A Flock of Seagulls -

A Flock of Seagulls are an English new wave band from Liverpool, best known for the Eighties classics “I Ran (So Far Away),” “Space Age Love Song,” and “Wishing (If I Had a Photograph of You),” all staples of early MTV. Their first two albums (A Flock of Seagulls and Listen) helped spearhead the Second British Invasion.

Members: Mike Score (vocals, keyboards, guitar), Ali Score (drums, 1980-86), Frank Maudsley (bass, 1980-86), Willie Woo (guitar, 1980), Paul Reynolds (guitar, 1980-84), Gary Steadnin (guitar, 1984-85), Chris Chryssaphis (keyboards, 1984-85)

Background

A Flock of Seagulls was formed in late 1979 by guitarist/keyboardist Mike Score, fresh off a one-single stint in Tontrix.

Score was born Michael Gordon Score on November 5, 1957, in Beverley, East Yorkshire. He moved west to Liverpool and worked as a hairdresser during the city’s new wave resurgence. In 1978, he joined Tontrix, a post-punk quintet with singer Hambi Haralambous, guitarist Steve Lovell, and drummer Chris Hughes. They cut one single: “Shell Shocked” (b/w “Slipping into Life”), released in 1979 on the DIY Townton Records. Soon after Haralambous, Hughes, and Lovell formed Hambi & the Dance.

Mike summoned his brother, drummer Ali Score, for a new band with bassist friend Frank Maudsley. Their sound revolved around Mike’s recently purchased Korg MS-10 synthesizer, an affordable, portable Monophonic unit introduced the prior year. After a brief period with local guitarist Willie Woo, they hired seventeen-year-old Paul Reynolds, a psych-tinge player who used pennies in lieu of picks.

They took their name from the line “Pointed the way to a flock… a flock of seagulls” in the epic “Toiler on the Sea,” a track on the 1978 Stranglers album Black and White.

On May 6, 1981, A Flock of Seagulls played a session for BBC Radio One DJ John Peel, whose 5/12 broadcast aired a future b-side (“Committed”), two upcoming a-sides (“I Ran,” “(It’s Not Me) Talking”), and a rarity titled “Messages From the Rings of Saturn.”

“(It’s Not Me) Talking”

On June 5, 1981, A Flock of Seagulls released their debut single: “(It’s Not Me) Talking,” an upbeat synth-laden rocker credited to Mike Score and produced by Bill Nelson. The b-side, “Factory Music,” is an exclusive self-produced Score original.

A. “(It’s Not Me) Talking”
B. “Factory Music”

The video opens at a military radio station where programmer Sparks Hopkins (holographer Jason Sapan, aka Dr. Laser) receives paranormal frequencies on his signal monitor. He summons two experts, Prof. Scottie Frost (Ali Score) and Detective Rex Nolan (Frank Maudsley), to investigate the source activity, also detected by nearby amateur radio teenagers Duane (Paul Reynolds) and Joey (Peter Reynolds). Both parties descend with military jeeps on an open field, where ‘The Alien’ (Mike Score) emerges from a spacecraft and draws a laser on the crowd. His three bandmates step forth and board the spacecraft.

The video was loosely based on The Day the Earth Stood Still, a 1952 sci-fi film in which a humanoid (Klaatu, who inspired a namesake Canadian band) visits Earth to warn humanity that its use of nuclear arms could provoke interplanetary blowback.

“(It’s Not Me) Talking” was the third release on Nelson’s Cocteau label (COQ 3) after titles by Last Man In Europe (“A Certain Bridge”) and Nelson himself (“Do You Dream In Colour?”‘). The single placed modestly on the UK Indie Singles chart and impressed Jive Records, a transatlantic indie with Arista ties and a nascent roster of English talent (Starfighters, Q Feel).

