The Wedding Present

Agent: Mahmood Shaikh
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The Early Years

The Wedding Present have had eighteen UK Top 40 hit singles… not bad for a band that has, from its inception, stubbornly refused to play the record industry’s game. It all started in 1985 when David Lewis Gedge boarded a National Express coach in London with 500 records packed into a pair of his mother’s suitcases and, in this fashion, delivered the band’s debut single Go Out And Get ‘Em, Boy! to a distribution company in Yorkshire. That pioneering spirit has been at the core of the band’s philosophy ever since. From George Best, “an unmitigated delight” [NME], the first full-length release on their own Reception Records onwards, the band has charted an appealing, if often eccentric, course of its very own. 

With their early releases The Wedding Present had acquired a reputation for bittersweet, breathtakingly honest love songs immersed in whirlwind guitars, so it was extraordinary that Ukrainski Vistupi V Johna Peela, with the band exploring traditional Eastern European folk music, should be their major label debut for RCA Records. “(They) carry off what is basically a bold experiment with verve” [NME]. However, this was soon followed by the more traditionally incendiary Bizarro, “simply unbeatable” [Melody Maker] which featured their first hit single Kennedy.

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The next step, made with characteristically twisted Wedding Present logic, was to enlist the aid of the noise-mongering [and, at that point, relatively unknown] sound engineer Steve Albini. The resulting Seamonsters, recorded in the snowy wilds of Minnesota in just 11 days, suggested a more thoughtful Wedding Present. The Guardian newspaper noted that: “Albini has given The Wedding Present considerable weight, with Gedge’s voice trickling between banks of scowling guitars”. Indeed, the singing ranged from sensual whispering to feverish screams.

The Hit Parade, Watusi & Saturnalia

The band came up with their next intriguing idea in 1992. By the end of December, The Wedding Present had released twelve singles, one per month, equalled Elvis Presley’s 35-year-old record for “most hits in one year”, rekindled everyone’s interest in that ultimate pop format, the 7″, and led the NME to describe the band as “casually revolutionary and underhandedly unique”. A gang of impressive names, including Ian Broudie from The Lightning Seeds and legendary Rolling Stones producer Jimmy Millercollaborated on the industry-challenging project, ultimately to be compiled on the two Hit Parade albums and awarded “record of the week” by Tony Parsons in The Daily Telegraph.

Watusi, produced by Steve Fisk (a prime mover in the celebrated avant-garde scene of Seattle) whisked the band off into yet another new area with its lo-fi pop, three-part a capella harmonies and Waikiki-ready surf strains. This “strong, multifaceted album” [Select], sprinkled with 60s and 70s pastiches, was described by critics as their most varied and dynamic to date.

The band returned to England to record their next release, the car-themed Mini, “a gem of a record” [Melody Maker] in which Gedge cloaked his tales of love, lust and infidelity with automobile symbolism. To commemorate this release, the band played [with two drummers!] at the BBC’s ‘Sound City’ event, which was held that year in Leeds. During the concert, the winner of a prize draw was announced and a lucky Wedding Present fan became the owner of a real life classic Austin Mini motor car provided by the band and delivered by David Gedge himself!

The follow-up, self-produced album, Saturnalia, was again released to a flurry of critical approval. The NME exclaimed that “David Gedge has just written one of the best pop albums of the year” while The Melody Maker noted that in the new recordings, which were completed in the London studios belonging toCocteau Twins, you could “hear an experimentalism that would send half of New York back to the lab”.

Cinerama

It was at this point in 1997 that Gedge started work on a new project called Cinerama in which he indulged his love of film music from John Barry to Ennio Morricone via Serge Gainsbourg, Blaxploitation, easy listening and surf music! Cinerama started life as a duo [Gedge and his girlfriend Sally Murrell] together with a shifting line-up of collaborators. 1998′s Va Va Voom “turbo-driven melodies and bittersweet vignettes taking in everything from John Barry to the Zombies” [The Times] featured The Church’s Marty Wilson-Piper and Emma Pollock from The Delgados. Following its release, Gedge recruited the rhythm section of the disbanded Goya Dress (Terry de Castro and Simon Pearson) together with Wedding Present guitarist Simon Cleave for his new band.

Cinerama released a clutch of singles in support of their debut LP, as well as a number prior to 2000′s Steve Albini-recorded Disco Volante “dangerously, seductively sweet” [Melody Maker]. Notable were the heart-rending Superman (complete with alternative Spanish take) and the six and a half minute epic Health And Efficiency (also available in French).

The third Cinerama studio album, Torino (released in 2002), was much darker than the first two, with Gedge returning to a more guitar driven sound and deciding to write predominantly about infidelity. “Cinerama are escaping the shadow of Gedge’s illustrious indie-legend past. Torino is a giant beast of adulterous lyrical fantasies, cult soundtrack flourishes and the screams of Albini-engineered guitars” [Uncut].

The Return Of The Wedding Present

At the end of 2002, Gedge and Murrell split up and he decided to leave Leeds, his home for the preceding twenty-four years, and move to Seattle, Washington. Following the end of this fourteen-year relationship, Gedge began writing a collection of songs apparently influenced by his despair over the split. Take Fountain, the resultant album, was recorded in Seattle by Steve Fisk and released, perhaps ironically, on St. Valentine’s Day 2005. This saw Gedge reviving the Wedding Present name for the first album since 1996′s Saturnalia to a torrent of critical acclaim. “Fans have long since recognised Gedge as more poet than pop star. Like Byron without the marsh fever, Take Fountain confirms his status as an extraordinary songwriter” [The Times].

