Texas编造着可笑的性感歌曲，同时又演绎着无处不现真情的动听谣歌， 它是一支普通得几乎被湮没的英国组合，但它本质里却有一些在商业流行漩涡里苦苦挣扎的音乐工匠们所未曾消失的可爱。 Texas 是支成立于 1988 年的苏格兰乐队，来自格拉斯哥，由 80 年代苏格兰知名的青春流行组合 Altered Images 的核心人物 Johnny McElhone 一手组建。最初的乐队成员还包括原 Love And Money 的鼓手 Stuart Kerr、主唱 Sharleen Spiteri 和 吉他手 Ally McErlaine。在乐队推出第 2 张专辑《Mothers Heaven》时，由 Richard Hynd 替换了 Stuart，并且新加盟了键盘手 Eddie Campbell。Johnny 非同寻常的创作能力和 Sharleen 与众不同而极富表现力的嗓音营造了 Texas 流行清纯的摇滚民谣风格。近年来乐队在鼓手 Richard 离队的情况下，于 1999 年 5 月 10 日推出新专辑《Hush》，一时间在英国专辑榜上强力登场，击败 Craberries 等。 Johnny McElhone 来自于不寻常的性格背景。1979 年，他 15 岁那年，由于受 Clash 乐队的影响，他与女同学 Clare Grogan 组建了 Altered Images 乐队。在Johnny 所投身过的 3 支乐队中，这是一个相当引人注意的开始。在英国极具声望的音乐节目主持 John Peel 的帮助下， 他们的歌曲为歌迷所关注，首张专辑《Happy Birthday》大获成功， 位居英国榜第2。在乐队辉煌的 4 年历程中，他们是甜美纯真的新潮流者。到1983 年持续的成功还是促使 Johnny 和 Clare决定改头换面。在他们的最后单曲“Dont talk to me about love”中，Johnny 弹奏起疯克式贝斯，音乐趋向电子化，显示了受电子乐队 Chic 和 Marvin Gaye的强烈影响。 Sharleen 从小在格拉斯哥长大，一直是个倔强的孩子。小时候打起架来一点都不逊色于男生。 她成长得毫无畏惧，象一个总想攀登而不会考虑摔落的强者， 她的性格里有种天生的包容性和复杂的情绪波动。 16岁时的理发师生活则赋于了她创作中的敏感和与人交流的本领。当时 Sharleen 得到了一个周六工作，在国际美容连锁店 Irvine Rusk当美发师。这份工作教会了她与人接触、交流的本领。17 岁时，由于出色的成绩，Rusk 把她送到法国、意大利和美国去学习，她几乎得到了一个女孩期望得到的最满意的工作了。 但血液里不安分的精灵， 把她带到了音乐的边缘。在认识了 Johnny McElone 后，她开始准备放弃所有，投入颠簸的摇滚生涯。 作为最初 Texas 阵容中的另一位“幸存者”Ally McErlaine，当时才 17 岁， 虽然主唱和创作核心的第一次合作的创作尝试便造就了他们的首张热门单曲“I dont want a lover”， 但乐队真正的成熟还是很多年之后的事情。 Johnny 为 Texas 设计了一条“慢热型”的成功之路， 在持久的信心和平静的历炼下，乐队的进步循序渐进。事后证明这对他们的生存是有决定性的， 尤其是对歌手。长久的挫折和失落，很少有人能平心静气地度过。 Sharleen作为乐队中至关重要的人物， 她倔强随性的个性所经历的演化描绘了乐队逐渐成熟的轨迹。首张专辑制作时过高的期望， 再加上自己陷入离婚和药物的纠缠，巨大的反差让 Sharleen 难以接受， 如同坠入绝望中，以为自己被戏弄， 她狂躁地让用昂贵租金租借的录音室空置，不开口唱歌，甚至离开乐队独自回到家乡。但困境终究是短暂的，1989 年，首张专辑《Southside》推出，获得了 200 万张的销量。其中的那首单曲“I dont want a lover”进入英国榜的前 10 位。 首次的成功并没有使乐队的名声一路上升，紧接着的第2张专辑《Mothers Heaven》的成绩不够理想，Sharleen又几乎焦躁地回到精神破碎的边缘。到1994 年第3张专辑《Ricks Road》，市场反映依然不够强烈，似乎情况仍在恶化。Sharleen 尽管沮丧，但已不再埋怨公司、制作人或者是媒体，而自省得意识到是自己的创作和演唱始终没有突破。 当Sharleen 在巴黎潜心一年，积蓄创作和表演的动力时，他们依然通过电话互相交换对歌曲的意见， 有时会从中午谈到午夜。1997 年的专辑《White On Blonde》在厚积薄发的状态下诞生。这支在外形上极具 The Doors 和 Rolling Stone 遗风的组合， 终于以毫不含糊的自信和出色的反时尚倾向，象Simple Red、Beautiful South以及当前的 The Corrs 一样大获成功。 随后1999年《The Hush》更是取得了很好的成绩。 2000年他们终于出了一张经典作品的合辑《The Greatest Hits》，其间记载了她们走过的曲折音乐道路。 by William Ruhlmann Despite taking their name from one of the 50 United States of America and adopting several American-sounding musical styles, the Scottish pop/rock band Texas found nearly all its success in Europe starting in the late 80s, including the multi-million selling albums Southside, White on Blonde, and The Hush, and a series of hit singles such as Say What You Want, In Our Lifetime, and Summer Son. Bass player Johnny McElhone (born April 21, 1963, Glasgow, Scotland) organized the band in Glasgow in 1986. McElhone, a veteran of the bands Altered Images and Hipsway, brought in singer and rhythm guitarist Sharleen Spiteri (born November 7, 1967, Glasgow, Scotland), lead guitarist Ally McErlaine (born October 31, 1968, Glasgow, Scotland), and drummer Stuart Kerr (born March 16, 1963, Glasgow, Scotland). The group took its name from the film Paris, Texas, which had boasted a score by Ry Cooder, whose slide guitar playing heavily influenced McErlaine, and Spiteri sang without any discernible Scottish accent, giving the band a distinctly American sound. Texas made its concert debut in March 1988 at Dundee University in Scotland. McElhones previous connection with Mercury Records through Hipsway led to the labels signing the band, which initially tried to