Sundays And Cybele
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The Sundays were an English
alternative rock Alternative rock (also known as alternative music, alt-rock or simply alternative) is a category of rock music that evolved from the independent music underground of the 1970s. Alternative rock acts achieved mainstream success in the 1990s w ...
band, formed in Bristol. The band's lineup consisted of lead vocalist Harriet Wheeler, guitarist David Gavurin, bassist Paul Brindley, and drummer Patrick Hannan. Percussionist Lindsay Jamieson was a member from 1990 until 1992, and played on the band's first two albums. Having met while attending
Bristol University The University of Bristol is a public research university in Bristol, England. It received its royal charter in 1909, although it can trace its roots to a Merchant Venturers' school founded in 1595 and University College, Bristol, which had ...
, Wheeler and Gavurin formed the band in 1988. Wheeler had played gigs with Cruel Shoes, an early incarnation of the band Jim Jiminee. The duo soon augmented the band with bassist Paul Brindley and drummer Patrick Hannan. The Sundays secured a recording contract with
Rough Trade Records Rough Trade Records is an independent record label based in London, England. It was formed in 1976 by Geoff Travis, who had opened a record store off Ladbroke Grove. It is currently run by co-managing directors Travis and Jeannette Lee and ...
. Their debut single was " Can't Be Sure". Their first album, '' Reading, Writing and Arithmetic'', was released in 1990 and became a UK top 5 hit. The album's lead single " Here's Where the Story Ends" was a number one hit on the ''Billboard'' Modern Rock Tracks chart in the United States. With Rough Trade's financial troubles and the band's decision to manage themselves, the Sundays' next single, "Goodbye", did not emerge until 1992. Their next album, '' Blind'', arrived the same year, reaching the UK top 15. The single "Love" reached number 2 on the US Modern Rock charts. The band toured in support of these recordings. In 1997, their third album, '' Static & Silence'', was followed by the release of their most successful single, " Summertime", which made the UK top 15. The album itself reached the UK top 10. However, the band has been on a lengthy hiatus since those releases, with Wheeler and Gavurin focusing on raising their two children; Wheeler and Gavurin married after the band breakup. Since their disbandment, the band have gained a
cult following A cult following is a group of fans who are highly dedicated to a person, idea, object, movement, or work, often an artist, in particular a performing artist, or an artwork in some medium. The latter is often called a cult classic. A film, boo ...
.


