Bananarama

For the band's self-titled album, seeBananarama (album).

Bananarama
Bananarama in 1984 (from left to right:Keren Woodward,Siobhan Fahey,andSara Dallin).
Background information
Origin	London, England
Genres	Pop dance-pop hi-NRG new wave Eurodance
Years active	1980–present
Labels	Deram London A&G Fascination Rhino Live Here Now
Members	Sara Dallin(1980-present) Keren Woodward(1980-present)
Past members	Siobhan Fahey(1980-1988; 2017-2018) Jacquie O'Sullivan(1988-1991)
Website	bananarama.co.uk

Bananaramaare an English pop group formed in London in 1980. The group, originally a trio, consisted of friendsSara Dallin,Siobhan Fahey,andKeren Woodward.Fahey left the group in 1988 and was replaced byJacquie O'Sullivanuntil 1991, when the trio became a duo. Their success on both pop and dance charts saw them listed in theGuinness World Recordsfor achieving the world's highest number of chart entries by an all-female group.Between 1982 and 2009, they had 32 singles reach the Top 50 of theUK Singles Chart.

The group's UK Top 10 hits include "It Ain't What You Do (It's the Way That You Do It)"(1981),"Really Saying Something"(1982),"Shy Boy"(1982),"Na Na Hey Hey Kiss Him Goodbye"(1983),"Cruel Summer"(1983),"Robert De Niro's Waiting..."(1984),"Love in the First Degree"(1987),"I Want You Back"in 1988, and charity track"Help!"in 1989. In 1986, they had aUS No. 1with another of their UK Top 10 hits, a cover of "Venus".In total, they had eleven singles reach the USBillboardHot 100(1983–1988).They are associated with theMTV-drivenSecond British Invasionof the US.The trio performed on "Do They Know It's Christmas?",a UK chart-topping collaborative charity single released in 1984. They topped the AustralianARIAalbums chart in June 1988 withWow!(1987),and earnedBrit Awardnominations for Best British Single for "Love in the First Degree",and Best Music Video for their cover ofthe Supremes' single "Nathan Jones".

Fahey left the group in 1988 and formedShakespears Sister,best known for the UK No. 1 "Stay"(1992). She was replaced byJacquie O'Sullivan.This line-up had UK Top 5 hits with "I Want You Back" (1988) and a cover of The Beatles' "Help!" (1989) recorded with comedy duoFrench and Saundersand comedianKathy Burkefor the charity Comic Relief. They also charted with "Love, Truth and Honesty"and" Nathan Jones ". In 1989, they embarked on their first world tour and had another hit with a new remixed version of" Cruel Summer ". In 1990 and 1991, they had Top 30 hits with"Only Your Love","Preacher Man",and"Long Train Running"and their new studio albumPop Life,which featured these singles and a fourth, "Tripping on Your Love",which was released soon after the album. After O'Sullivan's late-1992 departure, Dallin and Woodward continued Bananarama as a duo, with further Top 30 hits including"Movin' On"(1992),"More, More, More"(1993),"Move in My Direction"(2005), and"Look on the Floor (Hypnotic Tango)(2005) ". Fahey temporarily rejoined Bananarama in 2017, and they toured the UK and North America between November and August 2017.

Career

1980–1982: early years

Bananarama formed in September 1980 when teenagers and childhood friends Sara Dallin and Keren Woodward moved fromBristolto London and met Siobhan Fahey. Dallin and Fahey were studying journalism at theLondon College of Fashion(University of Arts) and Woodward was working at theBBCin Portland Place. Dallin and Woodward were living at the YWCA and were about to be made homeless untilPaul Cook,with whom they had become friends after meeting at a club, offered them a place to live above the formerSex Pistolsrehearsal room in Denmark Street,Charing Cross.They took their name, in part, from theRoxy Musicsong "Pyjamarama".

