Blueboy

Reading, England-based Blueboy were definition of the <a href="spotify:search:label%3A%22Sarah+Records%22">Sarah Records</a> indie pop sound, with jangly guitars, hushed arrangements, and softly introspective lyricism, all wrapped in a dreamy melancholy. The band was formed in 1989 and was steadily active for ten years before splintering into various projects. In that time, however, Blueboy released three studio albums and far more singles and EPs, being part of the <a href="spotify:search:label%3A%22Sarah+Records%22">Sarah Records</a> branch of twee pop where singles were intentionally kept in a separate arena from LPs. After their disbanding, multiple archival releases surfaced, including Peel Sessions recordings and 2023's Singles 1991-1998, the first release to compile all of Blueboy's songs from their numerous 7"s.

Blueboy was formed by singer Keith Girdler and guitarist Paul Stewart, who had previously played together in the little-known band <a href="spotify:artist:1WLrpXcPjfxQzGmIjwhkJQ">Feverfew</a>. Upon recording the first Blueboy demo in a friend's shed, the duo sent a copy of the song "Clearer" to the famed <a href="spotify:search:label%3A%22Sarah+Records%22">Sarah Records</a> label, which agreed to release the track as a single in the fall of 1991; with the subsequent additions of second guitarist <a href="spotify:artist:6h21O1UstuLB8eIFGyEzPQ">Harvey Williams</a> (of <a href="spotify:artist:3KH6DLHeoFZgVbtKiLXb6L">Field Mice</a>/<a href="spotify:artist:6EGQKKjGZOxDJ1iy7Pw25M">Another Sunny Day</a> fame), singer/cellist Gemma Townlet, bassist Mark Cousens, and drummer Lloyd Haggar, the group returned in the middle of 1992 with their next single, "Popkiss," soon followed by the full-length If Wishes Were Horses. Resurfacing the following year with the singles "Meet Johnny Rave" and "Some Gorgeous Accident," Blueboy issued their second LP, Unisex, in the spring of 1994; soon afterward, their lineup shifted, with Townlet assuming bass duties and Martin Rose signing on to play drums for the 1995 single "Dirty Mags." When <a href="spotify:search:label%3A%22Sarah%22">Sarah</a> folded later that year, label co-owner Matt Haynes formed the new <a href="spotify:search:label%3A%22Shinkansen%22">Shinkansen</a> imprint, bringing Blueboy with him to release 1996's "Love Yourself." By this time the lineup was again reduced to the original duo of Girdler and Stewart, with vocalist Cath Close, bassist James Neville, and drummer Ian Gardner completing the lineup for 1998's The Bank of England, the band's final studio album. Girdler and Stewart also recorded as Arabesque and later Beaumont. Diagnosed with cancer in 2004, Keith Girdler died of the disease on May 15, 2007.

In 2021, Blueboy's Peel Sessions recordings were released on a double 7", marking the first time these versions of the songs were available on vinyl. In 2023, Singles 1991-1998 collected all the band's singles and their respective B-sides, for a total of 21 tracks all told. ~ Jason Ankeny, Rovi