Dave Balfe remembers the Teardrops, Blur and a very big house in the country

About this episode

Dave Balfe discusses his influential role in the music scene of late '70s Liverpool and his experiences with various bands and record labels.

Dave Balfe was a key player in late ‘70s Liverpool, joined Big In Japan and the Teardrop Explodes, co-founded Zoo Records and, later, Food who signed and launched Blur. It’s fascinating to hear how he’s adapted to promoting music now with his new band Late Transmissions. We talk to him here about the landmarks moments that mapped out his life, among them …   … growing up in the Wirral and its patchouli-scented record shops   … seeing Wings and Bowie’s Ziggy Stardust tour in Liverpool   … how it felt to be immortalised in Blur’s Country House   … what he learnt making AI pop videos   … when your teenage band “goes punk”   … breaking and entering Rumbelows in pursuit of a synthesiser   … the curious link between Blur and JD Salinger in the days “they were all Kurt Weill and discordant”   … the Runaways at Erics – “I wasn’t entirely there for the music”     … Big In Japan with Bill Drummond, Budgie, Ian Brodie and Jayne Casey   .. is AI like the arrival of synthesisers: “this is not proper music?”   … “the old gag, innovation is not pastiching bands that have already been pastiched”   … and Mark’s interview with…

People in this episode

Hosts: Mark, Mark Ellen

Guest: Dave Balfe

Topics covered

• music history
• band promotion
• Liverpool music scene
• AI in music
• personal anecdotes
• record labels
• teenage bands

Keywords

• Dave Balfe
• Teardrop Explodes
• Blur
• Zoo Records
• AI music
• Liverpool
• Big In Japan
• Country House
• Late Transmissions
• music promotion

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Big In Japan, Teardrop Explodes, Zoo Records, Food, Blur

Books & works: Country House

Places: Wirral

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