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'The Fall' are an English Post-punk band, formed in Prestwich, in the Metropolitan Borough of Bury, Greater Manchester in 1976. Named after the English translation of Albert Camus' novel, ''La Chute'' (1956), they have released twenty-six studio albums and scored three UK Top 40 hit singles.^[1] The band's work has been the subject of numerous compilation albums, including a collection of material recorded for the John Peel show between 1978 and 2004. Peel was a staunch supporter of the band, and as of 2007 they have made a record twenty-four sessions for the programme - a feat which has led to the widespread belief that The Fall were one of Peel's favourite bands.^[2]
Since their inception, The Fall have been through fifty-eight line-up changes, with leader Mark E. Smith being the only constant member.^[3] Smith's enigmatic lyrics and drawling delivery, coupled with the idiosyncratic and innovative music of the band, has resulted in a subtle influence on several generations of musicians.

The most recent confirmed line up is of Mark E. Smith, his wife Elena Poulou, who plays keyboards, and drummer Orpheo McCord.^[4] They have been augmented by a 'squad rotation system' of accompanying musicians made up of Tim Presley (guitar), Pete Greenway (guitar), Rob Barbato (bass), Dave Spurr (bass) and Keiron Melling (drums). The group's recent live engagements have been fulfilled by Smith, Poulou, Greenway, Spurr and Melling. The Fall's most recent album, ''Reformation Post TLC'' , was released by Slogan Records on February 12, 2007.

Contents
History
1976
1977
1978
1979
1980
1981
1982
1983
1990s
2000–present
Influence
Fall Songs in other media
Discography
Studio albums
Sound files
References
Bibliography
External links

History

1976

The Fall formed in Prestwich, Manchester during 1976. They would meet at Kingswood Road, Prestwich and rehearse material in Smith's/Baines' flat. The original line up was to be Martin Bramah - vocal, Mark Smith - guitar, Tony Friel - bass and Una Baines - drums.

1977

From their first live lineup of Mark E. Smith (vocal), Martin Bramah (guitar), Tony Friel (bass) and an unknown drummer on Monday, May 23, 1977 North West Arts basement, King Street, Manchester, the group produced a sound quite unlike anything else being played in the run-down dancehalls of northern England's new wave scene. After this first gig the line up would change, losing Dave/Steve the drummer (years later Smith referred to Dave/Steve as "that little bald fellow that died from Stockport" and Tony Friel remembered Dave actually being called Steve and claimed that "some years later he killed himself by throwing himself under a train") and adding Una Baines keyboard and Karl Burns drums for the second gig on Friday, 3 June 1977 at the Squat Club, Manchester. It was this line up of Smith, Bramah, Friel, Baines and Burns that recorded Bingo-Master's Break-Out!, Psycho Mafia, Repetition and Frightened on Thursday, 9 November 1977 at Indigo Studios, Manchester. The session was funded by Richard Boon, manager of Buzzcocks, and he planned to release the tracks on his New Hormones label. Boon later gave the tapes back to the band as he decided to concentrate on Buzzcocks.
Two tracks, "Stepping Out" and "Last Orders", were released on the compilation '' in June 1978 on Virgin Records, a compilation album recorded at the Manchester venue The Electric Circus on Sunday, 2 October 1977. Founder member and bassist Tony Friel left to form The Passage after a gig on Friday, 23 December 1977, at Stretford Civic Centre, Manchester.

