Dance Exponents "Prayers be answered" 1983

The South Island town of Timaru gets rough press sometimes, especially in matters of culture. But consider this. Over the decades Timaru has delivered a series of iconic figures by whom we define ourselves: Pioneer aviator Richard Pearse; the mysterious, storied runner Jack Lovelock; and the poet who glimpsed what it might mean to be a New Zealander, Allen Curnow. And then there are The Exponents and their indefatigable songwriter, Jordan Luck, who have given New Zealanders the songs they love to sing...
...In truth, Luck was born in Canada and grew up a little further north on State Highway One, in the small town of Geraldine. But Timaru was where his first band, Basement, formed and played their gigs. When Basement broke up in in 1981, Luck and his guitarist, British-born Brian Jones, headed up the highway to Christchurch, taking with them their friend Steve Cowan.
An ad placed for a drummer led them to Nelson kid Mike "Harry" Harallambi and his Oamaru-born friend, bass player Dave Gent. Cowan switched from bass to keyboards and the new five-piece – the Dance Exponents – debuted just a week later at Christchurch's Hillsborough Tavern. In the early 1980s in Christchurch, the big pubs were often the only entertainment in town and the Dance Exponents' subsequent residency at the Aranui Tavern created a sensation. The new kids in town quickly became the talk of the town. The buzz made its way to former Split Enz member Mike Chunn, who had established a local branch of the Australian Mushroom Records label in Auckland. Chunn signed the band in 1982. Their first single, 'Victoria', blended a real-life story of an abusive relationship with a chorus any reveller could (and did) sing along to. It reached No.6 in the national charts – and became the only chart hit anywhere in the world to name check famous futurist Alvin Toffler...to be continued... - audioculture
trax:
01 All I Can Do 02 Know Your Own Heart 03 Shattered Ornaments 04 Victoria 05 Your Best Friend Loves Me Too 06 I'll Say Goodbye (Even Though I'm Blue) 07 Checking To See That Your Kiss Is The Same 08 Just Me And You 09 Envy The Grave 10 Swimming To The Table Of An Unknown Girl 11 Gone Forever In Another Car 12 Poland
…served by Gaius + zigzagwanderer…