Mike and the Mechanics
Template:Short descriptionTemplate:EngvarB Template:Use dmy dates Template:Infobox musical artist
Mike and the Mechanics (stylised as Mike + The Mechanics) are a British rock supergroup formed in Dover in 1985 by Mike Rutherford, initially as a side project during a hiatus period for his other group Genesis. The band are known for the hit singles "Silent Running", "All I Need Is a Miracle", "Taken In", "The Living Years", "Word of Mouth", and "Over My Shoulder".
Initially, the band included Rutherford (the only constant member), vocalists Paul Carrack and Paul Young, keyboardist Adrian Lee, and drummer Peter Van Hooke. After a decade together, Lee and Van Hooke dropped out in 1995 and were not replaced. Following Young's death in 2000, Carrack became the band's sole lead vocalist until 2004 when the band (essentially a duo at this point) dissolved, with Rutherford and Carrack both agreeing the band had "run its course".<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> In 2010, the band was revived with Rutherford headlining a completely new set of musicians, including vocalists Andrew Roachford and Tim Howar.
HistoryEdit
Formation and commercial breakthroughEdit
During hiatuses from Genesis, Mike Rutherford had been pursuing a solo career, releasing Smallcreep's Day in 1980 and Acting Very Strange in 1982. He found the process of recording a solo album excessively difficult, however, and the results artistically unsatisfying, particularly in regards to singing lead vocals on the latter album. He recalled, "I had a revelation, too, in this time period ... that I'm not complete on my own. ... I'm much more creative and inspired when there are other people around me and I'm bouncing ideas off."<ref name="Mike on Mike">Neer, Dan (1985). Mike on Mike [interview LP], Atlantic Recording Corporation.</ref> He still felt that working only with Genesis would leave him unfulfilled, however, and to satisfy both his desire to create music outside the format of Genesis and his desire to collaborate with other musicians, he set about forming his own band.<ref name="Mike on Mike"/>
Rutherford had already started a songwriting partnership with Scottish singer/writer/composer B. A. Robertson, and for the band's self-titled debut album he enlisted the services of producer Christopher Neil. Besides producing, Neil co-wrote most of the songs, selected the material for inclusion, and performed backing vocals. He would continue to play a key role in the band's albums for their first decade of existence.
Similarly to Steely Dan or The Alan Parsons Project, in the studio Mike and the Mechanics were not a tight-knit band but a vehicle for the songwriting of Rutherford, Robertson, and Neil, and session keyboardists, drummers, guitarists, and even lead vocalists often performed on the songs in place of the official band members. Indeed, the line-up of Mike and the Mechanics came together gradually over the course of recording their first album; Paul Young, who was recommended for the group by Neil and his manager, said that by the time he joined, all the backing tracks for the album had been recorded.<ref name="Mike on Mike"/>
Rutherford was more than satisfied with the resulting album and decided to continue the band indefinitely, rather than leaving it as a one-off project.<ref name="Mike on Mike"/> When the album was released in 1985, his decision was further bolstered by its immense commercial success. While Rutherford's solo albums had been moderately successful, he had never managed a Top 40 hit (except in Canada, where "Maxine" from Acting Very Strange reached No. 39); Mike + the Mechanics scored three of them, including two US Top 10s, "Silent Running (On Dangerous Ground)", "All I Need is a Miracle" and an additional No. 32 hit with "Taken In".<ref name="Billboard 200">Template:Cite magazine</ref> "Silent Running" was featured in the movie On Dangerous Ground, released in North American cinemas in 1986 as Choke Canyon.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
PeakEdit
The single "The Living Years" (US#1, UK#2), released in 1988, became the band's biggest hit, and featured on the band's second album Living Years. The song was written by Rutherford and Robertson after both of their fathers had recently died, but the lyrics were written solely by Robertson and centred on the unresolved dissension between Robertson and his father. The song was sung by Carrack, who also had an emotional attachment to the song, having lost his own father when he was 11 years old. The album also featured the song "Nobody's Perfect", sung by Young; it served as the background music to a television advertising campaign for Tennent's bitter.
At this point Carrack began to take a much larger role in the band, joining their stable of songwriters and adding keyboards. The group's third album, Word of Mouth, followed in 1991. It was less successful than its predecessors, particularly in the US, but scored another trio of charting singles in the UK, with the lead single becoming one of their most popular songs yet.
Their fourth album, Beggar on a Beach of Gold, appeared in 1995. It yielded a UK top 40 hit in the title track, and a number 12 hit in "Over My Shoulder". The latter, which was their first hit to be co-written by Carrack, became arguably their most aired song on British radio.
Their run of successes was capped with 1996's Hits, which compiled most of their hit singles with a new reworking of "All I Need is a Miracle" that reached number 27 in the UK, a higher placing than that of the original version. The album was certified platinum in the UK within two months of its release.<ref> {{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }} </ref>
DissolutionEdit
In 1995, the band began to fall apart: Adrian Lee and Peter Van Hooke left (before and after Beggar on a Beach of Gold, respectively), and Christopher Neil's long tenure as songwriter/producer for the group ended. Rutherford opted to continue Mike and the Mechanics as a singer/songwriter trio. The group's fifth studio album was released in 1999, Mike & The Mechanics. It is generally known as M6, the Hits album being their fifth release. As the band no longer had a distribution deal with an American record label, M6 was available to the American market as an import only. Its only hit, "Now That You've Gone", peaked at No. 35 in the UK.<ref name="UK Albums">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
Another blow struck the following year: On 15 July 2000, Paul Young died from a heart attack.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> The band regrouped in 2004 as Mike and the Mechanics featuring Paul Carrack. As implied by the new name, Carrack played a larger role than before, performing all the band's lead vocals and keyboards and co-writing all the songs. They released the album Rewired, which became their first album to lack a hit. Van Hooke briefly worked with the band again during this time, not as an official member but as a co-producer of Rewired. He also performed drums and percussion on the album and its tour.