1978

Friel's replacement Jonnie Brown lasted from January 1978 to March 1978 appearing at several gigs and taking part in the Granada TV show ''So It Goes'' hosted by Tony Wilson. The Fall were filmed by Granada for the show in Prestwich on Monday, 13 February 1978 performing "Psycho Mafia", "Industrial Estate" and "Dresden Dolls".
In early April 1978 Una Baines left The Fall. This was in part due to her relationship with Jonnie Brown, but also due to band differences, who allegedly was a heroin addict (Brown still thinks "No Xmas For John Quays" is about him). He and Baines struck up a relationship and when Brown left Baines followed soon after. Baines stated in interviews years later that when Brown walked in there was an obvious attraction between them. She also added that Brown said if they were going to get together then he had a secret and to be with him she'd have to share it... she did and they had a short relationship.
Replacing Una Baines came Yvonne Pawlett in late April 1978, with Jonnie Brown also replaced in April by Eric McGann (aka Rick Goldstraw) but he again lasted only a short time until Tuesday, 30 May 1978. Eric's departure was due to the Fall's then van driver and conga player Steve Davis showing up to take the band to London to record their first John Peel session in an Hawaiin shirt. Such was Eric's disgust he refused to get in the van and was summarily sacked. During the recording of the Peel session Martin Bramah played the bass parts.
New bass player Marc Riley joined and appeared with The Fall on Sunday, 11 June 1978 at Band on the Wall, Manchester.
The debut EP, "Bingo-Master's Break-Out!", was finally released 11 August 1978 on Step Forward Records but did not include "Frightened" from the recording sessions. Apparently Mark E. Smith asked for it to be left off as he felt that it was a dull version, a copy of this recording has never been officially released.
On 9th September The Fall record "It's the New Thing" at Surrey Sound.
The second single from The Fall "It's the New Thing" released November 1978 and featured the new line up of Mark Smith, Martin Bramah, Marc Riley, Yvonne Pawlett and Karl Burns.
Their debut album ''Live at the Witch Trials'' recorded in one day at Camden Sound Suite, London on Friday, 15 December 1978 and subsequently mixed the following day, 16th December 1978 at Camden Sound Suite, London.
Further line up changes were afoot with the departure of Karl Burns, his last appearance was on Saturday, 30 December 1978 The Venue, Manchester.

1979

Burns replacement, Mike Leigh, first appeared live on Wednesday, 14 February 1979 at Bowden Vale Social Club, Altrincham.
The debut LP by The Fall, ''Live at the Witch Trials'' is released on 16 March 1979. On Wednesday, 4 April 1979 Una Baines, the original keyboard player, stood in for an absent Yvonne Pawlett at the Stowaway Club, Newport. Founder member Martin Bramah quiting the band during late April 1979, to form The Blue Orchids, created a significant shift in band dynamics with the replacements Steve Hanley and Craig Scanlon first appearing live on Wednesday, 9 May 1979 at Music Hall, Aberdeen.
"Rowche Rumble" is recorded on 11th June 1979 at Cargo Studios, Rochdale.
Yvonne Pawlett's last appearance with The Fall came on Saturday, 28 July 1979 at the Mayflower Club, Gorton, Manchester. She left to look after her sick dog. Years later she appeared in The Shy Tots releasing a single "Gallery" in 1982.
30th July 1979 "Rowche Rumble", The Fall's third single, is released featuring the new line up of Mark E Smith, Craig Scanlon, Marc Riley, Steve Hanley, Yvonne Pawlett and Mike Leigh.
''Dragnet'', The Fall's second album is recorded on 2 - 4 August 1979 at Cargo Studios, Rochdale and is released on 26 October 1979 featuring the stripped down line up of Mark E Smith, Craig Scanlon, Marc Riley, Steve Hanley and Mike Leigh. Dragnet signalled a sparser, more jagged feel, which on subsequent albums filled out into a more grinding, industrial sound. Also during October 1979 The Fall record "Fiery Jack" at Foel Studios, Wales.

1980

13th January 1980 The Fall release their fourth single, "Fiery Jack", their last record for Step Forward.
Mike Leigh's last gig was on Thursday, 20 March 1980 at Manchester Polytechnic, he apparently left and went back onto the cabaret circuit.
Paul Hanley, Leigh's replacement and Steve Hanley's younger brother, first plays live with The Fall on Friday, 21 March 1980 Electric Ballroom, London.
5th May 1980 ''Totale's Turns'' LP released on Rough Trade. The live album (apart from 2 tracks) documents the band during various appearances, with Smith announcing last orders at the bar and berating band members and audience throughout.
On 8th May 1980 The Fall record "How I Wrote Elastic Man" at Cargo Studios, Rochdale.
In mid June 1980 The Fall tour The Netherlands with drummer Steve Davis. He stood in for Paul Hanley while he took his O levels.
The Fall release their fifth single on 11 July 1980 titled "How I Wrote Elastic Man" and is the first release to feature the line up of Mark E Smith, Craig Scanlon, Marc Riley, Steve Hanley and Paul Hanley.
November 17th 1980 ''Grotesque'' Lp released recorded at Cargo Studios, Rochdale and Street Level, London. With the album came a significant improvement in production and content, which continued throughout the period.
In 1978, 1979 & 1980 The Fall played the Deeply Vale Festivals and Mark E Smith said in a 2004 TV interview that the Deeply Vale events were his all time favourite festivals despite in later years having performed at many larger festivals. Smith also said his favourite place to record albums was in Rochdale which has featured heavily throughout their career as a town where The Fall have gone to record initially at Cargo / Suite Sixteen and later at Gracieland.

