Chart entered : 16 March 1991
Chart peak : 12
The first of the Undertones' diaspora to disappear from the chart was their singer.
The Undertones's decline had been surprisingly swift . The public seemed willing to accept more thoughtful songs such as It's Going To Happen" which reached number 18 in May 1981 but the follow-up "Julie Ocean" was just too diffuse and failed to make the Top 40 despite the band performing it on Top of the Pops ( their last appearance ). Thereafter , their fall from grace was emphatic. The standalone single "Beautiful Friend" didn't make it out of the Bubbling Under section at the beginning of 1982 and their fourth album "The Sin of Pride" the following year could only make number 43 as all three of its singles flopped. The band tried to revive it by touring but to the general relief of all Feargal announced he was quitting and the band was put to bed in the summer of 1983. A compilation LP "All Wrapped Up" released a few months later emphasised the lack of interest in the band by peaking at 67 although it wasn't helped by a hideous sleeve. "Teenage Kicks " was re-released and reached number 60.
Although he only qualifies for this blog by including the Undertones' hits , Feargal still had a more successful solo career than I was expecting. He has just one writing credit in the Undertones catalogue, his voice wasn't to everyone's taste and he was coming out of a band that had mislaid its audience. However , he hit big later in the year as the first ( and, as it turned out, only ) guest singer for Vince Clarke's Assembly project on the number 4 hit "Never Never". He then teamed up with Madness whose Carl Smyth wrote his first solo single "Listen To Your Father " a number 23 hit in the autumn of 1984 released on Madness's label Zarjazz. Zarjazz was financed by Virgin and Feargal decided to cut out the middle men and sign for Virgin directly. The following year he was at number one with a synth-pop cover of Maria McKee's song "A Good Heart" and his debut LP reached number 12. Feargal took too long over the follow-up "Wish" which failed to chart after its lead single "More Love" had turned tail at number 44 in 1988.
"I've Got News For You" was the lead single from his next album "Songs from the Mardi Gras" . It seems like Feargal's got a touch of the blues as it sounds like Fleetwood Mac's Need Your Love So Bad over the guitar riff from Unchained Melody . The song was co-written with Dennis Morgan and is a lament for a girl in the arms of another. Feargal's vocals never lack passion but the effect is somewhat neutered by a cheesy sax solo.
It helped the album reach number 27 . It's an eclectic set from the Latin-tinged title track to Erasure-styled synth pop on "Sister Rosa "There were two more singles , a stab at blue-eyed soul with "Women & I" and another, more faithful, Maria McKee cover "To Miss Someone" but lightning didn't strike twice.
The failure of the two follow-up singles seems to have convinced Feargal that his future as a recording artist wasn't bright enough to justify the effort . In 1992 he took a job as an A & R man at Polydor then became managing director at EXP. In 1998 he began a five year stint as a member of the Radio Authority.
To no one's surprise, he turned down the invitation to rejoin the revived Undertones in 1999.
In 2004 he joined the government's task force the Live Music Forum. He criticised the police's requirements for live music events. In 2008 he became chair of UK Music until he resigned in 2011. He has been repeatedly recognised as a major player in the music industry although he's currently on an extended sabbatical with his family .
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