Ricky (band)

Ricky were a critically-acclaimed Top 40 English indie band, led by the harmonising singer/songwriter trio of James Lines, Guy Gyngell and Darren Richardson.

Ricky formed in Portsmouth, UK in the autumn of 2000. The band's first release was a self-funded mini-album titled "You Set The Scene", named after the last track on Forever Changes, the seminal album by Love, was released in January 2002. The record gained superlative reviews, leading to Ricky being made one of the 'Tips for 2002' (alongside the likes of The Coral), by many prominent UK publications including the "Evening Standard", "Channel 4"'s "Planet Sound" and "The Times". Other publications to heap praise on the record included "OK!" magazine, "FRONT", "The Independent" and the key tastemaking website "Drowned in Sound".

The critical success of "You Set The Scene" led to Ricky signing to Superior Quality Recordings - a London indie label funded by the world's biggest record company: Universal Music. Superior Quality Recordings was known for its success with the likes of The Bluetones - whose debut album, "Expecting To Fly", was the label's first Number 1 UK album.

Ricky spent much of 2002's summer touring with The Bluetones (a band whose posters had adorned Ricky's members walls as school kids). However, later that summer Universal Music severed their relationship with Superior Quality Recordings, leaving Ricky effectively label-less.

Ricky returned in March 2004 with another critically-acclaimed, self-funded record: their debut full-length album, "The Summer Sun Still Echoes". The album received even greater praise than "You Set The Scene". Its most notable review was a prestigious 4-star rating in the UK's biggest music publication, "Q" magazine.

In September 2004, the band issued a self-released single, titled "That Extra Mile", which reached Number 50 in the UK Singles Chart; thus becoming one of the highest charting singles ever to be released by an unsigned band.

The success of "That Extra Mile" led to Ricky signing to the London indie label, Beat Crazy Records. Their first release for Beat Crazy Records was a split double a-side single with labelmates Amsterdam. Ricky's side of the single was titled "Stop Knocking The Walls Down" and led to the band achieving a childhood ambition when the track was mastered at the world-famous Abbey Road Studios. The single debuted at Number 32 in the UK Singles Chart with Ricky becoming only the second band from the City of Portsmouth to make the Top 40 of the UK Singles Chart in a quarter of a century.

Ricky went on to record a lavishly-produced album for Beat Crazy Records, titled "High Speed Silence". The album featured guest musicians including Pete Baker from Mohair and was produced by the namesake son of Gordon Mills - the legendary pop songwriter and manager.

In June 2006 Ricky released an NSPCC-fundraising 2006 FIFA World Cup single titled "We Are England". The track featured the vocals of 54,000 English school children after the band embarked upon a 180-school tour of the nation, recording hundreds of pupils' vocal contributions at each school. "We Are England" generated a great deal of media interest, including a daily campaign of support from the The Daily Mirror; a live interview on BBC Radio 1's Jo Whiley show; two interviews on BBC Radio 5 Live; and a huge show of support from British regional media, who were keen to promote the involvement of schools from their respective regions.

In the weeks building up to the single's release, the media regularly reported that "We Are England" was far outselling the rival World Cup singles on HMV's pre-order chart. However, tragedy struck when Beat Crazy Records failed to synchronise the release of the single's four formats (CD, 7" vinyl, DVD and digital download) and after initial promise - the single featured at Number 17 in the first midweek chart update - "We Are England" finished the week at Number 54 in the UK Singles Chart. The only consolation was that the track landed at Number 3 in the UK Indie Singles Chart.

With Beat Crazy Records having lost several members of staff and with the label's finances in dire straits, Ricky decided to disband, announcing the news to their fan-base on June 25th 2006.

The band use their MySpace page as a permanent tribute to the band: [http://www.myspace.com/thebandcalledricky www.myspace.com/thebandcalledricky]

Ricky were occasionally joined on-stage by their Bez-like figure, Craig Leworthy, son of former Tottenham Hotspur footballer, David Leworthy.

Music

The band's influences included 1960s greats like The Beatles, Brian Wilson, Love, The Zombies, The Byrds and Crosby, Stills & Nash.

The band were also huge fans of the mid-1990s Britpop movement and were influenced by the likes of The Bluetones, Oasis, Dodgy and Supergrass.

Discography

Album

*You Set the Scene (21/1/2002) N/A
*The Summer Sun Still Echoes (15/3/2004), re-released (4/10/2004) N/A
*High Speed Silence (RECORDED BUT UNRELEASED) N/A

ingles

*Sunset View (24/3/2003) N/A
*That Extra Mile / Beat Out the Best In Me (6/9/2004) 50 in the Official UK Singles Chart and Number 10 in the UK Indie Singles Chart
*Stop Knocking The Walls Down (24/1/2005) 32 in the Official UK Singles Chart and Number 8 in the UK Indie Singles Chart
*We Are England (19/6/2006) 54 in the Official UK Singles Chart and Number 3 in the UK Indie Singles Chart