1981

''Slates'' is recorded during February 1981.
''Slates'', the mini 10" album, released 24 April 1981, their last recording for Rough Trade. Several of the tracks include Dave Tucker on clarinet, he had appeared with The Fall on numerous occasions in a live capacity.
May - July 1981 The Fall tour America with the line up of Mark E. Smith, Craig Scanlon, Marc Riley, Steve Hanley and Karl Burns on drums. U.S. immigration said Paul Hanley was too young to play America's "21 and over" clubs.
September 1981 Karl Burns appears as a second drummer with The Fall for the first time and ''77 - Early Years - 79'' LP (a Step Forward compilation) is released. The Fall also begin recording of Hex Enduction Hour in Hijorite, Reykjavik, Iceland during September.
On 13th November 1981 The Fall release their sixth single called "Lie Dream Of A Casino Soul" on Kamera Records, recorded in London and featuring the line up Mark E. Smith, Craig Scanlon, Marc Riley, Steve Hanley, Paul Hanley and Karl Burns.
The Hex Enduction Hour recording sessions continue in December at the disused Regal Cinema, Hitchin, England.

1982

On 8th March 1982 ''Hex Enduction Hour'' is released on Kamera Records, recorded during Spetember at Hijorite, Reykjavik, Iceland and December in Hitchin, England. ''Live in London 1980'' cassette only live album is released later in the month on Chaos Tapes having been recorded at Acklam Hall, London on Thursday, 11 December 1980.
The Fall's seventh single is released 19 April 1982 titled "Look, Know" on Kamera, recorded at Hijorite, Reykjavik, Iceland during September 1981.
May 1982 ''A Part of America Therein'' live LP released on Cottage Records, having been recorded during their 1981 tour of America.
''Room to Live'' is recorded at Cargo Studios, Rochdale during June and July 1982.
On 27th September 1982 ''Room to Live'' album released on Kamera.
Marc Riley's final appearance with The Fall is on Wednesday, 22 December 1982 at the Lesser Free Trade Hall, Manchester. Riley went on to form The Creepers.

1983

1983 was a year of changes in The Fall camp, firstly it was the first time The Fall had recorded and gigged after the expulsion of guitarist Marc Riley a band member for the previous 4 years. 1983 also marked The Fall's return to Rough Tade Records, due to Kamera's impending bankruptcy and after being promised better treatment this time around.
On 7 June 1983, Rough Trade Records issued The Fall's 9th single The Man Whose Head Expanded, recorded in London and on 19 September 1983 issued the 10th single and double pack Kicker Conspiracy again recorded in London. Bizarrely in November 1983 Kamera Records issued around 2-3 thousand copies of the planned 1982 single Marquis Cha Cha recorded during june and july of 1982 at Cargo Studios, Rochdale, the release date having been put back from September 1982 due to Kamera's financial troubles, making it The Fall's 11th single issue.
1983 heralded another dramatic change with the arrival of Smith's American girlfriend and later wife, Californian Brix Smith (born Laura Elise Salenger and named after the track Guns Of Brixton by The Clash, due to her liking of it), as guitarist alongside Craig Scanlon. Brix's first live appearnace being on Wednesday, 21 September 1983 at the Hellfire Club, Wakefield.
A last album for Rough Trade Records, before the friendship soured, ''Perverted by Language'', recorded at Pluto Studios, Manchester, is released 5th December 1983 was the first to record by The Fall to feature Brix E Smith. Also released in December 1983 was the live album In A Hole, recorded during The Fall's tour of New Zealand in 1982, on Flying Nun Records.

