Tears for Fears regains glory

MANILA, Philippines - Among the leading musical groups of the 1980s, few has had a more exciting and colorful career than Tears for Fears, the pop rock duo that started as a New Wave synthesizer band before achieving success in mainstream rock and pop and ultimately emerging as one of the biggest groups of the post-MTV era.

After selling millions of copies of chart-busters like The Hurting, Songs From The Big Chair and Sowing The Seeds Of Love, among many other hits, the pair of Roland Orzabal and Curt Smith continued relentlessly to conquer legions of fans through numerous tours and sold-out performances all over the world.

While their split-up in 1991 led to a wide gap in their professional relationship, the reunion of the two six years ago brought about the successful return of Tears for Fears as a musical act, as it regained its past glory and solidified its status as one of pop music’s most enduring and productive collaborations.

It will be the turn of local music fans to share the joy and excitement from the phenomenal comeback of one of the top bands of the ‘80s when Tears for Fears invades Manila during its concert on May 2 at the Araneta Coliseum in Cubao, Quezon City.

Dubbed as Tears for Fears Live In Manila!, the musical presentation from Ovation Productions is the Manila leg of the four-city Southeast Asian tour by the celebrated duo that also includes Singapore, Hong Kong and Taiwan.

It immediately follows its seven-date tour of Australia and New Zealand in April.

To be featured in the show is the local group Pupil and Sandwich.

An ubiquitous presence in the early days of music video, Tears for Fears was propelled to the pop music limelight through its 1983 debut album, The Hurting, a sophisticated collection of inward-looking, synthesizer-based pop songs that included Mad World (its third single and recently covered to enormous UK success by Gary Jules), Pale Shelter and Change, which were all Top 10 hits in Britain.

A slew of other big achievements came the way of Roland Orzabal and Curt Smith, who began their musical as teenagers in the early ‘80s in their home city of Bath, Somerset, England by playing as session musicians for the band Neon before making their professional debut with the mod-influenced band Graduate.

Their second album, Songs From The Big Chair (February, 1985), became an international hit, boasting three Top 5 singles in the United States alone (dual No. 1’s: Everybody Wants To Rule The World, Shout and Head Over Heels) and ultimately catapulting Tears For Fears to superstardom.

To support the release of the record, Orzabal and Smith went on an extensive world tour that lasted most of the year, a feat matched four years later by the release of the follow-up album, Sowing The Seeds of Love, a joyous, profoundly Beatlesque burst of rich melodic pop accompanied by an equally memorable video.

Featuring the No. 2 smash hit, The Seeds Of Love, the compilation eventually soared into the Top 10.

Tears For Fears was on its way to greater musical heights when, due to professional differences, Smith left the band in 1991, moving to New York City and eventually pursuing a solo career.

With Orzabal solely at the helm, Tears For Fears continued on, releasing three new albums — Elemental (1993), Raoul And The Kings Of Spain (1995) and Saturnine, Martial And Lunatic (1996) — and touring internationally to promote them.

Due to mounting clamor from fans in America, South America and other parts of the globe for them to get back together, Orzabal and Smith eventually sat down and cast aside their differences in 2004.

The dialogue resulted in one of the most dramatic reunions in pop music history and paved the way for the phenomenal comeback of one of the most successful pop groups of the past half-century.

The welcome return to the music scene of Tears for Fears was heralded by the successful release in the UK and Europe in March, 2005 of Everybody Loves A Happy Ending, the critically-acclaimed first collaboration of Orzabal and Smith in over a decade that featured colorful and Beatlesque songs.

The album featured outstanding tracks, notably Closest Thing To Heaven, the comeback single that became the first Tears For Fears UK Top 40 hit in a decade.

Since then, Tears For Fears continued to captivate millions throughout the world with new hits and sold-out performances as it recovered and cemented its status as one of pop music’s most productive and successful collaborations.

The band has sold more than 22 million albums worldwide, including over 8 million in the US alone.

Tears For Fears Live In Manila! is presented by Smart Gold in cooperation with Maldita, Black Sheep by Maldita and Mental and with the support of etc Entertainment Channel, 2nd Avenue, Hallmark Channel, Edsa Shangri-La Manila, RJ 100.3 FM, ABS-CBN and MYX.

Other supporters include The Philippine Star, Manila Bulletin, BusinessWorld, Magic 89.9, Monster Radio RX 93.1, U-92, 90.7 Love Radio, 97.9 Home Radio, 95.3 FT, NU 107, 96.3 Easy Rock, Jam 88.3, OptimaSignsolutions and Focalcast Network.

Tickets are priced at P7,500, P5,500, P4,500, P2,500, P1,000 and P500 and are available at Ticketnet outlets at all SM Department Stores. For details, call Ticketnet at 911-5555.