…on August 13th. Yes, that’s tomorrow but it gives me an excuse to maybe talk some punk junk and its maybe some stuff that most people (or anybody) don't know. Plus, this is an easy one for a freaky Friday. Sharkey is best known as the vocalist for Northern Ireland based pop-punk outfit, The Undertones, in their late 70s early 80s heyday. Some may also remember his name from the world of 80s pop, where he had international hits with “A Good Heart” and “You Little Thief”.
In the late 70s The Undertones played all around Northern Ireland, including places called the Flamingo Ballroom in Ballymena and Chester's in Portrush. Those are apparently venues of note. They had several “hits” in the late 70s and early 80s, with songs such as "Teenage Kicks", "Here Comes The Summer", "My Perfect Cousin", "Wednesday Week" and "It's Going To Happen". By 1981 things were going great…they just had their best year of sales, were touring more extensively, were getting great reviews. So hey, lets change what’s working. Yeah, that’s the ticket. Changes continued. Success waned. By the time Sharkey left they were a shadow of a shadow of the group they started out as.
The band split in 1983 citing musical differences, with Sharkey pursuing a solo career and other members of the band forming That Petrol Emotion the following year. Sharkey went solo, and apparently flaccid. How someone can go from what he did in the early days of The Undertones to that spew he did as a solo artist I can’t answer. Maybe Peter Cetera knows. If you want to hear “A Good Heart” or “You Little Thief” you can Youtube it yourself. He seems to have given up as a recording artist in 1992, which is probably best for everyone involved.
Thought this thread might give folks an opportunity to talk some punk, and I expect ones of responses. I know Metallica would approve, and incidentally, they did drop a somewhat known and recognized lil record known as the ‘Black album’ on this date too….just sayin. Anyway, here’s some stuff from when Sharkey didn’t suck cobblers awls.
