naked eyes
Even in the midst of the latest “retro” 80s revival, it is no small thing to be one of the rare acts whose music still gets consistent radio airplay. Naked Eyes is just such a band: Fans of their warm brand of synthesized pop, which comprised two albums and two huge 1983 US hits (“Always Something There To Remind Me” and “Promises, Promises”), can’t help but launch into song at the sound of their immediately-recognizable melodies.
By the time Naked Eyes formed, members (and friends) Pete Byrne and Rob Fisher were old hands at the herky-jerky game of finding the right band. Both had gone around on the Bath pub-n-club circuit while punk, new wave and disco were dominating the music scene, but nothing had clicked for them long-term. They had a brief run with Neon from 1980-81, a band that also featured future Tears for Fears members Roland Orzabal and Curt Smith – yet that essential something remained elusive. “All of Neon’s material was written by Rob and me,” remembers Byrne, “so it sounded like Naked Eyes with guitar and drums.”
On their own again in 1982, Byrne and Fisher opted to keep things simple: Synths, and a two-man format. Early demos (one of which was their lush cover of the Burt Bachrach/Hal David classic “Always Something There to Remind Me”) led to a major label record deal – and producer Tony Mansfield, who put the shine on their 1983 debut album, “Burning Bridges” (tweaked slightly and retitled “Naked Eyes” for the US), which they recorded at the legendary Abbey Road Studios.
The release of “Always” proved successful on both sides of the Atlantic, and was rapidly followed up with “Promises, Promises” and “When The Lights Go Out,” proving that the band had more than just one good tune in them. The following year brought about their second album, “Fuel for the Fire” (clearly the band preferred albums with heat-themed titles), but it failed to continue their momentum, (the quirky single, “(What) In the Name of Love” only brushed the Top 40). Saddled with difficult second album woes brought about by changes at the record label, Byrne and Fisher called it quits.
Yet that’s been far from the last word heard from Naked Eyes. Relocated to California, Byrne has kept their flame alight in the intervening years, assembling a greatest hits/rarities album (“Everything And More”), which includes all the 12-inch dance remixes – including a version of “Promises, Promises” that features vocal assistance from Madonna — and an acoustic album of covers and Naked Eyes hits (“Fumbling With The Covers”). He has also made a name for himself by working with Stevie Wonder, Brad Buxer (musical director for Michael Jackson) and as a producer and songwriter for – among others – The Olsen Twins. And he has released both an EP and full-length album of original tunes (2000’s “The World in Which We Love” and 2001’s “The Real Illusion”). Byrne and Fisher, who had remained on good terms since the band breakup, reunited in early 1999 to work on new tracks, but Fisher died suddenly late in the year after complications following stomach surgery.
Since Fisher’s death, Byrne has been mulling over putting a new Naked Eyes together, and 2005 promises (promises) to put that dream in motion. Having connected with talented members of several Los Angeles-based bands, themselves enamored with the newly-repopularized synth sound of the ‘80s, Byrne has written several dazzling new tracks (including the impressively moody “Diamond Days”) and recently headlined several sold-out shows around L.A.
Not that Naked Eyes will stop there: In the works is the long-awaited third album, and an upcoming tour. Proof, if ever any was needed, that with Byrne at the helm Naked Eyes is a band for whom the lights never do go out. --Randee Dawn
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