General Public

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General Public
General Public in 1994, left to right: Ranking Roger and Dave Wakeling
General Public in 1994, left to right: Ranking Roger and Dave Wakeling
Background information
OriginBirmingham, England
GenresNew wave
Years active
  • 1983–1987
  • 1994–1995
Labels
Past members

General Public were an English new wave band, formed in Birmingham in 1983, by vocalists Dave Wakeling and Ranking Roger of the Beat, and which also included former members of Dexys Midnight Runners, the Specials, and the Clash. They are best remembered for their hits "Tenderness" (1984) and "I'll Take You There" (1994).

Career[edit]

After the break-up of the Beat in 1983 (known as the English Beat in North America), vocalists Dave Wakeling and Ranking Roger decided to continue working together in a new venture.[1] They joined up with keyboardist Mickey Billingham (Dexys Midnight Runners), guitarist Mick Jones (the Clash), bassist Horace Panter (the Specials) and drummer Stoker (Dexys Midnight Runners/the Bureau) to form a supergroup of the UK punk and ska scene.[1] They named the band General Public and were rapidly signed to Virgin Records in the UK and I.R.S. Records in North America.

The band recorded and released the album All the Rage in 1984.[1] Jones left General Public part way through the recording process, but he is listed in the album's inner sleeve credits as a group member (although he did not appear in any of the band photographs for the album cover). Jones' replacement, guitarist Kevin White, also played on the album and was also listed an official group member. White's picture also appeared on the album's back cover.

In the UK, General Public had a minor hit with the track "General Public", which reached No. 60 in the UK Singles Chart in 1984.[2] The single's B-side "Dishwasher" (an instrumental mix of "Burning Bright" from All The Rage) became a surprise Top 40 hit in the Netherlands, after its use as a closing theme tune to the pop radio show Avondspits.[citation needed]

Later in the year, the band fared even better in North America, where their second single "Tenderness" was a Top 30 hit in Canada (No. 11) and the US (No. 27). The song's success benefited from appearing in the John Hughes films Sixteen Candles (1984) and Weird Science (1985) from the time period, and it would later appear in Amy Heckerling's Clueless (1995) and in the horror film Devil's Due (2014). Meanwhile, another General Public song, "Taking the Day Off" was featured in Ferris Bueller's Day Off (1986).

For the follow-up album, White and Stoker were replaced by brothers Gianni and Mario Minardi on guitar and drums, respectively. Hand to Mouth was significantly less successful than their debut album, and the band dissolved soon after its release.[1] The 1993 reissue of the album includes "Taking the Day Off" and other non-album songs and remixes.

Roger and Wakeling worked on various solo projects for the next few years, before reconstituting General Public in 1994 to perform a cover version of the Staple Singers' hit "I'll Take You There" for the Threesome film soundtrack. The new General Public line-up retained only vocalists Wakeling and Roger from previous incarnations; the vocal duo was now backed by Michael Railton (keyboards), Randy Jacobs (guitars), Wayne Lothian (bass), Thomas White (drums), and Norman Jones (percussion).[1]

"I'll Take You There" was a Top 40 hit in the US and Canada and a minor hit in the UK (No. 73). Jacobs and White then left the group, and new drummer Dan Chase was brought in. The sextet released the album Rub It Better for Epic Records in 1995, recorded in the US with the aid of Jerry Harrison, the former keyboardist and guitarist for Talking Heads producing.[1] Guests on the album included former bandmate Mick Jones, Saxa, Pato Banton, and Chris Spedding; ex-band members Horace Panter and Stoker also participated in the album's creation, co-writing one song apiece. (Stoker also received an "additional recording" credit.) The single "Rainy Days" met with limited success in the US, but fared better in some international markets, notably Brazil. Sales were less than earlier albums, however, and Roger became tired of traveling to America, and they soon broke up again.

