the Swingers
{{Short description|New Zealand rock band}}
{{other uses|Swinger (disambiguation)}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=December 2023}}
{{Use New Zealand English|date=November 2012}}
{{Infobox musical artist
|name = The Swingers
|image =
|caption =
|background = group_or_band
|alias =
|origin = Auckland, New Zealand
|instrument =
|occupation =
|years_active = 1979–1982
|label = Ripper, Mushroom
|associated_acts =
|current_members =
|past_members =Phil Judd
Wayne Stevens
Mark Hough
Ian Gilroy
Andrew Snoid
}}
The Swingers were a New Zealand rock band who were together from 1979 to 1982 and whose biggest single was the song "Counting the Beat".
Background
Formed out of the remnants of the Suburban Reptiles, the founding members were Phil Judd (guitar, vocals), Wayne Stevens ({{aka}} Bones Hillman) (bass), and Mark Hough (a.k.a. Buster Stiggs) (drums). Formed in 1979, the band released the single "One Good Reason", which was a top 20 hit in New Zealand. They also appeared on the Ripper Records sampler AK79 and established a large live following after a residency at Auckland's Liberty Stage club.
In 1980 the band moved to Australia and signed to Mushroom Records for that country, although their New Zealand releases remained on Ripper.{{cite web|url=https://www.angelfire.com/bc/countbeat/discography.html|title=The Swingers Discography|website=Angelfire.com|access-date=16 September 2018}}
Success
After some band dissension, Ian Gilroy of the Crocodiles replaced Hough on drums. The band released the single "Counting the Beat", which became a No. 1 hit in Australia and New Zealand. A second single released in 1981, "It Ain't What You Dance, It's the Way That You Dance It" (which had the outro repeat line "oh yeah, oh yeah, oh yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah"), was also a Top 5 hit in New Zealand but only a minor hit in Australia (reaching #43). An album, Practical Jokers, produced by David Tickle, was released. The band also performed songs in the film Starstruck.
Breakup
The band underwent a couple more line-up changes, including the addition of Pop Mechanix and Coconut Rough vocalist Andrew Snoid, before it split up in March 1982. Phil Judd went on to pursue a solo career.
Discography
=Albums=
| class="wikitable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center;" |
| scope="col" rowspan="2" style="width:10em;"| Title
! scope="col" rowspan="2" style="width:14em;"| Details ! scope="col" colspan="2"| Peak chart positions |
|---|
| scope="col" style="width:3em;font-size:85%;"| NZ {{cite web|url=https://charts.nz/showitem.asp?interpret=The+Swingers&titel=Practical+Jokers&cat=a|title=charts.nz – The Swingers – Practical Jokers|first=Steffen|last=Hung|website=charts.nz|accessdate=16 September 2018}} ! scope="col" style="width:3em;font-size:85%;"| AUS |
| scope="row"| Practical JokersIn the United States, where it was issued with a modified track listing in 1982, the album was titled Counting the Beat.
|
| 2 | 70 |
=Singles=
| class="wikitable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center;"
! scope="col" rowspan="2" style="width:13em;"| Title ! scope="col" rowspan="2" style="width:1em;"| Year ! scope="col" colspan="2"| Peak chart positions ! scope="col" rowspan="2" style="width:11em;"| Album |
| scope="col" style="width:3em;font-size:90%;"| NZ
! scope="col" style="width:3em;font-size:90%;"| AUS |
|---|
| scope="row"| "One Good Reason"
| 1979 | 19 | — | {{n/a|non-album single}} |
| scope="row"| "Counting the Beat"
| rowspan="3"| 1981 | 1 | 1 | rowspan="3"| Practical Jokers |
| scope="row"| "It Ain't What You Dance, It's The Way That You Dance It"
| 4 | 43 |
| scope="row"| "One Track Mind"
| 27 | — |
| scope="row"| "Punch and Judy"
| 1982 | — | — | {{n/a|non-album single}} |
| align="center" colspan="6" style="font-size:90%"| "—" denotes releases that did not chart or were not released. |
References
{{Reflist}}
External links
- [http://frenz.com/philjudd/bio-sw2.html Frenz.com Swingers biography]
- {{usurped|1=[https://web.archive.org/web/20040818084157/http://hem.passagen.se/honga/database/s/swingers.html Swingers discography]}} at Australian Rock Database by Magnus Holmgren
- {{Discogs artist|The Swingers}}
- {{IMDb name|id=0842711|name=The Swingers}}
- [https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/periodicals/rip-it-up/1980/02/01/7 Swingers], Rip It Up, 1 February 1980, p6
{{Split Enz}}
{{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Swingers}}
Category:1979 establishments in New Zealand
Category:1982 disestablishments in New Zealand
Category:New Zealand new wave musical groups
Category:Musical groups established in 1979
Category:Musical groups disestablished in 1982
Category:New Zealand musical trios