Bobbyisms: The Tea Party celebrates 20 years of Twilight
I write about random things a lot.
I write a lot about random things.
This might seem like a story about
a band, but it is really more about an
iconic album that turned 20 years
old and the concert experience that
is headed our way.
The Tea Party was formed in Windsor in 1990, which included Jeff Martin, Stuart Chatwood and Jeff Burrows as multi-instrumentalists and virtuosos. The trio cut its own path in rock and roll by reinterpreting the classic rock and blues that was on American radio. The band coloured its music with new sounds and instruments from around the world.
This month, the band kicks off a cross-country tour in support of the album. The band performs the album in its entirety and features a stop at the London Music Hall on September 8.
This story begins early on New Years Day 1995; having just played a holiday gig, the band convened in Martin’s Montreal apartment to shoot the band photos and plan the release of its third full-length album, The Edges Of Twilight.
The Edges Of Twilight cemented its place in the annals of Canadian rock music the moment it was released.
Martin, Chatwood and Burrows found inspiration in their travels and a growing collection of exotic instruments and applied an incredible work ethic to the record. In doing so, they created their most popular and lasting opus.
The record, which was originally released in March 1995, hit double platinum and earned two Juno Award nominations.
It begins now the same as then, the first single “Fire In The Head” crackling to life as little more than a guitar and a luring rumble before exploding with razor-sharp overdrive and a heaving rhythm section. It does well to prelude the record, a monster program of successive hits that include singles “The Bazaar”, “Sister Awake”, “Correspondences” and the smoky “Drawing Down the Moon”, the last two are immutable classics.
Now 20 years later, the band has prepared a reissue of the landmark album that will be released on September 4.
To commemorate the album and its impact, the band has lovingly re-mastered the music and revisited the artwork for a special two-disc collection. A new audio comprises the second disc, featuring acoustic and demo versions of the album tracks, some recorded in rehearsals and some as a broadcast on the radio from around the world.
There are interviews, unseen photos and liner notes written by David MacMillan, a former marketing manager at EMI Music Canada in the ‘90s and a long-time friend of the band.
“I basically lived and breathed The Tea Party back then,” MacMillan said.
Some of his most vivid memories are of watching the band perform in London, even before the debut album was released in 1993.
“When EMI first signed them, I was always going to Call The Office to see them play … you couldn’t move, it was just insane.”
Because it was recorded and mastered in L.A., The Edges Of Twilight was the one album the band produced that MacMillan was not on hand to experience in the studio.
It was noted that the band kept the new material close, having only performed the song “Walk With Me” live before the album sessions began, including once at the 1994 MuchMusic Video Awards.
MacMillan worked with some of the biggest Canadian artists of the time, helping to shape careers and broadcast the best of Canadian talent throughout the country and beyond.
According to MacMillan, there was always something special about this trio from Windsor and The Edges Of Twilight was a landmark record.
“By the time most albums came out, I’d have stopped listening to them,” MacMillan said.
Though this was not the case with The Tea Party, specifically not with The Edges Of Twilight. “It is a stunning piece of work, I think they outdid themselves.”
For more on The Tea Party and the band’s anniversary tour, visit teaparty.com or follow along on Twitter @theteapartyband. Tickets for the show at London Music Hall are $29.50, available at ticketfly.com. Can’t make it on September 8? The band will also perform at Hamilton Place and at Massey Hall in Toronto on September 16 and 26 respectively.
And for more on the latest music news, album streams and concerts coming to London, follow @fsu_bobbyisms on Twitter. Welcome to a new year at Fanshawe. Stay tuned to fsu.ca for great events on and around campus, it will help to make your entertainment funds go a little further this semester. I’m out of words.
The Tea Party was formed in Windsor in 1990, which included Jeff Martin, Stuart Chatwood and Jeff Burrows as multi-instrumentalists and virtuosos. The trio cut its own path in rock and roll by reinterpreting the classic rock and blues that was on American radio. The band coloured its music with new sounds and instruments from around the world.
This month, the band kicks off a cross-country tour in support of the album. The band performs the album in its entirety and features a stop at the London Music Hall on September 8.
This story begins early on New Years Day 1995; having just played a holiday gig, the band convened in Martin’s Montreal apartment to shoot the band photos and plan the release of its third full-length album, The Edges Of Twilight.
The Edges Of Twilight cemented its place in the annals of Canadian rock music the moment it was released.
Martin, Chatwood and Burrows found inspiration in their travels and a growing collection of exotic instruments and applied an incredible work ethic to the record. In doing so, they created their most popular and lasting opus.
The record, which was originally released in March 1995, hit double platinum and earned two Juno Award nominations.
It begins now the same as then, the first single “Fire In The Head” crackling to life as little more than a guitar and a luring rumble before exploding with razor-sharp overdrive and a heaving rhythm section. It does well to prelude the record, a monster program of successive hits that include singles “The Bazaar”, “Sister Awake”, “Correspondences” and the smoky “Drawing Down the Moon”, the last two are immutable classics.
Now 20 years later, the band has prepared a reissue of the landmark album that will be released on September 4.
To commemorate the album and its impact, the band has lovingly re-mastered the music and revisited the artwork for a special two-disc collection. A new audio comprises the second disc, featuring acoustic and demo versions of the album tracks, some recorded in rehearsals and some as a broadcast on the radio from around the world.
There are interviews, unseen photos and liner notes written by David MacMillan, a former marketing manager at EMI Music Canada in the ‘90s and a long-time friend of the band.
“I basically lived and breathed The Tea Party back then,” MacMillan said.
Some of his most vivid memories are of watching the band perform in London, even before the debut album was released in 1993.
“When EMI first signed them, I was always going to Call The Office to see them play … you couldn’t move, it was just insane.”
Because it was recorded and mastered in L.A., The Edges Of Twilight was the one album the band produced that MacMillan was not on hand to experience in the studio.
It was noted that the band kept the new material close, having only performed the song “Walk With Me” live before the album sessions began, including once at the 1994 MuchMusic Video Awards.
MacMillan worked with some of the biggest Canadian artists of the time, helping to shape careers and broadcast the best of Canadian talent throughout the country and beyond.
According to MacMillan, there was always something special about this trio from Windsor and The Edges Of Twilight was a landmark record.
“By the time most albums came out, I’d have stopped listening to them,” MacMillan said.
Though this was not the case with The Tea Party, specifically not with The Edges Of Twilight. “It is a stunning piece of work, I think they outdid themselves.”
For more on The Tea Party and the band’s anniversary tour, visit teaparty.com or follow along on Twitter @theteapartyband. Tickets for the show at London Music Hall are $29.50, available at ticketfly.com. Can’t make it on September 8? The band will also perform at Hamilton Place and at Massey Hall in Toronto on September 16 and 26 respectively.
And for more on the latest music news, album streams and concerts coming to London, follow @fsu_bobbyisms on Twitter. Welcome to a new year at Fanshawe. Stay tuned to fsu.ca for great events on and around campus, it will help to make your entertainment funds go a little further this semester. I’m out of words.
