| The Railway Children | |
|---|---|
| Origin | Wigan, Greater Manchester, England |
| Genres | Alternative rock, new wave |
| Years active | 1985–1991, 1996–2010 |
| Labels | Factory Virgin Ether |
| Members | |
| Gary Newby | |
| Past members | |
| Stephen Hull Brian Bateman Guy Keegan |
|
The Railway Children are a British alternative rock band, formed in Wigan in 1984, by Gary Newby (songwriter/vocals/guitar), Brian Bateman (rhythm/guitar), Guy Keegan (drums), and Stephen Hull (bass).[1]
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Factory Records recorded their debut single A Gentle Sound in 1986, followed by their debut album Reunion Wilderness in 1987, both releases topped the UK Indie Chart, along with their second single, "Brighter".[1] They left Factory shortly afterwards and were signed to Virgin Records.[1]
1988 saw the release of their second album, "Recurrence", on Virgin Records, and support tours with R.E.M. in Europe (Work Tour) and The Sugarcubes in the U.S. A national chart hit eluded them with singles "In The Meantime", "Somewhere South" and "Over and Over". In 1990, they released Native Place, an album that saw the band take a more power pop direction, with keyboard textures coming more to the fore then previously. "Every Beat of the Heart" became a Top 40 hit in the UK with a peak at #24, and the song became a #1 hit on the newly-founded Modern Rock Tracks chart in the U.S.[2][3]
In 1992, EMI took over Virgin Records, and the band left the label. Two years later, the original line-up broke up, leaving Newby to continue alone.[1] Newby has since released two albums as The Railway Children: Dream Arcade (1997, Ether Records) and Gentle Sound (2002, Ether Records) as well as a Rarities album in 2007, available only by download from his official site (listed below).[1]
Keegan later had a spell in the Wigan based folk-rock band, The Tansads.
Newby spent several years in Japan, writing/arranging music and lyrics for several major Japanese artists, including Anna Tsuchiya, Every Little Thing, V6, (film) Detroit Metal City and (TV) Sailor Moon.