The Wildhearts 787926 219362035 2008-06-14T21:35:23Z 82.37.217.237 /* The New Era 2007 */ corrected two spellings {{Unreferenced|date=May 2008}} {{POV|date=May 2008}} {{Wiki|date=May 2008}} {{Infobox musical artist <!-- See Wikipedia:WikiProject_Musicians --> | Name = [[Image:Wildhearts logo.jpg|250px|The Wildhearts' most common logo]] | Img = | Img_capt = The 'Smileybones' mascot | Img_size = 250 | Landscape = | Background = group_or_band | Alias = | Origin = [[Newcastle upon Tyne]] | Genre = [[Hard rock]] <br> [[Punk rock]] | Years_active = 1989 - present | Label = [[Eastwest Records|East West]]<br>[[Round Records]]<br>[[Mushroom Records]]<br>[[Snapper Records]]<br>[[Gut Records]] | Associated_acts = | URL = [http://www.thewildhearts.com/ Official site]<br>[http://www.myspace.com/thewildhearts Myspace page]<br>[http://www.myspace.com/thewildheartsrock Second Myspace] | Current_members = [[Ginger (singer)|Ginger]]<br>[[C.J (guitarist)|C.J]]<br>[[Scott Sorry]]<br>[[Ritch Battersby]] | Past_members = [[Danny McCormack]]<br>Stidi<br>Jef Streatfield<br>[[Jon Poole]]<br>Bam<br>Snake<br> | Notable_instruments = }} '''The Wildhearts''' are a [[rock (music)|rock]] group from [[Newcastle upon Tyne]], [[England]]. The band's sound is a mixture of [[hard rock]] and melodic [[pop music]]. When the band released their first EP [[Mondo Akimbo a-Go-Go]] they were touted in the music press as combining influences as diverse as [[The Beatles]] and 1980s-era [[Metallica]] although this was refuted by the band who saw their influences as being far broader, as shown in the song [[Suckerpunch (single)#"29 X The Pain"|"29 X The Pain"]] which lists many of singer Ginger's influences. The Wildhearts were hugely influential in the British rock music scene in the mid-1990s, although they didn't achieve major commercial success, owing in part to the indifference of radio stations and the mainstream music press, and also many internal problems often relating to [[Recreational drug use|recreational drugs]] and [[Depression (mood)|depression]]. In the band's turbulent and unpredictable history, band-members have regularly been replaced, excepting founding member [[Ginger (singer)|Ginger]] (real name David Walls), the singer, [[guitarist]] and predominant [[songwriter]]. The band has achieved several top 20 entries in the British singles charts and has remained at the forefront of the British Rock Scene since 1993. The band split up several times and replaced band-members regularly, their career blighted by [[drug abuse|drug]] and [[alcohol]] related problems throughout. Much of the band's early career was affected by bitter feuds with their record company, [[Eastwest Records|East West]]. ==History== ===Early years=== [[Image:Wildhearts92.jpg|thumb|right|250px|The Wildhearts circa 1992]] The Wildhearts formed in late 1989, after [[Ginger (singer)|Ginger]] was sacked from the [[Quireboys]]. The following myth is often told about Ginger's decision to form the band. The bottom had fallen out of his world, and all that he had left, all that he cared about was the bottle of [[Jack Daniel's]] he was swigging from. Walking down some steps to the [[London Underground]], he fell. As he lay on the floor, he decided that if the bottle was smashed, he would kill himself. If the bottle remained intact, he would start a band. The bottle was intact. Ginger wanted to form a band where he could apply himself as a songwriter, rather than merely a guitarist as in his previous bands, inspired by the likes of [[Elvis Costello & The Attractions]], and throughout the band's early career he wrote nearly all the songs himself. Initially called The Wild Hearts (two words), Snake (ex-Tobruk) was the frontman of the band followed by a brief stint from Duncan F. Mullet (ex-Mourneblade). Snake returned briefly to the band for a few months following the departure of Duncan. Nine demos were recorded in 1989 and 1990 with Snake singing on 4 and Duncan on 5. These demos remain unreleased and find the band sounding more like Guns N Roses than the sound that would later evolve. Some of the demos were produced by famed producer Ric Browde and intended for an EP release