Orange Juice were a Scottish post-punk band founded in the Glasgow suburb of Bearsden as the Nu-Sonics in 1976. Edwyn Collins formed the Nu-Sonics (named after a cheap brand of guitar) with his school-mate Alan Duncan and was subsequently joined by James Kirk and Steven Daly, who left a band called The Machetes. The band became Orange Juice in 1979. They are best known for the hit 'Rip It Up', which reached number 8 on the UK Singles Chart in February 1983, the band's only UK Top 40 hit.[1]
The band released their first singles during 1980 and 1981 on the independent Postcard Records label founded by Alan Horne, along with fellow Scottish bands Josef K and Aztec Camera. These included 'Blue Boy' and 'Simply Thrilled Honey'. Shortly afterwards this line-up signed to Polydor Records and recorded their first album, 'You Can't Hide Your Love Forever'.
(Read more at Wikipedia.)
Links to Peel[]
Peel regularly played Orange Juice's early singles on the Postcard label, which used the slogan “The Sound Of Young Scotland”. According to Simon Goddard's book Simply Thrilled (Ebury Press, 2014), Peel's introduction to the band came when he was accosted outside the BBC by Postcard boss Alan Horne, who brandished a copy of their debut 45, 'Falling and Laughing', and told the DJ:
”All those Manchester and Liverpool bands you play. It's all a nice bore. You need to wise up, old man. Forget all that Bunnymen and Teardrops shit. This is the future. Get wise to it now or you're going to look really stupid."[2]
Peel confirmed the basic story a few days later, on 21 February 1980, when he gave airtime to the record for the first time. The DJ also saw Orange Juice live, at a John Peel Roadshow event with the Fall at Manchester Polytechnic at the start of November 1980.[3]
On 25 March 1981, the DJ interviewed singer Edwin Collins at length during a week of BBC shows from Scotland. As noted by writer David Cavanagh in the book Good Night and Good Riddance (Faber & Faber, 2015, pg 283-4), Peel appeared nonplussed that Collins was already looking to aim for higher production values and commercial success.[4] In the same interview, the Orange Juice vocalist was also forthright in his criticisms of Peel's shows, suggesting that they should include more vintage "classic" material for the musical education of listeners. In the event, the band soon signed for major label Polydor and largely dropped off Peel's playlists. Both of their Peel sessions were recorded before the switch.
Nevertheless, Orange Juice subsequently came to be seen as pioneers for a generation of indie-pop outfits played on Peel's shows. In 1986, the first Wedding Present session included a cover of the Orange Juice song 'Felicity'.
Festive Fifty Entries[]
- None
Sessions[]
Orange Juice - Falling and Laughing (Peel Session)
Two sessions. Both available in full on 6CD + DVD collection Coals To Newcastle (Domino, 2010).
1. Recorded 1980-10-21. First broadcast 30 October 1980. Repeated 26 November 1980, 26 March 1981.
- Poor Old Soul / You Old Eccentric You / Falling And Laughing / Lovesick
2. Recorded 1981-08-03. First broadcast 10 August 1981. Repeated 06 October 1981, 10 November 1981, 21 October 1986.
- Dying Day / Holiday Hymn / Three Cheers For Our Side / Blokes On 45
Other Shows Played[]
(The following list was compiled on from the datebase of this site and Lorcan's Tracklistings Archive. Please add more information if known.)
- 1980
- 21 February 1980: (JP: "On Monday night I met a couple of people from a band called Orange Juice who brought me a copy of their single and I played it and said I would play it on Wednesday's programme, which I failed to do, so they probably thought, "Well, we won't listen to him again, in which case they'll have missed hearing the record, which is in tonight's programme and is called 'Falling And Laughing'.")