1990s

With Brix's departure in 1989, Bramah returned briefly for 1990s ''Extricate'', the first of the Fall's three albums for Phonogram Records. Bramah and Schofield left in advance of 1991's ''Shift-Work''. Dave Bush joined on keyboards for 1992's '', followed by the band's return to an independent record label for ''The Infotainment Scan'' (1993), ''Middle Class Revolt'' (1994) and ''Cerebral Caustic'' (1995). The latter album saw the unexpected return of Smith's ex-wife Brix, who left again in 1996. With Bush gone and Scanlon sacked after 16 years (a decision later regretted by Smith), 1996 saw the arrival on keyboards, guitars and computers of Julia Nagle for ''The Light User Syndrome''. That year also saw the start of a torrent of compilations of live, demo and alternate versions of songs, on the Fall's new label Receiver Records.
In 1995 and 1996 The Fall played at the Phoenix Festival in Stratford, England - the 1996 appearance being one of much surprise to many fans as they were not scheduled to play. They followed novelty keyboardist, Margarita Pracatan. The next album, ''Levitate'' (1997), toyed with drum and bass and polarised opinion (long-serving drummer Simon Wolstencroft left halfway through the recording sessions, and was replaced by Karl Burns). Steven Wells in the NME (11 October 1997) wrote, "Imagine pop without perimeters. Imagine rock without rules. Imagine art without the wank. If you've never heard The Fall then ''Levitate'' will be either the best or the worst record you've ever heard." The group was temporarily reduced to Smith and Nagle when a disastrous U.S. tour ended in April 1998 with a violent onstage row and the departure of Hanley (bassist for 19 years), Burns and guitarist Tommy Crooks. The following day, Smith was arrested and charged with assaulting Nagle in their hotel.^[5]

2000–present

From this nadir, the Fall achieved another comeback with Smith and Nagle being joined by Neville Wilding on guitar, Karen Leatham and later Adam Halal on bass, and Tom Head on drums for the albums ''The Marshall Suite'' (1999) and ''The Unutterable'' (2000). Further rifts followed in 2001, in which the new lineup of Smith, Ben Pritchard (guitar), Jim Watts (bass) and Spencer Birtwistle (drums) released ''Are You Are Missing Winner'' to mixed reviews. In September 2002 Elena Poulou - Smith's third and current wife - filled the vacant position of keyboards player. ''The Real New Fall LP'' (reputedly renamed from ''Country on the Click'' after an earlier mix of the album appeared on Internet file sharing networks) followed in 2003, with a slightly different mix and some extra tracks for the US version. ''Interim'', was released in November, 2004. In 2002 ''Q'' magazine named The Fall one of the "50 Bands to See Before You Die".
In January 2005, The Fall (described as "one of the most enigmatic, idiosyncratic and chaotic garage bands of the last 30 years") were the subject of a BBC Four TV documentary, ''The Fall: The Wonderful and Frightening World of Mark E Smith''. Later that year, a 97-song box set containing all of the sessions the group recorded for John Peel's BBC Radio 1 programme was issued to widespread acclaim. Their 25th studio album, entitled ''Fall Heads Roll'', was issued on 3 October 2005, preceded by a single "I Can Hear the Grass Grow" (a cover of a song by The Move) on 6 September 2005 (US) and 19 September 2005 (UK). Ben Pritchard (guitar), Steve Trafford (bass), Spencer Birtwistle (drums), all of whom played on ''Fall Heads Roll'', left the group somewhat acrimoniously during the group's Summer 2006 tour of the US after just four dates. In a US radio interview, Smith described their departures as "the best thing that ever happened" to The Fall, although it was some months before he confirmed that they would not be returning to the group.^[6]
From May 9, 2006, Smith and Poulou were joined by Tim Presley (guitar), Rob Barbato (bass) and Orpheo McCord (drums) who joined them for the remainder of the US tour, a flagship show in Manchester held in June 2006 and an appearance at the Oya Festival in Oslo, Norway in August 2006. Presley and Barbato are members of the band Darker My Love while McCord was one half of the experimental duo The Hill. With Barbato and Presley fulfilling Darker My Love commitments back in the US in late August, the first 'squad rotation system' of Fall musicians emerged with new members Pete Greenway (guitar) of West Midlands group Pubic Fringe (more recently known as Das Fringe), and Dave Spurr (bass) making their Fall debuts alongside Smith, Poulou and McCord at the Reading and Leeds festivals in August 2006. Since that time, the group has taken many forms on stage, at various times incorporating either one or even two of the bass guitarists alongside just the one lead guitarist. Drummer Keiron Melling has since been added to the 'squad' having replaced McCord for a Dublin show in October 2006. Melling and Spurr play together in the group MotherJohn.