“Telecommunication”

On September 25, 1981, A Flock of Seagulls released their second single: “Telecommunication,” another Nelson-produced synth-rocker backed with “Intro,” an exclusive co-produced between the band and Steve Lovell, Mike’s prior Tontrix bandmate.

A. “Telecommunication”
B. “Intro”

The band’s ongoing visual associate, Pete Watson, created the cover: a computerized image of luminous seagulls and graphics. Nelson produced both a-sides in sequence with titles by the Original Mirrors, a Liverpudlian supergroup with Deaf School and Big In Japan alumni.

For their second Jive release, A Flock of Seagulls teamed with Mike Howlett, the former Gong bassist whose production clientele included Penetration, Fischer-Z, Teardrop Explodes, Punishment of Luxury, and Orchestral Manoeuvres In the Dark.

“Modern Love Is Automatic”

On November 27, 1981, A Flock of Seagulls released their third single: “Modern Love Is Automatic,” an intense synth-rocker backed with “Windows.” The single also appeared as a 12″ EP with two additional tracks: D.N.A. (an instrumental) and “You Can Run.”

A1. “Modern Love Is Automatic”
A2. “D.N.A.”
B1. “Windows”
B2. “You Can Run”

Howlett produced all four sides in sequence with 1981 titles by Any Trouble, Bruce Woolley, Modern Eon, Sniff ‘n’ the Tears, and Thompson Twins.

On January 20, 1982, A Flock of Seagulls performed at London’s Paris Theatre for the BBC In Concert series. The setlist featured their three prior a-sides and subsequent fourth, “I Ran,” plus the upcoming album tracks “Man Made” and “Standing in the Doorway.” For this performance, Score used his prized Gibson Moderne, an odd variant of the Flying V with a scooped-out fin shape.

A Flock of Seagulls

A Flock of Seagulls released their self-titled debut album on April 28, 1982, on Jive.

The album features eleven group-credited originals, including two prior a-sides (“Telecommunication,” “Modern Love Is Automatic), two current singles (“I Ran,” “Space Age Love Song”), the two additional EP songs (“You Can Run,” “D.N.A.”), and the popular deep-cuts “Man Made,” “Don’t Ask Me,” and “Standing in the Doorway.”

Arista distributed the album’s US release, which dropped “Tokyo” and shuffled the remaining ten-song sequence.

A1. “Modern Love Is Automatic” (3:54)
A2. “Messages” (2:57)
A3. “I Ran (So Far Away)” (5:12)
A4. “Space Age Love Song” (3:52)
A5. “You Can Run” (4:30)

B1. “Telecommunication” (2:33)
B2. “Standing in the Doorway” (4:46)
B3. “Don’t Ask Me” (2:52)
B4. “D.N.A.” (2:30)
B5. “Tokyo” (2:59)
B6. “Man Made” (5:46)

The album’s sessions (barring the two Nelson-produced songs) spanned the second half of 1981 at Battery Studios, a North London facility where A Flock of Seagulls booked time between Def Leppard, Iron Maiden, and Thin Lizzy. Howlett produced the album ahead of 1982 titles by Blancmange, Gang of Four, Hunters and Collectors, and TV21. A Flock of Seagulls was engineered by Mike Shipley, a soundman on Leppard’s High ‘n’ Dry and the 1980/81 City Boy albums Heads Are Rolling and It’s Personal.

Pete Watson created the front-cover artwork and corresponding sleeve visuals. A Flock of Seagulls depicts a living room with a coastal range and low-tide sea in lieu of furnishings and carpeting. A guitarist transmits on the television set, which sits on the water surrounded by luminous clouds and seagulls. Watson also designed sleeves for the 1982 Orange Juice singles “Rip It Up” and “Two Hearts Together.”

“I Ran”

On March 12, 1982, “I Ran” appeared as an advance single, backed with the non-album “Pick Me Up,” an outtake from the Howlett sessions.