- Falling And Laughing (7") Postcard POSTCARD 80-1 - 23 February 1980 (BFBS): (Actually recorded this show the day after the meeting as he explains that they "turned up at the studios here in London last night") - Falling And Laughing (7") Postcard POSTCARD 80-1
- 03 September 1980: Blue Boy (7" - Blue Boy / Love Sick) Postcard
- 09 September 1980: Love Sick (7" - Blue Boy / Love Sick) Postcard
- 15 September 1980: Love Sick (7" b-side Blue Boy) Postcard
- 25 September 1980: Love Sick (single b-side Blue Boy) Postcard
- 01 December 1980: Simply Thrilled Honey (7") Postcard POSTCARD 80-6
- 06 December 1980 (BFBS): Simply Thrilled Honey (7") Postcard POSTCARD 80-6
- 11 December 1980: Simply Thrilled Honey (7") Postcard POSTCARD 80-6
- 1981
- 03 January 1981 (BFBS): Falling And Laughing (7") Postcard POSTCARD 80-1
- 05 January 1981: Falling And Laughing (7") Postcard POSTCARD 80-1
- 08 January 1981: Simply Thrilled Honey (7") Postcard
- 05 March 1981: unknown from new single possibly Poor Old Soul Part 2
- 25 March 1981: Poor Old Soul (7") Postcard (show features extended interview with Edwyn Collins)
- 07 September 1981: Simply Thrilled Honey (7") Postcard
- 05 November 1981 (BBC World Service): Intuition Told Me (7" - L.O.V.E... Love) Polydor
- 1982
- 10 January 1982 (BFBS): Felicity (7") Polydor / Postcard POSP 386
- 23 February 1982: Falling And Laughing (album - You Can't Hide Your Love Forever) Polydor POLS 1057
- 14 March 1982 (BFBS): Tender Object (album - You Can't Hide Your Love Forever) Polydor POLS 1057
- 24 March 1982 (BBC World Service): Falling And Laughing (album - You Can't Hide Your Love Forever) Polydor POLS 1057
- 19 July 1982: Two Hearts Together (10" - Two Hearts Together / Hokoyo) Polydor
- 02 September 1982: Two Hearts Together (7" - Two Hearts Together / Hokoyo) Polydor
- 1983
- 09 February 1983: Falling And Laughing (7") Postcard
- 09 March 1983: The Day I Went Down To Texas (7" flexi-disc) Polydor
- 24 May 1983 (Mark Ellen sitting in): Flesh Of My Flesh (7") Black / Polydor OJ 4
- 30 May 1983: Flesh Of My Flesh (7") Polydor (JP: "Produced by Dennis Bovell")
- 1984
- Peel Late Nov 1983: Bridge (mini-album - Texas Fever) Polydor OJMLP 1
- 21 March 1984: Bridge (mini-album - Texas Fever]) Polydor OJMLP 1
- 09 April 1984 (BBC World Service): Punch Drunk (album - Texas Fever) Polydor OJMLP 1
- 17 October 1984: Lean Period (Extended Version) (12” single) Polydor
- 28 November 1984: Out For The Count (album - The Orange Juice) Polydor OJHP2
- 26 November 1984 (BBC World Service): Get While The Gettings Good (album - The Orange Juice) Polydor OJHP2
- 1986
- 17 February 1986: Flesh Of My Flesh (LP - Rip It Up) Polydor
- 1987
- 23 March 1987: Flesh Of My Flesh (LP - Rip It Up) Polydor
- 1988
- 12 December 1988: Blue Boy (v/a cassette - Indie City 1) New Musical Express
- 1996
- 05 August 1996: Falling And Laughing (session) (John Peel's Classic Sessions)
- 19 October 1996: Felicity (CD: The Esteemed - The Very Best Of Orange Juice) Polydor (Peel show presented by Steve Lamacq)
- Edwyn Collins
- 08 April 1985 (with Paul Quinn): Pale Blue Eyes (7") Swamplands SWP 1
- 17 December 1986: Kindred Spirit (v/a LP - Fruitcakes & Furry Collars) Record Mirror
- 02 September 1997: Seventies Night (album - I'm Not Following You) Setanta SETCD039 (features Mark E. Smith on vocals)
- 11 September 1997 (BFBS): Seventies Night (album - I'm Not Following You) Setanta SETCD039 (features Mark E. Smith on vocals)
- 18 September 1997 (BFBS) (repeat from previous week): Seventies Night (album - I'm Not Following You) Setanta SETCD039 (features Mark E. Smith on vocals)
- 07 October 1997: 'Seventies Night (Deadly Avenger Supershine Mix) (2x12"-I Hear A New World...(Remixed))' (Setanta)
- 16 October 1997 (BFBS): 'Seventies Night (Deadly Avenger Supershine Mix) (2x12"-I Hear A New World...(Remixed))' (Setanta)
Top Of The Pops[]
- 23 March 1983 (TOTP): Orange Juice - Rip It Up (#9)