Sleepy People (British rock band)

Sleepy People (later renamed Blue Apple Boy) were/are a British psychedelic rock band known for their eccentric and energetic songs and live act, and for incubating three of the five future members of short-lived (but briefly famous) Britpop band Ultrasound.

Sleepy People should not be confused with the Oregonian New Wave indie rock band [http://www.myspace.com/sleepypeople The Sleepy People] or Californian progressive rock band [http://www.myspace.com/sleepingpeople Sleeping People] .

ound

In both incarnations, the band has featured a colourful and eclectic sound blending psychedelic rock, New Wave pop, punk, and progressive rock. Other ingredients have included noise-rock, nursery rhymes, ska, Muzak, bossa nova, circus/fairground music, tango and anything which the band find inspiring. The band are strongly influenced by the theatrical British psychedelic band Cardiacs and share much of their sound. Other cited influences have included The Monochrome Set. The band’s lyrics have varied from cheerful or sinister nonsense to surreal representations of everyday life or hallucinatory twists on eccentric stories from tabloid newspapers.

leepy People band history

Early years and line-up changes

Sleepy People formed around a line-up of Tiny Wood (lead vocals), Paul Hope (guitar, backing vocals), Rachel Theresa (flute, backing vocals), Richard Green (bass), Kerry Harrison (drums) and Liz Wardby (keyboards), and established themselves in a run-down house in Jesmond, Newcastle which they called “Sleepy Hall”. [Sleepy People biography at All Music Guide, by Dean Carlson, retrieved October 5, 2008 – ] Having rehearsed a set of Hope’s songs, the band made themselves a fixture on the small venues of the British live circuit, where their cheerfully manic music won over some audiences and confused others. Paul Hope has commented "The songs... were all part of a stage show that was designed to provoke a response on the soporific and conservative pub circuit up and down the country, and at that we excelled!" [Sleevenotes for "Blunt Nails In A Sharp Wall" CD reissue (Org Records, 1999)] Early supporters included the ‘Organ’ fanzine.

As the band had intended, a lot of attention was gained from their wilfully bizarre stage act, which was as colourful as their music and featured eccentric costumes, make-up and haircuts plus music-hall-style comedy (in the manner of Split Enz and Cardiacs). Tiny Wood also made the most of his strong stage presence and imposing bulk, which he dressed in a variety of costumes including that of a Chinese mandarin.

Though tuneful, the band’s music was often complicated, demanding and uncommercial, resulting in frequent turnover of personnel. Between 1992 and 1995 Pete Haslam replaced Liz Wardby on keyboards, Andy Peace replaced Kerry Harrison on drums and was himself in turn replaced by former Dead Flowers drummer Graeme Swaddle. [Sleepy People biography at All Music Guide, by Dean Carlson, retrieved October 5, 2008 – ]

"Blunt Nails In A Sharp Wall" album

In 1994, the band issued their first album "Blunt Nails In A Sharp Wall" on self-released cassette. The songs - based on a broad template of tightly-played psychedelic pop - were wilfully eccentric and sometimes absurdist, with ingredients veering from disco (“Sordid Sentimental”) to full-on progressive rock (“Rare Bird At The Window”). The album was re-released on CD by Org Records in 1999.

Departures to Ultrasound, and second major line-up

A major line-up change followed in 1995 when Wood, Green and Haslam all amicably left Sleepy People in order to move to London and set up a new band with Andy Peace. Initially called Pop-A-Cat-A-Petal, this band (now minus Haslam, and adding Vanessa Best and Matt Jones) cut down on their early progressive rock instincts and eventually became the more glamorous Ultrasound. [Sleepy People biography at All Music Guide, by Dean Carlson, retrieved October 5, 2008 – ] [Sleepy People biography at Org Records, retrieved October 5, 2008 – [http://www.organart.demon.co.uk/biosleepy.htm] ]

