T'Pau (band)
| T'Pau | |
|---|---|
 T'Pau in 2010 |
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| Background information | |
| Origin | Shropshire, United Kingdom |
| Genres | Pop, pop rock |
| Years active | 1986–1991 1998–present |
| Labels | Siren, Virgin, Charisma,[1] Gnatfish |
| Website | http://www.tpau.co.uk/ |
| Members | Carol Decker |
| Past members | Dean Howard Ronnie Rogers Tim Burgess Michael Chetwood Paul Jackson Taj Wyzgowski |
T'Pau (pronounced /təˈpaʊ/) is a British pop rock group led by singer Carol Decker. They had had a string of Top 40 hits in the UK in the late 1980s, most notably "China in Your Hand", "Heart and Soul" and "Valentine" ,[2] and several hits in the United States and Europe, before disbanding in the early 1990s. Decker still performs under the name T'Pau at solo shows and 1980s nostalgia concerts.
Contents |
History [edit]
The band formed in 1986 in Shropshire, taking their name from a Vulcan priestess of the same name in the 1960s sci-fi series Star Trek.[3] Prior to deciding on this name, they were called Talking America on early demos sent to record and publishing companies.
Their first hit was the 1987 release "Heart and Soul". Initially a flop in the UK, it first became a hit in the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 chart, reaching No. 4 after being featured on a Pepe Jeans advertisement; it repeated the feat in the UK Singles Chart some months later. Their next single, "China in Your Hand", was their biggest UK hit, spending five weeks at number 1.[4] It also reached the top spot in several European countries, but made little impact in the United States. Their debut album, Bridge of Spies (simply called T'Pau in the USA), also reached number 1 and went quadruple platinum in the UK. The album produced a total of five hit singles including "Valentine", "Sex Talk" (a live recording of early flop single, "Intimate Strangers"), and "I Will Be with You".
1988 saw the release of their second album Rage, which peaked at No. 4 in the UK and reached platinum status in the there, but failed to come close to the level of success of the band's debut album the year before. It produced the UK Top 20 single "Secret Garden", though chart returns were diminishing by this point, and two following singles earned very modest success. The third album The Promise followed in 1991, which peaked at No. 10 in the UK and earned a silver disc. It included one Top 20 hit, "Whenever You Need Me", but the band's commercial peak had now passed and they split up following its release. A compilation album was released in 1993, Heart and Soul – The Very Best of T'Pau, which charted within UK's Top 40.
Another greatest hits release appeared in 1997, and Decker reformed the band with a new line-up in 1998, for the release of a new studio album, Red. The record was not a commercial success, but T'Pau have continued to perform live on a semi-regular basis. Two singles "With a Little Luck" and "Giving Up the Ghost" were released from the album. Decker still made guest appearances on TV shows throughout the 2000s, including Hit Me, Baby, One More Time, Just the Two of Us or The Weakest Link. In 2007, marking the 20th anniversary of T'Pau's first success, Ron Rogers and Carol Decker released a new single, "Just Dream", exclusively as an Internet download. In 2008, T'Pau were part of the Here and Now 80s nostalgia tour.[5]
To mark the 25th anniversary of the formation of the band, Carol and Ron embarked on a 28-date UK tour during the spring of 2013.
Band members [edit]
- Carol Decker (born 10 September 1957, Liverpool) – vocalist, songwriter
- Dean Howard (b. 7 May 1961, London) – lead guitarist; has toured and recorded with Deep Purple vocalist Ian Gillan
- Ronnie Rogers (b. 13 March 1959, Shrewsbury) – rhythm guitarist, songwriter; is currently in the band The Ronaldos
- Tim Burgess (b. 6 October 1961, High Wycombe) – percussionist, drummer; not the Charlatans' lead singer, but previously in Solid Air around 1980 with 3 school friends.
- Michael Chetwood (b. 26 August 1954, Telford) – keyboardist
- Paul Jackson (b. 8 August 1961, Telford) – bassist; is currently in the band Dawson
- Taj Wyzgowski (b. 24 November 1959, Edinburgh) – lead guitarist on Bridge of Spies[6]
Discography [edit]
Studio albums [edit]
| Year | Title | Peak chart positions | Certifications | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UK [7] |
AUT [8] |
CAN [9] |
GER [10] |
NLD [11] |
NOR [12] |
NZL [13] |
SWE [14] |
SWI [15] |
USA [16] |
|||
| 1987 | Bridge of Spies | 1 | 12 | 17 | 7 | 6 | 1 | 6 | 11 | 3 | 31 | |
| 1988 | Rage | 4 | — | — | 44 | — | 16 | — | 14 | 21 | — |
|
| 1991 | The Promise | 10 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 40 | — |
|
| 1998 | Red | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | |
Compilation albums [edit]
- 1993: Heart and Soul – The Very Best of T'Pau
- 1997: The Greatest Hits
- 2003: Greatest Hits Live!
