any Visage/ Steve Strange fans out there?

Chris

'Course there are.

Much good work done...also by band members after the band broke up (Midge Ure I'm thinkin'). Does anyone know what Mister Strange does now?

Much of the Visage work was hugely popular in the Toronto late night clubs back in the day. Boy that makes me sound old.

I always liked "In the Year 2525" myself but everyone else always seemed to pan it. Did you enjoy or find it over the top?

I was fascinated because the original was my father's favourite song. When I found it on their album I almost couldn't believe it. Yeah, I like it. My favourite Visage songs are now:

Fade to grey
The Damne'd don't cry
Love Glove and Mind of a Toy

I absolutely love fade to grey!!!!! Midge Ure was involved in Live Aid if I remember correctly and I loved 'If I was' and 'Breathe'.

Steve Strange is working on his autobiography and he's been on TV a lot here. Although I managed to miss every single programme he was on. There's a Visage compilation which was released last year. Haven't heard it though. He was also said to have taken a new band from Wales under his wings. Don't know what happened to them though.


Glad to hear they were so popular in Toronto of all places as that's one of my favourite places in the whole wide world.

And I'm also mighty glad to have found a fellow Visage fan. <img src="wink.gif" border="0">

Chrissie

He was also arrested for stealing makeup from a store last year. But he's still talented. <img src="cool.gif" border="0">

and don't forget the Teletubbies doll.

But yeah, I absolutely agree, he is really talented and I absolutely admire him. And he's a nice person as well.

Long live the 80s!!!!!!!!!!

Chris

I always figured that Pleasure Boys was the first "situation" song. You know, before Yazoo.

Speaking of Blitz groups, Japan were always popular here. Not much chart action like they had in Europe but important none the less.

Anyone else still own any Japan records? Sorry, I mean CDs.

Bogie

What do you mean by 'sitaution' song, Bogie?

Sorry, don't own any Japan albums/records/CDs. I used to tape their songs off the radio.

Any Canadian bands that emulated Visage/Japan? I'd be really interested in that.


Chris

I just meant using the word in the chorus.

Yazoo had a huge hit with "Situation". It gained pretty good cross-market appeal in Canada and people in school would be running around saying "Hey have you heard that 'situation' song". But at first we thought they were talking about "Pleasure Boys". It was a time and place more than anything I suppose.

Canadian bands? I've seen people mention Images in Vogue on this site. They were considered a bit in the vein of the Blitz bands I guess. A bit more imitative than creative though I think - that's not a criticism. There were not really a lot of home grown competitors for the powerhouse of british music that dominated Canada in the early/mid eighties. Blue Peter would be one of the better ones. I picked up a pretty good greatest hits collection of theirs recently. Don't even know if you could find it outside Canada. Even still, they only had two or three songs that really counted.

Some other good bands in other genres though. Not my cup of tea but Neil Young, Rush, Bryan Adams all had some success in the 80s.

didn't Neil Young do 'Heart of Gold'? I loved that song.

I wish I could have dropped in for a visit to Canada in the early to mideighties where I explored the night spots as well instead of just being a tourist. But then I was 13, not much luck in getting into clubs at that age. <img src="frown.gif" border="0">

Chris

Yeah, I must say it was quite a bit of fun at the time. Because we got most fashions and music after they'd broken somewhere else, there was the strangest mix. We did not have Bat Cave, Blitz, New Romantic clubs. We just had a bunch of spots that would play everything. Didn't have to choose one thing or frown on another.

Heart of Gold was one of Neil's. Lots of others too. I know Oasis recently covered Hey Hey, My My. Pearl Jam often does a Neil song at their shows too.

If you were 13 in the early/mid 80s then you might not be familiar with Neil's work from the 60s. Crosby Stills Nash and Young ring a bell? Not my kind of thing but can't deny they were important.

Hi djnage,

I am a Visage fan too. Love it all!! Did you know that the video for 'Fade To Grey' cost 600 pounds? Apparently a lot of money in 1981. Steve Strange used to own a club called 'Blitz' did he not?
I like all that English music from the early '80's. A Flock Of Seagulls ; Gary Numan ; Depeche Mode; Yazoo; OMD... all very cool!

