The Sea Urchins were an

indie pop Indie pop (also typeset as indie-pop or indiepop) is a music genre and subculture that combines guitar pop with DIY ethic in opposition to the style and tone of mainstream pop music. It originated from British post-punk in the late 1970s and sub ...

band from

West Bromwich West Bromwich ( ) is a market town in the borough of Sandwell, West Midlands, England. Historically part of Staffordshire, it is north-west of Birmingham. West Bromwich is part of the area known as the Black Country, in terms of geography, ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

formed in 1986.Strong, Martin C. (1999) "The Great Alternative & Indie Discography", Canongate, They were the first band to release a single on

Sarah Records Sarah Records was a British independent record label active in Bristol between 1987 and 1995, best known for its recordings of indie pop, which it released mostly on 7" singles. On reaching the catalogue number SARAH 100, the label celebrated it ...

History

The initial line-up was James Roberts (vocals), Simon Woodcock (guitar), Robert Cooksey (guitar), Mark Bevin (bass), Bridget Duffy (tambourine, organ), and Patrick Roberts (drums). Their first two releases were flexi discs given away with fanzines in 1987.Larkin, Colin (1998) ''The Virgin Encyclopedia of Indie & New Wave'', Virgin Books, , p. 371-2 Bevin left, to be replaced by Darren Martin. Their "Pristine Christine" single was the first

release, and is highly coveted among vinyl record collectors. With the following year's double-A-side "Solace"/"Please Rain Fall" they began to show more mod-rock influences. Both singles were successful in indie terms, but Sarah Records were unwilling to commit to an album, and Duffy and Martin left. Woodcock took over on bass, with James Roberts adding guitar. The band released one more single for Sarah ("A Morning Oddyssey" in 1990), but disagreements about the next single saw them move on to Cheree Records, who issued "Please Don't Cry" in 1991. The band split up in summer 1991. Two albums were subsequently released; Sarah Records issued a compilation of the band's material for the label, including the flexi-disc tracks, as ''Stardust'' in 1992, while Fierce Recordings issued a live album in 1994. James Roberts, Cooksey, and Woodcock later formed the band Delta.Lazell, Barry (1997) "Indie Hits 1980-1989", Cherry Red Books, James Roberts, Patrick Roberts, and Robert Cooksey also formed The Low Scene.

Members

*James Roberts (born 4 March 1968) - vocals, acoustic guitar *Robert Cooksey (born 14 November 1969) - lead guitar *Simon Woodcock (born 2 December 1969) - rhythm guitar, bass *Bridget Duffy (born 28 June 1970) - vox organ, tambourine (1986–1989) *Patrick Roberts - drums *Mark Bevin (born 21 January 1970) - bass (1986–1987) *Darren Martin - bass guitar (1987–1989)

Discography

Albums

*''Stardust'' (1992), Sarah *''Live in London'' (1994), Fierce

Singles

*"Pristine Christine" (1987), Sarah ( UK Indie No. 11) *"Please Rain Fall"/"Solace" (1988) Sarah (UK Indie No. 4) *''Recorded 30.10.88'' (1988), Fierce *"A Morning Odyssey" (1990), Sarah *"Please Don't Cry" (1991), Cheree

Compilation appearances

*"Cling Film" on ''The Kvatch flexi'' (1987), Kvatch *"Summershine" on ''Sha-La-La Flexi 5'' (1987), Sha La La *"Pristine Christine" on ''There And Back Again Lane'' (1995), Sarah *"Pristine Christine" on ''Rough Trade Shops Indiepop 1'' (2004), Rough Trade *"Pristine Christine" on ''CD86'' (2006), Sanctuary

References

External links

The Sea Urchins on TweeNet
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sea Urchins Sarah Records artists British indie pop groups Jangle pop groups Musical groups established in 1986 Musical groups disestablished in 1991 People from West Bromwich 1986 establishments in England