The Chameleons

The Chameleons
Origin	Middleton, Greater Manchester, England
Genres	Post-punk
Years active	1981–1987, 2000–2003
Associated acts	Magazine Black Swan Lane
Past members
Mark Burgess Reg Smithies Dave Fielding John Lever Brian Schofield Martin Jackson Alistair Lewthwaite Andy Clegg Kwasi Asante

The Chameleons (called The Chameleons UK on some American releases) were an English post-punk band that formed in Middleton, Greater Manchester, England in 1981. They consisted of singer and bassist Mark Burgess, guitarist Reg Smithies, guitarist Dave Fielding, and drummer John Lever (replacing original drummer Brian Schofield). The core quartet were sometimes augmented live by keyboardists Alistair Lewthwaite and Andy Clegg in the 1980s, and percussionist/vocalist Kwasi Asante during their reunion period (ex-Magazine drummer Martin Jackson also briefly replaced Lever during 1982-83 while the latter was on sabbatical).

History

The band initially released three studio albums in the 1980s, following 1982 debut single "In Shreds" (the fruit of a brief signing to Epic, latterly reissued on the Statik label), and several radio sessions for the BBC Radio 1 DJ John Peel. The Chameleons released their first album, Script of the Bridge, on the Statik label in 1983. After their third release, 1986's Strange Times and the 1987 sudden death of band manager Tony Fletcher, they disbanded. Burgess then fronted The Sun and the Moon (with Lever), who issued one eponymous album on Geffen in 1988, followed by an array of solo projects. Guitarists Fielding and Smithies formed The Reegs, who released two albums: Return of the Sea Monkeys (1991) and Rock the Magic Rock (1993). John Lever later joined Bushart, who released the album Yesterday is History (2008).

The Chameleons had been broken up for well over a decade, before playing a small series of live dates in 2000, and the release of the album Strip (which reworked older material in an acoustic format). After a final studio album, 2001's Why Call It Anything?, another unplugged album (This Never Ending Now), and a reunion tour which took them across Europe and the United States, the band dissolved once again in early 2003.

In 2009, Mark Burgess and John Lever reformed to play Chameleons back catalogue material, under the name Chameleons Vox.

Discography

Studio albums

• Script of the Bridge (1983, Statik; issued 1984 on MCA in the US; reissued 2008 as 25th Anniversary 2CD edition)
• What Does Anything Mean? Basically (1985, Statik) - #60 UK^[1]
• Strange Times (1986, Geffen) - #44 UK^[1]
• Strip (2000, Paradiso)
• Why Call It Anything? (2001, Artful)
• This Never Ending Now (2002, Paradiso)

Live albums

• Tripping Dogs (1992, Glass Pyramid)
• Here Today...Gone Tomorrow (1992, Imaginary)
• Live In Toronto (1992, Imaginary)
• Aufführung in Berlin (1993, Imaginary)
• Free Trade Hall Rehearsal (1993, Imaginary)
• Live at the Gallery Club Manchester (1996, Visionary; reissued 2001 on Cherry Red)
• Live Shreds (1996, Cleopatra)
• Live (2002, Paradiso)
• Live at the Academy (2003, Paradiso)

Compilation albums

• The Fan and the Bellows (1986, Hybrid)
• John Peel Sessions (1990, Strange Fruit)
• Here Today...Gone Tomorrow (1992, Imaginary)
• The Radio 1 Evening Show Sessions (1993, Nighttracks)
• Dali's Picture/Live in Berlin (1993, Imaginary)
• Northern Songs (1994, Bone Idol)
• Return of the Roughnecks: The Best of the Chameleons (2CD) (1997, Dead Dead Good)

Singles and EPs

• "In Shreds" / "Less Than Human" (1982, Epic)
• "Up the Down Escalator" (1983, Statik; Germany)
• "Don't Fall" (1983, Statik; France)
• "As High As You Can Go" (1983, Statik)
• "A Person Isn't Safe Anywhere These Days" (1983, Statik)
• "In Shreds" / "Nostalgia" (1985, Statik) - #11 UK Indie
• "Singing Rule Britannia (While the Walls Close In)" (1985, Statik) - #2 UK Indie
• "Mad Jack" (1986, Geffen)
• "Tears" (1986, Geffen)
• "Swamp Thing" (1986, Geffen)
• "Tony Fletcher Walked on Water....La La La La La-La La-La-La" (1990, Glass Pyramid; post-breakup EP recorded in 1987)

References

1. ^ ^{a b} Roberts, David (2006). British Hit Singles & Albums (19th ed.). London: Guinness World Records Limited. p. 585. ISBN 1-904994-10-5. 

External links

• View From A Hill: The Chameleons UK by Mark Burgess (Autobiography)
• The Chameleons: Home Is Where the Heart Is - Official webpage with news, articles, discography, lyrics, and store
• Biography at allmusic.com
• The Chameleons on MySpace
• The Chameleons perform "Second Skin" 1984