Hue and Cry first made their mark in the late eighties with the hugely successful albums ‘Seduced and Abandoned’ and ‘Remote’, spawning smash hit singles such as ‘Labour of Love’, ‘Violently’, and ‘Looking For Linda’ along the way. Their award winning style of strongly written pop songs fused with a unique brand of soul brought them continued success as the band marched into the nineties releasing more acclaimed work including the chart-storming Top Ten album ‘Stars Crash Down’, amongst others.
More recently, the iconic pop duo has enjoyed something of a renaissance. Starting with their sensational appearance on ITV’s ‘Hit Me Baby…’ in 2005, the guys took the UK and Europe by storm once again with their one-of-a-kind rendition of Beyonce’s ‘Crazy in Love’. Dates followed at such legendary venues as ABC Glasgow, The Arches in Glasgow, and The Liquid Rooms in Edinburgh, marking a new point in their successful career, as they took their trademark sound and back-catalogue on the road for the first time in years with a new look, band and dynamism.
Hue and Cry then had more TV success with their much-talked about appearance on Children In Need. The network specifically requested that the band play their beloved hit ‘Ordinary Angel’ for the regional and national broadcast of the BBC’s annual charity appeal.
This performance officially highlighted a compassionate side of the band and proved to be a sign of what was to come. It was no coincidence that in November of 2005, Pat and Greg won themselves one of the most coveted awards in the Scottish music industry – the Miller Tartan Clef Award. The 2005 Tartan Clef Awards saw the band thoroughly embraced by their beloved Scotland and its creative community.
Now, the brothers Kane have finished the first album of original material entitled ‘Open Soul’ and plan to release it independently on their own label Blairhill Records on September 15th, 2008. The album boasts an energetic combination of the band’s classic pop soul sound and fresh, crisp, sometimes stripped down production – think crunchy, soulful guitar riffs in the same sonic vicinity as wailing trumpet solos.
In their live performance career, Hue and Cry have performed alongside some of the biggest names in the business including U2, James Brown, Van Morrison, Madonna, Simply Red and played to thousands on their own tours. Living up to their live legacy, they did not disappoint when they capped off 2005 with the perfect gig – that of Glasgow’s Hogmanay. There, they played to over 25,000 revellers and co-headlined on a bill that included modern-day rock heroes Athlete. Gigs are being scheduled for later this year.
Say the guys, “We have never been so happy to be out doing our thing as Hue and Cry . We have found that our music carries an eternal edge and we are taking advantage of that in the current musical climate. We are definitely back for good!”