The Waltones (later known as Candlestick Park) were a British indie band from

Manchester Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The t ...

, England, who re-formed in September 2017.

History

The band consists of Alex Fyans (drums), Mark Collins (guitar), James Knox (vocals, harmonica) and Manny Lee (bass, backing vocals).Strong, Martin C. (2003) ''The Great Indie Discography'', Canongate, , p. 565 Their debut release was the "Downhill" single, released by

Medium Cool Records Medium Cool was a British independent record label, that existed between 1986 and 1989. Specializing in jangly guitar-pop, it released records by bands such as The Raw Herbs, The Siddeleys, The Rain, The Waltones, The Popguns, and The Corn ...

in April 1987, which, like the follow-up, "She Looks Right Through Me", placed on the

UK Independent Chart The UK Independent Singles Chart and UK Independent Albums Chart are charts of the best-selling independent singles and albums, respectively, in the United Kingdom. Originally published in January 1980, and widely known as the indie chart, the rele ...

. Third single "Spell It Out" gave them their biggest success, peaking at number 20 on the Indie Singles Chart. Debut album ''Deepest'' eventually saw a release in 1989, by which time they had lost momentum. The band also recorded a session for

BBC Radio 1 BBC Radio 1 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC. It specialises in modern popular music and current chart hits throughout the day. The station provides alternative genres at night, including electronica, dance, ...

John Peel John Robert Parker Ravenscroft (30 August 1939 – 25 October 2004), known professionally as John Peel, was an English disc jockey (DJ) and radio presenter. He was the longest-serving of the original BBC Radio 1 DJs, broadcasting regularly fr ...

Show in August 1988.Garner, Ken (1993) ''In Session Tonight'', BBC Books, , p. 312 In 1990, the band moved to the Midnight Music label, and recorded a second album ''Re-invent the Wheel'' co-produced by Kevin Harris. After recording was completed, Fyans left the group to be replaced by Adrian Donohue. The band relaunched themselves as Candlestick Park. One single, "All the Time in the World", was issued from the album sessions, and a collaboration with Manchester-based House producers K-Klass was mooted. However the album was never issued and the band split, as Collins went on to greater success with The Charlatans (aka Charlatans UK). A CD retrospective of The Waltones' Medium Cool output was issued by Cherry Red in 2007. The Waltones re-formed in 2017 to play a gig at the Deaf Institute, playing the Kendal Calling Festival in 2018 and

The 100 Club The 100 Club is a music venue located at 100 Oxford Street, London, England, where it has been hosting live music since 24 October 1942. It was originally called the Feldman Swing Club, but changed its name when the father of the current owner ...

in September 2019 alongside

The Chesterfields The Chesterfields are an English indie pop band from Yeovil, Somerset, England. Hardcore fans tended to refer to them as "The Chesterf!elds", with an exclamation mark replacing the "i", following the example of the band's logo. The band was form ...

Discography

Albums

*1989: ''Deepest'' (Medium Cool) *2007: ''The Very Best of The Waltones: You've Gotta Hand It to 'em'' ( Cherry Red)

Singles

*"Downhill" (7") (April 1987), Medium Cool - MC 004, UK Indie #40Lazell, Barry (1998) ''Indie Hits 1980-1989'', Cherry Red Books, , p. 251 *"She Looks Right Through Me" (12") (October 1987), Medium Cool - MC 007, UK Indie #49 *"Spell It Out" (7"+12") (July 1988), Medium Cool - MC 011, UK Indie #20 *"The Deepest" (7"+12") (October 1988), Medium Cool - MC 016 *"Listen to Your Heart" (1989), Medium Cool - withdrawn 12" single, MC 022T *"All the Time in the World" (1990), Midnight Music - DING 67 (as Candlestick Park) ;Split releases: *"Bold" (1987) - flexi disc that came free with ''Irresponsible Spirit'' fanzine, other track "All of Nothing" by Pigbros

Compilation appearances

*"The British Disease" and "Bold" on ''Edge of the Road'' (1988), Medium Cool *"Smile" on ''Manchester North of England'' (1988),

Bop Cassettes Bop Cassettes is a defunct, Manchester-based, independent record label. It released records (and cassettes) for many Manchester bands in the late 1980s, including the Man From Delmonte, Toss the Feathers, Suns of Arqa Suns of Arqa ar ...

*"She Looks Right Through Me" on ''Bananas!'' (1989), Rodney *"She Looks Right Through Me" (demo) on ''Zine'' magazine ''Zine Sexy Flexi'' flexi-disc (1989) *" As Tears Go By" on ''Stoned Again - A Tribute to the Stones'' (1990), Imaginary

History

Discography

Albums

Singles

Compilation appearances

References

Further reading