Echoes of Mark Hollis

"Look, I'd like a hit, right, as much as the next bloke. But what would really make me happy is for people to play my songs 20 years from now. I want my songs to become classics."

Well all I can say is congrats Mark and the team, you did it! Naturally I am biased but hell, it is my web site! (Ed.)

"I am absolutely not worried about the fact that a lot of people don't know our music. Besides, nothing worries me. I like people to come to us little by little, to find out about us by word of mouth. Our records have a long life, which is the nicest compliment you could give them. People must come by themselves, I don't want to push them. Besides, I don't think that interviews are a good thing. All that counts is my records. I can't be at their level, I can't be as brief and clear as they are. I can only harm them. If I had the choice, I would never speak to the Press. Anonymity is a dreamy situation for me, the one that gives me the most space. I'm very lucky not to write hits anymore. To me, real success is to be able to make albums that I want. I don't wish anything else."

Mark Hollis (born 4 January 1955, Tottenham, London) is an English musician, singer and songwriter. He achieved commercial success in the 1980s as singer with the synth pop/post-rock band Talk Talk, but retired from the music industry after his 1998 critically praised solo album. For what it is worth to those into football (soccer to you Americans), he supports Tottenham people from North London will understand what this means.

Career

Hollis is most famous as the lead singer of the band Talk Talk, and was praised for his "always remarkable voice."[1] It was he, along with unofficial Talk Talk member Tim Friese-Greene, who took the lead in evolving the band's style from New Romantic into what would later become known as post-rock.

In 1998, he released an eponymous solo debut album, Mark Hollis,[2] and participated on a few musical projects (see below). He has now retired from the music business.[3] Despite Hollis's absence from the public eye, he (as well as Talk Talk) continue to be mentioned in the press, inside Britain and outside, often as an example of an artist who refused to sacrifice his artistic ambition to commercial success and as a yardstick for current artists.[4][5][6]

Ed. This site was edited in the era of Simon Cowell branding and the the cult of celebrity. To anyone asking why Mark does not release music in such an era. This could be one explanation. Another could be that he grew, changed and no longer felt the need to do so. He did also say he could not continue to make music and also be a father / family man.

His withdrawal from the public continues to fascinate music critics.[8][3]

Ed. On reflection, this should not be a surprise. I categorise this area below:

a) Early Era -

b) Middle Era -

The group began to exert influence on their image. The mock video "Such a Shame" where they parody lip sync is in great contrast with the minimalist yet poignant video of "I believe in you." Any review of the discography will show that as a group they tried to separate themselves as people from the music they released (hence the animal images on music sleeves etc.)

c) Late era -

There are a number of stories and rumours about why Mark retired from music professionally. The Editor's view (and I have no more information than you) is that Mark was always (dare I say) 'intense' and the whole rock star 'thing' did not sit well with him even in the '80s. He hated appearing on Saturday morning (childrens) shows to promote the singles (this preceded the era of videos) and continued to detest (albeit grudgingly do) promotional work. He did not like / enjoy creating videos (see Such a Shame - which I still think remains a triumph of the band over their dare I say 'dull', commercial overseers. Certainly he always was very shy on stage throughout his career, and his story was (his story) was that he had to get drunk to go on stage. As the band traversed the 'Colour of Spring' era, the music became more difficult to reproduce live - personally, the Montreaux concert (1986) shows the band at their live zenith IMHO. The late stage of the group's / his career was one where Mark felt the music could not be reproduced live (I get that) and also he couldn't continue being a father whilst continuing the music career (I get that also.) Ultimately, I think he / the band achieved memorable music a good 15-20 years before it's time (ask EMI who now think it is worth re-releasing in 2012 when they were to quick to 'pull' shortly after the original release, Elbow and Radiohead.) I am reliably informed that he keeps himself to himself and splits time between London and Suffolk. Ultimately, any middle-aged reader can pose himself the question would they want to resume a 20-something career after such a gap. Is there anything (genuinely) to prove? Is there perhaps a fear that any new material may not live up to the reputations of the final albums (to be honest Mark never seemed that bothered on what other people thought of his music - so this may be a herring rouge.) I cannot see the celebrity culture we live in would hold any attraction. At all . If you have read the book 'Are we still rolling' you will understand the intensity / insanity of the recording / mixing sessions. Not a trivial past-time. He had become a father and this conflicted with his ability to be a professional performing artist. I think he ultimately made his choice, and I have seen no evidence that he changed his mind.

Ultimately he has been there, done it and does not want to go back. After all these years, good luck to him, if that what he wants. He has earned it, and has left us with some fabulous and intense music.

The latest interview I have seen (helps if you speak French...) I have found very few interviews by Mark Hollis and so include them where I can.

Mark Hollis Interview

`AV 1` Info's: After working on Spirit of Eden and Laughing Stock, Phill Brown teamed up with Dave Allinson to produce 1998's AV 1, a stunning and subtile exercise in formless ambient tranquility. The album's message was obvious from the start, with a huge opening track of near-silence and 20 minutes of slow, single-note song evolution before it decided to throw out its first beat. "Piano", the most interesting track, featured Mark Hollis hidden under the B-side-inspired pseudonym John Cope and managed to be deliberate without being frustrating, unsettling but never futuristic, and an enduringly eerie achievement. (Source - Rodolfo Quaranta Youtube link above)

After Mark's untimely demise in 2019, a swathe of material was published, one of which I found very informative Uncut UK. Check out, various things I genuinely did not know:

• which football team he played for anonymously

• his travels to US, EU and Italy specifically

• the extent to which he was a biker, and much more

Source of reference to Mark's biking trip:

• https://m.facebook.com/permalink.php?story_fbid=10159115116103902&id=12307963901

A small (but incomplete) section can be found here:

"I am very shocked and saddened to hear the news of the passing of Mark Hollis. Musically he was a genius and it was a honour and a privilege to have been in a band with him. I have not seen Mark for many years, but like many musicians of our generation I have been profoundly influenced by his trailblazing musical ideas. He knew how to create a depth of feeling with sound and space like no other. He was one of the greats, if not the greatest. "

Source: Paul Webb (rustinman.com)

Ah, Mark Hollis. I loved him so much. One of the most extreme people, yet the most grounded and humble. These Talk Talk albums only seem to have gotten better with time, like fine wine. He used to joke each album went at half speed to the last one.

Source: Tim Pope @timpopedirector

https://www.uncut.co.uk/news/talk-talk-frontman-mark-hollis-died-aged-64-109594

One of many obituaries, but one of the good ones:

https://thequietus.com/articles/26107-mark-hollis-talk-talk-obituary

This is also visible via some of the TT Facebook groups.

Good Facebook fan page (with lots of videos):

http://www.facebook.com/#!/pages/Mark-David-Hollis-Talk-Talk/

In case this is your thing, there is a plan to play some of the music with some participants involved (see link below.)

Celebration of Talk Talk & Mark Hollis 2019

Likewise, the Talk Talk legacy has influenced many more than their commercial success would suggest. A covers album was produced (see link below):

Spirit of Talk Talk

Finally, a book has been produced (I have not read it) but seems to be more about how the group inspired musicians (of which there are many.) If you were so inclined, you could find it here

Spirit of Talk Talk

If you have any questions, you can email me at thosedistantechoes@gmail.com (pls include Talk Talk Mark Hollis in the email heading)