Haircut One Hundred | |
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Haircut One Hundred performing live at the IndigO2, 2011
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Background information | |
Also known as | Haircut 100 |
Origin | Beckenham, London, England |
Genres | |
Years active | 1980–1984, 2004, 2009–2013 |
Labels | Polydor, Arista |
Website | HaircutOneHundred.net |
Past members |
Nick Heyward Graham Jones Les Nemes Patrick Hunt Marc Fox Phil Smith Blair Cunningham |
Haircut One Hundred were a British new wave/jazz-funk group formed in 1980 in Beckenham, London by Nick Heyward. In 1981 and 1982 the band had four UK Top 10 hit singles: "Favourite Shirts (Boy Meets Girl)", "Love Plus One", "Nobody's Fool", and "Fantastic Day".
Nick Heyward and Les Nemes had been in several bands together since 1977. They were first known as Rugby, then as the Boat Party, then as Captain Pennyworth, and lastly as Moving England, before finally becoming Haircut One Hundred. By this time, Heyward and Nemes had met guitarist Graham Jones, and the three were joined by drummer Patrick Hunt. Managed by Karl Adams, the band recorded some demos. Phil Smith played saxophone on the sessions and he joined the group, followed by percussionist Mark Fox. The group played some live dates and were signed by Arista Records in 1981. They entered Chalk Farm's Roundhouse Studios to record their debut single, "Favourite Shirts (Boy Meets Girl)", which became their first hit, reaching No. 4 in the UK Singles Chart in late 1981, and resulted in their first appearance on BBC Television's Top of the Pops.
For the recording of their debut album, Pelican West, Blair Cunningham replaced Hunt on drums. Their second single, "Love Plus One", was released in January 1982 and gave the band their second UK Top 10 hit. Pelican West was released in February, reaching No. 2 in the UK Albums Chart. The band became internationally famous and toured the globe. "Love Plus One" reached the US Top 40, and they secured further UK Top 10 hits in 1982 with the singles "Fantastic Day" and "Nobody's Fool".