Art Bergmann
| Art Bergmann | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Background information | |
| Birth name | Arthur Frank Bergmann |
| Born |
February 8, 1953 Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada |
| Genres | punk rock, alternative rock |
| Occupation(s) | singer, songwriter, guitarist |
| Instruments | Vocals, guitar |
| Years active | 1970s–present |
| Associated acts | Young Canadians, Los Popularos, Poisoned |
Arthur Frank "Art" Bergmann (born February 8, 1953 Vancouver, British Columbia)[1] is a Canadian rock singer-songwriter who was one of the key figures in Canadian punk rock in the late 1970s.[2]
Punk bands
Bergmann began his musical career with an Abbotsford band called the Mount Lehman Grease Band. After Mount Lehman folded, he founded his own band, called the Notorious Smorg Brothers, which he stocked with a myriad of different support artists.
Bergmann was later the lead singer and songwriter for Vancouver punk stalwarts Young Canadians (formerly The K-Tels). Although the Young Canadians only recorded two independent EPs and a single before breaking up, their song "Hawaii" (co-written with Ross Carpenter) is one of the classic Canadian punk anthems. Although long out of print, the EPs, along with some unreleased live material, were reissued in 1995 as the album No Escape.
Solo career
In the 1980s, Bergmann played with Vancouver independent bands Los Popularos and Poisoned before the latter band signed to Duke Street Records in 1988.[2] Due to confusion with the popular American band Poison which had marred the band's most recent tour, however, the label decided to bill the band's releases as solo albums by Bergmann.[2]
He released his debut solo album, the John Cale-produced Crawl With Me, that year. 1990's Sexual Roulette, produced by Chris Wardman, became Bergmann's mainstream breakthrough, spawning the rock radio hit "Bound for Vegas" and garnering him a deal with Polygram Records.[3]
He followed up with a self-titled album on Polygram in 1991, again garnering significant radio airplay for the singles "Faithlessly Yours" and "Message From Paul". He moved to Sony Records for 1995's What Fresh Hell Is This?, which won that year's Juno Award for Best Alternative Rock Album. However, his record sales, while solid, were not spectacular, and Sony did not renew his contract.
The 1998 Design Flaw, produced by Peter J. Moore and released independently, was a reworking of tracks from his first three albums, plus a cover of Gram Parsons' "Sin City". The songs featured Bergmann on acoustic guitar, with backing by Chris Spedding on electric. Bergmann then re-released 1984's Vultura Freeway in 2000, with helpful liner notes from Pointed Sticks front man Nick Jones. In 2009 Poisoned bassist Ray Fulber issued the cd Lost Art Bergmann, which featured early demo versions of most of the songs that appeared on the 1988 John Cale produced album. These demo recordings served as a tonic to many fans as they have a more guitar driven sound than the keyboard heavy Cale produced sessions.
Bergmann covered "Prisoners of Rock and Roll" on the Neil Young tribute Borrowed Tunes, and contributed a song for the soundtrack to Terminal City Ricochet.
On August 26, 2014, Bergmann released Songs for the Underclass through the independent label (weewerk).[4]
Film appearances
He has also appeared in two Bruce McDonald films, Highway 61 as Otto and Hard Core Logo as himself, and as a musician in Conjurer of Monikers. Additionally, he was featured in Bloodied but Unbowed, a film featured at the 2010 Vancouver Documentary Film Festival.
References
- ↑ Background at Art Bergmann
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 Michael Barclay, Ian A.D. Jack and Jason Schneider, Have Not Been the Same: The Can-Rock Renaissance 1985-1995. ECW Press. ISBN 978-1-55022-992-9.
- ↑ "Bergmann, Art". The Canadian Pop Encyclopedia. Jam!. Retrieved 2008-06-24.
- ↑ Hudson, Alex. "Art Bergmann 'Songs for the Underclass' (EP stream)". Exclaim!. Retrieved 2014-10-01.