician and songwriter best known for his work with the band Translator.Born in Los Angeles to actor parents, Dan and Anne Barton, music got into his blood at an early age...
linked up with Larry Dekker on bass and Dave Scheff on drums. A second singer/songwriter/guitarist, Robert Darlington, joined soon after and completed the lineup. The combination of 2 talented songwriters and a powerful energetic rhythm section became the key to their success.
Translator then relocated to San Francisco where they were signed to Howie Klein
Howie Klein
Howie Klein is an American DJ, music producer, record label founder, record label executive, and political blogger, who was president of Reprise Records from 1989 to 2001....
's independent label, 415 Records
415 Records
415 Records was a San Francisco record label created in 1978. The label focused its efforts on local punk rock and new wave music acts of the late 1970s through the late 1980s, including The Offs, The Nuns, Romeo Void, and Wire Train...
, on the strength of the demo tape they sent to college radio station KUSF
KUSF
KUSF was a non-commercial radio station licensed to San Francisco, California and owned by the University of San Francisco. From 1963 until 2011, the station broadcast at 90.3 FM MHz....
: the loose and rambling yet laconic "Everywhere That I'm Not
Everywhere That I'm Not
"Everywhere That I'm Not" was a hit single for San Francisco new wave group Translator in 1982, from the Columbia/415 album Heartbeats And Triggers....
" has remained the band's signature tune. The song was featured on Translator's debut album Heartbeats And Triggers
Heartbeats And Triggers
Heartbeats And Triggers, Translator's debut album, was released in 1982 on 415 Records, distributed by Columbia Records. It contained the hit single, "Everywhere That I'm Not". Some LP copies of this album made use of the short-lived CX noise reduction system which was introduced by Columbia...
, which was recorded with the widely respected producer David Kahne
David Kahne
David Kahne is an American record producer. Kahne started his musical career as a working musician and then became notable for his role as in-house producer and engineer at 415 Records, the first American new wave music label, and for his subsequent roles as Vice President of A&R at Columbia...
. As a result of 415 Records' national distribution arrangement with Columbia Records
Columbia Records
Columbia Records is an American record label, owned by Japan's Sony Music Entertainment, operating under the Columbia Music Group with Aware Records. It was founded in 1888, evolving from an earlier enterprise, the American Graphophone Company — successor to the Volta Graphophone Company...
the debut album received strong promotion and became an underground and College radio hit in 1982. “I remember being on our first tour when we were playing at the Ritz (in New York) and thinking no one was gonna come,” recalled Barton. “And I remember coming around the corner and seeing this line going out the door and down the block and it was like ‘Oh my God...we sold the place out!’
Between 1983 and 1986 the band completed 3 more albums for the same label. They received some airplay for "Un-Alone", from the second album No Time Like Now
No Time Like Now
No Time Like Now is the second album from Translator, released in 1983 on 415 Records, distributed by Columbia Records.In 2007 the album was released on CD for the first time by Wounded Bird Records...
(1983), once again produced by Kahne. The self-titled third album Translator
Translator (album)
Translator is the self-titled third album from Translator, released in 1985 on 415 Records and distributed by Columbia Records.In 2007, the album was released on Compact Disc for the first time by Wounded Bird Records...
(1985) contained fan-favorites "Gravity" and "O Lazarus". The fourth Evening of The Harvest
Evening of The Harvest
Evening of The Harvest, Translator's 4th album, was released in 1986 on 415 Records, distributed by Columbia Records.In 2007 the album was released on CD for the first time by Wounded Bird Records...
(1986) featured "Standing In Line" and "Stony Gates of Time." For the third and fourth albums Translator worked with another top New Wave producer, Ed Stasium
Ed Stasium
Ed Stasium is an American record producer and engineer who has worked on albums by The Ramones, Talking Heads, The Smithereens and Living Colour.- History :Stasium first surfaced in 1970 fronting the band Brandywine, appearing on their sole LP Aged....
. Though the later albums contained consistently strong original songs none got as much recognition as the debut.
Translator's music continued to have underground appeal and was featured on at least 3 different compilation albums during the 1980s and 1990s. In 2007 all four original albums were re-issued on CD by Wounded Bird Records
Wounded Bird Records
Wounded Bird Records is a CD only, re-issue record label, that was founded in 1998 in Guilderland, New York. They re-release lesser known albums from both popular and lesser known artists, including Deborah Harry, Chic, David Blue, Marilyn Martin, Gordon Haskell, Jon Anderson, Adrian Belew, Ellen...
with previously released bonus tracks. This series made their entire 1980s work on CD for the first time. In May 2008 the 2 CD collection Different Time was released. It contains previously unavailable demos, studio out-takes and live recordings spanning 1979 to 1986, with one track from 1996.
In 1996, ten years after their official breakup, the band was paid its highest compliment when Beatles fans mistook their take of the instrumental "Cry for a Shadow
Cry for a Shadow
"Cry for a Shadow" is an early Beatles instrumental. It was recorded on 22 June 1961 at the Friedrich-Ebert-Halle, Hamburg-Harburg, Germany while they were performing as Tony Sheridan's backup band for a few tracks, under the moniker The Beat Brothers. It was written by George Harrison with John...
