THE NERVES
In 1975, a band called was formed as a true power trio: Jack Lee, Peter Case and Paul Collins were talented musicians as well as dynamite songwriters. They came up with an EP and a handful of singles that included a minor hit, “One Way Ticket”.
The lead song on their EP, “Hanging on the Telephone” was gloriously covered by Blondie and became the opening track on their breakthrough album Parallel Lines. Rumor has it that someone put the EP on while the band was on their way to a gig, and the rest is history. It wasn’t until 2008 that a proper retrospective album for came out, called One Way Ticket – on the Bomp-affiliated Alive Records label – that includes their recorded output as well as some additional related tracks, plus seven nice live tracks from a 1977 show.
broke up due to the usual musical differences – not surprising considering that each member of the band was fighting to get their songs recorded – and the Breakaways immediately formed. Basically it was just the duo of Peter Case and Paul Collins plus whatever guitar player or two that they could scrounge up to join the session; there were three different line-ups in the group in their short history.
By the end of 1978, these two had also gone their separate ways, with Peter Case forming the Plimsouls and Paul Collins starting the Beat (later Paul Collins’ Beat).
A specially priced package of recordings by the Breakaways, together with retrospective album and a brand new Alive CD of the Plimsouls at the top of their game – check it out at the Bomp! mailorder site: www.bompstore.com/breakaways-nerves-related-powerpop-walking-out-on-love-the-lost-sessions-cd/.
(April 2010)