record with Bernard Edwards of Chic as producer before settling on Tim Palmer instead. The first result of this association was the single I Dont Want a Lover, the initial effort of the writing team of Spiteri and McElhone, which Mercury released in the U.K. in January 1989. On March 4, it peaked at number eight. Southside (the title referring to a neighborhood of Glasgow), the debut album, was released in March and peaked at number three at the end of the month. As Texas toured the U.K. and Europe, three more singles were released from the album, but failed to reach the Top 40; nevertheless, Southside eventually sold more than two million copies worldwide. Meanwhile, Mercury released I Dont Want a Lover and Southside in the U.S. in July. The single broke into Billboards Album Rock Tracks and Modern Rock Tracks radio charts before finally entering the Hot 100, where it peaked at number 77 on September 30; the album peaked at number 88 a week later. Texas continued to tour Europe in 1990 before beginning work on their second album. Kerr left and was replaced on the drums by Richard Hynd (born June 17, 1965, Aberdeen, Scotland), and keyboard player Eddie Campbell (born July 6, 1965, Glasgow, Scotland), who had been playing with them live, became an official member of the band. Mothers Heaven was released in September 1991 and proved to be a commercial disappointment, peaking at number 32 in the U.K. on October 5. In the U.S., the track In My Heart reached the Modern Rock Tracks chart as Texas made its first visit to the country in November, but the album failed to chart. Alone with You, the albums third single, returned them to the British Top 40, reaching number 32 on February 15, 1992, but their first substantial hit single since I Dont Want a Lover was a one-off cover of Al Greens Tired of Being Alone, which peaked at number 19 on May 9. Again, after touring primarily in Europe, Texas retired to write and record another album, this time turning to Paul Fox as producer and recording at Bearsville Studio in Woodstock, NY, which gave them their title, Ricks Road, the name of the dirt road leading to the studio. So Called Friend, released in advance of the album in August 1993, peaked at number 30 in the U.K. on September 11. (It was later used as the theme song for the U.S. television series Ellen, starring Ellen DeGeneres [1994-1998], and in the 1996 feature film Last Dance, starring Sharon Stone.) A second single, You Owe It All to Me, reached number 39 on October 30, before Ricks Road finally appeared in November, hitting number 18 on November 13. The album was not released initially in the U.S., but it eventually came out in 1994 as the band made several trips — in March, May-June, and August-September — to tour in North America. Despite this effort, like Mothers Heaven, Ricks Road failed to chart in the U.S., selling a meager 38,000 copies. The band wrote off the American market thereafter, concentrating primarily on Europe. One more single from Ricks Road, So in Love with You, made the British Top 40, peaking at number 28 on February 12, 1994. But by the time Texas closed its touring in support of the album in December, it was ready for an extended break, and little was heard from the band over the next two years, while they worked on their fourth album with producer Mike Hedges. They re-emerged with a hometown concert in Glasgow on December 5, 1996, and