In January 2008 the band assembled in Steve Albini’s Chicago studio to record El Rey, which was released in the summer of that year to further praise. The Guardian newspaper described how “Gedge has consistently been way ahead of other, more lauded musicians”. At the end of 2008 Gedge fulfilled a long held ambition by releasing a bona fide Christmas song, Holly Jolly Hollywood, a duet with American chanteuse, Simone White.

Now living back in the UK, April 2009 saw Gedge collaborating with the BBC Big Bandfor the bi-annual FUSE Festival which was held back in his home town of Leeds. For the event he performed Wedding Present and Cinerama songs backed by eighteen world class musicians including legendary ‘James Bond’ trumpeter Derek Watkins. In what proved to be a busy yet unusual year for Gedge he also made his debut as a radio DJ in Texas, released his bass player’s solo album on his label Scopitones and launched his own annual self-curated mini-festival, At The Edge Of The Sea, in Brighton, England. Also in 2009, two Take Fountain songs, I’m From Further North Than You and Ringway To Seatac, appeared in the award winning independent film Skills Like This.

In 2012 The Wedding present released Valentina to further rave reviews. Of the album, which was mixed in L.A. by Grammy-award-winning producer Andrew Scheps, Magnet [USA] said: “Guitars meander before slicing, the rhythm section is taut and Gedge hits all of his favourite topics – love, lust and spite – often in the same three or four minutes”. Another notable release in 2012 was the 4 Chansons EP which saw Gedge singing four tracks in French and which was followed in 2013 by the 4 Lieder EP in German and in 2014 by EP 4 Cân in Welsh!

In a comprehensive reassessment of the band, 2014 saw Edsel Records re-releasing eight Wedding Present albums in deluxe multi-disc ‘extended’ editions which brought together a wealth of historic recordings, radio sessions and videos.

Such has been the unpredictable nature of Gedge’s career over the years, hardly anyone could have been surprised when he announced yet another remarkable project in 2015. Collaborating with Spanish indie legend Pedro Vigilhe decided to ‘re-imagine’The Wedding Present’s Valentina album as Cinerama. The resulting recording was also entitled Valentina and was described as “a truly sparkling and uplifting concerto for the modern age” by Vive Le Rock Magazine. Cinerama celebrated the release of this remarkable album with live performances in London & Barcelona and for BBC Radio 6 Music using additional musicians including a string quartet, brass and a flautist. The London concert was subsequently released on CD & DVD as Live 2015.

Recent Years

In 2016, The Wedding Present released their ninth studio album, Going, Going…, which featured references to Gedge’s previous works, including self-referential lyrical moments and has been described as “his masterpiece”. Loosely based on a road trip across the U.S.A., the double LP was described by Louder Than War as “A remarkable album. A joy from start to finish,” and went on to become the band’s first British Top 40 album since Saturnalia. In October 2017, The Wedding Present performed Going, Going…live, accompanied by films, a string section and a choir at Cadogan Hall, the home of the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, in London. Also in 2017, to commemorate the 30th anniversary of their debut album, George Best, The Wedding Present released George Best 30. This album featured brand new versions of the original twelve songs recorded by Steve Albini and mixed by Andrew Scheps. 2017 also saw the publication [by Red Planet] of Sometimes These Words Just Don’t Have To Be Said – a 450 page ‘fanthology’ of the band.

In 2018, KneejerkFilm released Something Left Behind – a feature length documentary telling the story of the George Best album. The film, which featured interviews with all four original band members and was produced and directed by Andrew Jezard, appeared at several film festivals.

In 2019, The Wedding Present released Tommy 30, which was comprised of brand new versions of the early songs featured on their first singles compilation Tommy [originally released in 1988]. Also in 2019, Gedge fulfilled a long held ambition by releasing a Wedding Present picture disc [called Jump In, The Water’s Fine] which featured specially commissioned artwork by Darren Hayman. 2019 also saw the publication of Sleevenotes, a book in which David Gedge described the background to his songwriting and recording.

With live concerts being curtailed during 2020 and 2021 because of the COVID-19 pandemic, The Wedding Present turned their hands to facilitating a more virtual existence. This included various live streams and the home recording and filming of 12 semi-acoustic tracks for an online version of Gedge’s At The Edge Of The Sea festival. These were compiled and released on an album called Locked Down And Stripped Back in 2021 which was followed by a second album – Locked Down And Stripped Back Volume Two – in 2022. 2020 also saw the release of the first instalment of David Gedge’s long-awaited autobiography Tales From The Wedding Present, featuring stories from the comic book series of the same name which had existed between 2012 and 2019. Another notable release in 2020 was Not From Where I’m Standing – a double album featuring covers of James Bond themes by various artists calling themselves ‘The Wedding Present & Friends’ – the profits of which were donated to the charity CALM. Finally, the target of a crowd-funder for a future musical to be based on Gedge’s songs was also reached and, as a result, this is now in development.

In 2022, The Wedding Present embarked on 24 Songs. This was a project which, with a nod to the Hit Parade series of 1992, saw the band releasing a brand new 7″ single every month throughout the year. These singles were compiled onto a 24 Songs album which was released in 2023.

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