The history of the Squeeze band dates back to Chris Difford's announcement in a music store about the recruitment of a new group. It interested the young guitarist Glenn Tilbrook.
A little later in 1974, Jules Holland (keyboardist) and Paul Gunn (drums player) were added to the line-up. The guys named themselves Squeeze after Velvet's album "Underground".
Gradually they gained notoriety in London playing in simple pubs. The guys used motifs from punk and glam trends in their music, they successfully combined art rock with classic pop music. In general, the melodies were soft, reminiscent of John Lennon and Paul McCartney.
Two years later, in 1976, Harry Caculli joined the band playing bass guitar, instead of Paul Gunn, Gilson Lavis (ex-manager of Chuck Berry) performed.
Unwind musicians Squeeze
The guys recorded a couple of songs for RCA Records. But the work itself did not bring the desired result and the songs were rejected, never released to the masses. Then Squeeze signed an agreement with the new label BTM, owned by Michaels Copland.
The record company went bankrupt in 1977. Copland arranged with Velvet member John Cale to help finish the album for the musicians. And in the same year, the debut track called "Packet of Three" from the Deptford Fun City Records studio was released. John Cale signs a deal for Squeeze with A&M Records, who previously worked with the Sex Pistols.
The musicians have a successful composition "Take Me I'm Yours". This was followed by the release of the debut album "Squezze". Cale changed the band's sound a bit, making it more interesting and different from pub music.
Squeeze's early successes
World fame came to the team along with the second disc "Cool for Cats", and the subsequent "6 Squeeze Songs Crammed Into One Ten-Inch Record". After that, Harry Caculli was fired from the squad, he was replaced by John Bentley.
In 1980, the guys released their next album, Argybargy. The work received good reviews; critics and listeners were pleased. Hits from it were "Another Nail In My Heart", as well as "Pulling Mussels". These tracks were played in US clubs and popular radio stations.
However, Holland's playing style stood out strongly from the overall sound. In 1980, he left the team, creating his own project "Millionaires". Squezze hired Paul Carrack instead.
The group got new producers - Elvis Costello and Roger Behirian, with the help of which the album "East Side Story" was released. It received excellent reviews, but did not have a sufficient commercial response. Carrack left the line-up in 1981 and was replaced by Don Snow.
The collapse and revival of the group
Now the musicians were constantly busy recording new compositions, touring and concerts. After a while, the guys began to run out of steam, which became noticeable in their work "Sweets From a Stranger". In America, he took 32 lines.
In 1982, Squeeze played in New York, but the guys themselves did not feel the buzz from the concert. And in the end, after a few months, the group breaks up. In this regard, the triumphant compilation "Singles - 45's and Under" is released, which in England took an incredible 3rd line of the chart, and went platinum in the States.
Despite the band's demise, Difford and Tilbrook continued to create collaborations. Their work appeared in the albums of Helen Shapiro, Paul Young, Jules Holland and Bill Bremner. The musicians also created the entire arrangement for the musical "Labeled With Love", which was staged in England in 1983.
The band returned to work together in 1984 with a new album, Difford & Tilbrook. The album showed the same style, but the guys grew their hair long and put on raincoats. The band reunited in 1985 with a new bass player Keith Wilkinson.
Rotation in the team
A year later, the disc "Cosi Fan Tutti Frutti" was released, which had a good success among critics and listeners. However, it didn't sell as well as it should. An additional keyboardist is added to the group - Andy Metcalfe, who previously played in The Egyptians.
With him, the guys recorded the incredibly popular single "Babylon and On". The track peaked at number 14 in the UK. The song "Hourglass" climbed to number 15 in the US. Squeeze begins its world tour, and after that Metcalfe decides to leave the band.
The record "Frank", released in 1989, was almost a failure in the UK and in the US. The group goes on tour in support of the disc, and during it the A&M studio ceases cooperation with the musicians.
After returning from touring, Holland leaves Squeeze and begins to pursue his own career, combining it with work on television. For many subsequent years, he successfully hosted a well-known musical program.
Group in the 90s
In 1990, an album with live recordings called "A Round and a Bout" was released on the basis of IRS Records, and a year later the musical group signed a contract with Reprise Records. With them, the team creates a new disc "Play", where Steve Neve, Matt Irving and Bruce Hornsby played as keyboardists.
Difford and Tilbrook in 1992 together gave concerts based on acoustic sound. This did not interfere with the activities of "Squeeze". Steve Neave firmly settled in the team, instead of Gilson Lewis played Pete Thomas.
A year later, the musicians resume their collaboration with A&M, where they record their next disc, Some Fantastic Place. He had sufficient success in his native UK, but in America he did not receive the desired attention.
Pete Thomas has been replaced by Andy Newmark and Keith Wilkinson is returning to play bass. With this line-up in 1995, the group creates a new record "Ridiculous".
A year later, two identical collections are released on different shores of the ocean: "Piccadilly Collection" in America and "Excess Moderation" in England.
In 1997, A&M released a collection of albums with rewritten 6 discs of the group in a new sound. Another compilation was going to be released in 1998, but due to the closure of the label everything was cancelled. In 1998, Squeeze recorded the album "Domino" together in the new studio Quixotic Records.
The guys finally decided to stop their joint creative activity in 1999, having gathered only in 2007 for a tour of America and the UK.
