Being an American with a love of British pop and rock from the Punk and Post Punk Era, there are literally thousands of song which I consider cult classics, but with just the slightest attention on the interweb it can be determined that they were indeed hits in their native land.
One band that had the odd distinction of being quite bid in NYC in the early to mid 1980’s but only had a whisper of success in the UK was APB.
Scots with a massive love of angular guitar, funky bass and a pure pop sensibility, I just don’t know why each of their first 5 or 6 singles didn’t storm the UK charts. They gained attention from Peel and Jensen but went no where in the charts. Their biggest success was a Billboard #1 Dance/Club Chart hit with What Kind Of Girl in 1984 on the backs of a seemingly unlikely occurance – underground success in NYC at the hands of a few DJ’s and radio programers with their ears to the ground. Their NYC success was all but unknown to the band for almost 2 years, but their sound was right on target for the City’s college radio and the dance clubs like Peppermint Lounge and Danceteria. This was a time when ESG, NY Peech Boys and Material were spreading left of center funk all over the City.
The story goes that someone at one of the college radio stations called up their label in Scotland, Oily, for some more info on the band and that was the first time anyone at the label or the band were aware of the cult following they had in America’s biggest city and Tri-State area. A quick set of dates on the East Coast went down a smash…I was at 2 of those shows and they would come back something like a dozen more time over the coming years and I don’t believe I missed any of those shows. Their tours would usually start and finish at NYC’s The Ritz Club and they were sold out events.
For me the track of theirs that was the most personal and thus a classic as well was Rainy Day.
mp3 : APB – Rainy Day
I love Shoot You Down and One Day which are equal in power and hip gyrating attack, but Rainy Day had that plaintive, almost angry lyric that just grabbed me. It’s a song about a day with nothing going right and not knowing exactly what to blame it on.
I count it as one of my Favorite 50 songs of all time for all those reasons. It was also the track I always remember getting the crowd going mental – part angry anthem and manic dance groove. The middle section turns into a reel with three sets of lyrics playing off each other simultaneously creating a tense and intricate groove. The Ritz’s dancefloor would actually move as if a small earthquake was heaving and swaying it during Rainy Day. The middle section turns into a reel with three sets of lyrics playing off each other simultaneously creating a tense and intricate groove.
THE NEW VINYL VILLAIN 
Great post. Great band.
They’re playing some shows in the New York area shortly I believe.