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361
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2/24/06
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Sep 30, 2008 11:12 AM
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With the perfect combination of Chris Difford's lyrics and Glenn Tilbrook's melodies, Squeeze created some of the most memorable and most loved songs of any generation of songwriters, including the timeless "Another Nail In My Heart", "Pulling Mussels (From the Shell)", "Tempted", and "Black Coffee In Bed".
Squeeze was formed in South London in 1974 by Chris Difford, Glenn Tilbrook, Jools Holland, and Paul Gunn. They chose the name "Squeeze" as a tribute to The Velvet Underground's album of the same name.
The group's debut EP, 1977's Packet of Three, was released before the band signed to A&M for the release of their self-titled debut album in 1978, which contained the band's first Top 20 single "Take Me I'm Yours" and "Bang Bang".
The album became a success, but the group's true British breakthrough arrived in 1979, when they released their second album, Cool for Cats, which spawned two UK Number two smashes - the title song, "Cool for Cats" and "Up the Junction", and the Top 30 hit "Slap & Tickle".
Argybargy followed in 1980 and included hits "Another Nail In My Heart" and "Pulling Mussels (From the Shell)." Both songs, plus "If I Didn't Love You," became hits on college radio and new wave clubs in America, increasing the band's profile considerably; it was the first Squeeze album to chart in America.
In 1981 the band unleashed East Side Story, which was hailed with excellent reviews and featured the soulful US Top 5 hit "Tempted" and the UK Top 5 hit "Labelled with Love". Sweets From A Stranger was released the following year and included the classic "Black Coffee in Bed".
Tired of touring, Difford and Tilbrook decided to disband Squeeze late in 1982, releasing the compilation Singles - 45's and Under, shortly after its announcement. Ironically, Singles peaked at number three on the British charts; it would later go platinum in the U.S.
Early in 1985, the band reunited to play a charity gig, which prompted them to resume recording and touring. They released another seven albums: Cosi Fan Tutti Frutti (1985, containing the US hit "Hits of the Year"); Babylon and On (1987); Frank (1989); Play (1991); Some Fantastic Place (1993); Ridiculous (1995) and 1998's self-financed final album Domino.
In 1999 after a show in Aberdeen, Squeeze decided to call it a day, so that Difford and Tilbrook could concentrate on their separate solo careers. Tilbrook and Difford released their critically acclaimed debut albums - The Incomplete Glenn Tilbrook (2001) and I Didn't Get Where I Am (2003) respectively. In 2003 the songwriters collaborated on a song for the first time since Domino and the track, "Where I Can Be Your Friend", appeared on Tilbrook's well-received second solo album, Transatlantic Ping Pong (2004).
2006 saw the release of Difford's South East Side Story, a live album containing ten radically reworked acoustic versions of Squeeze's biggest hits, and the feature length documentary, Glenn Tilbrook: One for the Road, about life as a touring musician on the road in the U.S.
In early 2007 it was announced that Difford and Tilbrook would reform Squeeze for a series of shows and "best of" album Essential Squeeze. In April 2008, Universal released the classic Squeeze albums Argybargy, Sweets From A Stranger, Frank and Ridiculous in expanded and Deluxe Editions. Chris Difford released his first album of new songs in five years, The Last Temptation of Chris, and Glenn Tilbrook is currently completing work with his band, The Fluffers.
Only on A&E's PRIVATE SESSIONS - Chris Difford and Glenn Tilbrook sit down for an in-depth interview with host Lynn Hoffman and perform their smash hit songs "Tempted", "Goodbye Girl", "Pulling Mussels (From The Shell)", and "Another Nail In My Heart".
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