Lloyd Cole and the Commotions

The band were formed whilst Cole (who was born in Derbyshire, England) was studying at the University of Glasgow. They signed a recording contract with Polydor Records; their debut single "Perfect Skin" reaching number 26 on the UK singles chart in spring 1984, while the second single "Forest Fire" reached 41. Their debut studio album, Rattlesnakes, was released in October 1984. Produced by Paul Hardiman and featuring string arrangements by Anne Dudley, it peaked at No. 13 in the UK and was certified gold for sales over 100,000 copies. NME included it in its Top 100 Albums of All Time list, and the title track was later covered by the American singer Tori Amos. The Welsh band Manic Street Preachers included the album amongst their top ten list. The band's follow-up studio album, Easy Pieces, was produced by Clive Langer and Alan Winstanley, who had previously produced for Madness, the Teardrop Explodes, Dexys Midnight Runners and Elvis Costello and the Attractions. Released in November 1985, ==Band members==

• Lloyd Cole (born 31 January 1961) – lead vocals, guitar, lyricist • Blair Cowan (born 1960?) – keyboards • Lawrence Donegan (born 13 July 1961) – bass guitar • Neil Clark (born 3 July 1958) – guitar • Stephen Irvine (born 16 December 1959) – drums The band's manager Derek McKillop is credited as a full band member in the credits of the group's third studio album, Mainstream. ==Post-breakup careers==

• Cole moved to New York City and later to New England to pursue a solo career with Polydor and Capitol Records and later appeared on Rykodisc, before establishing self-published entities in the United States. His solo career has found him collaborating with the late Robert Quine, Fred Maher, Dave Derby and Jill Sobule. • Clark continued working with Cole on almost all of his solo releases and full band tours. He was also a member of the short-lived group Bloomsday, with Irvine (of the Commotions) and Chris Thomson of the Bathers. He later worked as a website designer and wrote music for film and TV. • Cowan collaborated with Cole and his new backing band in New York on Cole's first two solo studio albums (1989–1991). He returned for Broken Record (2010), Standards (2013), Guesswork (2019) and On Pain (2023). He played with Del Amitri, Paul Quinn and the Independent Group, the Kevin McDermott Orchestra and Texas. • Donegan is a journalist and an author – he was a golf journalist for The Guardian and published several non-fiction titles, including No News at Throat Lake and Four Iron in the Soul. • Irvine joined former bandmate Clark in Bloomsday, and as a session musician worked with Del Amitri, Étienne Daho and Sarah Cracknell. He is also managing artists and bands. ==Discography==

• Rattlesnakes (1984, No. 13 UK) • Easy Pieces (1985, No. 5 UK) • Mainstream (1987, No. 9 UK) ==References==