The Farmer's Boys were a British band from

Norwich Norwich () is a cathedral city and district of the county of Norfolk, England, of which it is the county town. It lies by the River Wensum, about north-east of London, north of Ipswich and east of Peterborough. The population of the Norwich ...

, England. They formed in the early 1980s and were briefly called 'Bang Goes My Stereo' before changing their name to 'The Farmer's Boys'.Strong, Martin C. (2003) "Farmer's Boys", in ''The Great Indie Discography'', Canongate,

History

Initially a three piece act, the band employed a drum machine which gave them a somewhat distinctive sound, which combined elements of

country and Western A country is a distinct part of the world, such as a state, nation, or other political entity. When referring to a specific polity, the term "country" may refer to a sovereign state, state with limited recognition, constituent country, or d ...

disco Disco is a music genre, genre of dance music and a subculture that emerged in the late 1960s from the United States' urban nightclub, nightlife, particularly in African Americans, African-American, Italian-Americans, Italian-American, LGBTQ ...

and

punk Punk or punks may refer to: Genres, subculture, and related aspects * Punk rock, a music genre originating in the 1970s associated with various subgenres * Punk subculture, a subculture associated with punk rock, or aspects of the subculture s ...

. The band's faux 'rural bumpkin' imagery and self-deprecating humour was an important part of their appeal, but led to some scathing reviews in the metropolitan music press. The band played many gigs with

The Higsons The Higsons were an English funk-punk band, who existed between 1980 and 1986. History Founded in 1980 at the University of East Anglia in Norwich, Norfolk, England, The Higsons' first recording was on the ''Norwich - A Fine City'' compilat ...

and for a while was identified as one of the hubs of the 1980s ''Norwich scene'', an eclectic collection of

post-punk Post-punk (originally called new musick) is a broad genre of music that emerged in late 1977 in the wake of punk rock. Post-punk musicians departed from punk's fundamental elements and raw simplicity, instead adopting a broader, more experiment ...

acts that fused indie and dance to varied degrees. Early singles were released on local Norwich labels, with the band's first single, "I Think I Need Help", released in April 1982. This attracted airplay from

John Peel John Robert Parker Ravenscroft (30 August 1939 – 25 October 2004), better known as John Peel, was an English radio presenter and journalist. He was the longest-serving of the original disc jockeys on BBC Radio 1, broadcasting regularly from ...

who became a champion of the band and invited them for several sessions, with

David Jensen David Allan Jensen (born 4 July 1950) is a Canadian-born British radio DJ and television presenter. Born in Victoria, British Columbia, Jensen began as a radio DJ on Radio Luxembourg. Jensen was later a broadcaster for the BBC from 1976 to 19 ...

doing likewise (they recorded three sessions for the latter in 1982–83). In January 1983, "More Than a Dream" was their first single for

EMI EMI Group Limited (formerly EMI Group plc until 2007; originally an initialism for Electric and Musical Industries, also referred to as EMI Records or simply EMI) was a British transnational conglomerate founded in March 1931 in London. At t ...

, a reissue of an independent single that gained some national airplay. Their next single "Muck It Out" was a near-hit, and was followed by their debut album ''

Get Out and Walk ''Get Out and Walk'' is the debut album by the Farmer's Boys, released in 1983. Initial copies came with a free 33.3rpm 12" with 12" versions of "For You", "Muck It Out", "Probably One of the Best Investments I Ever Made" and "Soft Drink". The al ...

''. In 1984, a cover of "

In the Country In the Country (initiated in 2003 in Oslo, Norway) is a Norwegian Jazz trio comprising pianist Morten Qvenild, bassist Roger Arntzen and drummer Pål Hausken. Biography The band was started by the three fellow students at the Norwegian Aca ...

" – previously recorded by

Cliff Richard Sir Cliff Richard (born Harry Rodger Webb; 14 October 1940) is a British singer and actor. He has total sales of over 21.5 million singles in the United Kingdom and, as of 2012, was the third-top-selling artist in UK Singles Chart histo ...

– stalled just outside the Top 40 despite considerable national airplay and promotional TV appearances. This marked the nearest the band came to chart success. The subsequent album ''With These Hands'' followed, with the addition of a drummer both on record and live gigs moving the band further away from its early 'indie' sounds. Two more singles were released before the band split in 1985, citing the enigmatic reason of "electrical differences". Post-split, Baz and Mark went on to form The Avons in 1985. Mark later joined The Nivens. Stan formed Dr Fondle. Frog joined The Higsons and played keyboards in a

Julian Cope Julian David Cope (born 21 October 1957) is an English musician and author. He was the singer and songwriter in Liverpool post-punk band the Teardrop Explodes and has followed a solo career since 1983 in addition to working on musical side proj ...

tour in the late 1980s and original guitarist Andy left early on to join Serious Drinking. In the 2000s, Baz, Mark and Stan played as the McGuilty Brothers.

Discography

Albums

*1983: ''

'' (EMI, 1077993) – UK No. 49 (produced by Frog and Pete Hammond, except "For You" and "Matter of Fact", accompanied by a special edition 12-inch single featuring 12" versions of "For You", "Probably One of the Best Investments I Ever Made", "Soft Drink" and "Muck It Out") *1985: '' With These Hands'' (EMI, EJ 2402904)

Compilation albums

*2003: ''

Once Upon a Time in the East (The Early Years 1981–1982) ''Once Upon a Time in the East: The Early Years 1981–1982'' is a compilation album from the 1980s British band The Farmer's Boys. Track listing # "I Lack Concentration" # "Or What" # "Squit" # "Autumn" # "I Don't Know Why I Don't Like All My ...

Singles

BBC Radio 1 'In Concert'

A concert was recorded and broadcast from the Lyceum Theatre in London on 7 September 1983. The Farmer's Boys played the second half-hour, whilst another Norwich band

the Higsons The Higsons were an English funk-punk band, who existed between 1980 and 1986. History Founded in 1980 at the University of East Anglia in Norwich, Norfolk, England, The Higsons' first recording was on the ''Norwich - A Fine City'' compilat ...

played the first half. Tracks played: #"Whatever Is He Like?" #"Matter of Fact" #"Who Needs It?" (with

Terry Edwards Terry Edwards (born 10 August 1960) is an English musician who plays trumpet, flugelhorn, saxophones, guitar and keyboards. Biography Edwards gained a degree in music from the University of East Anglia in 1982, where he was also a founding mem ...

from The Higsons on saxophone) #"More Than a Dream" (with Terry Edwards on saxophone) #"I Woke Up This Morning" #"Soft Drink" #"The Way You Made Me Cry" #"For You"

References

External links

The Farmer's Boys Official/Unofficial site The Great Outdoors (Wayback Machine archive)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Farmer's Boys, The English new wave musical groups English pop music groups Musical groups established in 1981 Musical groups disestablished in 1985 Musical groups from Norfolk