Since 2004, Dave Wakeling has toured the US with a full backing band as the English Beat. They often perform General Public tracks.[3]

"Ranking" Roger Charlery died at his home in Birmingham on 26 March 2019 at the age of 56.[4][5][6]

Discography[edit]

Studio albums[edit]

Year Album details Peak chart
positions 		Certifications
(sales threshold)
US
[7] 		CAN
[8]
1984 All the Rage
  • First studio album
  • Release date: 28 January 1984
  • Label: I.R.S. Records
 26 19
1986 Hand to Mouth
  • Second studio album
  • Release date: 1986
  • Label: I.R.S. Records
 83 84
1995 Rub It Better
  • Third studio album
  • Release date: 4 April 1995
  • Label: Epic Records
 — —
"—" denotes released that did not chart

Compilation albums[edit]

Year Album details
2002 Classic Masters
  • First compilation album
  • Release date: 26 January 2002
  • Label: Capitol Records

Singles[edit]

Year Single Peak chart positions Album
UK[10] AUS CAN NL[11] NZ US[12] US Dance[13] US Main[14] US Mod[15] GER[16]
1984 "General Public" 60 — — — 41 — — — — — All the Rage
"Dishwasher" — — — 38 — — — — — —
"Tenderness" 95 50 11 — — 27 15 39 — —
1985 "Never You Done That" — — — — — 105 13 — — —
"Hot You're Cool" — — — — — — 16 — — —
1986 "Come Again (General Public)" — — — — — — — — — — Hand to Mouth
"Faults and All" — — — — — — — — — —
"Too Much or Nothing (General Public)" — — 83 — — — 21 — — —
"In Conversation" — — — — — — 23 — — —
1994 "I'll Take You There" 73 — 7 — 8 22 1 — 6 71 Threesome (soundtrack)
1995 "Rainy Days" — — — — — 93 — — 40 — Rub It Better
"Warm Love" — — — — — — — — — —
"—" denotes releases that did not chart

See also[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b c d e f Colin Larkin, ed. (1997). The Virgin Encyclopedia of Popular Music (Concise ed.). Virgin Books. p. 513. ISBN 1-85227-745-9.
  2. ^ Roberts, David (2006). British Hit Singles & Albums (19th ed.). London: Guinness World Records Limited. p. 224. ISBN 1-904994-10-5.
  3. ^ Dave Wakeling Readies First New English Beat Album in 34 years, Blastecho.com, 16 February 2016, retrieved 2 September 2016
  4. ^ Pearis, Bill (26 March 2019). "Ranking Roger (The English Beat, General Public), dead at 56". BrooklynVegan. Retrieved 26 March 2019.
  5. ^ Otte, Jedidajah (27 March 2019). "The Beat singer Ranking Roger dies aged 56". The Guardian. Retrieved 27 March 2019.
  6. ^ "Tributes as The Beat star Ranking Roger dies". BBC. 27 March 2019.
  7. ^ "allmusic ((( General Public > Charts & Awards > Billboard Albums )))". AllMusic. Retrieved 8 May 2010.
  8. ^ "Results – RPM – Library and Archives Canada: Top Albums/CDs". RPM. Archived from the original on 14 October 2012. Retrieved 8 May 2010.
  9. ^ "Canadian Recording Industry Association search results". Canadian Recording Industry Association. Archived from the original on 12 April 2009. Retrieved 9 May 2010.
  10. ^ "General Public". Official Charts. Retrieved 3 July 2019.
  11. ^ "General Public". Dutch Charts. Retrieved 3 July 2019.
  12. ^ "General Public". Billboard. Retrieved 3 July 2019.
  13. ^ "General Public". Billboard. Retrieved 3 July 2019.
  14. ^ "General Public". Billboard. Retrieved 3 July 2019.
  15. ^ "General Public". Billboard. Retrieved 3 July 2019.
  16. ^ "I'll Take You There". Offizielle Deutsche Charts. Retrieved 3 July 2019.

External links[edit]

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