The B-52's (CD - 1979)

The B-52s: Kate Pierson (vocals, guitar, organ, keyboard bass); Cindy Wilson (vocals, guitar, percussion); Fred Schneider (vocals, keyboards, walkie talkie); Ricky Wilson (guitar, smoke alarm); Keith Strickland (drums, percussion, Claire sounds).

Recorded at Compass Point Studios, Nassau, Bahamas.

Also available with WILD PLANET on 1 cassette.

Formed in Athens, Georgia, the B-52's emerged from this nominal outback with 'Rock Lobster', a quirky pop song that drew critical praise and engendered a major recording contract. The B-52's maintained the originality of that debut single, with staccato voices, vox guitar and surreal lyrics. Drawing on 60s kitsch ephemera, both aurally and visually, the quintet created a unified image, but one reflecting post-modernism rather than nostalgia. A cracked sense of humour lay at the core of this album, but the group's infectious joy and sense of purpose blend with danceable rhythms to ensure a quality more enduring than mere wackiness. minimize