History


1988: Formation

Vocalist Harriet Wheeler and guitarist David Gavurin met as students at
Bristol University The University of Bristol is a public research university in Bristol, England. It received its royal charter in 1909, although it can trace its roots to a Merchant Venturers' school founded in 1595 and University College, Bristol, which had ...
in the mid-1980s. Wheeler was from
Reading Reading is the process of taking in the sense or meaning of symbols, often specifically those of a written language, by means of Visual perception, sight or Somatosensory system, touch. For educators and researchers, reading is a multifacete ...
, the daughter of an architect and a teacher, and studied English literature. Gavurin was from
Wembley Wembley () is a large suburbIn British English, "suburb" often refers to the secondary urban centres of a city. Wembley is not a suburb in the American sense, i.e. a single-family residential area outside of the city itself. in the London Borou ...
and actively pursued a degree in the
Romance language The Romance languages, also known as the Latin or Neo-Latin languages, are the languages that are Language family, directly descended from Vulgar Latin. They are the only extant subgroup of the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-E ...
s, particularly French and Spanish. The two fell in love and began living together. Following graduation they wrote music in their free time while collecting
unemployment benefits Unemployment, according to the OECD (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development), is the proportion of people above a specified age (usually 15) not being in paid employment or self-employment but currently available for work d ...
. Except for Wheeler's vocal duties in a band called Jim Jiminee, the couple had no musical background. Commenting on his desire to compose, Gavurin said, "It was something I'd always wanted to do, although I never wanted to be in a band when I was younger, like many kids do. It just dawned on me gradually." Wheeler displayed similar feelings: "There was never a time I wanted to be incredibly famous, or in a pop group," she said. "It just seemed a great thing to do to spend time working on something that's your own." After the couple completed several songs – and migrated to London – they enlisted the support of bassist Paul Brindley and drummer Patrick Hannan, who had also attended Bristol University. Hannan's brother, Nick, had also been a member of Jim Jiminee, which briefly featured Wheeler as vocalist (see paragraph above). The band chose the name "The Sundays" as it was the only one everyone could agree upon. Demo tapes were sent out to several London clubs after the group felt energized by their efforts; Gavurin stated in a ''
Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. The magazine was first known fo ...
'' interview that "by the end of the year we were thinking, 'Hang on a minute, some of this usicis good!'" Responses to the tape were enthusiastic and an employee at Vertigo Club offered the band an opening slot for an upcoming show in August 1988. "By chance there were three reviewers from the top music papers there," said Wheeler. "They were supposed to review the main band, but instead they wrote about us." The group subsequently became the focus of a record label
bidding war A bid price is the highest price that a buyer (i.e., bidder) is willing to pay for some goods. It is usually referred to simply as the "bid". In bid and ask, the bid price stands in contrast to the ask price or "offer", and the difference bet ...
. They eventually signed with
Rough Trade Records Rough Trade Records is an independent record label based in London, England. It was formed in 1976 by Geoff Travis, who had opened a record store off Ladbroke Grove. It is currently run by co-managing directors Travis and Jeannette Lee and ...
and had a distribution deal signed for the United States with
DGC Records DGC Records (an initialism for the David Geffen Company) was an American record label that operated as a division of Interscope Geffen A&M Records, which is owned by Universal Music Group. In 1999, after the PolyGram merger into UMG which crea ...
.


1989–1990: ''Reading, Writing and Arithmetic''

The Sundays released their first single " Can't Be Sure" in January 1989. It topped the British indie charts and received acclaim as one of the best singles of 1989. The group performed three songs in a session with popular disc jockey
John Peel John Robert Parker Ravenscroft (30 August 1939 – 25 October 2004), better known as John Peel, was an English radio presenter and journalist. He was the longest-serving of the original disc jockeys on BBC Radio 1, broadcasting regularly from ...
. These songs would later turn up on their debut album, '' Reading, Writing and Arithmetic''. The group worked on their debut for over a year. "A lot of bands who get signed, who have been playing the circuit for years, have 30 songs for the first album," said Gavurin. "But we didn't have enough for our first album, let alone our second. We can't write to deadline. You can't force a whole load of songs out quickly." Asked whether the band felt pressured when working on the album, Wheeler responded, "No, because to start off with, we're far more critical of ourselves than anyone else, and that's more a concern to us than what the press think." Gavurin also commented: "The main pressure we felt was with the single, and even then, we thought, well, they're either going to like it or they're not, and there's not much we can do to influence that." ''Reading, Writing and Arithmetic'' was released in January 1990 and became a commercial success, reaching number 4 on the UK charts and peaking at number 39 on the ''Billboard'' 200 in the United States. It went on to sell over half a million copies worldwide. Its distinct Englishness in lyrics, augmented by Harriet Wheeler's accent, alongside their lighter-than-air guitar pop, influenced the nascent Britpop scene, notably impacting bands like Sleeper. The hit single " Here's Where the Story Ends" also gained considerable success in the USA, propelled by extensive radio play and
MTV MTV (an initialism of Music Television) is an American cable television television channel, channel and the flagship property of the MTV Entertainment Group sub-division of the Paramount Media Networks division of Paramount Global. Launched on ...
rotation. The Sundays devoted nearly a year to an "exhausting" promotional tour, which encompassed America, Europe, and Japan. The tour was considered successful, although it was not without some mishaps; a London show had to be rescheduled due to Wheeler losing her voice and the group experienced some amusement when a
Dallas Dallas () is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the most populous city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of Texas metropolitan areas, most populous metropolitan area in Texas and the Metropolitan statistical area, fourth-most ...
, Texas, show was advertised with the slogan "See The Sundays on Sunday with ice-cream sundaes".


1991–1993: ''Blind''

The band experienced some hardships leading up to the recording of their second album. In 1991 Rough Trade Records went bankrupt, which caused the band to sign with
Parlophone Records Parlophone Records Limited (also known as Parlophone Records and Parlophone) is a record label founded in Germany in 1896 by the Carl Lindström Company as Parlophon. The British branch of the label was founded on 8 August 1923 as the Parloph ...
in the UK. Their debut went
out of print An out-of-print (OOP) or out-of-commerce item or work is something that is no longer being published. The term applies to all types of printed matter, visual media, sound recordings, and video recordings. An out-of-print book is a book that is ...
in the UK and would stay that way until 1996. Constant touring coupled with their decision to manage themselves hampered the group's creative output, which was already slow due to Gavurin and Wheeler, the main songwriters, "being chained by pokiness and perfectionism when it ameto writing and recording music." Additionally, the band kept a "low public profile", which fuelled rumours that the group had disbanded. The Sundays eventually released a new single, "Goodbye", a minor hit, in Autumn 1992. The release came almost three years after their last UK show. The "Goodbye" B-side, a cover of
The Rolling Stones The Rolling Stones are an English Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1962. Active for over six decades, they are one of the most popular, influential, and enduring bands of the Album era, rock era. In the early 1960s, the band pione ...
' " Wild Horses", also appeared on the US release of ''Blind'' as well as in the movie ''
Fear Fear is an unpleasant emotion that arises in response to perception, perceived dangers or threats. Fear causes physiological and psychological changes. It may produce behavioral reactions such as mounting an aggressive response or fleeing the ...
'' (1996), on the 1999 soundtrack album for the popular television series ''
Buffy the Vampire Slayer ''Buffy the Vampire Slayer'' is an American supernatural fiction, supernatural drama television series created by writer and director Joss Whedon. The concept is based on the Buffy the Vampire Slayer (film), 1992 film, also written by Whedon, a ...
'', and in the episode 01x01 of the series '' Friends from College'' (2017). Their next album, entitled '' Blind,'' was finally released in October 1992. The album experienced commercial success similar to their debut when it peaked at number 103 on the ''Billboard'' 200, and sold nearly half a million copies. Critical reception was also positive, but some critics thought the album lacked the quality songwriting of its predecessor. Despite ''Blind's'' initial appeal with audiences, it drifted off the charts by the summer of 1993. The Sundays toured Britain in the winter of 1992. The shows were "rapturously received by fans starved of fresh product or gigs." An American tour was greeted with sold-out shows. Gavurin explained that they weren't necessarily attempting to promote the new album: "A lot of people didn't see us the first time we played over here, and they want to hear earlier material. So we're playing half and half." In the end the tour was cut short in light of exhaustion and homesickness.


1994–1997: ''Static and Silence''

The band holidayed in Thailand and, upon returning to England, "put their music career on the back burner for a time." During this time the only appearance of the band was their cover of " Wild Horses" by
The Rolling Stones The Rolling Stones are an English Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1962. Active for over six decades, they are one of the most popular, influential, and enduring bands of the Album era, rock era. In the early 1960s, the band pione ...
appearing in a 1994 American Budweiser television commercial. Gavurin and Wheeler expressed a desire to settle down. Wheeler gave birth to the couple's daughter, Billie, in March 1995. They also built a recording studio in their home, not only to save on the cost of renting a studio, but also to expand their creative freedoms. Their third, and most recent album, ''Static & Silence'', was released to mixed reviews in September 1997, a full five years after ''Blind''. Although the band retained much of the same sound that they developed on previous albums, they added horns to a number of tracks for ''Static & Silence''. The album was not as successful as ''Reading, Writing and Arithmetic''; however, the single " Summertime" became their most successful hit to date on the UK chart and achieved a top 10 spot on the US Alternative Rock chart. It was The Sundays' third most successful single in the US, behind "Here's Where the Story Ends" (which made it to number 1 on the US Alternative Rock chart) and "Love" (which made it to number 2).


2014: Possible return

In April 2014, Adam Pitluk, the editor of American Airlines' magazine ''American Way'', tracked down and conducted an interview with Wheeler and Gavurin in which he put forward the idea of a reunion. They responded, "First let's see if the music we’re currently writing ever sees the light of day, and then we can get on to the enjoyable globe-trotting-meets-concert-planning stage." On 10 October 2014, during an interview on
BBC Radio 6 Music BBC Radio 6 Music is a British digital radio station owned and operated by the BBC. It primarily plays a wide range of alternative music, from established and emerging artists and bands. In 2002 it was the first national music radio station t ...
's '' Radcliffe & Maconie'' radio programme, David Baddiel described Dave Gavurin as his "oldest mate" and stated that "they ave and Harrietare doing music, but whether they ever put that out there, I’ve no idea. They're the most paranoid people about actually putting stuff out there". In an interview with the C86 Show Podcast released on August 18, 2020, Patrick Hannan revealed that Wheeler and Gavurin had "never stopped making music" and that he had played drums on a number of their tracks. Hannan added that these recordings may never be released.


Band members

* Paul Brindley – bass (1988–1997) * David Gavurin – guitars,
Hammond organ The Hammond organ is an electric organ invented by Laurens Hammond and John M. Hanert, first manufactured in 1935. Multiple models have been produced, most of which use sliding #Drawbars, drawbars to vary sounds. Until 1975, sound was created ...
, piano, percussion (1988–1997) * Patrick (Patch) Hannan – drums, percussion (1988–1997) * Harriet Wheeler – lead vocals (1988–1997) * Lindsay Jamieson – tambourine (1990–1992)


Discography


Studio albums


Singles


B-sides / unreleased songs

*"Can't Be Sure"
emo Emo () is a genre of rock music characterized by emotional, often confessional lyrics. It emerged as a style of hardcore punk and from the Washington, D.C., hardcore scene, where it was known as emotional hardcore or emocore. The bands ...
(b-side of "Cry") *"Don't Tell Your Mother" (b-side of "Can't Be Sure", eventually appearing also on '' DGC Rarities Vol. 1'') *"Gone" (b-side of "Summertime") *"Here's Where the Story Ends" lack Session(b-side of "Wild Horses" – US cassette single) *"Here's Where the Story Ends" ive(b-side of "Summertime") *"I Kicked a Boy" (
b-side The A-side and B-side are the two sides of phonograph record, vinyl records and Compact cassette, cassettes, and the terms have often been printed on the labels of two-sided music recordings. The A-side of a Single (music), single usually ...
of "Can't Be Sure", released on ''Reading, Writing and Arithmetic'') *"Black Sessions" (Live 1992 - Album) (French radio show - France Inter) *"Life Goes On" (b-side of "Cry") *"Noise" (b-side of "Goodbye") *"Nothing Sweet" (b-side of "Summertime") *"Skin & Bones" ive(b-side of "Summertime") *"So Much" (only on the US version of ''Static and Silence'') *"Something More" (unreleased) *"Through the Dark" (b-side of "Cry") *"Turkish" (only performed live, and at almost every concert on the ''Blind'' and ''Static and Silence'' tours) *" Wild Horses" (b-side of "Goodbye", appearing also on US copies of '' Blind'') *"You're Not the Only One I Know"
emo Emo () is a genre of rock music characterized by emotional, often confessional lyrics. It emerged as a style of hardcore punk and from the Washington, D.C., hardcore scene, where it was known as emotional hardcore or emocore. The bands ...
(b-side of "Cry")


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sundays, The British dream pop musical groups English alternative rock groups English indie pop groups Female-fronted musical groups Geffen Records artists British jangle pop groups Musical groups established in 1988 Musical groups disestablished in 1997 Alternative rock groups from Bristol Parlophone artists Rough Trade Records artists Mixed-gender bands 1988 establishments in England