A Salvation Army band played...

One of the most intriguing and perplexing bands of the eighties was The Dream Academy.  Regarded by many as a one-hit wonder, Nick Laird-Clowes, Kate St. John & Gilbert Gabriel are best-known for their 1986 hit “Life in a Northern Town”.  The song, which was dedicated to folk singer Nick Drake, peaked at #7 thirty years ago this month.

Of course, they weren’t a one-hit wonder at all (as I love to point out).  Their second (and final) Top 40 hit, “The Love Parade”, made it to #37 in the spring of 1986.

Though they would never hit the Top 40 again anywhere in the world after that, it wasn’t the last we would hear from them.  Their music would show up in some very successful movies beginning with 1986’s “Ferris Bueller’s Day Off”.

In addition to “The Edge of Forever”, their instrumental cover of The Smiths’ “Please Please Please Let Me Get What I Want” would also appear in the movie but was not included on any of their albums.

Although “This World” was the other “official” single from the record, I always felt “Movin’ On” or “Bound to Be” would have been better choices.

The follow-up to their debut album was 1987’s “Remembrance Days”.  The lead-off single was co-produced by Fleetwood Mac’s Lindsey Buckingham and bore a striking resemblance to “Life in a Northern Town”.

Despite a fair amount of airplay for the song and video, “Indian Summer” failed to chart.  It was followed by a second single.

“The Lesson of Love” was also unsuccessful, though the band would score another soundtrack appearance with a song from the album in one of the best scenes from 1987’s “Planes, Trains & Automobiles”.

Other highlights from “Remembrance Days” included “Doubleminded” and “In the Hands of Love”.

The Dream Academy’s third and final album was 1990’s “A Different Kind of Weather”.  The first single was a remake of John Lennon’s “Love”.

The follow-up was co-written by David Gilmour.

The lack of chart success for “Love” and “Twelve Eight Angel” was likely the reason a third single wasn’t released, although “Lucy September” would have been a nice choice.

The band officially broke up in 1991 with the individual members going on to write and perform on their own or with various other artists.

It’s hard to say why The Dream Academy weren’t more successful.  Their sound was unique and accessible, as proven by the chart performance of “Life in a Northern Town".  They also ran in some very impressive musical circles.  Their debut album was co-produced by Pink Floyd’s David Gilmour and featured performances by Gilmour and REM’s Peter Buck, as well as one-time Nine Inch Nails bassist Pino Palladino.  In addition, it was none other than Paul Simon who suggested to Nick Laird-Clowes during a songwriting lesson that “Morning Lasted All Day” was not a good title for their debut hit single.  Gilmour would also co-produce “A Different Kind of Weather” while Lindsey Buckingham co-produced “Remembrance Days”.

Nick, Kate and Gilbert were also very engaging and quite humble in one of their first televised interviews in the U.S.

Perhaps, the band’s sound was so distinctive that it didn’t allow for experimentation or versatility.  They did tend not to stray too far from the vibe of their breakthrough hit.  However, that’s the very thing that I loved about this band. Their albums were less a collection of potential hit singles than a journey through an ethereal soundscape that was both lush and organic at the same time, though maybe not as accessible as their early success would have led one to believe.  Regardless, “Life in a Northern Town” remains one of the most iconic songs of the decade and has been remade, sampled and used in numerous TV shows.