Come In Tokio - Nature Call (1983)

Come In Tokio came together in 1980, and consisted of Phil Wylie (brother of Wah's Pete Wylie) on guitar and vocals, Alan Currie on drums, Frank Mahon on bass, John Jenkins on keyboards, and later John Gillin on guitar. They rehearsed from July through to October 1981, and finally played their debut gig at the Ministry Party, where a couple of members of U2 plus Phil's brother Pete all come to see them. At the same time they recorded their first three-song demo tape, and from this they got a John Peel session booked for January 1982. In November 81 John Gillin joined the band, making them a five-piece, and the radio session was recorded in January 1982, with the four songs being broadcast four times over the next few months. I was impressed enough by them to seek out a record, but they never released one, which was a surprise as they sounded like a great band. They did have plenty of interest after the session was broadcast, but because they had no management, their inexperience meant that they missed out on a possible record deal. They did get another Peel session in September 1982, but Peel wanted to try out a new idea and it was recorded on an 8-track in the Manchester Playhouse theatre, but the band felt that the recordings lacked any power. Unfortunately only one of these songs survives, but you can hear what they meant on 'Say You'll Never Go Away Again', compared to the later 1984 recording. Also lost are the four songs that they recorded for Kid Jensen in November 1982, so we can no longer hear what 'Temper Count To Ten', 'Read The News', 'You Can Tell Everyone', or 'The Day The World Fell Round Your Head' sounded like. One last Peel session was recorded in 1984, and the band really came into their own production-wise, but by the end of the year they had broken up without ever releasing a record. It's a real shame as they definitely had something there, and the last Peel session shows that they could have rivaled Wylie's brother's band Wah Heat! if they've just had the breaks. For now, though, these are the only recordings that survive, showcasing one of the great lost bands of the 80's. In a bout of synchronicity, just a week or so after I completed this album, Phil Wylie was interviewed about his old band here.

Track listing

01 Tokyo (John Peel session January 1982)
02 Nature Call (John Peel session January 1982)
03 Walk Away (John Peel session January 1982)
04 Save Me From Falling (John Peel session January 1982)
05 Say You'll Never Go Away Again (John Peel session September 1982)
06 It Was Nothing (John Peel session April 1984)
07 Turn Walk Away (John Peel session April 1984)
08 Been Such A Long Time Waiting For Love (John Peel session April 1984)
09 Say You'll Never Go Away Again (John Peel session April 1984)