B. “Pick Me Up”

In the “I Ran” video, A Flock of Seagulls perform on a rotating floor in an aluminum-laden mirror chamber, where Mike (frazzled hair, raspberry shirt, olive green baggies) paces the corner, surrounded by two flame-haired New Romantic women in red-belted vinyl jumpsuits with crimson rayban makeup.

“I Ran” stalled outside the UK Top 40 but became a hit in Oceania, where it reached No. 7 in New Zealand and No. 1 in Australia. In the US, the video received high rotation on the fledgling cable channel MTV, which propelled the song into the Billboard Hot 100, where it peaked at No. 3 and helped usher the Second British Invasion of the American charts.

“Space Age Love Song”

In May 1982, A Flock of Seagulls lifted “Space Age Love Song” as their fifth single, backed with the earlier non-album b-side “Windows.”

In the video, A Flock of Seagulls perform after dusk in front of the water tower on the rooftop of New York’s Danceteria nightclub. Paul Reynolds plays a mahogany 1980 model Kramer XL-5 guitar. Mike Score sports his most distinguished hairdo: platinum fins with dip bangs.

“Space Age Love Song” became another MTV staple and reached No. 30 in the Hot 100.

A Flock of Seagulls reached No. 5 in Canada, No. 6 in New Zealand, and No. 10 on the US Billboard 200.

“Wishing (If I Had a Photograph of You)”

On October 28, 1982, A Flock of Seagulls released their sixth UK single: “Wishing (If I Had a Photograph of You),” a taster of their second album in-progress, backed with “Committed,” an exclusive b-side.

B. “Committed”

The video takes place on a space ship where Mike pines for a lost love back home. Scenes of the band’s on-board performance are intercut with Mike’s attempts to contact the light-years-away female, who responds with a computerized portrait shot by fax.

A Flock of Seagulls mimed “Wishing” on a dark stage amid scaffolding and slanted neon fixtures on Top of the Pops for the BBC music program’s November 11, 1982, broadcast, which also aired in-studio numbers by Blue Zoo (“Cry Boy Cry”), Clannad (“Theme From ‘Harry’s Game”’), and Dionne Warwick (“Heartbreaker”).

“Wishing” became their first big hit in Britain and Europe, where it reached No. 1 in France, No. 6 in Ireland, and No. 10 on the UK Singles Chart. The single accompanied their second album in North America, where “Wishing” reached No. 10 in Canada and No. 26 on the US Billboard Hot 100.

Listen

A Flock of Seagulls released their second album, Listen, on April 29, 1983, on Jive.

Listen contains the pre-released hit “Wishing (If I Had a Photograph of You)” and nine fresh group-written originals, including “Electrics,” “The Traveller,” and the subsequent singles “Nightmares” and “Transfer Affection.” The album closes with a re-recording of “(It’s Not Me) Talking,” their debut a-side.

The cassette version adds three songs: “Rosenmontag,” “Quicksand,” and “The Last Flight of Yuri Gagarin.”

A1. “Wishing (If I Had a Photograph of You)” (5:30)
A2. “Nightmares” (4:39)
A3. “Transfer Affection” (5:21)
A4. “What Am I Supposed to Do” (4:13)
A5. “Electrics” (3:36)

B1. “The Traveller” (3:27)
B2. “2:30” (1:00)
B3. “Over the Border” (5:04)
B4. “The Fall” (4:29)
B5. “(It’s Not Me) Talking” (5:00)

cA6. “Rosenmontag” (4:01)
cB6. “Quicksand” (4:41)
cB7. “The Last Flight of Yuri Gagarin” (6:04)

Sessions occurred in the autumn of 1982 through the winter of 1983 with Mike Howlett in Neunkirchen, West Germany, at Conny’s Studio, the namesake facility of Krautrock producer Conny Plank, who assisted on “The Traveller” with engineer Dave Hutchins.

