Tears For Fears didn’t quite fit in. Not style conscious enough to be New Romantic but too Smash Hits to be the next Joy Division. Not quite a synth-pop band, more a pop band that used synthesisers. Before U2 took over, Roland Orzabal and Curt Smith were briefly the biggest band in the world, claiming two US Billboard number ones with a shuddering sonic maelstrom questioning authority and a slice of Cold War paranoia with the vibe of “The Boys of Summer”. But before that they were the po-faced therapy boys, drowning their sorrow and dancing to the sound of their own childhood trauma. This is New British Canon, and this is the story of “Mad World”. #tearsforfears #80spop #musicdocumentary Fact-checking by Chad Van Wagner. 00:00 Introduction 00:44 The Early Days of Tears For Fears 06:36 The Creation of Mad World 12:22 The Hurting & The Way You Are 17:19 Recording Songs From The Big Chair 27:49 The Aftermath & Enduring Influence Soundtrack Luar - Citrine (https://soundcloud.com/luarbeats) Jesse Gallagher - The Golden Present Luar - Anchor (https://soundcloud.com/luarbeats) You can also follow me here: Twitter: https://twitter.com/TrashTheory Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TrashTheoryYT Or support me on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/TrashTheory I Want My MTV: The Uncensored Story of The Music Video Revolution by Rob Tannenbaum & Craig Marks, 2011, Plume Mad World: An Oral History of New Wave Artists and Songs That Defined the 1980s by Lori Majewski & Jonathan Bernstein, 2014, Abrams Image The Hurting Liner Notes by Ian Cranna, 1999, Mercury Records Songs From The Big Chair Deluxe Liner Notes by Paul Lester, 2005, Mercury Records Classic Albums: Songs From The Big Chair (2020) dir. George Scott Scenes From The Big Chair (1985) dir. Nigel Dick “Dreams of Children” Johnny Black, Smash Hits, Dec 1982 “Tears Then…” Jim Reid, Record Mirror, Feb 1983 “Tears For Fears: Primal Therapy Cures Mental Hurting” Laura Fissinger, Creem, Oct 1983 “Tears For Fears: Talking in Riddles” Adam Sweeting, Melody Maker, Nov 1983 “A Winter’s Tale” Chris Heath, Smash Hits, Jan 1985 “Tears For Fears - Feature” Eleanor Levy, Record Mirror, Jan 1985 “Tears for Souvenirs” Dan Goldstein, Electronics & Music Maker, Jan 1985 “On The Beach” Helen FitzGerald, NME, Mar 1985 “Tears for Fears: The Stunning, The Lovely & The Brilliant” Dave DiMartino, Creem, May 1985 “Making It Big and Keeping It Small” Mike Gardner, Record Mirror, Jun 1985 “Cool, Calm & Calculated” Chris Heath, Smash Hits, Jul 1985 “TEARS FOR FEARS: A REAL SCREAM” Dennis Hunt, Los Angeles Times, Jul 1985 “Tears For Fears: "We're going to weird out like you wouldn't believe!"” Chris Heath, Smash Hits, Jan 1986 “Tears For Fears: The Sequel!” Phil Sutcliffe, Q, Sep 1989 “Tears for Fears: The 1989 Interview” Ira Robbins, Trouser Press, Sep 1989 “Tears for Fears: Fear of Finishing” Ira Robbins, Rolling Stone, Nov 1989 “Classic Tracks: Tears for Fears’ “Everybody Wants to Rule the World”” Heather Johnson, Mix, Jan 2007 “This Is Going To Hurt: The Mad World Of Tears For Fears’ Debut LP” Wyndham Wallace, The Quietus, Sep 2013 “Tears For Fears: how we made Mad World” Dave Simpson, The Guardian, Dec 2013 “How We Wrote Our First Record: Tears For Fears revisit ‘The Hurting’” Oscar Rickett, Noisey, Jan 2014 “Tears for Fears’ Curt Smith: Back in the Big Chair” Len Comaratta, Consequence of Sound, Nov 2014 “Key Tracks: Songs From The Big Chair” Chris Williams, Red Bull Music Academy, Mar 2015 “Roland Orzabal on Tears For Fears’ Songs From The Big Chair” John Earls, Classic Pop, Feb 2020 “Tears for Fears’ Songs From the Big Chair Turns 35: Musicians Reflect on ’80s Pop Favorite” Ron Hart, Spin, Mar 2020 “Tears For Fears’ Roland Orzabal in the Big Chair: The SDE interview” Paul Sinclair, Super Deluxe Edition, Mar 2020 “The Number Ones: Tears For Fears’ “Shout”” Tom Breihan, Stereogum, Oct 2020 “Making Tears For Fears: The Hurting” Wyndham Wallace, Classic Pop, Aug 2021 ““I was a big early Genesis fan and I loved King Crimson." How Tears For Fears added prog to pop and ruled the 80s” Chris Roberts, Prog Magazine, Aug 2021 “‘If there is a God, this is what he put us on Earth to do’: the unlikely return of Tears for Fears” Laura Barton, The Guardian, Oct 2021 “Making Tears For Fears’ Songs From The Big Chair” Mark Lindores, Classic Pop, Feb 2022 “Tears For Fears Are Back, and Closer Than Ever” Al Shipley, GQ, Feb 2022 “How I wrote ‘Mad World’ by Tears For Fears’ Roland Orzabal” Aaron Slater, Songwriting Magazine, Feb 2022 “The Most Existential and Therapeutic of Tears for Fears, According to Curt Smith” Devon Ivie, Vulture, Feb 2022 “Tears for Fears: ‘Some people can bulls*** through music, but we can’t’” Kevin E G Perry, The Independent, Jun 2022
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