that never materialized. These demos can be found from time to time. In March 1991, Ginger reluctantly took over on lead vocals despite his reservations. He has never thought himself a good singer. ===The first album=== [[Image:Wildhearts93.jpg|thumb|right|250px|''Earth vs The Wildhearts'' lineup]] In 1993, to follow up The Wildhearts' first two EPs, ''[[Mondo Akimbo a-Go-Go]]'' & ''[[Don’t Be Happy…Just Worry]]'', the band recorded demos for its first full-length album. These were deemed so good that they were released as ''[[Earth Vs The Wildhearts]]'' without re-recording. Singles "Greetings From Shitsville" and "TV Tan" were underground hits in 1993. Stidi left the band shortly afterwards to be replaced by Ritch Battersby, just in time for the recording of the single "Caffeine Bomb", a UK chart hit at the beginning of 1994, helped by a memorable [[music video|video]] in which Ginger appeared to vomit into, guitarist and backing vocalist, [[C.J (guitarist)|C.J]]'s face. The band appeared on ''[[Top of the Pops]]'' wearing green welding goggles. The debut album was reissued in late 1994 with "Caffeine Bomb" tacked on, and "Suckerpunch" was another 'almost' hit. ===The follow-up=== The Wildhearts had grand plans for a double album, but East West vetoed this plan during the recording sessions, forcing the band to release a collection of 6 of the more eclectic tracks on a fan club only release entitled ''Fishing For Luckies'' in early 1995. An instant classic, ''Fishing For Luckies'' included "[[Geordie In Wonderland]]" (offered to [[Kevin Keegan]] and [[Newcastle United F.C.]] as their anthem, but graciously turned down, and played on ''Top of the Pops'' with Wolfsbane's Jeff Hateley, painted in Toon Army colours, on Mandolin), "If Life Is Like A Lovebank (I Want An Overdraft)" and the legendary tracks "Schitzophonic" and "Sky Babies", an 11.24 minute epic that fans screamed for at every subsequent gig, but was rarely played, reputedly because of Danny McCormack's inability to remember his bass parts throughout the whole song (the band did eventually play the song on every night of a post-reformation tour with John Poole on bass). [[Image:Wildhearts95.jpg|thumb|left|250px|1995 lineup]] The second album proper was to be known as '[[P.H.U.Q.]]'. After the departure of CJ, midway through the recording sessions, the album was completed without a second guitarist. ''P.H.U.Q.'' was released in May 1995 and reached number 6 in the British charts, making it the band's most successful record. Shortly after the album's release, Mark Keds of [[Senseless Things]] was drafted in on guitars, but lasted just one recording session for three songs, one of which was called "Friend For 5 Minutes" which turned out to be ironic as within a few weeks Keds was sacked after disappearing to Japan for a farewell tour with his old band. The Wildhearts were again down to a three-piece for a few months, and even performed a few gigs like this. This arrangement was not perfect, however, and the band felt that a second guitarist was required. After requesting demos and holding auditions, the job went to the previously unknown Jef Streatfield. By late 1995 the band were finally fed up with their record label and set out to tour Japan and the UK, determined that they would split up the band unless [[Eastwest Records|East West]] would release them from their contract. The tours were a resounding success and eventually the band managed to escape their record contract. ===Round Records era=== In early 1996 the Wildhearts were in an upbeat mood, claiming to have recorded two new studio albums, which would be released via East West on the band's own record label, Round Records. Only one of these records saw the light of day, a revamped version of the previously fan club only ''''Fishing For Luckies'''' with eight new tracks bringing it up to full album length. The other album was never quite finished, although leaked copies were distributed as the ''Shitty Fuckin' Stupid Tracks'' bootleg, and finally received an official release in 1998 as part of the ''Landmines and Pantomimes'' rarities compilation, although the band urged fans to boycott