Soho (band)
Soho | |
|---|---|
Soho (1991) | |
| Background information | |
| Origin | London and Wolverhampton, England |
| Genres | |
| Years active | 1988–1999 |
| Labels | Hedd Records, Savage Records, Atco Records, Rhino Entertainment |
| Past members | Jacqueline Cuff Pauline Cuff Timothy London Liam Gillick Eds Chesters Leigh Gorman Barry Smith Graham Dove Nigel Lackey |
Soho were an English musical trio consisting of identical sisters Jacqueline (Jacqui) Cuff and Pauline Cuff with producer Tim London (also known as Timothy Brinkhurst).[1] Other members of the group have included Liam Gillick, Eds Chesters, Leigh Gorman and Barry Smith. Bob and Henry Morris played with the trio when they were known as Groovalax.
Career
Identical twins Jacqui and Pauline Cuff were born 1962 in Wolverhampton, England, and Timothy Brinkhurst was born in 1960.[2] In the early 1980s, when the Cuff sisters were student nurses, they performed together in St Albans, Hertfordshire before meeting Brinkhurst. The trio performed under the names Tim London's Orgasm and Tim London and the Soho Sisters.[2] As Soho, the group recorded three albums for Virgin subsidiary Hedd Records, although only one, Noise, was released.
The group is best known for their hit song "Hippychick" (composed by Brinkhurst and credited to Johnny Marr), which reached #14 on the American Billboard Hot 100 chart hit in December 1990 and #2 on the Billboard Hot Dance Club Play chart. It also became a top-10 hit single on the UK Singles Chart in 1991.[3][4] The song features a prominent sample from the Smiths' "How Soon Is Now?"[2] sequenced over a contemporary urban rhythm. London told Mojo magazine that it "was written as a blues before the Smiths' samples and the rhythm were added".[5] The single appears on Soho's 1990 album Goddess.[6]
In 1991, Soho recorded a single with Adamski, "Born to Be Alive", which peaked at No. 51 in the UK chart.[3] The song is credited to Soho and Adamski and is not related to the 1979 disco hit.[7] In 1994, Soho signed to Magnet/Warners on the strength of two self-financed albums that were recorded after Savage Records had folded. The LPs, including Oosh (an anagram of "Soho"), remained unreleased until 2008, when Yard was released as a digital download.
During the 1990s, Soho performed a cover version of the Icicle Works hit "Birds Fly (Whisper to a Scream)" for the soundtrack of the film Scream. The track "Nuthin' on My Mind" was featured in the 1991 John Hughes film Career Opportunities. "Hippychick" appeared on the 1990 compilation album Happy Daze.
The band attained some brief press notoriety in 1992 with their track "Claire's Kitchen" (on Thug), which referenced the alleged affair between prime minister John Major and caterer Clare Latimer.[8]
Brinkhurst moved to Edinburgh in the early 2000s. He managed the band Young Fathers, coproducing and cowriting five of their albums. [9]
In 2017, Brinkhurst again teamed again with the Cuff sisters and main vocalist Law Holt in the electronic music collective Iklan,[10] which released Album Number 1 on the Soulpunk label in 2020.[1]
Discography
Albums
- Noise (1989)
- Goddess (1990) (AUS No. 102)[11]
- Thug (1992)
- Baby Baby Baby Baby (1993)
- Yard (1994)
- Another London (19951111)
- Soho – Soho (1996)
- Family BC (1999)
Singles
| Title | Year | Peak positions | Album | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UK | AUS | NED | NZ | US | US Alter | US Dance | |||
| "Piece of You" | 1988 | 80 | — | — | — | — | — | — | Noise |
| "You Won't Hold Me Down" | 141 | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| "Message from My Baby" | 1989 | 167 | — | — | — | — | — | — | |
| "Boy" | 168 | — | — | — | — | — | — | Goddess | |
| "Hippychick" | 1990 | 67 | 21 | 62 | 7 | 14 | 11 | 2 | |
| "Freaky" (US only) | 1991 | — | — | — | — | — | — | 32 | |
| "Hippychick" (UK re-release) | 8 | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| "Love Generation" | 85 | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| "Out of My Mind" | — | 156 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| "Ride" | 1992 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | Thug |
| "Radio Soul Groove" | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| "Stupid" | 1996 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | Soho Soho |
| "—" denotes releases that did not chart or were not released. | |||||||||
References
- ^ a b Mongredien, Phil (8 November 2020). "Iklan: Album Number 1 review – impressively taut electronica". Theguardian.com. Retrieved 23 November 2020.
- ^ a b c Colin Larkin, ed. (1998). The Virgin Encyclopedia of Dance Music (First ed.). Virgin Books. p. 317. ISBN 0-7535-0252-6.
- ^ a b Roberts, David (2006). British Hit Singles & Albums (19th ed.). London: Guinness World Records Limited. p. 513. ISBN 1-904994-10-5.
- ^ Whitburn, Joel (2004). Hot Dance/Disco: 1974–2003. Record Research. p. 239.
- ^ "Hippychick by Soho". Songfacts.com. Retrieved 2 February 2017.
- ^ Soho - Goddess, 1990, retrieved 19 March 2026
- ^ Adamski + Soho - Born To Be Alive!, 1992, retrieved 19 March 2026
- ^ "Paedophile DJ Jimmy Savile – What I 'Knew' But Never Reported Years Ago". Huffingtonpost.co.uk. 12 October 2012. Retrieved 2 February 2017.
- ^ "Dave Hurt Research". AboutSoho.com. Retrieved 3 July 2021.
- ^ "Electronic Pop Music | Iklan | Birmingham". Iklanmusic.com. Retrieved 23 November 2020.
- ^ a b "Bubbling Down Under Week Commencing 8 April 1991". Retrieved 9 April 2022.
- ^ "Official Charts Company: Soho". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 5 April 2014.
- ^ "Soho – Australian Chart". australian-charts.com. Retrieved 7 January 2016.
- ^ "Soho – Dutch Chart". dutchcharts.nl. Retrieved 7 January 2016.
- ^ "Soho – New Zealand Chart". charts.nz. Retrieved 7 January 2016.
- ^ "Soho – US Hot 100". Billboard. Retrieved 7 January 2016.
- ^ "Soho – US Alternative Songs". Billboard. Retrieved 7 January 2016.
- ^ "Soho – US Dance Club Songs". Billboard. Retrieved 7 January 2016.