Jellybabies (band)
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| The Jellybabies | |
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 The Jellybabies, 1982
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| Background information | |
| Origin | Sydney |
| Genre(s) | Pop music |
| Years active | 1981 - 1984 |
| Former members | |
| Rob Hughes Chris Betcher Andrew Wilkinson Maryane Slavich Suzy Mudronja |
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The Jellybabies were a Sydney based Australian pop band from the 1980s. The band was started in 1981 by Rob Hughes (keyboards, vocals), Chris Betcher (bass, drum machine programming) and Andrew Wilkinson (vocals) and for the majority of its existence operated as a three piece pop band, however Maryanne Slavich (keyboards, vocals) and Suzy Mudronja (keyboards, vocals) were also part of the band at various times.
[edit] History
The group had minor hits on the Sydney independent music scene with the songs "Swimming Lessons" and "In Case of Emergency Break my Heart". They also received playtime on radio station 2JJJ with a cover version of the Kraftwerk song, "The Model". Swimming Lessons also appeared on a compilation flexidisk released in a 1981 art school publication called Art-Cool-Mad.
The Jellybabies made regular appearances on the Sydney pub music scene between 1981 and 1984, and their shows were often accompanied by audio-visual slide shows. Basic instrumentation consisted of a Roland TR808 Drum machine, Roland JP4 synth, Roland Strings synth, bass guitar and an assortment of percussion toys. Both Slavich and Mudronja contributed other keyboards to the band during their stays, however after Slavich's departure the group returned to playing live on stage backed with a TEAC 4 track reel-to-reel player.
The band's hallmark sound was based on a driving drum machine beat, a notable absence of guitars, and a synth-based, bouncy pop feel, often using staccato, syncopated jabs of synthetic sound. Many of the band's original songs were deceptively complex thanks to Hughes' classical music training.
Other original songs by the group included "Under the Glass Table", "Where Do We Live?", "A Boyscout Always Is", "Salon Syndrome", "Adi & Eva", "1984", "Swimming Lessons" and "In case of Emergency Break my Heart". "In Case of Emergency Break My Heart" also placed second in a 1983 Australia-wide demotape contest.
Hughes is a graduate of the Sydney Institute of Education Music School in Oatley NSW, while Betcher, Wilkinson and Mudronja all met at the City Art Institute art school in Paddington NSW. Hughes is currently teaching music and he has performed with a number of choral groups, including a stint with the Australian Opera. Betcher is currently teaching digital media and computing. Wilkinson is working in the television industry as a producer/editor.
After the band broke up, its members moved into a number of other musical ventures including The Get Set, MD and the Surgeons of Soul, Dance Park and Three Blind Whites.