The trio were ardent followers of thepunk rockandpost-punkmusic scenes during the late 1970s and early 1980s. They often performed impromptu sets or backing vocals at gigs for such bands asThe Monochrome Set,The Professionals,Subway Sect,Iggy Pop,Department S,The Nipple Erectors,andThe Jam.In 1981, Bananarama recorded their first demo, "Aie a Mwana",a cover of a song by Black Blood, sung inSwahili.The demo was heard atDemon Records,who consequently offered Bananarama their first deal. The song was an underground hit (UK No. 92) and Bananarama were signed by Decca (laterLondon Records) and remained on the label until 1993. UK music magazineThe Facefeatured an article on Bananarama after the release of their first single. This caught the attention of ex-SpecialsmemberTerry Hall,who invited them to collaborate with his new vocal groupFun Boy Threeon their album and the single "It Ain't What You Do (It's The Way That You Do It)".In 1982, the song hit the Top 5 in the UK and gave Bananarama their first significant mainstream success. Fun Boy Three then guested on Bananarama's single,"Really Saying Something",later that year.

1982–1985:Deep Sea SkivingandBananarama

Bananarama experienced their greatest success during the period 1982 to 1989, with their first three albums primarily produced and co-written withJolley & Swain.Their debut album,Deep Sea Skiving(UK No. 7, US No. 63) (1983) contained several hit singles – "Really Saying Something"(UK No. 5) and"Shy Boy"(UK No. 4) – and included acover versionof "Na Na Hey Hey (Kiss Him Goodbye)"(UK No. 5)."Cheers Then"(UK No. 45) was released as the third single, with little chart success, but very positive reviews from critics. The album peaked at No. 7 on the UK Albums Chart and was certified Silver by theBritish Phonographic Industry(BPI).

The band recorded a version of the Sex Pistols' song "No Feelings" in late 1982 for the soundtrack of the British teen-comedy film,Party Party.During 1982 and 1983, Bananarama did several promotional US press tours and TV appearances the first being onThe Uncle Floyd Showand onAmerican BandstandandSolid Gold.The group had their first major success in the United States in 1984 with the Top 10 hit "Cruel Summer"(UK No. 8, US No. 9), bolstered by the song's inclusion in the soundtrack to the 1984 filmThe Karate Kid.The song was ranked No. 44 onVH1's 100 Greatest Songs of the '80s.Billboardnamed the song No. 13 on their list of the "100 Greatest Girl Group Songs of All Time".

Their second album,Bananarama(UK No. 16, US No. 30) was released in 1984. Single "Rough Justice"(UK #23) was written about Thomas Reilly, the band's road manager and brother of Fahey's boyfriendJim Reilly(drummer of the Northern Irish punk bandStiff Little Fingers), who was shot and killed by a British soldier in Belfast in August 1983.The album contained the hit singles, "Robert De Niro's Waiting..."(UK No. 3) and"Rough Justice"(UK No. 23). The track"Hot Line to Heaven"was also released as a single in the UK but failed to reach the Top 40, peaking at No. 58. The album peaked at No. 16 on theUK Albums Chart,reached the US Top 40 albums chart, and was certified Silver by theBPI.The trio also recorded the single, "The Wild Life"(US No. 70) for the1984 American film of the same name.In 1984, Bananarama featured on theBand Aidsingle, "Do They Know It's Christmas?"and were the only artists to appear on both the original 1984 Band Aid and the 1989 Band Aid II versions (Fahey appeared on the 1984 version while O'Sullivan appeared on the 1989 version). The stand-along single"Do Not Disturb"(UK No. 31) was released in 1985, although it was later added to their third albumTrue Confessions.

1986–1987:True Confessionsand international success

In 1986, the band released their third album,True Confessions.The majority of the album was produced byTony Swain and Steve Jolley(who produced Bananarama'seponymous second album), with the exception of "Venus"and"More Than Physical".The latter, given agarageremix for its single version, was Bananarama's first songwriting collaboration with theStock Aitken Waterman(SAW) production team. Bananarama had tracked the producers down after hearing "You Spin Me Round (Like a Record)"byDead or Alive.The album contains the group's most commercially successful single to date, a cover version ofShocking Blue's 1969 song "Venus", which peaked at No. 1 on theBillboardHot 100in the United States. Themusic videofor "Venus" received heavy airplay onMTVin the United States. In 2014, Matt Dunn ofWhatCultureranked the song at No. 5 in his "15 unforgettable Stock Aitken Waterman singles" list, describing it as a "timeless classic of 80s synth pop, an instantly recognisable foot-tapping gem", while underlining the "provocative video and all its fire, sexy choreography, coffin dancing and red patent-leather devil outfits".In 2021, British magazineClassic Popranked "Venus" No. 2 in their list of "Top 40 Stock Aitken Waterman songs".