this record which they had not approved. The tracks from this album were never officially acknowledged as part of the band's corpus of material, although one song, "Tom Take the Money", has since been performed a number of times by Ginger at his solo acoustic appearances. [[Image:Wildhearts97.jpg|thumb|left|250px|1996-1997 lineup]] ===Endless Nameless era=== In 1997 the band signed to Mushroom Records, and set about making another album. This album, recorded during a traumatic time for the band, abandoned the band's former pop rock leanings in favour of a more distorted and less commercial, "everything louder than everything else" sound. Fans were initially confused by the first single, "Anthem", released in July 1997, and by the time the album itself, ''[[Endless Nameless (Wildhearts)|Endless, Nameless]]'', was released, the opinion of fans was totally divided, some calling it a masterpiece, others an aberration. All was not harmonious inside the band either and drug problems, particularly affecting bassist Danny McCormack, were putting a strain on the band in late 1997. Things came to a head in November of that year when Ginger decided to split the band, shortly before the release of ''Endless Nameless'', and before a scheduled British tour, which was then canceled. ===Multi-Formatting and Singles=== It was during the 1997 era that The Wildhearts began to release multiple formats of singles. The band had, up until this point, always been strenuously against multi-formatting seeing the practice as a rip-off to fans. The Wildhearts pre-1997 would release one version of a single which would contain 3 b-sides. The b-sides themselves were never covers or album off-cuts but always brand new songs recorded specifically for that single. As such the quality of Wildhearts b-sides has always been high, and indeed fan favourite [[Suckerpunch (single)#"29 X The Pain"|"29 X The Pain"]] was a b-side from the "Suckerpunch" single. However, during the ''[[Endless Nameless (Wildhearts)|Endless, Nameless]]'' run the band released the two singles from the album as multi-format consisting of two CD singles with two b-sides on each and a 7" single with one b-side, with all the songs from the ''[[Anthem]]'' being covers of other songs. Many of the band's fan base were angry at this change and even went so far as handing out flyers against the practice outside Wildhearts shows. Ginger reacted with frustration, saying that they were simply trying to bring more music to the fans. The band have continued to multi-format since 1997, in particular with the single for 'Top Of The World' consisting of 3 CD singles, two with two b-sides and one with one b-side and the video for the song. However, the band have also continued to specifically re-enter the studio to record brand new songs for b-sides. This means that since the Wildhearts reformation(s) they have amassed enough b-sides for [[Gut Records]] to release a b-side only album, [[Coupled With]]. ===Hiatus 1997-2001=== For several years the band members concentrated on their respective side projects, although the lineup of Ginger, Danny, Ritch and Jef reformed a few times for one off gigs and tours of [[Japan]], where the band had always had a strong following. ===Reformation === In early 2001 Ginger shocked and delighted fans of the band by announcing that he was reforming the ''Earth Vs The Wildhearts''- era lineup of the band for a tour later that year. This lineup of the band ran into difficulties at first due to Danny's battle against [[heroin addiction]], and on several dates of the comeback tour Toshi from support band [[AntiProduct]] stood in as bassist. By 2002 Danny was once again clean and the band started recording a new mini-album and also toured the UK. The tracks intended for the album were released in late 2002 across three formats of the [[Vanilla Radio]] single in the UK, and as the mini-album ''[[Riff After Riff After Motherfucking Riff]]'' in Japan. The Vanilla Radio single reached the Top 30 in the UK, and in early 2003 work began on a full-length album. However, during recording, Danny checked himself into a rehabilitation centre to deal with an alcohol