Somewhere in a parallel universe, The Chameleons would have been one of the biggest bands in the world. As it stands, I can probably count the people I know who have even heard of them on one hand and still have some fingers left.
Though their first record, Script Of the Bridge stacks up favorably as a debut album against, say Boy by U2 (the band they are most often compared to), and in their live shows — usually in small clubs or theaters — they create a noise big enough to fill a stadium, the Chameleons just never really caught on in America. Of all the bands I've ever heard, I would, in fact, have to rate the Chameleons as the single greatest band practically no one has ever heard of.
My discovery of this great eighties band came by way of a record review I read in Rolling Stone. Having worked in a record store at the time, I rarely paid attention to such reviews, mainly because my job gave me access to pretty much anything I ever wanted to hear. But also, because the critics so rarely ever got anything right.
This review, however, caught my eye. It compared The Chameleons to other English bands of the moment I really liked — such as Echo And The Bunnymen and the aforementioned U2. But the writer also used exactly the right buzz words to pique my interest. Words like "dark and desolate," and "layered and textured."
In this particular case, the reviewer nailed it.
Script Of The Bridge is simply an amazing debut album. Script is the sort of record that sounds as though it was recorded by a band that had been making records for years. Released first as a British import in 1983, MCA Records would notoriously screw up the American release later that same year by changing the song sequencing and omitting some tracks altogether.
Since the most popular eighties rock bands of the time were split pretty much three ways — you had your syntho-pop "Flock of Haircuts" type bands; your Clash City proto-punkers; and then you had your standard bearing English guitar bands like U2 — The Chameleons probably best fit into the "guitar" group. That is, if you choose to put a label on them at all.
Article comments
1 - Michael J. West
Ahhhhhhhhhh Yes Glen! The Chameleons are sooo great. I have to agree that Script of the Bridge is their best album. "Up the Down Escalator," "Pleasure and Pain," and "Friday's Child" are three of my very favorite songs.
You don't mention the Tony Fletcher Walked on Water EP from 1988. Do you not have that one? It's surprisingly good.
2 - alessandro nicolo
Super details Glen. I may go out and buy their stuff today.
3 - Glen Boyd
Well I'm glad both you guys liked this. Micheal, I haven't heard the EP you mentioned but will make a point of checking it out. Alessandro, the best place to start is either "Script" or "Strange Times". Both are great, but most of the video clips you see on this page come from "Script" so you would already be somewhat familiar with the music.
Thanx for the comments.
-Glen
4 - Vern Halen
Och aye, Glen - I don't often get stone cold stumped, but you've got me here. Never heard 'em, never heard OF them. I watched their videos you linked - I might've liked them had I known about them at the time, but that kind of music doesn't interest me anymore.
What DID interest me though is that they're still working and playing. Where do they play? And who buys their albums?
5 - Glen Boyd
Vern,
I guess thats why my friends know me as the king of obscuro rock trivia.
Anyway, to answer your questions:
As far as I know The Chameleons are still together, though the last time they toured was in 2002. 2001's "Why Call It Anything?" was their last official CD release (and its a good one), although they released a DVD of the 2002 tour called "Ascension" last year in a limited run of 1000 copies (I did notice it's available on Amazon.com though).
As to who listens to them, they have a rather small, but rabidly devoted cult following (of which I am one). Since my focus on these "Rockologist" columns, has thus far been bands who were big at the time but that people have forgotten about--I decided this time around it might be fun to a focus on a band few people even remembered while they were around.
Anyway you should be able to get updates on The Chameleons at their website
And they are a band worth checking out. Thanx as always for stopping by with your comments Vern.
-Glen
6 - Glen Boyd
I just tried to respond to the above comment and it didn''t post---
?????
7 - Glen Boyd
Okay lets try this again.
Vern, to answer your questions. As far as I know The Chameleons are still together but they haven't toured since 2002. Their last CD was 2001's Why Call It Anything? (and its a good one), but they did put out a DVD of the 2002 tour last year in a limited run of 1000 copies (I did see copies available on Amazon).
As to who listens to them? They have a small, but a very rabidly devoted cult following.
Since I've been largely devoting these "Rockologist" columns to bands who were popular in their heyday, but largely forgotten now--I thought it would be fun to focus on a band that few even remembered while they were originally around.
