The Undertones

selected Undertones TShirTS, PosTerS & Prints

'I never eat my dinner,

I push away the plate, 

You can see I'm getting thinner, 

because I just can't wait...............

Mars Bars - The Undertones

The Undertones are a Northern Irish rock band formed in Derry, Northern Ireland in 1975.

Singer Feargal Sharkey's quavering delivery was distinctive, and made The Undertones instantly recognisable. By 1977 The Undertones were performing their own three-chord pop punk material influenced by Nuggets-type material and the Ramones. In 1978 The Undertones released their debut four-song EP Teenage Kicks on the Good Vibrations label and it became a hit with support from BBC DJ John Peel, who considered that EP's title song his all-time favourite. The original release came housed in a flimsy paper poster style sleeve; in white, mustard yellow, pink or green. The first pressing had the song titles printed upside down when the poster is opened, later copies correct this but omit 'Undertones' from the poster. Some labels credit The Undertones and some just Undertones. Allegedly 7000 copies were pressed. The song has been covered by many acts, including die pretty, boy band Busted (at the 2003 BRIT Awards) and French band Nouvelle Vague.

The Undertones released four studio albums: The Undertones (1979), Hypnotised (1980), Positive Touch (1981) and The Sin Of Pride (1983). Falling sales linked to The Undertones changing musical direction and tensions within The Undertones led to their split in 1983. The Undertones compilation album All Wrapped Up features on the cover a woman wrapped in bacon and clear plastic. Another Undertones compilation is the BBC sessions CD Listening In (named after a song on their first album). The Undertones reformed in 1999 to play concerts in Derry, replacing singer Feargal Sharkey with Paul McLoone. The Undertones released an album of original material with McLoone in 2003 titled Get What You Need. The Undertones were the subject of a 2004 documentary "The Undertones: Teenage Kicks", which features The Undertones wandering old their haunts with John Peel and charting The Undertones history from fresh faced beginnings through current reformed status.

from Wikipedia licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License.