True Confessionsreached No. 46 on theUK Albums Chartand No. 15 on the USBillboard200,becoming the group's highest-charting album on the latter chart.Tom HibbertofSmash Hitspraised the album as being "undeniably, convincingly listenable" and "a proper pop 'album'", adding that Bananarama "make 'intriguing' pop – and can even sustain the charm across an entire LP."Also in 1986, Dallin and Woodward were featured as backing vocalists on two songs onFamily Album,produced byJohn Lydon.Follow-up singles "More Than Physical"(UK No. 41) and"A Trick of the Night"(UK No. 32) were less successful. Woodward was pregnant with her son at the time and was unable to tour or physically promote the album or its subsequent singles." More Than Physical "marked the beginning of Bananarama's songwriting relationship with Stock Aitken Waterman. It was a collaborative process that Stock has described as troubled, despite producing a string of hits."It's very difficult to be creative if someone's just going to mock you, or laugh at you," he said. "With Bananarama it was just awkward, all the time very awkward, and I didn't feel comfortable writing with them."

During a press tour inNew York City,the group also recorded a song "Riskin' a Romance" featured in the filmThe Secret of My Success(1987). The track was notable because it featured Fahey taking lead vocals, andDaryl Hallwas the producer. During this trip, the group also re-recorded the vocals for their next UK release "More Than Physical" and "A Trick of the Night" with Mike Stock in Miami.In March 1987, Bananarama participated in the recording of the single "Let It Be"(UK No. 11) as members of the charity supergroupFerry Aid.All sales from the single were donated to charity in response to the capsizing of the ferryMSHerald of Free Enterprise,which killed 193 people. Among the featured singers was Woodward, who sang withNick Kamen.

1987–1988:Wow!and Fahey's departure

In the wake of the success of "Venus", Bananarama began work on the albumWow!The group's sound successfully shifted towards dance-oriented Europop under the direction ofPete Waterman,but the creative process on the project was often fraught, withMatt Aitkendescribing the band's contribution to song writing as minimal outside of suggesting song titles.Karen Hewitt, who was the engineer at the songwriting sessions made clear that Bananarama very much tried to be involved in the creative process but that this was not made easy by Mike and Matt who wanted to work very quickly. Bananarama were, however, very assertive and opinionated during the sessions.The album reached No. 26 on theUK Albums Chartand No. 44 on the USBillboard200,while peaking at No. 1 in Australia. The album was certified gold by theBritish Phonographic Industry(BPI) in 1988.

"I Heard a Rumour"(UK No. 14, US No. 4) was their strongest performing international hit from the album. The track bears notable similarities in part to Michael Fortunati's"Give Me Up",which was released in early 1986. However, producerMike Stockdenied the track was based excessively on that record, insisting "I Heard A Rumour" was simply broadly inspired byEuropoptrends at the time."We didn't do sampling... There's no similarity in the lyric, there's no actual similarity in terms of note-for-noteness in the tune," he said. "We were doing Europop.""Love in the First Degree"(UK No. 3), one of their biggest UK hits, was nominated at the 1988Brit Awardsfor best single. ProducerPete Watermanclaimed he had to threaten to pull SAW off theWow!project in order to force the release of the track as a single, after it was dismissed by the band and label as too commercial.A further single, "I Can't Help It"was also a hit (UK No. 20). After the third single fromWow!was released in early 1988, Fahey – who had marriedEurythmics'Dave Stewart– left the group. Her last performance as a member of the group was "Love in the First Degree" at the Brit Awards in February 1988. She would later resurface in the BRIT Award–winning pop duoShakespears SisterwithMarcella Detroit.

