Thompson Twins

Thompson Twins (named after the detectives Thomson and Thompson in the Tintin comics) was formed in 1977 in Sheffield by [a=Tom Bailey] and guitarists [a=John Roog] and [a=Peter Dodd], with drummer [a=Chris Bell (3)] joining soon afterwards after some line-up changes. They arrived in London and self-released their debut single [url=http://www.discogs.com/Thompson-Twins-Squares-And-Triangles/release/2014184]"Squares And Triangles"[/url] in 1980. After their 1981 debut album, they recruited [a=The Soft Boys]'s bassist [a=Matthew Seligman], New Zealand saxophonist [a=Alannah Currie], and percussionist [a=Joe Leeway], forming a septet. After the group completed their second album, "Set", Dodd and Roog left to form the short lived act [a=Big View]. Seligman also left the group to pursue a career as a session musician (for [a=The Waterboys], [a=David Bowie] etc.). As a trio, Thompson Twins reached their commercial peak with their [url=http://www.discogs.com/Thompson-Twins-Into-The-Gap/release/56303]"Into The Gap"[/url] album and the five singles that it spawned, managing to conquer the American market in the process. Joe Leeway went solo in May 1986 and the group continued as a duo, releasing three more albums. The band released eight albums in total. In 1993, Bailey and Currie started the electronic project [a=Babble].