Singles [edit]
| Year | Title | Peak chart positions | Album | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UK [7][20] |
AUT [8] |
BEL [21] |
CAN [22] |
GER [10] |
IRE [23] |
NLD [11] |
NOR [12] |
NZL [13] |
SWE [14] |
SWI [15] |
USA [16] |
|||
| 1987 | "Heart and Soul" | 4 | — | 16 | 1 | 10 | 4 | 37 | — | 9 | 20 | 9 | 4 | Bridge of Spies |
| "Intimate Strangers" | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | Bridge of Spies ("Sex Talk") | |
| "China in Your Hand" | 1 | 5 | 1 | 20 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 8 | 5 | 1 | — | Bridge of Spies | |
| "Bridge of Spies" | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| "Valentine" | 9 | — | 16 | — | 37 | 10 | 17 | — | — | — | 21 | — | ||
| 1988 | "Sex Talk (Live)" | 23 | — | — | — | — | 21 | — | — | — | — | — | — | |
| "I Will Be with You" | 14 | — | — | — | — | 15 | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| "Secret Garden" | 18 | — | — | — | 66 | 8 | — | — | — | — | — | — | Rage | |
| "Road to Our Dream" | 42 | — | — | — | — | 24 | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1989 | "Only the Lonely" | 28 | — | — | — | — | 22 | — | — | — | — | — | — | |
| 1991 | "Whenever You Need Me" | 16 | — | — | — | 51 | 26 | — | — | — | — | — | — | The Promise |
| "Walk on Air" | 62 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| "Soul Destruction" | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| "Only a Heartbeat" | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1993 | "Valentine" | 53 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | Heart and Soul – The Very Best of T'Pau |
| 1997 | "Heart & Soul 97" | 186 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | Red |
| 1998 | "With a Little Luck" | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | |
| 1999 | "Giving Up the Ghost" | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | |
References [edit]
- ^ "6959.jpg (JPEG Image, 645 × 753 pixels)". geocities.com. web.archive.org. Retrieved 2009-09-01.
- ^ Roberts, David (2006). British Hit Singles & Albums (19th ed.). London: Guinness World Records Limited. p. 563. ISBN 1-904994-10-5.
- ^ John Bush. "T'Pau". Allmusic. Retrieved 2012-03-31.
- ^ "The Official Charts Company - China In Your Hand by T'Pau Search". The Official Charts Company. 6 May 2013.
- ^ "Tony Denton Promotions". www.tdpromo.com. Retrieved 2012-06-12.
- ^ "Taj Wyzgowski : Pick-Pluck-Twang - Elsewhere - The Queen's Hall". www.thequeenshall.net. 2010-08-15. Retrieved 2012-03-31.
- ^ a b "The Official Charts Company - T'Pau (band)". The Official Charts Company. 6 May 2013.
- ^ a b "Discografie T'Pau". austriancharts.at (in German). Retrieved 2012-06-12.
- ^ "Item Display - RPM - Library and Archives Canada". www.collectionscanada.gc.ca. Retrieved 2012-06-13.
- ^ a b "Suche nach "t'pau"". www.charts.de (in German). Retrieved 2012-06-10.
- ^ a b "Discografie T'Pau". dutchcharts.nl (in Dutch). Retrieved 2012-06-12.
- ^ a b "Discography T'Pau". norwegiancharts.com. Retrieved 2012-06-12.
- ^ a b "Discography T'Pau". charts.org.nz. Retrieved 2012-06-12.
- ^ a b "Discography T'Pau". swedishcharts.com. Retrieved 2012-06-12.
- ^ a b "T'Pau - China In Your Hand". hitparade.ch (in German). Retrieved 2012-06-12.
- ^ a b "T'Pau - Awards". www.allmusic.com. Retrieved 2012-06-12.
- ^ a b c "Certified Awards Search". www.bpi.co.uk. Retrieved 2011-10-27.
- ^ "Gold and Platinum Search". www.musiccanada.com. Retrieved 2012-06-13.
- ^ "Bundesverband Musikindustrie: Gold-/Platin-Datenbank". www.musikindustrie.de. Retrieved 2012-06-12.
- ^ "Chart Log UK: DJ T - Tzant". www.zobbel.de. Retrieved 2012-06-13.
- ^ "Discografie T'Pau". www.ultratop.be. Retrieved 2012-10-01.
- ^ "Results - RPM - Library and Archives Canada". www.collectionscanada.gc.ca. Retrieved 2012-06-13. (See August 22, 1987 and April 02 1988 issues.)
- ^ "The Irish Charts - All there is to know". www.irishcharts.ie. Retrieved 2012-06-13.
External links [edit]
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