Pool Of Sound - Echo & The Bunnymen

L to R, Pete de Freitas, Ian McCulloch, Les Pattinson & Will Sergeant.

Ian McCulloch began his career as one third of the 'Crucial Three' before joining forces with guitarist Will Sergeant and bass player Les Pattinson to form 'Echo & The Bunnymen'. Will invited Ian over to his house to jam. They had two guitars and the drum machine, but no vocals or lyrics but had an invitation to play at a private party, supporting Julian Cope's new band. Les Pattinson offered to play bass, having never played before and without an identity, Cope introduced them as 'Echo and the Bunnymen', a name plucked from a list of alternative names they had. They were a initially a group of three with Les Pattinson on bass guitar, Will Sergeant on guitar, and Ian McCulloch as vocals and rhythm guitarist, plus a drum machine.
In November 1978, 'Echo & The Bunnymen' made their debut at Eric's club as the opening act for 'The Teardrop Explodes' playing only one song, a 20-minute version of 'Monkeys' which at the time was entitled 'I Bagsy Yours'. Their debut single was released by Zoo Records in 1979, 'The Pictures On My Wall'.
A debut album 'Crocodiles' followed in 1980, by which time the drum machine had been replaced by Trinidad-born Pete de Freitas, and it reached No.17 in the Top 20 receiving critical acclaim. A second album in 1981, 'Heaven Up Here' reached No.10 position and was an even bigger success. Hugh Jones was promoted from engineer to producer on the album which went on to win Best Album and Best Dressed LP accolades at the NME Awards, and has a place in Rolling Stone's list of the 500 greatest albums of all time, despite the band’s modest success Stateside.
In June 1982, they had their first significant UK hit single with 'The Back Of Love' and the following month performed at the international arts festival 'WOMAD'. The once shy McCulloch had evolved into an entertainingly opinionated frontman, earning him the nickname 'Mac the Mouth'. Their first Top 10 hit 'The Cutter' was from the parent album 'Porcupine' which charted at No.2 firmly establishing them as a chart act. McCulloch claimed 'Porcupine', "a classic autobiographical album, the most honest thing that I’d ever written or sung."

Two more Top 20 singles followed with 'Never Stop' and 'The Killing Moon', which McCulloch has described as 'the greatest song ever written'. It was from the 1984 album 'Ocean Rain', which charted at No.4 and is considered to be the band's landmark album as it blended sublime balladry with ornate orchestrations. 'Ocean Rain' spawned more hits in the form of the rousing 'Silver' ( No.30) and 'Seven Seas' ( No.16) and the following year 'Bring on the Dancing Horses' ( No.21). Arguably the magnum opus, 'Ocean Rain' had a promo campaign that was anchored by a quote from McCulloch, never a master of the understatement, describing it as, "the greatest album ever made." Most of it was recorded with a 35-piece orchestra in Paris, augmented by further sessions in Liverpool and Bath. According to Sergeant: “It’s all pretty dark”. He wasn’t wrong, but it didn't matter with this album, the Bunnymen became music immortals, confirming their place in the gloomier recesses of British pop.

The band toured Scandinavia in April 1985 but found it difficult to better 'Ocean Rain' and, to make things worse, Pete de Freitas who was suffering from mental health and drug problems left the band and moved to America. Their next album, the self-titled 'Echo & The Bunnymen' in 1987 was initially recorded with ex-'ABC' drummer David Palmer, but when de Freitas returned in 1986, it was largely re-recorded and sold well when released in 1987 reaching No.4 in the charts and was also the only LP to have significant sales in America.
Having "already played the game", the band were on the verge of splitting up. Following a final gig in Fukuoka, Japan in 1988, McCulloch's father died while the singer was on the flight home and he quit the band that year. A year later, De Freitas was killed in a motorcycle accident; he was only 27.

However in 1994, McCulloch and Sergeant began working together again under the name 'Electrafixion' and in 1997 Pattinson rejoined the duo, meaning the three surviving members of the original 'Bunnymen' line-up were now working together again. The trio resurrected the 'Echo & the Bunnymen' name and released the album 'Evergreen' in 1997 which reached the UK Top 10. According to Les Pattinson the reunion was "like a new lease of life." Anchoring a robust set is the single 'Nothing Lasts Forever', described by McCulloch as "the most important song I've ever written" and featuring backing vocals by Liam Gallagher. With Ian McCulloch and Will Sergeant now the fulcrum of the band, Hugh Jones was back behind the desk on the 2005 'Siberia', an album some say was 'Echo & the Bunnymen's' best since 'Ocean Rain' and a personal favourite of MacCullough's. Their latest album 'The Stars & The Oceans & The Moon' was released in Autumn 2018 with Q Magazine calling it "Magical."

Bill Drummond, their one-time manager has described them as "the greatest rock band of all time."

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