problem, leaving Ginger himself to play the bass parts on the album. Danny's place in the live band was filled by "Random" [[Jon Poole]], who had already worked with Ginger on his Silver Ginger 5 side-project. [[Image:Wildhearts04.jpg|thumb|right|250px|2004 lineup]]The album 'The Wildhearts Must Be Destroyed' had a very commercial sound, full of short simple pop songs with little of the heavier rock style which often featured on previous albums. It seemed that things were finally looking up for the band when they managed to get a US record deal with Gearhead Records, and arranged to tour the US and release 'Riff After Riff', a compilation of songs from the UK post-reformation singles. This was The Wildhearts' first US release since ''[[Earth Vs The Wildhearts]]'' in 1994. The release was also promoted by a tour, mostly as the support band for their ex-support band, [[The Darkness]]. Then in early 2005, [[Ginger (singer)|Ginger]] dissolved The Wildhearts again, citing a mixture of his own personal problems and a lack of commitment within the band. He and briefly joined [[The Brides of Destruction]] (featuring [[Tracii Guns]] on [[guitar]]) before setting out on his own as a full-time solo artist. In typically unpredictable Wildhearts style Ginger then reformed The Wildhearts again for a one-off gig at [[Scarborough Castle]] on [[17 September]] [[2005]]. The 1994-1995 line-up of Ginger, [[Danny McCormack]], CJ and Ritch Battersby played at this gig. In December 2005 / January 2006, Ginger released the ''[[Valor Del Corazon]]'' double album on Cargo / Round records to the great acclaim of critics and fans alike. The first single from Valor Del Corazon, ''[[Yeah Yeah Yeah]]'', was released in November. The split single featured Round Records artist Howling Willie Cunt - who performed a country and western version of the Wildhearts song ''[[Caffeine Bomb]]''. Ginger's next solo effort ''[[Yoni]]'', was released in January 2007 on Round Records. [[Danny McCormack]] reformed his band [[The Yo-Yos]], although they split up mid-way through a tour shortly after releasing a new E.P on Undergroove. He recently finished recording 4 songs for a new solo E.P. C.J also just finished recording the album for his solo project, [[C.J & The Satellites]]. It is due for release on Cargo Records summer 2007. Once again, the Wildhearts reformed in December 2006 and played a single live show at the Wulfrun Hall in Wolverhampton. This line-up saw Ginger joined again by CJ, Rich Battersby and a new bassist, Scott Sorry (ex Amen). In mid-January 2007, Ginger revealed on BBC 6music during an interview that original Wildhearts lead singer Snake (ex-Tobruk, real name Stuart) had drunk himself to death. He passed away on 20th December of congestive heart failure{{Verify source|date=July 2007}}. His funeral was attended by hundreds of mourners, there were so many that they could have filled the place 5 times over{{Verify source|date=July 2007}}. ===The New Era 2007=== In January 2007, The Wildhearts spent a week in Tutbury Castle recording vocals and finishing their new self titled album. The band were to play a handful of shows across America, but due to delays in their Visa application they were forced to cancel the US tour, the band then announced that they would play the shows in the US at a later dates, which ended up as sold out dates in New York, one of which was onboard a ferry. The Band made up to their American fans for the postponement of the gigs by playing a very long set each night, of approximately 2 hours, managing to fit in a lot of their well known songs. This left more than a few people in the UK hoping that this was a sign that the often all too short a set list of Wildhearts gigs was a thing of the past (after all, with such a large back catalogue of music to call upon, a paltry 1 hour set can hardly begin to do it justice). On April 9th the band released new single, The Sweetest Song, as a download only release. On April 23rd the band released their long awaited [[The Wildhearts (album)|self-titled album]]. Critical acclaim followed, with an array of glowing reviews including the Sun newspaper giving it 5 out of 