Howlett produced Listen in sequence with 1983 titles by China Crisis, Comsat Angels, and John Foxx. The Plank/Hutchkins team worked earlier on Systems of Romance, the pioneering 1978 synth-rock album by Foxx’s prior band, Ultravox. The pair recently worked on In the Garden, the 1981 debut by Eurythmics, whose early fusion of electro-pop and psychedelia mirrored A Flock of Seagulls. Bill Nelson produced the re-recorded “(It’s Not Me) Talking” in sequence with Warriors, the seventh album by Gary Numan.

Pete Watson’s Listen cover art shows the zoomed profile of Ali Score, rendered in luminous red beside a computer chip. Smash Hits! photographer Eric Watson took the member profiles (back) and group shot (inner), which show the band with stylish batwing tops, double-breasted jackets, and quiffed hairdos.

In April 1983, “Nightmares” accompanied Listen as their seventh UK single, backed with the cassette-only “Rosenmontag.”

In the “Nightmares” video, Mike and Paul (later revealed as doctors) usher a doll-clutching blond into a vehicle driven by Ali, who drives them to a clinic where they wheel her to Frank, a therapist who examines her inertia. Flashbacks reveal the childhood roots of her condition, when she clung to the doll in the absence of her aristocratic mother.

The woman regains her verbal and motor skills once removed from the doll, which has apparent soul-sucking powers that infect the therapist, who loses his sanity in the doll’s embrace.

In June 1983, “Transfer Affection” became the third UK single, backed with a London live version of “I Ran.”

Videomaker Mike Brady directed the “Transfer Affection” video, which takes place on a spaceship where A Flock of Seagulls perform in silver space suits while the resident beauty (pictured on the sleeve) reclines on a dream bed of dry ice. Brady also directed videos for The Jam (“Town Called Malice”) and Eurythmics (“Love Is a Stranger”).

In September 1983, Jive/Arista lifted the re-recorded “(It’s Not Me) Talking” as the fourth Listen single, backed with “Tanglimara,” an earlier rarity produced by Steve Lovell.

B. “Tanglimara”

Listen reached No. 5 in New Zealand, No. 12 in Canada, and No. 14 in Germany. The album peaked at No. 16 on the UK Albums Chart and the US Billboard 200.

The Story of a Young Heart

A Flock of Seagulls released their third album, The Story of a Young Heart, on August 07, 1984, on Jive.

The album contains nine group-written originals, including “Remember David,” “Heart of Steel”, “European (I Wish I Was),” and the singles “The More You Live, the More You Love” and “Never Again (The Dancer).”

The Story of a Young Heart was the final album by the classic four-piece Flock of Seagulls lineup. Guitarist Paul Reynolds (then 22) left soon after the album’s release.

A1. “The Story of a Young Heart” (6:07)
A2. “Never Again (The Dancer)” (5:05) features Private Lives bassist John Reid.
A3. “The More You Live, the More You Love” (4:10)
A4. “European (I Wish I Was)” (4:26)

B1. “Remember David” (4:06)
B2. “Over My Head” (3:55)
B3. “Heart of Steel” (5:45)
B4. “The End” (3:34)
B5. “Suicide Day” (5:20)

Sessions occurred in late 1983 and early 1984 at Ridge Farm Studios in Capel, England, where Steve Lovell produced the album in sequence with World Shut Your Mouth, the solo debut of Julian Cope. Wham! soundman Chris Porter engineered The Story of a Young Heart amid work with The Catch and Difford & Tilbrook, both Squeeze-related projects.

The album’s Watson/Watson visual package features a stark rose/ruby cover and an inner-sleeve collage of live pics and video stills.

The band first released “The More You Live, The More You Love” as a June single backed with “Lost Control,” a non-album track.

B. “Lost Control”

In “The More You Live” video, A Flock of Seagulls perform on Giant’s Causeway, a site of basaltic columns on the coast of Northern Ireland. They appear far apart in stylish outdoor gear against a backdrop of crashing waves and an actual flock of seagulls.