Shortly after, Carrack became too involved with solo work to devote time to the group. In a 2007 interview Rutherford stated that Mike and the Mechanics had "run its course."
Second incarnationEdit
Over several months of 2009 and 2010, Rutherford formed a new band. Despite there being no hope of the original group ever reforming, he opted to again use the Mike and the Mechanics name. In a December 2009 interview, Rutherford stated that "I'm actually doing a new Mike and the Mechanics album. I kind of thought I had put it to bed, but I still enjoy songwriting. Working with a few new co-writers and a couple of new faces for the band. Paul Carrack is doing some solo stuff, so we have a guy called Andrew Roachford, an R&B kind of singer. It's a little different, but the soul seems to be there."<ref>Greene, Andy (15 December 2009). Genesis' Rutherford and Banks Reflect on Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Induction, Rolling Stone.</ref>
A new album, The Road, and the 'Hit the Road Tour 2011' were announced in November 2010. The album was released in April 2011. It featured both Roachford and Tim Howar on vocals, Luke Juby on keyboards, Gary Wallis on drums, and Anthony Drennan on guitar and bass. Though it became the first album not to feature B. A. Robertson as a co-writer, the album also marked the return of Christopher Neil as songwriter/producer. The tour included performances across the UK, Germany, and various other European cities.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
In April 2017, this incarnation of the band released another album, Let Me Fly. It continues to tour.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
In April 2019, Mike and the Mechanics released their ninth studio album Out of the Blue,<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> via BMG.
ReceptionEdit
In a 1996 article for Q magazine, critic Peter Kane said that while the band 'fly in the face of fashion', their music has a 'basic decency' and 'unquestionably speaks to more people than many of us are sometimes prepared to accept'. He stressed, 'Mike and the Mechanics: they're quite good, really.'<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref>
Awards and nominationsEdit
Grammy AwardsEdit
| Year Awarded | Nominee/work | Category | Result | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1987 | "All I Need Is a Miracle" | Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group With Vocals | Template:Nominated | <ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="Awards & shows">Template:Cite news</ref> |
| 1990 | "The Living Years" | Record of the Year (shared with Christopher Neil) | Template:Nominated | <ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="latimes">Template:Cite news</ref> |
| Song of the Year (for B. A. Robertson & Mike Rutherford) | Template:Nominated | |||
| Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group With Vocals | Template:Nominated | |||
| Best Music Video, Short Form | Template:Nominated |
Ivor Novello AwardsEdit
| Year Awarded | Nominee/work | Category | Result | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990 | "The Living Years" | Best Song Musically and Lyrically (for B. A. Robertson & Mike Rutherford) | Template:Won | <ref name="theivors.com">Template:Cite news</ref> |
MembersEdit
Template:Col-begin Template:Col-2
- Current members
- Mike Rutherford – rhythm & lead guitar, bass, backing vocals Template:Small
- Gary Wallis – drums Template:Small
- Andrew Roachford – lead and backing vocals, keyboards Template:Small
- Tim Howar – lead and backing vocals, percussion Template:Small
- Anthony Drennan – lead & rhythm guitar, bass, backing vocals<ref>Template:Cite AV media notes</ref>
- Luke Juby – keyboards, bass, saxophone, backing vocals, whistler Template:Small
- Past members
- Paul Carrack – lead and backing vocals, keyboards, guitars, bass, drums Template:Small
- Paul Young – lead and backing vocals, percussion, guitars, bass Template:Small
- Peter Van Hooke – drums Template:Small
- Adrian Lee – keyboards, backing vocals Template:Small
- Touring musicians
- Ashley Mulford – guitars, bass, backing vocals Template:Small
- Tim Renwick – guitars, bass, backing vocals Template:Small
- Jamie Moses – guitars, bass, backing vocals Template:Small
- Rupert Cobb – keyboards Template:Small
- Owen Paul McGee – backing vocals Template:Small
- Abbie Osmon – backing vocals Template:Small
- Ben Stone – drums Template:Small
- Phillipp Groysboeck – drums Template:Small
- Steve Barney – drums Template:Small
- Nic Collins – drums Template:Small<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation
|CitationClass=web }}</ref>Template:Col-end
TimelineEdit
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width:5 textcolor:black align:left anchor:from shift:(10,-4) bar:Ashley from: 01/01/1986 till: 30/12/1986 color:touring bar:TimR from: 01/01/1988 till: 30/12/1996 color:touring bar:Jamie from: 01/01/1999 till: 01/10/2004 color:touring bar:Mike from: 01/01/1994 till: 01/03/1995 color:keyboards bar:PaulC from: 01/01/1998 till: 01/10/2004 color:bass
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</timeline>
DiscographyEdit
{{#invoke:Labelled list hatnote|labelledList|Main article|Main articles|Main page|Main pages}}
- Mike + The Mechanics (1985)
- Living Years (1988)
- Word of Mouth (1991)
- Beggar on a Beach of Gold (1995)
- Mike & The Mechanics (1999; known as M6)
- Rewired (2004)
- The Road (2011)
- Let Me Fly (2017)
- Out of the Blue (2019)