1988–1991: second line-up,Greatest Hits,Pop Lifeand world tour

After Fahey's exit,Jacquie O'Sullivan(formerly of theShillelagh Sisters) joined the group in March 1988. The single "I Want You Back"(UK No. 5) was re-recorded with O'Sullivan, as wasThe Supremescover "Nathan Jones"(UK No. 15) which was nominated for best video at the 1989 Brit Awards."Love, Truth and Honesty"(UK No. 23) was released as a single from their 1988 retrospective compilation,Greatest Hits Collection(UK No. 3). At the same time, Bananarama entered theGuinness Book of World Recordsas the all-female group who have the most UK chart entries in history, a record they still hold.Initial tensions began to appear within the new lineup around this time, with O'Sullivan complaining that there were no photographs of her displayed at the Soho launch ofGreatest Hits Collection,and tour preparation marked by her bandmates' discomfort with her partying lifestyle.

As a fundraising charity single forComic Reliefin 1989, Bananarama recorded a cover ofThe Beatles' song "Help!"withLananeeneenoonoo(UK No. 3), a mock girl-group created by British female comedy duoFrench and Saunders,with fellow comedianKathy Burke.Also in 1989, the band embarked upon their first world tour, which included shows in North America, East Asia, and the UK. Bananarama's 1991 album,Pop Life,saw Dallin's and Woodward's songwriting collaboration with their friend Youth. They worked with a variety of producers includingYouth,Shep Pettibone,andSteve Jolleyof Jolley & Swain. They also incorporated a wider range of musical genres includingreggae,flamencoguitar, andacid house.Singles "Only Your Love"(UK No. 27),"Preacher Man"(UK No. 20), a cover of theDoobie Brothers' "Long Train Running"(UK No. 30), and"Tripping on Your Love"(UK No. 76) were the group's final releases with O'Sullivan. In a rave review forEntertainment Weekly,Chuck Eddysaid thatPop Life,"while energetic, is far moodier than anything they've ever done. The Gipsy Kings... help engineer the Doobie Brothers' 'Long Train Running' into a scary locomotive blues. Other tracks venture deep into the dark tunnel of dreamland: Pulses from an alternate universe underline fizzy computerized harmonies; sleepy voices trying hard to wake up ask 'What color are the skies where you live?'... Two other songs even have heavypsychedelicguitars. We usually visit Bananaramaland to escape our problems, but this album takes us to an eerier place than we'd ever expect. "

1992–2001: Duo re-launch,Please Yourself,Ultra VioletandExotica

In 1992, Dallin and Woodward returned as a duo and had a UK Top 30 hit with "Movin' On"(UK No. 24), which was the first single from the 1993 albumPlease Yourself.Other singles from the album were "Last Thing on My Mind" (UK No. 71) and a cover of the 1976Andrea True Connectionsong "More, More, More" (UK No. 24). In July 2018, Mark Elliot ofClassic PoprankedPlease Yourselfas the 14th best album ever produced byStock Aitken Waterman.He presented the album as "a concept project [Waterman] billed" ABBA-Banana ", and considered" Movin'On "and" Last Thing on My Mind "as" classics ".

Their next offering was 1995'sUltra Violet(entitledI Found Lovein Japan) on a new label. The album and its three singles — "I Found Love", "Every Shade of Blue",and"Take Me to Your Heart"— were only released in some European countries, North America, Japan, and Australia, but not in Britain. In 1998, Dallin and Woodward asked Fahey to join them to record the track"Waterloo"(a cover of the classicABBAsong) for theEurovisioncelebrationA Song forEurotrashonChannel 4.In 1999, Dallin, Woodward, and Fahey were interviewed together for an episode of the BBC music documentary seriesYoung Guns Go For Itdedicated to the group. In 2001, Dallin and Woodward, who had been frequently working in France, had recorded the albumExoticawith the French label M6. The album also included a cover ofGeorge Michael's "Careless Whisper", Latin- and R&B-influenced dance songs, and reinterpreted versions of their earlier hits.