A Flock of Seagulls mimed “The More You Live” for the August 2 and 16 TotP broadcasts, which also features presentations of summer ’84 singles by Tears For Fears (“Mothers Talk”), The Kane Gang (“The Closest Thing to Heaven”), and Frankie Goes to Hollywood (“Two Tribes”). Mike donned a leisurely Seventies look in both appearances, flanked by Ali and Paul in standard sharp space-age attire.

In September 1984, “Never Again (The Dancer)” became the second single, backed with the non-album “Living In Heaven.”

B. “Living In Heaven”

In the “Never Again” video, a leather-clad Mike steps off his motorbike and walks passed window mannequins and neon lights to an apartment window, where he visualizes a ballerina, who goes about her routine as the band plays amid the seedy urban backdrop.

The Story of a Young Heart reached No. 17 in the Netherlands and No. 30 on the UK Albums Chart.

Dream Come True

A Flock of Seagulls released their fourth album, Dream Come True, in March 1986 on Jive.

Dream Come True contains nine group-credited originals, including the singles “Who’s That Girl (She’s Got It)” and “Heartbeat Like a Drum.”

They recorded the album as a trio, augmented by six backing vocalists and five guest guitarists, including Toyah sideman Joel Bogan (“Heartbeat Like a Drum”), Buffalo Soldier’s Gus Isadore (“Cry Like a Baby,” “Whole Lot of Loving”), and Yellowman sessionist Mike Irving (four tracks). The backing singers include Dee and Shirley Lewis (younger sisters of Linda Lewis) and Beverley Skeete (a Bronski Beat/Heaven 17 auxiliary).

This was the final album of A Flock of Seagulls’ original formation and the last with co-founders Ali Score and Frank Maudsley.

1. “Better & Better” (5:21)
2. “Heartbeat Like a Drum” (5:33)
3. “Who’s That Girl (She’s Got It)” (4:17)
4. “Hot Tonight” (5:56)
5. “Cry Like a Baby” (6:28)
6. “Say So Much” (3:35)
7. “Love on Your Knees” (3:57)
8. “How Could You Ever Leave Me” (3:24)
9. “Whole Lot of Loving” (6:03)

Sessions occurred in 1985 at Battery Studios in London, where Mike Score produced the album with assistance on three tracks (“Heartbeat Like a Drum,” “Love on Your Knees,” “Whole Lot of Loving”) by Wayne Brathwaite, the bassist of Herbie Hancock‘s Rockit Band with recent arranger/sound credits on titles by Melba Moore, Glenn Jones, Kashif, and Lillo Thomas.

Billy Ocean soundman Brian “Chuck” New engineered and mixed the first two Brathwaite tracks, which feature veteran blues-rock guitarist Neil Hubbard (Juicy Lucy, Kokomo, Wynder K. Frog). Producer Steve Power (Hambi & the Dance, The Lucy Show) engineered “Whole Lot of Loving.” the balance of Dream Come True was engineered by Steve McGlaughlin, who later worked with Roger Waters.

“Who’s That Girl (She’s Got It)” first appeared in October 1985 as an advance single, backed with an instrumental version.

In the “Who’s That Girl” video, Mike sports a baggy red leisure suit (pictured on the album cover) and dances before a green-screen of vivid, high-speed computer graphics. Ali, Frank, Dee, and a colorfully dressed Beverley appear throughout the clip.

In February 1986, an edited “Heartbeat Like a Drum” became the second advance single, backed with the full-length version.

The video features low-budget recreations of mundane events from prehistoric-to-modern times: a dinosaur fight, a pirate conquest, a royal picnic, a Mabel Normand silent comedy, a Fifties hot rod romance. Meanwhile, band members and auxiliaries fade in an out on a computerized blue grid. Mike sports a frazzled bi-level hairdo similar to Tom Bailey’s then-current style.

Discography: