Troy Tate is an English musician and record producer who was a member of several bands including the Teardrop Explodes and

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as well as working as a solo artist, for which he is best known for the single "Love Is ..."

Biography

Born in Liverpool, England, Tate's first band was the

Cheltenham Cheltenham () is a historic spa town and borough adjacent to the Cotswolds in Gloucestershire, England. Cheltenham became known as a health and holiday spa town resort following the discovery of mineral springs in 1716, and claims to be the mo ...

-based

punk rock Punk rock (also known as simply punk) is a rock music genre that emerged in the mid-1970s. Rooted in 1950s rock and roll and 1960s garage rock, punk bands rejected the corporate nature of mainstream 1970s rock music. They typically produced sh ...

band Index, who released one single, "Jet Lag" c/w "Total Bland" in 1978.Strong, Martin C. (2003) "Troy Tate", in ''The Great Indie Discography'', Canongate, He moved on to join former members of the Rezillos in the band Shake, recording two singles with this band. In 1981, he first recorded as a solo artist, releasing the "Thomas" single on the

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label Why-Fi. He joined the Teardrop Explodes in late 1980, replacing Alan Gill on guitar, and playing on the ''Wilder'' album. While with the band, he continued his solo career, releasing "Lifeline" in 1982. He left The Teardrop Explodes, and joined

in October 1982, leaving in 1983 when he signed to

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 ...

, for whom he debuted that year with "Love Is ...". Tate moved on to

Sire Records Sire Records (formerly Sire Records Company) is an American record label owned by Warner Music Group and distributed by Warner Records. History Beginnings The label was founded in 1966 as Sire Productions by Seymour Stein and Richard Gotteh ...

in 1984, who issued a remixed version of "Thomas", which was followed by his debut solo album, ''Ticket to the Dark'' the same year. The album featured contributions from former-Rezillos and Shake drummer Ali Paterson, former-Teardrop Explodes member

David Balfe David Balfe (born 1958) is an English musician and record company executive, most notable for playing keyboards with the Teardrop Explodes, founding the Zoo and Food independent record labels, signing Blur and for being the subject of thei ...

, Nicky Holland, Virginia Astley and Rolo McGinty of

the Woodentops The Woodentops are a British rock band that enjoyed critical acclaim and moderate popularity in the mid-1980s. History The band formed in 1983 in South London with an initial lineup of Rolo McGinty (vocals, guitar, formerly of the Wild Swans ...

, and was described by ''

Trouser Press ''Trouser Press'' was a rock and roll magazine started in New York in 1974 as a mimeographed fanzine by editor/publisher Ira Robbins, fellow fan of the Who, Dave Schulps, and Karen Rose under the name "Trans-Oceanic Trouser Press" (a reference ...

'' as "an exceptionally good record".Robbins, Ira
Troy Tate
, ''

'' A second album, ''Liberty'', followed in 1985, which proved to be Tate's swansong.

The Smiths – ''The Troy Tate Sessions''

When

the Smiths The Smiths were an English Rock music, rock band formed in Manchester in 1982, composed of Morrissey (vocals), Johnny Marr (guitar), Andy Rourke (bass) and Mike Joyce (musician), Mike Joyce (drums). Morrissey and Marr formed the band's songwrit ...

(also on Rough Trade) were looking for a producer for their debut album, Tate was chosen; although after the album was recorded, the band decided to reject these recordings and re-record the album with producer John Porter. The original version of the album is widely known as ''The Troy Tate Sessions'' and has only been released on bootlegs. "Jeane" from these sessions was released as the B-side of the "

This Charming Man "This Charming Man" is a song by the English rock band the Smiths, written by guitarist Johnny Marr and singer Morrissey. Released as the group's second single on 31 October 1983 by the independent record label Rough Trade, it is defined b ...

" single, and the version of "Pretty Girls Make Graves" was the B-side to " I Started Something I Couldn't Finish". Tate's version of "Reel Around the Fountain" had been scheduled for release as a single in 1983, a disc of which was included in a collectors edition of ''

Complete Complete may refer to: Logic * Completeness (logic) * Completeness of a theory, the property of a theory that every formula in the theory's language or its negation is provable Mathematics * The completeness of the real numbers, which implies t ...

'' in 2011.

Solo discography

Albums

*''Ticket to the Dark'' (1984) Sire *''Liberty'' (1985) Sire

Singles

*"Thomas" (1981) Why-Fi *"Lifeline" (1982) Why-Fi *"Love Is ..." (1983) Rough Trade *"Thomas" (1984) Sire *"Sorrow" (1985) Sire

References

External links

*Sinclair, Mick (1981
Troy Tate Feature
'' Sounds'', August 1981 {{DEFAULTSORT:Tate, Troy Living people Year of birth missing (living people) English new wave musicians English male singer-songwriters English record producers English rock guitarists Musicians from Liverpool The Teardrop Explodes members