Influence

Of the group's influence, Stephen Thomas Erlewine wrote that "the Fall, like many cult bands, inspired a new generation of underground bands, ranging from waves of sound-alike indie rockers in the U.K. to acts in America and New Zealand, which is only one indication of the size and dedication of their small, devoted fan base."^[7] The Jazz Butcher's debut single from 1983 was "Southern Mark Smith". According to the band's singer/songwriter Pat Fish, "Mark E. Smith is so stereotypically northern that the very phrase 'southern Mark Smith' comes across to me like 'lush Sahara' or 'wise and noble Bush'."^[8] Sonic Youth covered three Fall songs (and "Victoria" by the Kinks, also covered by the Fall) in a 1988 Peel Session, which was released in 1990 as the "4 Tunna Brix" EP on Sonic Youth's own Goofin' label. The 1990s indie acts Pavement and Elastica (Smith contributed vocals their final EP and album) showed an influence of The Fall, while Suede parodied the band with "Implement Yeah!", a song found on the cassette edition of their 1999 single "Electricity". The Fall is referenced in the Jens Lekman song "Maple Leaves" with the lyrics ''"And when she talked about her fall, I thought she talked about Mark E. Smith"''. The Electric Soft Parade album ''No Need to Be Downhearted'' is named after a lyric from The Fall song "15 Ways". The Fall have also had a profound influence over groups such as Franz Ferdinand, The Smiths, LCD Soundsystem and The Happy Mondays^[9]

Fall Songs in other media

★ The 1982 song "Hip Priest" was used as the soundtrack to the climax of the 1991 film ''The Silence of the Lambs''.

★ From Saturday 6 August 2005, The Fall's "Theme From Sparta F.C." (2003) has been used as the theme music to the Final Score section on BBC Television's afternoon sports show Grandstand. Also, Smith was recently invited to read out the classified football results on the BBCi interactive service "Score".

★ "Touch Sensitive" from ''The Marshall Suite'' was used in the UK as a soundtrack to an advert for the Vauxhall Corsa, for which Smith claims he was not paid.

★ ''This Morning With Richard Not Judy'' – a late-nineties British comedy series – had a regular sketch involving a creature called The Curious Orange. Its name was derived from the song ''Kurious Oranj'' (from ''I Am Kurious Oranj''), which was played at the beginning of each sketch. The title is a play on the Swedish arthouse film I am curious (Yellow). Stewart Lee, one half of the comedy partnership who wrote the show, is an ardent Fall fan and regularly promotes the group in his articles for such publications as The Wire and The Guardian.

★ "Blindness", a track the 2005 LP ''Fall Heads Roll'', is heard in the 2007 U.S. television ad campaign for the Mitsubishi Outlander.

★ Rod Stewart is reported to have used the Fall's "Totally Wired" as introductory music before he took to the stage.

★ UK comedians Frank Skinner and David Baddiel covered ''How I Wrote Elastic Man'' as part of their ''Unplanned'' series on ITV in 2005, after Skinner had immersed himself in the band's wealth of material.

Discography

:''For a detailed discography, see The Fall discography.''