Like I said in the headline, The Chameleons Are The Greatest Band You've Never Heard of.
Thanx for the comments Vern.
-Glen
8 - Christopher Rose
Glen, you didn't quite format the link properly AND you got snagged by Akismet. Both fixed.
PS: It's marking my own comments as spam too! :-)
9 - Glen Boyd
OK Chris. If ya want you can remove comment #7 since it just repeats what is said in comment #5. Your call and no big deal either way on my end. Thanx for catching it and for the fix.
-Glen
10 - Richard
The Chameleons are my all time favorite band. I grew up in the North of Holland in the eighties and discovered music like Echo & the Bunnymen, The Sound, Cocteau Twins and of course The Chameleons. I was really stunned when I heard Script for the first time. Thursday's Child gave me shivers and Second skin was all a single had to be. All the guitarloops rifs and so forth are so intense that if you listen to the album via an headset you know what I mean by this.
Unfortunately they split up in 1987 after a lot of arguments which way to go after their manager died. Mark Burgess went on to do his own gigs and Reg and Dave founded The Reegs.
After their revival they released Why call it anything and an unplugged album This never ending now.
But again tension rose and arguments started to rear up again an yet another split was there. So officially there is no band called The Chameleons anymore.
If you want to experience The Chameleons's livesound, buy the album The Chameleons Live released in march 2002. It's great.
11 - bren
im very lucky im from manchester here in the u.k and was there to see every gig in Britain,right from the start with the first single "in shreads" we just loved the searing guitars,a world away from the goth rubbish going on here then
Sure there is angst in the lyrics but what beauty lay within,always thought they were going to make it big like u2,glad it didnt it would of ruined what they had
12 - SB
Nice article, surprised you didn't mention the awesome Fletcher EP though.
13 - Hutson
As a grad student at Yale who has weighed the evidence objectively, I would have to argue that The Chameleons were one of the greatest bands of all time. They were much more original, intelligent, and insightful than practically every band of the era, including U2, and continue to enchant musicologists, philosophers, etc. Even Ian McCulloch knows that. Hell, The Comsat Angels were one of the great bands of the period as well. Fame does not equal greatness, people. I find it funny that Bono and the gang are used as the referent when their music sounds so banal and barren compared to The Chameleons, Echo, The Sound, etc. The more you think, the more you understand why The Chameleons were one of the best, if not the best.
14 - someone7
Mark is touring the states in about a month..not with the chameleons but he is doing chams material with some young fresh people who really enjoy the music..its great, because they arent jaded like the chameleons were. Go see them if you have a changce, they are coming to LA I think in august.
15 - William5
Happy to stumble across this article tho I'm obviously a few years too late.
That said, as Mr. Boyd mentions in this fine article, we fans, tho few, are a rabid bunch.
I too discovered them late - wasn't until the mid 90s. I too am a fan of EaTB, early U2, Joy Division and other post punk bands.
Early U2 is an understandable point of reference as early Chameleons recordings included Steve Lilywhite (longtime U2 sound man) and I also understand the Edge was in attendance at a few early shows. I would say tho, that the Chameleons surpassed U2 who, as we all well know, went for the 'popular' knock out blow.
In my humble opinion, "Script..." should be listed alongside EaTB's "Heaven Up Here" and Joy Division's two LPs as THE quintessential (sp?) post-punk albums. And as I'll tell anyone who can bear to listen anymore, Second Skin, as a track, is utter bloody genius.
16 - Susie C
Mark Burgess's book "VIEW FROM A HILL" is available starting September 2010.
This is an extremely personal book by Mark Burgess about his life before and after the Chameleons UK, and amazing stories as only Mark Burgess can write. Entertaining, spiritual, amusing, educational, captivating, thrilling British music stories the 80s were made of. Every Chameleons fan and Mark Burgess fan will Love this book.
17 - WirelessCobra
Glen: The Chamleon's VOX, with Mark Burgess, Justin Lomery, Andru Aesthetik, Jessica Espeleta and Glenn Maryansky will be tearing up the Crocodile in Seattle on September 21 - a must see for all the Chameleon fans in the NW...Portland on Sept 24 and San Francisco, September 28 -last west coast tour for the immediate future.
18 - Glen Boyd
I'll be there...thanx!
-Glen