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Martin Gordon began his career in the Seventies as bass player with the Californian band Sparks, who found initial fame in the UK with hits ‘ This Town Ain't Big Enough For The Both Of Us ' and ‘ Amateur Hour ' from their 1974 ‘ Kimono My House ' album. Following his dismissal from Sparks for reading the newspaper while rehearsing, he moved swiftly on and formed Jet (described by All Music Guide as ‘the first supergroup of glam'). They were also described as 'clambering aboard the glam-rock bandwagon just before the sparkly wheels fell off and deposited the occupants in the cosmic ditch'. You can take your choice.
Jet featured Gordon, singer Andy Ellison and drummer Chris Townson from legendary proto-punks John's Children, along with equally legendary acid-casualty guitar hero Davey O'List. They released a solitary, eponymous album (working with Queen- and Foreigner-producer Roy Thomas Baker), toured as support to Ian Hunter and Mick Ronson and then dissolved in a welter of ill-feeling and lack of interest. In recent years however, the ‘Jet ' album and a latter-day companion disc ‘More Light Than Shade', have been well received by critics and have established Jet as the missing link between glam and punk rock.
After the demise of Jet, the main participants (songwriter/bassist Gordon and singer Ellison) reconvened as Radio Stars. The band achieved a modicum of success with hit single ‘ Nervous Wreck' and two well-received albums ‘(Songs for Swinging Lovers ' and ‘Holiday Album', both reissued on CD in 2006), but Gordon was ousted (from his own band, my life already!) in a dental coup in 1980. He left for Paris to work as house producer for Barclay Records and during this period also played bass for the Rolling Stones, who were recording in Pathé Marconi studios in Paris.
He returned to the UK in the early 80s and, after forming the short-lived Blue Meanies, began working as keyboard player and studio hand with such sensitive artists/blithering idiots as George Michael, Boy George, Blur, Primal Scream, Kylie Minogue, S'Express, the Tiger Lillies and many other whose names are lost in the mists of time. At the beginning of the nineties, ‘world ‘music' beckoned – he worked in Bombay with the legendary Hindi film singer Asha Bhosle, and also became a sought-after location recordist, working in Pakistan, Morocco, Egypt, Ghana, the Gambia, Bali and Turkey among other locations.
It was recording an album in Istanbul with Turkish diva Sezen Aksu (2002's ‘ Sarki Soylemek Lazim ') and playing bass on her subsequent European tour that reminded Gordon of his pop roots. Following his return to pop territory in 2003 with the release of his first solo CD ‘The Baboon in the Basement', he has never looked back, although he will not say why. ‘The Joy of More Hogwash' appeared in 2004 and ‘God's on His Lunchbreak (Please Call Back) ' emerged in 2005. The latter was accompanied by an illustrated book of lyrics, ‘The Companion Volume to 'God's on his Lunchbreak (Please Call Back)'. In 2006, these three were combined as a box set (‘The Mammal Trilogy' ), as well as a best-of (‘How Am I Doing So Far?)'. The fourth part of the Mammal Trilogy – ‘The World is My Lobster' - appeared in 2007, followed by his first solo appearances (with band), one of which was released as the promo CD ‘Hello Boston!' Radio Stars briefly reformed in 2008 to mark their 30th anniversary and released an archive live CD 'Something For the Weekend'.
And now Martin Gordon, irritatingly described by Classic Rock magazine as ‘ like Brian Eno fronting 10cc at a cleverness convention' releases the fifth and final part of the Mammal Trilogy. 'Time Gentlemen Please' brings the Mammal Trilogy to completion. After this part, there will be no more further parts.
This trilogy goes up to five, if anyone asks....
Heeeeeeere's the band!
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