Beatmasters

The Beatmasters
Origin London, England
Genres Electronica, house, hip house, dance-pop
Years active 1986–present
Labels Rhythm King
SBK
EMI Records
London Records
ARS Entertainment Belgium Loverush Digital
Sire/Warner Bros. Records
Associated acts Bomb the Bass, S'Express

The Beatmasters are an English electronic music group who were successful as artists in their own right in the UK in the late 1980s and early 1990s. They then went on to produce and remix records for many other groups.[1] As artists, the team had a string of chart hit singles, including "Burn It Up", "Hey DJ! (I Can't Dance to that Music You're Playing)", "Who's in the House" and "Rok Da House", the latter having been recorded in 1986, being one of the earliest examples of hip house, a subgenre of house music which features rap vocals performed over a house rhythm track.

Their initial success brought comparisons with pop record producers Stock Aitken Waterman,[2] but the Beatmasters cited rival producers Coldcut as their major competitor.[3]

Formation

Manda Glanfield and Paul Carter (both regulars on the London club scene) were working in the TV commercial jingle industry. Signing to the burgeoning record label Rhythm King, the duo joined labelmates Bomb the Bass and S'Express in regularly appearing in the Top 40 of the UK Singles Chart during 1988 and 1989.

The group had seven UK chart singles, including the #14 hit "Burn It Up", which featured P. P. Arnold and "Rok Da House", with the Cookie Crew, which was their first and biggest hit, peaking at #5 in early 1988. Another notable single was "Hey DJ - I Can't Dance to that Music You're Playing" / "Ska Train", which introduced the rapper/singer Betty Boo to the general public and gave the group a #7 chart hit in 1989.[4]

They released two albums under The Beatmasters moniker: Anywayawanna (1989) and Life and Soul (1992). These albums were later repackaged on BMG records under the title Anywayawanna - The Best of The Beatmasters (2000).

Carter and Glanfield forged a successful writing, remixing and production career. Their first success as a duo came in 1991 with a reworking of the re-released Shamen single "Move Any Mountain/Progen91" which charted at #4. In 1992, production work commenced on the Shamen album Boss Drum, which included the singles "LSI (Love Sex Intelligence)", "Phorever People" and the highly controversial "Ebeneezer Goode" - the latter spending a month at #1 on the UK Singles Chart.[5]

They went on to write, produce and remix for many other artists including Marc Almond, The Pet Shop Boys, Blur, Roachford, Betty Boo, Naomi Campbell, Adam Rickitt, Moby, Aswad, Eternal, Tina Turner, David Bowie, Scooch and Girls Aloud. Still working, The Beatmasters continue to produce dance, pop and rock music.

Members

Discography

Singles

Year Single Peak positions Album
UK
[6]		 IRE NED BEL
(FLA)		 FRA GER
[7]		 AUS NZ
1987 "Rok Da House" (featuring The Cookie Crew) 5 17 15 32 35 — 37 7 Anywayawanna
1988 "Burn It Up" (featuring P. P. Arnold) 14 15 54 — — — — 24
1989 "Who's In The House" (featuring MC Merlin) 8 15 45 40 — — — —
"Hey DJ!/I Can't Dance (To That Music You're Playing) / Ska Train" (featuring Betty Boo) 7 17 14 35 — 93 — 10
"Warm Love" (featuring Claudia Fontaine) 51 24 79 — — — — —
1991 "Dunno What It Is About You" (featuring Elaine Vassell) 43 — — — — — — — Life & Soul
"Boulevard Of Broken Dreams" (featuring JC-001) 62 — — — — — — —
"—" denotes releases that did not chart or were not released.

Albums

Selected productions

Selected remixes

References

  1. ↑ Artist Direct Profile, http://www.artistdirect.com/nad/music/artist/bio/0,,402277,00.html#bio , retrieved on 27 June 2007
  2. ↑ IMO Records. "The Beatmasters Biography", IMO Records, London, Retrieved on 25 January 2012.
  3. ↑ Record Mirror magazine, "20 Facts You Didn't Know About the Beatmasters", 12 August 1990
  4. 1 2 Roberts, David (2006). British Hit Singles & Albums (19th ed.). London: Guinness World Records Limited. p. 50. ISBN 1-904994-10-5.
  5. ↑ Roberts, David (2006). British Hit Singles & Albums (19th ed.). London: Guinness World Records Limited. p. 493. ISBN 1-904994-10-5.
  6. ↑ "Official Charts Company: Beatmasters". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 2014-04-04.
  7. ↑ "Beatmasters - German Chart". charts.de. Retrieved 2014-04-03.
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