The Chameleons

The Chameleons are:
Mark "Birdy" Burgess - Vocals, Bass
Reg Smithies - Electric & Acoustic Guitar
Dave Fielding - Electric & Acoustic Guitar
John Lever - Drums

Dave does some keyboards (and didgeridoo!), as did Alastair Lewthwaite and then Andy Clegg. Brian Schofield was their original drummer. Martin Jackson replaced Lever when he took a year off in 82-83. They were managed by Tony Skinkiss until May 1985, and thereafter by Tony Fletcher until his death in 1987.

The band formed in 1981 in Middleton, six miles north of Manchester. Before this, Mark had been in the Clichés while Reg and Dave were in Years. (Dave was in a school band called Sen.) Years released a 7", "Come Dancing"; b/w "Red Chevy", "Don't Leave" on their own Tuff Going Records label. The three started without a drummer and got the attention of John Peel. Their first single, "In Shreds" on CBS, made number 42 on John Peel's Festive Fifty in 1982. They originally signed with CBS, but they disagreed with how they should sound. CBS dropped them after the one single, despite encouraging sales. They soon signed with Statik. However, Statik was distributed by Virgin, so they couldn't qualify for the independent charts and were thus overlooked by the music press.

The debut album, "Script of the Bridge", was recorded in Rochdale during a six-week period. The band was really pissed when they found out about he reduced version which was released by MCA in the US. They then became unhappy with Statik and tried to get away from them, but were bound by contractual obligations. After their second album, "What Does Anything Mean? Basically", they signed with Geffen. While signed to Geffen, the band released what was to be their last album together for fifteen years, "Strange Times".

The dawning of a new millenium saw a healing of old woulds and a triumphal live and recorded return starting with a sell out five day residency at old stomping ground 'The Witchwood' in Ashton-under-Lyne. A fifth 'proper' album entitled 'Why Call It Anything' was released in July 2001 and the story continues!

(biography comes from their website)