entertainment
The Undertones BY ADAM KLUGER
Growing up in NYC meant attending a number of memorable concerts in the early 80’s when MTV was dominating the conversation and capturing our collective imagination. My favorite places to catch a band were MSG, the Ritz, the Peppermint Lounge, the Pier, CBGBs and the Beacon. For rabid music fans like myself, there were magazines like Trouser Press, Rolling Stone, Spin, Billboard and even the Village Voice would write about music and provide album reviews and monthly concert listings. My high school pals and I would go see Talking Heads and the Police, DEVO and Lou Reed, Adam & the Ants and the Go-Gos and the B-52’s and one hit wonders Marshall Crenshaw, Musical Youth (Pass the Dutchie) the Thompson Twins or even Missing Persons with their other-worldly lead singer Dale Bozio. MTV was more than a video jukebox back then, they reported on music news and became a voice of my generation. Generation X. MTV would provide the soundtrack to my high school years by introducing videos from The Buggles (Video Killed the Radio Star), Flock of Seagulls (I Ran), Men without Hats (The Safety Dance) Michael Jackson (Beat It!), Duran Duran (Rio), Blondie (Rapture) Madonna (Like a Virgin) and a whole world of wonderful, colorful bands. From across the pond there were The Specials (A Message to you Rudy) and a later iteration called the Fun Boy Three, The English Beat, The Clash (London Calling) Madness (One Step Beyond), Altered Images with Clare Grogan’s unforgettable voice (I Could Be Happy), Sinead O’Connor (Nothing Compares to U) and of course Feargal Sharkey and the Undertones (It’s Going to Happen). The Undertones sprung up from Derry in war-torn Northern Ireland to sing about, what else? teenage heartbreak and girls! When I saw that The Undertones would be playing a couple gigs in NYC in May, I contacted their manager Barry Stewart (great guy!) and arranged a quick pre-show interview. Mickey Bradley, the band’s bass player was as nice and unassuming as could be, as was the entire band as they walked in and out of the backstage dressing room to add their take on why The Undertones remain such a revered punk-pop band. AK: Why are the Undertones still so popular? MB: The music that we made in 1979 and 1980 still sounds current... It’s pure rock and roll. AK: What are some highlights of those early days? MB: We had been playing at a bar in Derry for about 18 months (The Casbah) and we had got good..we started off learning how to play the guitars all at the same time --we made the record in June...it was a brilliant summer...and then in September/October, DJ John Peel played Teenage Kicks twice and he kept on playing it... and then after that Sire Records, a New York record label, got in touch and before we knew it we were on Top of the Pops.” AK: What did lead singer Feargal Sharkey bring to the group? MB: Well, none of us could sing so he brought that. We needed a front man. He didn’t write any of the songs but he could sing and brought a lot of energy-- so he brought a lot. AK: What is the legacy of the band? MB: I think a band from Derry having national hits and a tour 40 | MetMagNY.com | 25AMagazine.com