Red Guitars
| Red Guitars | |
|---|---|
| Origin | Kingston upon Hull, East Riding of Yorkshire, England |
| Genres | Indie rock |
| Years active | 1982–1986 |
| Labels | Self Drive Records, PIAS Recordings, Virgin Records |
The Red Guitars were an English indie rock band active from 1982 to 1986. Based in Hull, the Red Guitars' first single "Good Technology" was a minor hit, selling 60,000 copies. Their singles "Marimba Jive" and "Be With Me" both reached number one on the UK Indie Chart.
Jerry Kidd (born Jeremy Kidd, vocals) and Hallam Lewis (guitarist) met in 1979 at a Community Arts programme in Hull. The two formed the short-lived project, Carnage in Poland. After several line-up changes, including the addition of Mark Douglas, the band changed their name to the Czechs, billing themselves as 'eastern European reggae'. After more line-up changes, including the departure of Douglas, the Czechs abandoned their name and reggae sound, becoming the Red Guitars.
Playing a mixture of punk, blues, electrified folk and African rhythms, the Red Guitars built a small but loyal national following, playing mostly benefit shows for left-wing causes.
In 1982, the band recorded their first single "Good Technology". In keeping with the band's anti-corporate ideology, the Red Guitars released the single on their own record label, Self Drive Records, selling 60,000 copies. The video to "Good Technology" was broadcast on the cult 1980s Channel 4 music TV show The Tube, as part of the show's Hull music special.
Constant touring to support follow-up singles "Fact", "Steeltown" (The John Peel Session version of which also featured on the Four Your Ears Only EP – an aural collection which included Luddites, Red Lorry, Yellow Lorry and Party Day) and "Marimba Jive", added to the daily pressures of running a record label resulted in internal pressures in the Red Guitars, culminating in the departure of Kidd in 1984, two months after the release of debut album Slow to Fade. The band continued on without Kidd for a further two years, bringing on Robert Holmes for vocals, but failed to achieve the previous critical or commercial success, although "Be With Me" also reached the top spot on the UK Indie Chart in May 1985.
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