Undeterred, Paul Hope and Rachel Theresa recruited a new Sleepy People line-up of singer Phil Sears (aka “Earl Slick”), bass player Bill Bailey and keyboard player Danny Orange, and continued performing. A self-released single, “Home Is Where Your Telly Is/Hanghar”, kept up the momentum. Orange left in 1997 to pursue a theatre career and was replaced by Anna Blaydon (also known as "Anna Tanglewood"). Bailey also left at around the same time, to be replaced by Gary “Spangles” Bowden. [Sleepy People biography at All Music Guide, by Dean Carlson, retrieved October 5, 2008 – ]

’’Typhoid And Swans’’ album

Also in 1997, the band recorded their second album "Typhoid And Swans" (released on Edgy Records). The band’s songs had grown more considered, with Hope favouring more direct lyrics and making use of Sear’s rich, almost operatic voice (although there were still signs of the band’s more theatrical side on the lengthy “Everything You Know Is Wrong”). Former Gong violinist Graham Clark made a guest appearance on the album.

Several songs from this period were recorded for a live-in-the-studio mini-album called "Paint A Ceiling On The Sky", which was released on cassette.

More line-up changes

In 1998, Phil Sears left the band to try his own luck in London (and, later, New Zealand). Gary Bowden also left, following clashes with Hope. They were replaced by bass player Tom Evans and teenage singer Lee Haley, both of whom were featured on the cassette single “All Systems Fail/Every Wave Is Higher On The Beach”. Haley was a lighter singer than Sears, and brought an air of cool insouciance to the band. [Sleepy People biography at All Music Guide, by Dean Carlson, retrieved October 5, 2008 – ]

At this point, Ultrasound were rising stars on the Britpop scene. Paul Hope remained friendly with the former Sleepy People members in Ultrasound’s line up, and cheerfully exploited the connection between the two bands.

Lee Haley’s time with the band was brief and he left in 1999 to form a more straightforward band called The Embassy. Sears filled in for several gigs, but could not commit to the band, and Haley’s eventual replacement was Mark Dunphy, (brother of Cud guitarist Mike Dunphy) whose more flamboyant style returned the band to their previous sound. [Sleepy People biography at All Music Guide, by Dean Carlson, retrieved October 5, 2008 – ]

Hope, however, thought that the band was stuck in a rut. Although by now Sleepy People had mostly jettisoned make-up and costumes (and most of their theatrics) in favour of letting the music work by itself, Hope believed that the band were handicapped by their former image. His solution was to slightly refine the band’s approach and change their name.

Blue Apple Boy band history

Fresh start and early singles

In 2000, Sleepy People changed their name to Blue Apple Boy (a name apparently based on Masonic imagery). The band’s initial line-up was identical to the last Sleepy People line-up - Mark Dunphy (lead vocals), Paul Hope (guitar, backing vocals), Rachel Theresa (flute, backing vocals), Tom Evans (bass), Graeme Swaddle (drums) and Anna Blaydon (keyboards). [Blue Apple Boy biography at All Music Guide, by Dean Carlson, retrieved October 5, 2008 – ]

Initially the name change led to a new lease of life for the band. The band recorded a new double A-side single (“Who’s That Calling?/ Sunshine Valley Paradise Club”. Both songs were inspired by bizarre newspaper stories which Hope had read – the former being a tale of a man falling off a bridge while conversing on his cellphone. Former Sleepy People/Ultrasound member Richard Green (by now leading his own Leeds-based band, The Somatics) added noise-guitar to the other song.

“Who’s That Calling?/Sunshine Valley Paradise Club”was released on cult Oxford indie label Shifty Disco [Blue Apple Boy biography at All Music Guide, by Dean Carlson, retrieved October 5, 2008 – ] and attracted attention from the national music press, leading to an appearance in Melody Maker.The band’s tone became less fanciful and more sinister with a second single, “Freak” on the band’s own Bad Apple Records. This dealt with vigilante/mob violence and was inspired by the then-current paedophile panic in the UK (during which several innocent people had been harmed by mobs on the suspicion of being paedophiles).

