THE SMIRKS
| Always had that je ne sais quoi |
Irritating little combo with no plans to reform |
The most fun you can have with your shoes on |
| Click here to buy the SMIRKOLOGY album |
| Always had that je ne sais quoi |
Irritating little combo with no plans to reform |
The most fun you can have with your shoes on |
| Click here to buy the SMIRKOLOGY album |
There were not many appearances by The Smirks on radio or television, but we have managed to track down information about some of them. The details are below.
The most significant radio session ever recorded by The Smirks was the John Peel session in April 1978. The four songs recorded and broadcast are available here.
Four songs were Rosemary, Up Eh Up, Julie Julie and Streets. Was this ever broadcast? If so, can someone help me with a copy?
Even less is known about this. Was it ever recorded? It's listed as being on 16th April 1978, the same week as the Peel session, but I have no other information. This is not the same Pete Baker that is currently at Telford FM.
BBC Radio 1 ran a story about The Smirks about the time that the album should have been released, describing the problems the band was having with the record company. The full interview and a transcript are available here.
BBC Radio 4 recorded a documentary called "It's hard work, this rock and roll", which looked at the early history of the band and explored the issues of life on the road for a struggling band. This documentary never made it to air, but a thirteen minute extract from it is available here.
The documentary "Band Of Hope" about The Smirks and "Distant Cousins" drew heavily on the Radio 4 interview above, and was broadcast in 1988.
I'm privileged to be able to offer a copy of "Band Of Hope" for your listening pleasure.
When Spitballs appeared on the Old Grey Whistle Test, it seems that the band in the background apparently playing tennis racquets were actually The Smirks. For some stills of this, and some clues of what was happening, please click here.
On 5th December 1978, I am advised that The Smirks appeared on Mr Roy North's music programme "Get It Together". Apparently Rosemary and Up Eh Up were performed on the show. Does anyone have any sound or video footage of this?
Page last updated by Ian on 16 June 2007