Working Week were a British jazz-dance band active in the 1980s and 1990s.
Working Week was formed in 1983 by guitarist
Simon Booth and saxophonist
Larry Stabbins from the band
Weekend,
which ended when singer
Alison Statton
Alison Statton (born March 1958) is a Welsh singer best known for her work with Young Marble Giants. Fans of the singer have included Kurt Cobain, Courtney Love, Stephin Merritt, Belle and Sebastian and Renato Russo.
Musical career
Born ...
left to become a schoolteacher. The duo released their debut single "Venceremos (We Will Win)" during the following year.
The song was a tribute to Chilean protest singer Víctor Jara, with vocals by
Robert Wyatt
Robert Wyatt (born Robert Wyatt-Ellidge, 28 January 1945) is a retired English musician. A founding member of the influential Canterbury scene bands Soft Machine and Matching Mole, he was initially a kit drummer and singer before becoming p ...
and
Tracey Thorn
Tracey Anne Thorn (born 26 September 1962) is a British singer. She is best known as being one half of the duo Everything but the Girl from 1982 to 1999. She was a member of the band Marine Girls between 1980 and 1983 and since 2007 has been ...
(the latter from the band
Everything but the Girl
Everything but the Girl (occasionally referred to as EBTG) are an English musical duo formed in Kingston upon Hull in 1982, consisting of lead singer and occasional guitarist Tracey Thorn and guitarist, keyboardist, producer and singer Ben Wa ...
).
It became the band's highest placing in the
UK Singles Chart
The UK Singles Chart (currently titled Official Singles Chart, with the upper section more commonly known as the Official UK Top 40) is compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC), on behalf of the British record industry, listing the top-s ...
, where it peaked at No. 64.
The single included founding members of the London School of Samba, notably Bosco de Oliveira and Dawson Miller. Other early members of the group also performed with the band.
The debut album ''
Working Nights'' was released in April 1985, with vocalist Juliet Roberts added as a member of the band.
Initial copies of the LP had a bonus 12" disc with (Jalaluddin) Jalal Mansur Nuriddin (also known as Lightnin' Rod, birth name Alafia Pudin) of The Last Poets. Roberts continued as singer on the 1986 album ''
Compañeros'' and ''Surrender'', released in 1987, but left the band after that year's single, "Knocking on Your Door".
Julie Tippetts
Julie Driscoll Tippetts (born 8 June 1947) is an English singer and actress.
Career
Driscoll is known for her 1960s versions of Bob Dylan and Rick Danko's "This Wheel's on Fire", and Donovan's " Season of the Witch", both with Brian Auger an ...
returned as vocalist for the 1989 album ''Fire in the Mountain'', and Eyvon Waite was solo vocalist for ''Black and Gold'' (1991), the band's final studio album.
Working Week appeared on 9 February 1986 at the
Royal Albert Hall
The Royal Albert Hall is a concert hall on the northern edge of South Kensington, London. One of the UK's most treasured and distinctive buildings, it is held in trust for the nation and managed by a registered charity which receives no govern ...
in a benefit concert for victims of the
1985 Armero tragedy in Colombia.
Discography
Albums
*''
Working Nights'' (
Virgin Records
Virgin Records is a record label owned by Universal Music Group. It originally founded as a British independent record label in 1972 by entrepreneurs Richard Branson, Simon Draper, Nik Powell, and musician Tom Newman. It grew to be a worldw ...
V2343) – 1985
UK No. 23
*''
Compañeros'' (Virgin Records V2397) – 1986 UK No. 72
*''Surrender'' (Virgin Records V2468) – 1987
*''Payday (Best of Working Week)'' (
compilation), (Virgin Records Ltd./Venture VEGD19) – 1988, also in 1999
*''Pay Check'' (compilation, US version of 'Payday') (Venture 2-90997) – 1988
*''Fire in the Mountain'' (10 Records DIX86) – 1989
*''Black and Gold'' (10 Records DIX95) – 1991
Singles
*"Venceremos (We Will Win)" – 1984 UK No. 64
*"Storm of Light" – 1984 UK No. 88
*"Inner City Blues" – 1985 UK No. 93
*"Sweet Nothing" – 1985 UK No. 83
*"Stella Marina" – 1985
*"I Thought I'd Never See You Again" – 1985 UK No. 80
*"Too Much Time" – 1986 UK No. 94
*"South Africa" – 1986
*"Rodrigo Bay" – 1986
*"Don't Touch My Friend" – 1986
*"Surrender" – 1987
*"Largo" – 1987
*"Knocking On Your Door" – 1988
*"Eldorado" – 1989
*"Blade" – 1989
*"Testify" – 1990
*"Positive" – 1991 UK No. 96
*"Holding On" – 1991
References
External links
Working Week at Last.fm*
{{Authority control
Musical groups established in 1983
Musical groups disestablished in 1991
English dance music groups
English jazz ensembles
British musical trios
Musical groups from London
Virgin Records artists