I'm not exactly sure where I first heard of the UK band Birdland but I am pretty sure it was in an import copy of New Music Express or Melody Maker I would find and read at Newscenter, the local magazine shop near my home.
The band was said to be old-style 70's pre-punk rock and roll, being compared to legendary bands like The Stooges, Saints, Heartbreakers, and other bands. All these groups were really only familiar with the names because circa 1989 their stuff was not so easily found in the Washington DC/Baltimore, MD suburb where I lived.
The stories of the Birdland's vicious live shows, often ending with fights and broken instruments, really made me want to check out this band but the only stuff available at this time was a few singles barely found in the States. Even if they were available through Melody Maker or New Music Express, the import prices and shipping were way too high for me to afford.
So for now I only read all about the band.
Birdland was founded by two brothers named Robert and Lee Vincent, who had previously played
together in a band called Zodiac Motel. Both were now sporting big peroxide blonde almost bowl-cut hair, similar to famed Los Angeles DJ Rodney Bingenheimer or artist Andy Warhol drummer Neil Hughes followed suit. Bassist Simon Rogers was naturally blonde already.
After being a fan for about two years without ever actually hearing the band, their debut self-titled album was finally getting a US release.
Then four days after my 18th birthday the video for Birdland's "Shoot Me Down" was on MTV's 120 Minutes and I was finally able to hear what they sounded like. A few weeks later their self-titled album was released in the US on Radioactive Records,
The album did not disappoint.
The album kicks off with "Shoot Me Down", the first song I heard on 120 Minutes. It was filled with melody and strong hooks but also rage-filled and nihilistic. A great starter for a debut album.
"Sleep with Me", which I read was their first single in the UK follows at Track 2. The song is slower but still contains a strong hook. "Wake Up Dreaming" (Track 4) gets a similar treatment.
"Don't Look Back" (Track 3) is another driving song with lead guitars sounding a bit like Echo and the Bunnymen, with singer Robert Vincent's vocals recalling that band's Ian McCulloch.
Like so much rock n' roll, every song is about girls, That is except a cover of a very "controversial" Patti Smith song.( I'm not going to post its name but it's on her album Easter if you want to look it up). I always thought covering this song was a pretty bold move for such a new band. Even bolder when I read it had been released as a single in the UK.
Next is "Everybody Needs Somebody" (Track 6) which was their first #1 single on the UK Indie Charts.
Following are three more fast hook-filled catchy songs. My favorite is "She Belongs to Me", with its ringing guitars, and of course more hooks.
A slower song "Exit" at Track 10, closes out the album. The song incorporates all that made the previous 9 songs on the album so great. Ringing guitars, strong hooks, and of course more heartbreak-filled lyrics. The song is the perfect ending to the album. I have always loved songs that not only end the album but let us know by the title and lyrics. (Other examples would be "The Last" on The Replacements All Shook Down or "Terminal" on Naked Raygun's Raygun...Naked Raygun albums).
But it wasn't just the music that was great. The artwork and packaging greatly added even more.
The insert of the CD folded out to a two-sided poster. One side had a blown-up picture of the album cover with Japanese writing on it advertising an upcoming gig, while the other had a picture of guitarist Lee Vincent. The poster would be up on my wall for a couple years, every few months or so switching it over to the other side.
Then they were gone.
Over the next few years, I would look through new import issues of NME, and Melody Maker, as well as domestic ones like Rolling Stone or Spin, looking through new album release dates to hoping to see Birdland had new material out soon. They never did. It was almost as if the band was wiped off the face of the earth or possibly hadn't existed at all
I would have thought so but every once in a while their album would show up in a cutout bin. On a couple occasions, I would see someone wearing one of their shirts around town. Even a couple years on the Upper East Side of Manhattan I almost offered the guy wearing one some cash for his shirt.
Although many CDs came in and out of my collection, Birdland's album always made the cut to stay in. Since it has never been on any streaming platform (although there are versions people uploaded on YouTube) every so often I would pull it out and listen. Many of their songs would end up on mix tapes I made for people throughout the years.
Then one day while again listening to the album, I decided to look up the band online and maybe finally find out what happened to this once so hyped group.
There really wasn't too much about Birdland available online. A Wikipedia entry and a few fans writing blurbs in their blog were mostly all I could find.
But I also did manage to find an interview with the band where they talked about what happened.
Another factor was poor management and not much support by the record label. Although Radioactive Records did get distribution from RCA Records, it was still a very small label with just a couple bands including Goodbye Mr Mackenzie (with future Garbage singer Shirley Manson), Black Grape (featuring ex-Happy Monday Shaun Ryder), and The Ramones, which at that point only had one or two albums left in them.
(They also had the band Live, which I think the label put too much focus on)
So the mystery of what happened to the once heat-seeking destructive rock and roll band Birdland as finally been solved.
There is a semi-light at the end of the tunnel. A couple years back Birdland did reunite to do a couple shows. Unfortunately, none of them were in the US. But it does show they are still willing to play. I think one of them even now plays in a NYC based band. There is hope some possible future shows will be over on this side of the ocean.