2002–2006:Very BestandDrama

In 2002, the group releasedThe Very Best of Bananaramato celebrate the group's 20th anniversary, including their singles released from 1981 to 1993.They also recorded the song "Love Him, Leave Him, Forget Him" forSky TV's showIs Harry on the Boat?as well as the song "U R My Baby" for a German disco project. The album reached No. 43 on theUK Albums Chart.In 2005, Dallin and Woodward collaborated withMurlyn Music Group,writing and recording in Sweden for six months to produce the albumDrama.The album's first single "Move in My Direction"debuted on theUK Singles Chartat No. 14, also becoming their first UK Top 40 entry since 1993. The second single, "Look on the Floor (Hypnotic Tango)",also reached the UK Top 40, and climbed to No. 2 on the USHot Dance Club Playchart as an import, becoming Bananarama's biggest US dancefloor hit since "Venus" two decades earlier.Dramacharted at No. 21 onBillboard'sTop Electronic Albumschart.

2006–2011: Remasters andViva

In 2006,Warner Bros. RecordsreleasedThe Twelve Inches of Bananarama,a compilation of twelve remixes on CD including the rareGeorge Michaelremix of "Tripping on Your Love".On 19 March 2007, Bananarama's first six studio albums were reissued byRhino Recordson CD with bonus material, including alternative versions, remixes, and B-sides. On 7 May 2007, another best-of collection titledGreatest Hits and More More Morewas released byWarner Bros. Records.

In August 2008, Bananarama were back in the studio recording a track withRev RunfromRun-D.M.C..The song, 'Invincible', credited as Rev Run featuring Bananarama, did not surface until late 2014 on Rev Run's solo albumRed Rhythm Rewind.In June 2009, Bananarama performed at the Isle of Wight Festival.In August 2009, they performed at the80s Rewind FestivalinHenley-on-Thamesalongside other 1980s acts which includedRick Astley,Belinda Carlisle,andKim Wilde.

Bananarama released a new single entitled "Love Comes"(UK No. 44) and a new albumViva(UK No. 87) in September 2009. The album was produced byIan Mastersonand released through Fascination Records. A second single was released from the album in April 2010, a new remix of the song "Love Don't Live Here"(UK No. 114) backed by Ian Masterson's 2010 reworking of the 1995 single"Every Shade of Blue"and" The Runner "(originally recorded byThe Three Degrees), remixed by Buzz Junkies.In April 2011, Bananarama appeared on ITV's hit comedyBenidormand performed "Love in the First Degree","Robert De Niro's Waiting...",and"Movin' On".

2012–2016:30 Years of Bananarama

On 9 July 2012, Warner Music imprintRhino Recordsreleased a greatest hits CD and DVD Collection30 Years of Bananaramato celebrate the band's 30th anniversary.TheCDfeatures Bananarama's 22 best-knownsingles,from their1981debut, "Aie a Mwana",to their2009effort, "Love Don't Live Here".All songs are presented in chronological order (except the bonus tracks on digital) with most of them being their album versions.Thedigital versionincludes three extra tracks "Rough Justice","Long Train Running",and"A Trick of the Night",adding up to a total of 25 tracks.The album charted at No. 62 on theUK Albums Chart.On 9 August 2012, the band performed at the men's final of the beach volleyball at the London Olympics. They performed a medley of "Cruel Summer","Love in the First Degree",and"Venus".In December 2016,Billboardmagazine ranked them the 94th most successful dance artist of all time.

2017–present: original line-up tour,In Stereo,Really Saying SomethingandMasquerade

Bananarama in 2018

On 23 April 2017, Fahey rejoined Bananarama.The Original Line-up Tour saw them perform 23 sell-out dates across the UK in November and December 2017. In February 2018, they played four dates in North America:Los Angeles,San Francisco,andNew York Cityin the United States; andTorontoin Canada. Their final dates as a trio were in August 2018. On 22 December 2018, Dallin and Woodward again appeared as contestants on the Christmas Special of the game showPointless Celebrities.

