Talk Talk

This article is about the music group. For the British telecommunications group, see TalkTalk Group. For other uses, see Talk Talk (disambiguation).

Talk Talk
High-contrast black-and-white photo of the three foremembers of the band.
Talk Talk in 1988 (photo by Stephen Lovell-Davis[1]); from left to right: Mark Hollis, Paul Webb, Lee Harris
Background information
OriginLondon, England
Genres
Years active1981–1991
Labels
Spinoffs.O.rang
Past members

Talk Talk were an English band formed in 1981, led by Mark Hollis (vocals, guitar, piano), Lee Harris (drums), and Paul Webb (bass). Initially a synth-pop group, Talk Talk's first two albums, The Party's Over (1982) and It's My Life (1984), reached top 40 in the UK and produced the international hit singles "Talk Talk", "Today", "It's My Life", and "Such a Shame". They achieved widespread critical success in Europe and the UK with the album The Colour of Spring (1986) along with its singles "Life's What You Make It" and "Living in Another World". 1988's Spirit of Eden moved the group towards a more experimental sound informed by jazz and improvisation, pioneering what became known as post-rock;[6][4] it was critically acclaimed but commercially unsuccessful.

Friction with the band's label, EMI, resulted in legal action and countersuing. Webb departed, and the band switched to Polydor for their final studio album, 1991's Laughing Stock, but split soon afterwards. Singer Mark Hollis released one solo album in 1998 before retiring from the music industry; he died in 2019. The band's founding bass player and drummer, Paul Webb and Lee Harris, played in several bands together, including .O.rang; long-term collaborator Tim Friese-Greene continued in the business as a musician and producer.

  1. ^ Lovell-Davis, Stephen. "Stephen-Lovell-Davis Photographer". Stephen-Lovell-Davis Photographer.
  2. ^ Harvell, Jess (21 October 2011). "Talk Talk / Mark Hollis: Laughing Stock / Mark Hollis". Pitchfork. Retrieved 6 April 2015.
  3. ^ Wallace, Wyndham (13 September 2012). "All Talked Out: Dismantling The History Of Talk Talk". The Quietus. Retrieved 18 February 2018.
  4. ^ a b Cite error: The named reference chutlerB was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  5. ^ Thomson, Graeme (13 September 2012). "Talk Talk: the band who disappeared from view". The Guardian. Retrieved 18 February 2018.
  6. ^ a b Phillips, Amy (31 August 2012). "Talk Talk's Mark Hollis Resurfaces With New Music for the Kelsey Grammer TV Show "Boss"". Pitchfork. Retrieved 19 June 2016.
  7. ^ a b Ankeny, Jason. "Talk Talk Biography". AllMusic. Retrieved 15 May 2017.
  8. ^ "Mark Hollis of Talk Talk Has Passed Away". Post-punk.com. 25 February 2019. Retrieved 14 October 2021.