The Snowmen (band)
| Company type | Music group |
|---|---|
| Industry | Music |
| Founded | 1981 |
| Founder | Stiff Records |
| Products | Music singles and albums |
The Snowmen was a novelty music group established by Stiff Records in 1981.
History
After Ian Dury left Stiff Records to join Polydor Records in 1981, Stiff enlisted session players to produce a rendition of the Hokey Cokey aimed at the holiday season. Martin Kershaw, recognized for his guitar contributions on "Kung Fu Fighting" and "Dance Yourself Dizzy" as well as banjo performances across 120 episodes of the Muppet Show, provided the lead vocals. Additional musicians involved were Nick Portlock, Jonathan Miller, and Bob Butterworth.
Stiff Records chose not to disclose the singer’s identity, which led to rumors suggesting it could have been Dury himself. To preserve this uncertainty, the single was released under Stiff’s sub-label Slack, whose logo was inspired by nutty slack. The b-side was co-written by Kershaw and Portlock.
The track secured a position within the top 20 on both the UK and Irish listings. For the promotional video shot in Brimpton, Berkshire, Stiff’s press officer Nigel Dick and other staff donned snowman costumes. The group also appeared on the 17 December 1981 broadcast of Top of the Pops.
In 1982, Kershaw issued a medley single as The Snowmen on his Solid Records label. The band’s last release came in 1986 with a rendition of the nursery rhyme This Old Man, at which point Dury acknowledged participation, referring to it as "a joke."
Albums
| Year | Album | UK |
|---|---|---|
| 1981 | Hokey Cokey Party: The Album | – |
Singles
| Year | Title | UK | RoI |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1981 | "The Hokey Cokey" | 18 | 17 |
| 1982 | "Xmas Party" | 44 | – |
| 1986 | "Nik Nak Paddy Wak" | 80 | – |
| "—" indicates releases that did not enter the charts. | |||