Line-up change and return of Tiny Wood

Unfortunately, the band’s lineup remained unstable. Evans left and Blaydon drifted away from the band (to be replaced on a part-time basis by [http://www.myspace.com/vietgrove Vietgrove] keyboard player Norman Fay) and Dunphy left the band after falling out with Hope. Hope’s eventual solution to the line-up problem was to streamline the group and turn to old friends. Rachel Theresa took over the keyboards role (mostly playing Moog synthesizer) in addition to her flute-playing and singing duties, and Bill Bailey returned yet again on bass.

Most significantly, Tiny Wood (who’d returned to Newcastle after the collapse of Ultrasound to form his new band, [http://www.myspace.com/thisissiren Siren] ) had renewed his musical relationship with Hope and agreed to join the band. [Blue Apple Boy biography at All Music Guide, by Dean Carlson, retrieved October 5, 2008 – ] At this time Hope was also in the process of setting up Sky Apple Café, a vegetarian restaurant in Newcastle which provided the band with a stable base of operations. The band set about assembling the debut Blue Apple Boy album, with Wood re-recording vocals for earlier songs (including some late Sleepy People ones), rewriting others and working on new material with Hope.

’’Salient’’ album

Credited to “Blue Apple Boy featuring Tiny Wood”, the "Salient" album was released on the Soma Sound label in 2002. It showed a further strengthening of the band's songwriting skills, including "Jump Start" (a rewrite of "Freak" with new Wood lyrics) and "Cold War" (another Wood co-write which was apparently a sequel to the Ultrasound anthem "Stay Young"). Although Wood sang on most tracks, Rachel Theresa sang lead vocals on the bossa-nova song “The Moon Is Hungry” (which was influenced by G. I. Gurdjieff) and the Hopes’ two children featured on “Apples And Pears”, reflecting the increasing diversity and collectivity of the band's approach.

Blue Apple Boy today

The band’s live activity wound down in 2003. Although the band has not formally split, the Hopes have concentrated mainly on their restaurant business from that point onwards.

Discography (Sleepy People)

Albums

*"Blunt Nails In A Sharp Wall " (1994), cassette release (reissued as CD, Org Records 1999)
*"Typhoid And Swans" (1997), Edgy Records

ingles

*"Home Is Where Your Telly Is" (1996), Edgy Records

*"All Systems Fail/Every Wave Is Higher On The Beach" (1998) cassette release

Mini-Albums

*"Paint A Ceiling On The Sky" (1997) cassette release

Discography (Blue Apple Boy)

Albums

*"Salient" (2002), Soma Sound

ingles

*"Who’s That Calling?/Sunshine Valley Paradise Club" (2000), Shifty Disco
*"Freak" (2000), Bad Apple Records

References

External links

* [http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=11:3ifpxqekldje Sleepy People at All Music Guide]
* [http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=11:jifixq80ldfe Blue Apple Boy at All Music Guide]
* [http://www.organart.demon.co.uk/biosleepy.htm Org Records biography of Sleepy People/Blue Apple Boy]
* [http://www.progressiveworld.net/sleepy.html Progressive World review of ‘Blunt Nails In A Sharp Wall’ by Stephanie Sollow]
* [http://uk-uk.blogbus.com/logs/7596927.html "Blunt Nails In A Sharp Wall" review on Everything Tiny Wood fanpage]
* [http://www.progressiveworld.net/sleepy2.html Progressive World review of "Typhoid And Swans" by Stephanie Sollow]
* [http://www.dprp.net/reviews/0007.htm#sleepy DPRP review of "Typhoid And Swans" by Neil Durant]
* [http://playlouder.com/content/11504/salient Play Louder review of "Salient" by Simon Williams]
* [http://www.aural-innovations.com/issues/issue20/blueappl.html Aural Innovations review of "Salient" by Jerry Kranitz]