Housemartins

Career outline

 * Core members of this combo who referred to themselves as 'the 4th best band from Hull' were: Paul Heaton, Dave Hemingway (who went on with roadie Sean Welch to form the Beautiful South), Norman Cook (now better known as Fatboy Slim), and Stan Cullimore. The Gargoyles (one of the 'better' bands) provided members Dave Lang, Ted Key and Hugh Whitaker. Their celebrated appearance at the Glastonbury Festival in 1985 was followed by a series of dynamic and uplifting chart singles, two full albums and one compilation before a split in 1988. Although they remain friends and have worked on each other's projects, they have resolutely refused to reform. They also performed a capella under the pseudonym Fish City Five, and in this style almost had a Christmas number one in 1986 with the Isley Brothers' Caravan Of Love. Their songs betrayed a curious mixture of Marxist and Christian influences (the aforementioned song's EP apologised for the seeming frivolity of their early style, and carried the legend, 'Power to the people...respect to the steeple').
 * JP booked them for four sessions, and in fact persuaded them to record one under the Fish City Five pseudonym. He regretted the fact that Caravan Of Love was not number one at Christmas 1986 (having been knocked off the top spot by Jackie Wilson's Reet Petite, and pointed out that the song had already been heard in their session first broadcast on April 14th that year.

Festive Fifty Entries

 * 'Flag Day (7 inch)' (Go! Discs). FF 1985 #10.

Sessions

 * Four sessions, released commercially on Now That's What I Call Quite Good and Live At The BBC.

1. Recorded: 1985-07-21. First broadcast: 29 July 1985. Repeated: 14 August 1985 and 03 September 1985. 2. Recorded: 1986-04-06. First broadcast: 14 April 1986. Repeated: 16 July 1986 and 24 December 1986. 3. Recorded: 1986-06-03 (billed as 'Fish City Five'. First broadcast: 16 June 1986. Repeated: 02 July 1986 and 22 December 1986. 4. Recorded: 1987-11-03. First broadcast: 1987-11-11. Repeated: 30 November 1987.
 * Drop Down Dead / Flag Day / Stand At Ease / Joy Joy Joy
 * Over There / Happy Hour / Get Up Off Our Knees / Caravan Of Love
 * Happy Hour / Heaven Help Us All / He Ain't Heavy He's My Brother / When I First Met Jesus / Peel Show Sig (A Capella)
 * There Is Always Something There To Remind Me / Sunday Isn't Sunday / Build