" for a new recording by the Fab Four from the Anthology
Anthology 1
Anthology 1 is a compilation album by The Beatles, released by Apple Records in November 1995. It was released as the first part of the Anthology trilogy of albums with Anthology 2 and Anthology 3, all of which tie-in with the televised special The Beatles Anthology. It contains "Free as a Bird",...
sessions (in fact it was a Translator B-side
Break Down Barriers EP
Break Down Barriers was an EP released by San Francisco new wave group Translator in 1983. The 3 tracks from this record were included as bonus tracks on the No Time Like Now CD release....
from 1983.)
Translator continues to reunite on occasion, including the South By Southwest festival in Austin in 2006, and shows in Los Angeles and a sold out date at Slim's in San Francisco in September 2009. The band is still releasing music, including a planned record of previously unreleased fully produced songs from 1993. Barton works as a solo recording artist. His brand new 2011 album is titled "Projector". It was produced by Marvin Etzioni from Lone Justice
Lone Justice
Lone Justice was an American country rock band formed in 1982 by guitarist Ryan Hedgecock and singer Maria McKee.-Early era:They began their career as part of the L.A. cowpunk scene of the 1980s. Lone Justice was inspired by Hedgecock and McKee's mutual affection for rockabilly and country music...
and was recorded and mixed on tape. Steve plays all the instruments on this one. The album is made up of songs written in the aftermath of Steve's dad's passing in 2009. In 2010 he released a 20-song CD titled "Gallery" featuring tracks from his three solo albums, plus four brand new songs with his solo band, Steve Barton And The Oblivion Click (Steve Barton, Robbie Rist
Robbie Rist
Robert Anthony Rist is an American actor and musician.-Acting and voiceover work:As a child, Rist played Cousin Oliver in the final six episodes of The Brady Bunch. With the regular children all getting older, his inclusion was intended to reintroduce cute younger children to the series...
, Derrick Anderson). Scheff has continued drumming, most recently with the orchestra at Teatro ZinZanni
Teatro ZinZanni
Teatro ZinZanni is a circus dinner theater that began in the neighborhood of Lower Queen Anne in Seattle, Washington. It has since expanded to a site on the waterfront at Pier 29 on the San Francisco, California The Embarcadero....
, on a 2008 summer UK tour with Dead Kennedys
Dead Kennedys
Dead Kennedys are an American punk rock band formed in San Francisco, California in 1978. The band became part of the American hardcore punk movement of the early 1980s. They gained a large underground fanbase in the international punk music scene....
and, with Larry Dekker, guitarist Peter Wiley and keyboardist and singer Cynthia Haagens in Bang Bang Men. Robert Darlington published a collection of his poetry titled "Ether". Larry Dekker continues to supply his powerful melodic bass playing for various bands.
Personnel
- Steve Barton: vocals / guitarElectric guitarAn electric guitar is a guitar that uses the principle of direct electromagnetic induction to convert vibrations of its metal strings into electric audio signals. The signal generated by an electric guitar is too weak to drive a loudspeaker, so it is amplified before sending it to a loudspeaker...
- Bob Darlington: vocals / guitarElectric guitarAn electric guitar is a guitar that uses the principle of direct electromagnetic induction to convert vibrations of its metal strings into electric audio signals. The signal generated by an electric guitar is too weak to drive a loudspeaker, so it is amplified before sending it to a loudspeaker...
- Larry Dekker: bassBass guitarThe bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
- Dave Scheff: drumsDrum kitA drum kit is a collection of drums, cymbals and often other percussion instruments, such as cowbells, wood blocks, triangles, chimes, or tambourines, arranged for convenient playing by a single person ....
Studio albums
- Heartbeats And TriggersHeartbeats And TriggersHeartbeats And Triggers, Translator's debut album, was released in 1982 on 415 Records, distributed by Columbia Records. It contained the hit single, "Everywhere That I'm Not". Some LP copies of this album made use of the short-lived CX noise reduction system which was introduced by Columbia...
(1982) - No Time Like NowNo Time Like NowNo Time Like Now is the second album from Translator, released in 1983 on 415 Records, distributed by Columbia Records.In 2007 the album was released on CD for the first time by Wounded Bird Records...
(1983) - TranslatorTranslator (album)Translator is the self-titled third album from Translator, released in 1985 on 415 Records and distributed by Columbia Records.In 2007, the album was released on Compact Disc for the first time by Wounded Bird Records...
(1985) - Evening of The HarvestEvening of The HarvestEvening of The Harvest, Translator's 4th album, was released in 1986 on 415 Records, distributed by Columbia Records.In 2007 the album was released on CD for the first time by Wounded Bird Records...
(1986)
Compilations
- Everywhere That I'm Not: A RetrospectiveEverywhere That I'm Not: A RetrospectiveEverywhere That I'm Not: A Retrospective was a greatest hits album released by San Francisco new wave group Translator in 1986.-Track listing:#"Everywhere That I'm Not"#"Sleeping Snakes"#"O Lazarus"#"Un-Alone"#"Gravity"#"Today"...
(1986) - The Best of 415 RecordsThe Best of 415 RecordsThe Best of 415 Records is a compilation album.-Track listing:*Wire Train**1. Chamber of Hellos**2. With God on Our Side**3. She Comes On*Romeo Void**4. A Girl in Trouble**5. Never Say Never**6. Not Safe*Red Rockers**7. China...
(1994) - Translation (1995)
- Everywhere That We Were: The Best of Translator (1996)
- Collection (2007)
- Different Time (2008)