Red Box

From the Polytechnic to Sire

Red Box was founded in London by Simon Toulson-Clarke and Julian Close. Wikipedia says the group formed at the Polytechnic of Central London, with Paddy Talbot, Rob Legge and Martin Nickson, citing a 2003 interview, and began as the Harlequins. The name Red Box was taken from a box left by the group Slade. Toulson-Clarke, born in Middlesbrough and educated at Harrow School, is given as born on May 4, 1956, though one category on his page says 1961. The first single, "Chenko", came out on Cherry Red in 1983 when it was still a five-piece, with Phill Brown producing.

In 1984 they signed to Sire after a radio hit, with "Saskatchewan", a Buffy Sainte-Marie cover, reaching number 122 in the United Kingdom; Last.fm says that cover led WEA to sign them. They became a duo, with Toulson-Clarke on vocals and acoustic guitar and Close on programming, flute and saxophone, as Trouser Press describes them, and moved toward synthpop.

The hits

"Lean on Me (Ah-Li-Ayo)" reached number three in the United Kingdom in October 1985, their highest, and "For America" number 10 in 1986. The album The Circle & the Square followed in 1986, reaching number 73 in the United Kingdom and 19 in Norway. Trouser Press called it simply astonishing and compared it to a less stern Peter Gabriel, and AllMusic's Tomas Mureika gave it four and a half stars. Close left in 1987 to work in A&R, and Toulson-Clarke took time out.

Max Hole of EastWest persuaded Toulson-Clarke to record again, which produced Motive in 1990, but the single "Train" was recalled from retailers, relations with the label deteriorated, and the band went on hiatus. In 1997 Toulson-Clarke made SPA, a concept album tribute to Bill Hicks, with Phill Brown and Alastair Gavin. Cherry Red reissued The Circle & the Square on CD on October 20, 2008 and Motive in 2011.

Return

Red Box reformed in 2010, with Toulson-Clarke joined by his neighbor Derek Adams, and released Plenty on Cherry Red on October 11, 2010, which was the label's best-selling album from October to December that year and earned four stars in Mojo. In Poland, "The Sign" and "Hurricane" reached number one on Trojka Radio's charts. Chase the Setting Sun followed on September 13, 2019 on Right Track; The Big Takeover's Kevin Burke called it an updated, mature version with 21st-century technology. Toulson-Clarke has also worked as an engineer, producer and songwriter, and co-wrote Miguel Bose's Papito (2007) with Michael Stipe.