5 ("probably the rock album of the year") and Rocksound magazine also giving it full marks (10 out of 10). An extensive UK tour followed from 23rd April to the 17th May, including a sold out show at London's KOKO's. At the last show of the tour (Thursday 17th May 2007 - The Charlotte - Leicester) Ginger said on stage that it would be the last time The Wildhearts would play intimate venues. The Charlotte, while having a lot of history as part of the alternative circuit, is a very small venue. Ginger continued to say goodbye to such places, indicating that he intends for the next bunch of Wildhearts shows to be on a much bigger scale.{{Verify source|date=October 2007}} The New Flesh was released as single on October 1, 2007 and became the first proper release from the band's eponymous album. The video for the song was shot in black and white and featured a number of children, including Ginger's own son Jake, dancing around to the track. The single didn't chart very well. The band released Destroy All Monsters as their next single. The video had a heavy theme of violence and horror. It contained certain amounts of S & M. On December 17th the band started a large venue tour of the UK, the first gig being that of Gingers birthday. The band played several Endless Nameless era songs, to great crowd reaction. The venues included a sold out show at London Astoria (which was given a 2 page 5K review in Kerrang! in January). In early 2008 The Wildhearts announced that they would be releasing "Stop Us If You've Heard This One Before, Vol. 1" on May 19th - an all-covers album. Artists to be covered include The Icicle Works, Fugazi, Helmet, Lee Harvey Oswald Band, The Distillers, Descendents and The Georgia Satellites. Said frontman Ginger: "We've tried to stay as true to their songs as possible, obviously some of these songs are over 15 years old and have to be sped up a bit, or sound a bit different because obviously I'm not a girl in the case of The Distillers for instance! But we haven't tried to do a reggae version of a punk song or anything, we're keeping it fairly faithful to the music that inspired us." Also, in a Teletext interview in February of 2008, Ginger has stated that the album will first be available as a twelve-song download and then be made available as a physical fifteen-track album later, in the summer of 2008. The band previewed tracks from this release on their myspace page www.myspace.com/thewildhearts. The Wildhearts announced their busiest festival season in over a decade including a long awaited return to Donington Park. The band were confirmed for the Download Festival by Live Nation on April 29th, which would be only the second time the band have played Donington (the first a second stage headline performance in 1994). Other festivals confirmed include a Headline performance at the Bulldog Bash on August 9th, Summerbreeze festival in Germany (August 14th), Metal Rock Fest in Norway (August 15th) & Hard Rock Hell II on December 6th. Ginger also announced during a solo tour in February that The Wildhearts would be doing a special one off show in London to celebrate the 15 year anniversary of the classic 'Earth vs' album, and to his word, The Wildhearts have annouced said show - it will be held on 20th September 2008 at The Sheperds Bush Empire in London. ==Members== Most recent members: *'''[[Ginger (singer)|Ginger]]''' - vocals and guitar (1990-present) *'''[[Scott Sorry]]''' - Bass and vocals (2006-present). *'''[[C.J (guitarist)|C.J]]''' - guitar and vocals (1990-1994, 2001-present) *'''[[Ritch Battersby]]''' - drums (1994-1998, 2005-present) Former members: *'''[[Danny McCormack]]''' - Bass and vocals (1991-2003, 2005-2006). *Stidi (Andrew Stidolph) - drums (1992-1993, 2001-2004) *"Random" [[Jon Poole]] - Bass (2003-2004) *Toshi - Bass (2001) *Simon Gonk - Drums (One gig 2001) *Jef Streatfield - guitar and vocals (1995-1998) *Mark Keds - guitar and vocals (1995) *[[Devin Townsend]] - guitar and vocals (1994). *Willie Dowling - keyboards and piano (1994) *Snake - vocals (1990) *Duncan F. Mullet - vocals (1990) *Bam - drums (1991) *Jools - Bass (1990-1991) *Pat Walters - Drums (1990-1991) ==Formations (since 1990)== {| class="toccolours" border=1 cellpadding=2 cellspacing=0 style="width: 500px; margin: 0 0 1em 1em; border-collapse: collapse; border: 1px solid #E2E2E2;" |- ! bgcolor="E7EBEE" | 1990 | * Duncan - Vocals * Ginger - Vocals and Guitar * CJ - Guitar * Jools - Bass * Pat - Drums |- ! bgcolor="E7EBEE" | 1990 | * Snake - Vocals * Ginger - Guitar * CJ - Guitar * Jools - Bass * Pat - Drums |- ! bgcolor="E7EBEE" | 1990 | * Ginger - Vocals and Guitar * CJ - Guitar * Jools - Bass * Pat - Drums |- ! bgcolor="E7EBEE" | 1990-1992 | * Ginger - Vocals and Guitar * CJ - Guitar * Danny - Bass * Bam - Drums |- ! bgcolor="E7EBEE" | 1992-1993 | * Ginger - Vocals and Guitar * CJ - Guitar * Danny - Bass * Stidi - Drums |- ! bgcolor="E7EBEE" | 1993-1994 | * Ginger - Vocals and Guitar * CJ - Guitar * Danny - Bass * Ritch - Drums * Willie - Keyboards |- ! bgcolor="E7EBEE" | 1994 | * Ginger - Vocals and Guitar * Devin - Guitar * Danny - Bass * Ritch - Drums * Willie - Keyboards |- ! bgcolor="E7EBEE" | 1995 | * Ginger - Vocals and Guitar * Mark Keds - Guitar * Danny - Bass * Ritch - Drums |- ! bgcolor="E7EBEE" | 1995-1998 | * Ginger - Vocals and Guitar * Jeff Streatfield - Guitar * Danny - Bass * Ritch - Drums |- ! bgcolor="E7EBEE" | 1998-2001 | * On Hiatus |- ! bgcolor="E7EBEE" | 2001-2003 | * Ginger - Vocals and Guitar * CJ - Guitar * Danny - Bass * Stidi - Drums * Toshi (Bass) and Gonk (Drums) for 1 gig only |- ! bgcolor="E7EBEE" | 2003-2004 | * Ginger - Vocals and Guitar * CJ - Guitar * Jon Poole - Bass * Stidi - Drums |- ! bgcolor="E7EBEE" | 2004-2005 | * Ginger - Vocals and Guitar * CJ - Guitar * Jon Poole - Bass * Ritch - Drums |- ! bgcolor="E7EBEE" | 2005-2006 | * Ginger - Vocals and Guitar * CJ - Guitar * Danny - Bass * Ritch - Drums |- ! bgcolor="E7EBEE" | 2006-present | * Ginger - Vocals and Guitar * CJ - Guitar * Scott Sorry - Bass * Ritch - Drums |- |} ==Discography== {{details|The Wildhearts Discography}} ==Related bands/side projects== The band members have all been in other bands and projects, *Prior to the Wildhearts, [[Ginger (singer)|Ginger]] was in the backing band for UK punk singer [[Beki Bondage]], UK band "[[The Quireboys]]" and the US band "[[The Throbs]]". *During his time in the Wildhearts, [[Ginger (singer)|Ginger]] formed the bands "Ginger And The Sonic Circus", "[[Silver Ginger 5]]" with [[Conny Bloom]], "[[Clam Abuse]]" with [[Alex Kane]] from [[AntiProduct]], and "[[Supershit 666]]" with [[Dregen]] ([[Backyard Babies]]) and [[Nicke Andersson|Nicke Royale]] ([[Hellacopters]]), as well as releasing material and touring as a [[solo artist]], often accompanied by Hot Steve, the Wildhearts' guitar tech, and "Random" [[Jon Poole]] (often billed a "Ginger and Friends"). *Danny McCormack formed [[The Yo-Yos]] and [[The Chasers]]. Confusingly an early (1998) form of the Yo-Yos was also known as The Chasers. The Yo-Yos were briefly resurrected in 2005. Prior to his Wildhearts days, he was a member of thrash-punk outfit [[Energetic Krusher]]. *Bam was the drummer for the [[Dogs D'Amour]] before joining the Wildhearts, and after leaving the Wildhearts (reputedly after having come to blows with Ginger) he returned to the Dogs. *CJ and Stidi were both members of [[The Jellys]] *CJ and Willie Dowling were members of [[Honeycrack]] in the late '90s. CJ was a member of the Tattooed Love Boys before joining the Wildhearts, he recently recorded the debut album for his solo project, [[C.J & The Satellites]]. *Willie Dowling was the founder member of [[The Grip]], and is now recording and touring with [[Jackdaw4]], previously known as The Celebrity Squares. He also founded the Sugar Plum Fairies, and released one album under this moniker. As well as these bands, he works frequently with [[Midge Ure]] from [[Ultravox]] and has written numerous TV themes and incidental music used in commercials and television programmes. *Jef Streatfield is a member of [http://www.plan-a.co.uk Plan A] and [http://www.sacktrick.com Sack Trick] *Ritch Battersby was in [[Grand Theft Audio]] (along side Danny McCormack's brother Chris of [[3 Colours Red]]), and briefly joined Ginger in [[Silver Ginger 5]], plus