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| Prior to joining the Go-Betweens, bassist Robert Vickers cut an album with The Colors produced by Clem Burke! Photo: Vinny Zuflante |
Robert Vickers recalls his time with The Colors...
"In early 1979 I arrived in New York City on my way to Europe from my home in Brisbane, Australia and accidently got myself into a band with a couple of guys I met the first time I went to CBGBs. I decided to stay. Rent was cheap; CBs and Max’s Kansas City were within walking distance and they had the best new bands playing every night. We played a kind of punk pop heavily influenced by ‘60s and ‘70s pop bands. In about a year we were being managed by the owner of CBGBs, Hilly Kristal and the drummer from Blondie, Clem Burke offered to produce us. A local indie label which was a rare thing in those times put up the money and we went into Electric Lady Studios and recorded an EP with Clem also playing drums. It came out on colored vinyl in a faux Japanese import cover. We were happening.
"Even though we weren’t on a major label or touring the world it still seemed like with were going somewhere fast. The New York music scene then was a world unto itself. Headlining a weekend at CBGBs, the coolest club in the coolest city in this, or any world felt like a pinnacle. Especially for someone like me who had been watching this historic explosion of creativity from afar in the pages of magazines and on the backs of record sleeves. The first wave of CBs bands had now moved on to bigger things and it seemed likely we would too.
"The major labels passed on us but undeterred we recorded an album with Clem again producing and this track, “Popstar” is one of my songs from it. We kept playing till the end of 1982 but the fire had gone out and by the time the album was released the band was over. I went to London to join some friends from Australia, The Go-Betweens and took some invaluable lessons on life and music with me." – Robert Vickers
Listen to "Popstar" by The Colors along with the rippin' "Rave It Up" below.
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