Scritti Politti

The band formed in the late seventies as a punk band but over a period of time turned into a synth pop band which transformed them into a commercial success.

The band started with Green Gartside, Nial Jinks, Tom Morley and Matthew Kay but as a covers band in the north of England was not getting much success so they decided to try there luck in London.

Gartside then recorded a demo of one of his new musings 'the sweetest girl' in 1981 and the song was included on the legendary C81 NME cassette and the success of this demo tape which was produced by Rough Trade Records saw many labels beat there door but they decided to opt for Rough Trade.

The single was released but only reached 64, 5 years later Madness would cover the song and they fared better peaking at 35 in the UK charts.

Success was a long time waiting but in 1985 the follow up album 'Cupid & pysche 85' was a huge success. The album went on to produce 3 hit singles with 'Wood Beez(pray like aretha franklin)', 'Absolute' and 'The Word Girl' all hitting the top 20 in the UK charts. A follow up album in 1988 called 'Provision' again hit the top 10 and 1 single 'Oh Patti' managed to dent the top 20.

The band went through several changes in terms of style of music and personnel. Initially involved on the punk scene, the band had toured with Gang of Four and Joy Division but Green suffered anxiety attacks and he retreated to his Welsh roots to reassess and managed to write some of his best material whilst resting.

Green also found time to work with others in 1980s as well as working with the band. They worked and produced for Chaka Khan and also produced work for Madonna's film soundtrack 'Who's that Girl'.

The 1980s saw the band and Green release 11 singles with 2 top 10 UK singles, 1984 saw 'wood Beez' peak at 10 and in 1985 'The Word Girl' there most successul reaching number 6. They released 3 studio albums with 'Songs to Remember' reaching 12, 'Cupid & Psyche 85' hitting 5 and 'Provision' peaking at 8. They made a great contribution to music with various styles of synth, funk and reggae. An unusual mix but somehow it worked well with his soulful voice.
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