he joined Ginger, Random Jon Poole and Willie Dowling for Ginger's 40th Birthday Party (17/12/04). He also was in [[New Disease]] who released an E.P through [[Changes One]] in 2001. *"Random" [[Jon Poole]] was a former member of [[Cardiacs]] and is now in a band called [[God Damn Whores]], live line ups of the God Damn Whores have included members of Wildhearts, including Ginger on bass. In 2007 Random recorded a solo album (release date pending) of his own material, co-featuring vocalist Givvi Flynn (who also appears on Ginger's live acoustic album "Potatoes & You" performing "Unlucky In Love" from the Clam Abuse album "Stop Thinking" [co-written by Ginger & Alex Kane]). *[[Devin Townsend]] is a successful recording artist, being in two main projects currently, [[The Devin Townsend Band]], and [[Strapping Young Lad]]. *Pat and Jools became members of [[Guns n' Wankers]], and pre-Wildhearts they were both members of London glam-punk act [[Soho Roses]]. * Stidi was a member of Whatever and now plays with Finnish punk rockers 'No Direction'. *Ginger has performed as stand in lead singer/guitarist for [[Jason and the Scorchers|The Scorchers]] in place of [[Jason Ringenberg]] in mid-2007. No studio material is expected. ==Trivia== {{trivia|date=May 2007}} *The only Wildhearts song not to feature Ginger was an early version of "The Song Formerly Known As", featuring Ritch on lead vocals, which was recorded in Ginger's absence. The song was later re-recorded by the full band and released as a b-side to the "Anthem" single. *Random Jon Poole is also a member of the Cardiacs. *The Wildhearts also spent some time rehearsing with Devin Townsend at Arcadeia Rehearsal Studios, Birmingham, England. *The controversial video of "If Life Is Like A Lovebank, I Want An Overdraft" was of a highly suggestive sexual nature that contained nudity and concerned supposed sex phone line ads such as two twins cavorting next the tag line 'Keep It In The Family'. EastWest requested that it be re-edited as it was deemed too pornographic. The originals were ordered to be destroyed and two versions were released to the public - a censored 'adult' version and a 'children's' version (the latter removing the nudity and replacing the suggestive tag lines with things like 'pretty shoes' and 'I love lollypops'). *One of the thee guitar solos on [[My Baby Is A Headfuck]] is by [[Mick Ronson]], most famous for his guitar work with David Bowie's [[Spiders from Mars]] and with Ian Hunter in [[Mott The Hoople]]. This is widely believed to be Mick's last recording before he died. *The album ''Landmines and Pantomimes'' actually consists of several half-finished recordings from a session which ultimately led nowhere. Ginger claims that the album was released without the band's knowledge, though he was contacted prior to the record's release and invited to contribute sleeve notes, which he declined to do. Ginger has encouraged fans to copy the music (including on his '''Grievous Acoustic Behaviour''' live double album), rather than pay for an unofficial, poor quality release. The fact remains that this is an official release, licensed from EastWest records and the quality of the recordings is actually very far from poor. ===Cover versions=== *'''Pump It Up''' by [[Elvis Costello]]. This song was performed live many times in the ''[[Earth Vs The Wildhearts|Earth Vs]]'' era. Two recorded versions exist: The first recording is from BBC Radio 1 Session, and can be found on the [[Anarchic Airwaves]] compilation. This recording is a "pumped up" version of Costello original. The second recorded version of the song was first released to radio stations as an unlabeled CD, and DJs were left to guess the identity of the band. Since the style of the recording was heavily distorted, very much like the album ''[[Endless Nameless (Wildhearts)|Endless Nameless]]'' recorded at the same sessions, few guessed the true identity of the band, with one DJ believing it to be [[Ministry (band)|Ministry]] The song was available on a free CD with Melody Maker magazine in 1997, and on the Japanese version of ''Endless Nameless''. *The recorded version of the song '''My Baby