On 19 April 2019, Dallin and Woodward released their new albumIn Stereo(UK No. 29). On 29 April 2022, Dallin and Woodward released the track "Favourite" from their twelfth studio albumMasquerade,which was released on 22 July 2022.On 15 June 2022, the album title track "Masquerade" was released as the first official single, and its music video followed two days later. A second track entitled "Velvet Lies" followed on 18 July 2022. On 12 August 2022, "Forever Young" was released as the official second single. On 14 October 2022, "Running with the Night" was released as the official third single. The album's release was followed by two launch shows at London Lafayette on 3 and 4 August 2022.

Awards and nominations

Award	Year	Category	Nominee(s)	Result	Ref.
Billboard Music Awards	1986	Top Hot 100 Artist	Themselves	Nominated
		Top Dance Club Play Artist		Nominated
		Top Dance Sales Artist		Nominated
		Top Hot 100 Song	"Venus"	Nominated
		Top Dance Club Play Single		Nominated
		Top Dance Sales Single		Nominated
	1987	Top Hot 100 Artist	Themselves	Nominated
		Top Dance Club Play Artist		Nominated
		Top Hot 100 Song	"I Heard a Rumour"	Nominated
		Top Dance Club Play Single		Nominated
Brit Awards	1988	British Single of the Year	"Love in the First Degree"	Nominated
	1989	British Video of the Year	"Nathan Jones"	Nominated
Classic Pop Readers' Awards	2018	Group of the Year	Themselves	Won
	2020	Album of the Year	In Stereo	Won
International Dance Music Awards	2007	Best HiNRG/Euro Dance Track	"Look on the Floor"	Nominated
		Best Dance Music Video		Nominated
Smash Hits Poll Winners Party	1989	Best Group	Themselves	Nominated

Members

Current members

• Sara Dallin(1980–present)
• Keren Woodward(1980–present)

Former members

• Siobhan Fahey(1980–1988, 1998, 2002, 2017–2018)
• Jacquie O'Sullivan(1988–1991)

Timeline

Discography

Main article:Bananarama discography

Studio albums

• Deep Sea Skiving(1983)
• Bananarama(1984)
• True Confessions(1986)
• Wow!(1987)
• Pop Life(1991)
• Please Yourself(1993)
• Ultra Violet(1995)
• Exotica(2001)
• Drama(2005)
• Viva(2009)
• In Stereo(2019)
• Masquerade(2022)

Concert tours

Headlining

• Cruel Summer Tour (1985)
• Lovekids Tour (1988)
• Bananarama World Tour (1989)
• Dance Mix Tour (1995–1996)
• Bananarama Culture Tour (1997–1999)
• Drama World Tour (2005–2006)
• Viva Tour (2009–2010)
• Live in Concert (2012–2016)
• The Original Line Up Tour (2017–2018)
• In Stereo Tour (2019)
• Masquerade Tour (2022–present)

Co-headlining

• Here and Now Tour(with various artists)(2007–2008)

List of all record labels

• London Records(UK, US and Canada, 1981–1993)
• ZYX Records(Germany, 1994–1996)
• avex trax(Japan, 1995 / Taiwan, 2006)
• Quality Records(Canada, 1995)
• Mega Records(Denmark, 1995)
• DigIt International(Italy, 1995)
• Festival Records(Australia, 1995)
• Popular Records(Canada 1996)
• Curb Records(USA, 1996)
• M6 Interactions(France, 2000)
• A&G Productions(UK, 2004–2006)
• The Lab(USA, 2006)
• True North Records(Canada, 2006)
• Edel Company(Germany, 2006)
• EQ Music(Singapore and Malaysia, 2005)
• Phantom Imports(Hong Kong, 2006)
• Central Station(Australia, 2005)
• Pony Canyon(Japan, 2006)
• Universal Records(Philippines, 2005)
• Blanco y Negro Records(Spain, 1995–2006)
• Megaliner Records(Russia, 2005)
• Nice Records(France, 2007)
• Fascination Records(UK, 2009–2010)
• BMG(UK, 2016–2019)
• Absolute Label Services(UK, 2019–present)

See also

• Girl group
• List of best-selling girl groups

External links

• Official website
• BananaramaatAllMusic
• Bananaramadiscography atDiscogs
• Bananaramadiscography atMusicBrainz