 Biography
The
year was 1983 and just prior to leaving for an overseas tour,
singer Mike Score had a date with a lady, who, during their date
produced a photograph of herself. As the story goes, Mike
asked her for it and she refused. Mike left disappointed,
but with the inspiration to write the song “Wishing (If I Had
A Photograph of You)”. The song was a hit in UK and the
US where it topped out at 26 on the charts, adding to the
band’s newly acquired fame. If you remember
“Wishing” then you know how contrasting it was to the other
songs of the time. Heavy with synthesizer and electronic
rhythm, light guitar riffs, - all together melodic, and
like no one else - these were the sounds that epitomized the
music of A Flock of Seagulls.
Earlier in time, Mike and his friend Frank Maudsley were
hairdressers in Liverpool, England, interested in music and
fashion. After work they would gather above Mike’s shop
and jam with Ali Score (Mike’s younger brother). Initially,
Mike had gotten a synthesizer from a music shop whose owner was
generous enough to let him take it and pay for it later in
installments, if indeed he liked it. With Mike’s voice
and synthesizer, Ali on drums and Frank playing bass, the trio
loved their music. But they needed more sound and so after
an exhaustive search, added guitarist Paul Reynolds after he
answered one of their ads in a newspaper. With Paul’s
refined guitar, and Mike, who amplified Paul’s guitar riffs
with intense synthesizer chords, the group had laid the
foundation for the music that would soon make them quite famous.
Taking the name A Flock of Seagulls, inspired from the book
“Jonathan Livingston Seagull”, by Richard Bach, the band
started out playing shows in small venues. Club goers
loved the driving electronic beat of “Telecommunications”
which became a dance club hit across England. And would
forever come to remember the sight of the band - particularly
Mike Score - singing, playing his synthesizer, and sporting a
most unusual haircut of which his long blonde, heavily gelled,
bang would cascade down over his forehead and eyebrows like a
waterfall.
With the waterfall haircut and more so their music, so
electronic, yet melodic and charged with emotion, A Flock of
Seagulls soon became one of the darlings of the music industry.
After signing a record contract, and touring in the US, in
1982 they released their first album - self titled - “A Flock
of Seagulls”. To their swelling ranks of fans in the US
and UK, the album was magical. “I Ran” - the
first single - is a song about being abducted by a UFO which
came into the houses of many young Americans when MTV (then in
its infancy) played it over and over and over. In it Mike
wears his waterfall haircut, as he and the band play in a room
decorated with aluminum foil as the camera pans around and
around. The video was simplistic but the futuristic
images, sight of the band, and the superior music drove “I
Ran” to 9th place on US charts.
Ironically, A Flock of Seagulls became forever known for “I
Ran” but there were many other fine songs on their first
album. “Space Age Love Song” - is a song touching all
the emotions of someone falling in love and “DNA” won a
Grammy for best rock instrumental. The other songs have
futuristic themes and upbeat, melodic music - all of which
became the hallmark of A Flock of Seagulls.
After more touring and enjoying the success of “A Flock of
Seagulls”, the second album “Listen” was released in 1983.
“Wishing (If I Had a Photograph of You)” was the
feature song and hit single of the album. Similar to
“Space Age Love Song”, its emotional lyrics and modern sound
struck a chord in many hearts. And its video on MTV showed
again and again with Mike Score and his waterfall haircut
wishing he had a photograph. Other songs on “Listen”
seem to rely even more on futuristic and techno themes, with
more upbeat music.
By 1984 things had changed though. Mike dropped his
waterfall haircut and AFOS released their third album “The
Story of a Young Heart”. Instead of futuristic theme
songs like “Electrics” and “Telecommunications” from
their earlier albums, “The Story of a Young Heart” seemed to
be about a lot of cynical love songs. Listeners heard
depressing songs like “Suicide Day” and “Heart of
Steel.” The album lacked a hit single of the magnitude
of “I Ran” or “Wishing”, but still had some fine music
in songs: “The Dancer”, “Remember David”, and “The
More You Live, The More You Love.” The latter was to be
the last AFOS single to chart.
Shortly after, Paul Reynolds left the band. Without Paul,
the magic ended. The original trio added additional
musicians and released their fourth album “Dream Come True”
in 1986. The music was so foreign to anything AFOS
released before, and consequently flopped. The band
disbanded after this. But after a three-year hiatus, Mike
Score kept the name alive, added other musicians and released
the single “Magic” a song reminiscent in sound and intensity
of A Flock of Seagulls’ earlier days. Newer younger
musicians came and went, but Mike Score continued to tour
through out much of the 1990’s and released “Light at the
End of the World” in 1995. Essentially, the album fell
on deaf ears, which is a shame, since the music, though
different from earlier AFOS sounds, still features the full
essence of Mike Score’s music.
Though the century has recently ended more than 20 years since
the conception, A Flock of Seagulls looks forward to more tour
dates this spring and summer, plus a live album is planned for
release. Mike Score and the newer “Seagulls” give it
there all on stage, and concert goers will remember the
futuristic music and reminisce the past. ~ Chris Mehelis
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