Studio albums

★ ''Live at the Witch Trials'' (1979)

★ ''Dragnet'' (1979)

★ ''Grotesque (After the Gramme)'' (1980)

★ ''Slates'' (1981)

★ ''Hex Enduction Hour'' (1982)

★ ''Room to Live (Undilutable Slang Truth!)'' (1982)

★ ''Perverted by Language'' (1983)

★ ''The Wonderful and Frightening World of The Fall'' (1984)

★ ''This Nation's Saving Grace'' (1985)

★ ''Bend Sinister'' (1986)

★ ''The Frenz Experiment'' (1988)

★ ''I Am Kurious, Oranj'' (1988)

★ ''Extricate'' (1990)

★ ''Shift-Work'' (1991)

★ '' (1992)

★ ''The Infotainment Scan'' (1993)

★ ''Middle Class Revolt'' (1994)

★ ''Cerebral Caustic'' (1995)

★ ''The Light User Syndrome'' (1996)

★ ''Levitate'' (1997)

★ ''The Marshall Suite'' (1999)

★ ''The Unutterable'' (2000)

★ ''Are You Are Missing Winner'' (2001)

★ ''The Real New Fall LP (Formerly Country on the Click)'' (2003)

★ ''Fall Heads Roll'' (2005)

★ ''Reformation Post TLC'' (2007)

Sound files

Year	Song title	Sample	Album	Label
1980	"Totally Wired"		''Grotesque (After the Gramme)''	Rough Trade Records
1981	"Leave the Capitol"		''Slates''	Rough Trade Records
1981	"Middle Mass"		''Slates''	Rough Trade Records
1982	"Hip Priest"		''Hex Enduction Hour''	Kamera
1984	"Elves"		''The Wonderful and Frightening World of The Fall''	Beggars Banquet
1985	"Paint Work"		''This Nation's Saving Grace''	Beggars Banquet
1987	"Hit the North"		''The Frenz Experiment''	Beggars Banquet
1987	"Carry Bag Man"		''The Frenz Experiment''	Beggars Banquet

References

1. http://z1.invisionfree.com/forums/thefall/index.php?s=14d13216a3415c451aa645cf0d3b1253&showtopic=6911&st=25
2. "Festive 50s". BBC Radio 1. Retrieved on 30 June, 2007.
3. http://www.visi.com/fall/gigography/gig07.html
4. Record Collector, no. 336, May 2007 - Smith confirmed in an interview that McCord was now a full-time member.
5. "The Fall's Mark E Smith" Tortorici, Frank
6. "Mark E Smith on drugs, fascists, and lazy musicians" McNaughton, Allan
7. http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=11:lyh9kect7q7x~T1
8. http://www.jazzbutcher.com/htdb/lyrics/smith.html
9. http://www.stylusmagazine.com/reviews/the-electric-soft-parade/no-need-to-be-downhearted.htm

Bibliography

★ Smith, Mark E (1985). ''The Fall Lyrics''. Berlin: Lough Press.

★ Edge, Brian (1989). ''Paintwork: A Portrait of The Fall''. London: Omnibus Press. ISBN 0-7119-1740-X

★ Ford, Simon (2003). ''Hip Priest: The Story Of Mark E Smith And The Fall''. London: Quartet Books. ISBN 0-7043-8167-2

★ Middles, Mick & Smith, Mark E (2003). ''The Fall''. London: Omnibus Press. ISBN 0-7119-9762-4

★ Thompson, Dave (2003). ''A User's Guide To The Fall''. London: Helter Skelter Publishing. ISBN 1-900924-57-9.

External links

★ Official website of The Fall

★ Unofficial website of The Fall

★ Official MySpace page for The Fall 'Reformation Post TLC'

★ The Pseud Mag fanzine

★ The Pseud Mag forum

★ The Biggest Library Yet - old, now defunct, fanzine

★ ''Guardian'' article, Jan 2005

★ ''Observer'' interview with Mark E Smith on January 16 2005

★ Punkcast#431 video from Knitting Factory NYC April 9 2004

★ Theme from Sparta FC video of The Fall performing on the last night at Hammersmith Palais on April 1 2007

★ The Fall Live Gig repository An attempt to provide recollections of every The Fall gig

★ Atomic Soup The website of Tony Friel, founding member of The Fall.

★ Mark E. Smith interview on KCRW radio