School friends Roland Orzabal (b. Roland Orzabal de la Quintana, 22 August 1961, Portsmouth, Hampshire, England) and Curt Smith (b. 24 June 1961, Bath, Somerset, England) formed Tears For Fears after they had spent their teenage years in bands together, including a ska revivalist combo called Graduate who issued records on the Precision label. After Graduate split in 1981, the duo recorded demos as History Of Headaches. Their new name, Tears For Fears, was drawn from Arthur Janov’s book Prisoners Of Pain. They signed to Phonogram Records in 1981 while other synthesizer bands, including the Human League and Depeche Mode, were breaking through into the pop field. During this time the duo was augmented by Ian Stanley on keyboards and Manny Elias on drums.
The band’s first two singles, ‘Suffer Little Children’ and ‘Pale Shelter’, were unsuccessful but ‘Mad World’, produced by former Adam And The Ants drummer Chris Hughes, made number 3 in the UK charts in November 1982. Curt Smith, dressed in long overcoats and sporting a pigtail, was touted in the UK as a vaguely alternative teen idol. The Hurting showcased a thoughtful, tuneful band and it topped the UK charts, supplying further Top 10 singles with ‘Change’ and a reissued ‘Pale Shelter’. By Songs From The Big Chair Orzabal was handling most of the vocal duties and had taken on the role of chief songwriter. ‘Shout’ and ‘Everybody Wants To Rule The World’ were number 1 hit singles in the USA, and the album also reached number 1. The song, ‘Everybody Wants To Rule The World’ was adopted as the theme tune for the Sport Aid famine relief event in 1986 (with a slight change in the title to ‘Everybody Wants To Run The World’), giving the band massive exposure.
Tears For Fears took a lengthy break after 1985 and reappeared four years later with a highly changed sound on The Seeds Of Love. They shunned their earlier electronic approach and attempted to weave together huge piano and vocal chords in a style reminiscent of the Beatles. Its release was delayed many times as the pair constantly remixed the material. The album featured unknown American vocalist Oleta Adams, who the duo had discovered singing in a hotel bar in Kansas City. Orzabal later produced her debut album. Both the album and single, ‘Sowing The Seeds Of Love’, were Top 10 hits in the UK and USA, but the lavish arrangements did not receive the same critical approval. The chart failure of subsequent singles marked the beginning of the end for the band as a commercial force.
Shortly before the release of 1992’s greatest hits set, Smith left Tears For Fears to begin a solo career (renaming himself Mayfield in 1998). Retaining the name of the band, Orzabal released Elemental, the first album to be completed after Smith’s departure. A muted response greeted Raoul And The Kings Of Spain in 1995. Orzabal’s solo debut, released six years later, was a much more satisfying release, but failed to match the commercial impact of Tears For Fears. The inevitable reunion was announced in 2003, with Orzabal and Smith signing a new recording contract with Arista Records. Their new album, Everybody Loves A Happy Ending, was released the following year. Taking influences from the likes of the Beatles, XTC, ELO and 10cc, and mixing them with a glorious theme reminiscent of the Beatles’ Sgt. Peppers Lonely Hearts Club Band, the album was a magnificent return to form. While Tears For Fears’ commercial potential may have lessened, the music on Everybody Loves A Happy Ending proved to be both creative and uplifting.
