Description
Beneath the Laughter is the sophomore and final album by the British pop/rock band Fish Co. (Steve Fairnie and Steve Rowles), released in the UK on Grapevine in 1978. The album was recorded by Colin Owen and Brad Davis at the Old Smithy Recording Studio in Worcestershire, and recorded by Andy Kidd at ICC Studios in Eastbourne, England; with John Pac of Parchment fame producing. Strings arranged by Dave Anfield. All songs written by Fairnie and Rowles.
By 1977 the band, which now also comprised guitarist supremo Jules Hardwick, vocalists Bev Sage and Barbie Benson and Geoff Crowe on bass regularly tour Holland and the UK, performing mainstage at Greenbelt, and playing a mix of church gigs during the day and pub gigs at night. This line-up would form the nucleus of their subsequent project Writz, official launched in December 1978 (when the band started up their ‘Punters Club’, producing the first issue of fanzine “Punty” with Willie Williams as editor).
Fish Co. is the duo of fellow Englishmen Steve Rowles and Steve Fairnie. Fairnie (and sometimes Rowles) would go on to create progressively more bizarre and strange music under various names, including Writz, Famous Names, The Techno Twins, The Techno Orchestra and The Technos. As Fish Co. they produced some excellent insightful and intelligent British rock, folk, pop and ballads. Future Techno Bev Sage joined the line-up on backing vocals for «Beneath The Laughter», a more varied album that covers hard classic rock (title song, «Miss Esther Lauden», «Super Heroes»), tuneful pop-rock («Never Feel Alone», «Two On The Street», «Harbour Mouth»), ballads («Across The Table», «Sail Away»), and even a disco knock-off («Seventies Children»). A more electric album as well, with convincing lead guitar work throughout from Jules Hardwick, sometimes growling suprisingly loud. Including assistance from After The Fire‘s Pete Banks (keyboards) and Nutshell‘s Paul Field (Fender Rhodes). Suitable company for Ishmael, After The Fire, and all those other artsy UK Greenbelt eccentrics. Glossy gatefold cover. Both albums produced by Parchment‘s John Pac. [Ken Scott, The Archivist]
Fish Co had formed in the mid ’70s around the songwriting and performance skills of Steve Rowles and Steve Fairnie. Popular on the Greenbelt and student scene, by the time this album was released they were in the process of evolving into the arthouse band Writz who released their debut album the following year. ‘Beneath The Laughter’ captures them at the crossroads, developing a band sound and enjoying a few more creative moments than the average Christian album of the era. There’s plenty to love here from the melancholy of the title cut which features some fabulous guitar work from Jules Hardwick. «Two On the Street» is almost an apologetic for the band’s desire to move out into the mainstream which was beginning to happen. «Across The Table» is a six minute slow build of an epic which culminates with the band revisiting a track from their debut album, «Precious Lord». «Miss Esther Lauden» is another track that shows the band moving from their acoustic style to what would become the art rock of Writz. The bridge to that transition presents itself at the close of the album with the fun fully electric sound of «Super Heroes», a song they revisited on their next album. Great songwriting, imaginative ideas, fab musicianship and plenty of talent worthy of a CD re-issue. [Mike Rimmer, Cross Rhythms, October 2011]
LP tracklist:
Side One
A1. “Beneath The Laughter” – 5:09
A2. “Never Feel Alone” – 5:00
A3. “Two On The Street” – 6:00
A4. “Across The Table” – 6:40
Side Two
B1. “Miss Esther Lauden” – 3:45
B2. “Seventies Children” – 4:29
B3. “Harbour Mouth” – 3:50
B4. “Sail Away”
B5. “Super Heroes” – 8:45
Note: Simultaneously released on cassette and 12-inch vinyl LP by Grapevine with the vinyl edition housed in a gatefold sleeve with the lyrics printed on the inside.
UK Greenbelt Arts Festival, August 1978
I’m picking up Fairnie and Bev from a local hairdresser in my bottle green Morris Minor Traveller. Fish Co are due on mainstage in two hours’ time and Fairnie has just had two strips of hair dyed an outrageous (this is 1978, people) ocean blue.
“Yes please…” Fairnie looks in the courtesy mirror and gurgles, impishly. He is hell-bent on winding up the straighter end of Greenbelt. He twitches with nervous anticipation and pulls on his nebuliser. Bev crams into the front seat with her husband.There’s no room in the back. It’s loaded with my own sound equipment. Bev tugs playfully at those scandalous blue follicles. She giggles. Slowly, we chug five miles back to Greenbelt. Exactly one year on from secretly joining in with Fish Co in a distant marquee, I’m playing keyboards in the band.
Ten minutes before we go on Fairnie lathers my eyebrows and eyelashes with thick, black make-up (at Greenbelt! At Greenbelt 78! Pre-New Romantics, pre-Boy George Greenbelt 78!). Now he gives me a pair of blue shades with one lens missing and tells me to sit at the piano looking mean. I walk up the stairs to mainstage with lead guitarist Jules Hardwick (face whiter than Michael Jackson). We pass folk troubadour Garth Hewitt. “Hi Garth…” He doesn’t recognise me.
“We’re the Super Heroes, yes we are,
And the fame of our superheroship spreads far…”Fairnie, Rowles, the whole band give it all they’ve got (plus plenty of what they don’t have, too).
“Yes please…” gestures Fairnie to the band. “This is our Greenbelt.” He leans out towards the audience – blue hair shimmering in the spotlight.
[ Excerpt from a Steve Fairnie tribute written by Steve Goddard in 2003, featured at Ship of Fools ]
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