Hi NewRomantic,

I'm glad there's more Steve Strange/Visage fans out there. I didn't know it cost £600 to make th video. But it was money well spent, very well spent.

he didn't own the Blitz, he just put on nights there. He was co-owner of the Camden Palace I think. At least he was the big frontman behind it.

he gets mentioned a bit in Martin Kemp's autobiogrpahy (the bits are dead funny) and Boy George also had a bit to say about him.

Anybody know Boy George's song 'Mr Strange'? It was for Steve, a sort of apology. it's actually pretty good.

Chris

Bogie, a slight misconception. I meant I was 13 when I first went to Canada. I was born in 1972.

But I do like the idea of clubs playing different sorts of music. Althoug I would give anything to have been at the Blitz and Billy's in London.

Chris

Bogie, a slight misconception. I meant I was 13 when I first went to Canada. I was born in 1972.

But I do like the idea of clubs playing different sorts of music. Althoug I would give anything to have been at the Blitz and Billy's in London.

Chris

Hi NewRomantic,

I'm glad there's more Steve Strange/Visage fans out there. I didn't know it cost £600 to make th video. But it was money well spent, very well spent.

he didn't own the Blitz, he just put on nights there. He was co-owner of the Camden Palace I think. At least he was the big frontman behind it.

he gets mentioned a bit in Martin Kemp's autobiogrpahy (the bits are dead funny) and Boy George also had a bit to say about him.

Anybody know Boy George's song 'Mr Strange'? It was for Steve, a sort of apology. it's actually pretty good.

Chris

You're right Chris. It's nice to have variety and all but you tend to miss the hub of excitement that comes with the focus of places like the Blitz Club or the Bat Cave or even CBGBs right? It's nice to see Talking Heads or the Ramones when they come through your town, but it's not the same as being part of the genesis.

600 quid for a video is astonishing.

My DVD player nearly cost that much. There I go exaggerating again ---- that would be nearly 600 dollars not pounds.

Excited to be turning 30 soon? I'm only five years ahead of you myself. Once you hit 30 you are not old at all but you can never again think of yourself as young.

well, I used to be the youngest and now I'm always the oldest which really bums me out. I keep telling myself that now people at least take you seriously (which is a debatable point).

It's a bit scary turning 30, what with all the responsibility implied.

But I really wish i could be 21 for the rest of my life. Well, a few years anyway, like say the next 10-20. <img src="smile.gif" border="0">

Don't sweat it. Everyone will now look up to you for advice and support.

That means you can really mess up some people's lives by giving them bad advice. Oops, I guess that's part of what you mean by the "responsibility" thing. Don't worry. You will fit right in with the rest of us.

I'm sure you can see this one coming a mile away, but remember you've got lots o' time before worrying about fading to grey.

Bogie, loved your reply.

I meant having to take respinsibility instead of just relying on others. Actually that's what you said as well.

We just celebrated a friend's 34th birthday on Sunday so that gave me hope. Actually, my friends know I'm a hopelessly unreliable romantic idealist.

I like what you said about people taking me seriously now. Strangely enough that's what I've been telling myself.

fade to life

'Fade To Grey' was one of the first singles I ever bought, albeit second hand in 1983....

I've always loved Visage, I discovered them when I was getting into Ultravox, and to my delight found that they were basically the same. Ultravoxees Midge Ure and the vastly underrated Billy Currie were the prime movers behind Visage.

Steve Strange has increasingly been on 80's retro shows recently, and I last saw him on the music quiz show 'Never Mind The Buzzcocks'. It was terrible to see what the drugs had done to him, he was a little shot to say the least, but his character remained the same.

If I had to do an all time top 10 80's singles, then 'Fade To Grey' would be very near the top.

And I notice that after being left of most of the 80's greatest hits albums during the early 90's, it now features on just about every 80's greatest hits album I pick up these days. Funny that.

Visage/Steve Strange is great. One of the founders of the whole new wave movement. I love the song, "We Move". So good. There's a site I found that has some good info on him & visage.
http://www.lexiconmagazine.com/NWC/Welcome.html

This is kind of spooky. I just finished reading this thread when "Fade To Grey" came on my cable Music Choice.