Is A Headfuck''' on the '''Earth Vs''' album features an interlude with the guitar riff from the [[Beatles]]' "Day Tripper". When performing this song live the band often replace this interlude with a short excerpt from another cover versions, which have included... *The theme from the 1980s sit-com ''[[Cheers]]'' - "Where Everybody Knows Your Name" features as a b-side to the single "Top Of The World". This was played repeatedly by [[Chris Moyles]] on the [[BBC Radio 1]] Breakfast Show. *"White Lies" by [[Jason and The Scorchers]] - played live at most gigs in 1997 and a studio version appeared as a b-side to the "Anthem" single. *The Wildhearts played "1000 Miles From Me" by Danny McCormack's other band [[The Yo-Yos]] on their tour of Japan in 1998. Danny sang lead vocals. *"Time to Let You Go" originally by [[Enuff Z'Nuff]] appeared as a b-side to the "Anthem" single. *"Lost Highway" originally by [[Hank Williams]] appeared as a b-side to the "Anthem" single. *"So Good To Be Back Home" originally by [[The Tourists]] appeared as a b-side to the "Anthem" single. *"He's A Whore" originally by [[Cheap Trick]] appeared as a b-side to the "Urge" single - the Wildhearts version sounding more similar to that recorded by [[Big Black]] than to the original. *"Heroin" on ''Endless Nameless'' is a cover of the [[Dogs D'Amour]] track "Heroine" with slightly altered lyrics. *In 2001 the band recorded a version of [[Jimmie Rodgers (country singer)|Jimmie Rodgers]]' "Last Blue Yodel" with [[Jason Ringenberg]]. This has not yet been released. ===Rock n roll behaviour=== *Ginger once claimed that during a recording session he stole a [[tractor]] and drove it into an outside [[swimming pool]]. *Danny's audition to the band involved taking [[LSD]] for the first time and going to a [[Cardiacs]] gig. *The band vandalised the offices of ''[[Kerrang!]]'' magazine following a story which claimed Ginger had locked the rest of the band out of the studio. Eastwest ended up footing a £2000 bill. *Danny was once stranded on tour after selling his passport in order to buy heroin. He was also one of the reasons why the first reformation tours lost momentum, as he managed to fall asleep onstage under the influence of the drug. * On signing their new record deal to Mushroom Records the band made a ceremony of the event by doing it on the front doorstep of East West records. Reputedly Max Hole, then managing director of EastWest commented, when leaving the building, that he had no idea who the band were. * The original sleeve for the single of "Greetings From Shitsville" had to be scrapped as it was deemed too offensive. The picture consisted of the band's producer of the time Simon Efamy defecating into a piece of pitta bread which was being held by Ginger and Danny. On a similar vein, the band's 2000 era t-shirts with the slogan "Louder Than God, Better Than Fucking" was detained by the police. ==See also== *[[Bands from North East England|List of bands/musicians from North East England]] ==External links== *[http://www.thewildhearts.com The Wildhearts Official Site] *[http://launch.groups.yahoo.com/group/Wildhearts/ The Wildhearts Mailing List] *[http://www.myspace.com/thewildhearts Official Myspace Page] *[http://www.fivemileshigh.net/html/bands/wildhearts.htm FiveMilesHigh Rock n' Roll Resource Wildhearts Section] *[http://www.fivemileshigh.net/html/bands/ginger.htm FiveMilesHigh Rock n' Roll Resource Ginger Section] *[http://www.cosmic1.demon.co.uk/bands/wh/index.htm Longhair's Wildhearts Pages] *[http://www.sonicshake.net/ Sonicshake.net] *[http://www.fivemileshigh.net/html/articles/wildhearts-lyrics.htm Wildhearts Lyrics] *[http://plan-a.co.uk Plan A Official Site] *[http://www.gingerandthesoniccircus.net/ Ginger and the Sonic Circus Official Site] *[http://www.myspace.com/usigp USA fan page for Ginger] *[http://www.onemetal.com/music/grill/grill_cj_wildhart.asp OneMetal.com Interview with CJ Wildheart] ==Notes and references== <div class="references-small" style="-moz-column-count:2; column-count:2;"><references/></div> {{The Wildhearts}} [[Category:English musical groups|Wildhearts, The]] [[ja:ワイルドハーツ]] [[fi:The Wildhearts]]