in January 1997 came the advance single Say What You Want, which became their biggest hit yet, peaking at number three on January 25. That surprising comeback was followed by the album White on Blonde, which entered the British chart at number one on February 15, 1997. It remained in the charts nearly two years, selling 1.7 million copies in the U.K. alone and throwing off three more Top Ten hits: Halo, Black Eyed Boy, and Put Your Arms Around Me. The band spent the year touring extensively in Europe and made its first trip to Australia in May. (They did not tour the U.S., where White on Blonde finally was released on August 5, 1997, as Say What You Want appeared in the film comedy Picture Perfect, starring Jennifer Aniston, although they did find time for a promotional trip in October. The album did not chart, but Hollywood continued to favor the group, with Put Your Arms Around Me appearing in the 1998 film Ever After, starring Drew Barrymore.) On February 9, 1998, Texas appeared at the BRIT Awards, performing Say What You Want in the company of rapper Method Man of Wu-Tang Clan. The seemingly unlikely pairing led to a new recording of the song, and the single Say What You Want (All Day and Every Day) by Texas featuring Wu-Tang Clan (actually, just Method Man and RZA) entered the U.K. charts at number four on March 21. The band played shows periodically during 1998 while working on its next album. That fifth album was prefaced by the lead-off single In Our Lifetime, which entered the British charts at number four on May 1, 1999. The Hush, which followed within weeks, showed the band as consisting of Spiteri, McElhone, Campbell, and McErlaine; soon after, it was announced that Mikey Wilson was the new drummer. The album entered the charts at number one on May 22, 1999. Second single Summer Son reached number five in August, but When We Are Together stopped at number 12 in November, capping Texas run of consecutive Top Ten British hits at seven. Touring continued throughout 1999. Texas next single was In Demand, a Top Ten hit released in October 2000 that prefaced The Greatest Hits, which hit number one in Britain in November and spawned a second new track, Inner Smile, that reached the Top Ten in January 2001, and the band launched an extensive European tour. (By this time, Mercury wasnt even bothering to release Texas records in the U.S.) In July, they issued a remixed version of their first hit, I Dont Want a Lover, which made the Top 20. Spiteri then took time off to have a baby, giving birth to a daughter on September 9, 2002. So, more than two more years passed before the October 2003 release of the sixth album, Careful What You Wish For, which was prefaced by the single Carnival Girl, featuring Kardinal Offishall, a Top Ten hit. (The credits announced that Neil Payne was the new drummer, replacing Wilson, and that a new guitarist, Tony McGovern, had joined.) The album peaked at number five and also featured the Top 40 hit Ill See It Through. By November 2005, when the seventh album, Red Book, was released, Texas commercial fortunes had declined, but the disc was still able to debut in the Top Ten in France, the bands most reliable market. (The album marked the addition of keyboard player Michael Bannister.) Sleep, a duet between Spiteri and Paul Buchanan of the Blue Nile, was excerpted as the albums third single in January 2006 and made the U.K. Top Ten.