THE LOTUS EATERS

Random and bite-sized facts on all things on the mythical band The Lotus Eaters. Totally random but totally fascinating if you're into it. Do you know The Lotus Eaters now?

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# The Lotus Eaters Fascinating Facts

The Name Came from an Encyclopaedia

Guitarist Jem Kelly recalled finding the name “Lotus Eaters” while looking through a Pears Encyclopaedia at home. The Greek mythological reference appealed to both Kelly and Peter Coyle because of its association with dreaminess and escape.

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A Band Formed Around a Radio Session

The Lotus Eaters emerged in 1982 when Peter Coyle and Jem Kelly decided to work together after Coyle's previous group, the Jass Babies, lost its guitarist. They adopted a new band name to fulfil a radio-session opportunity.

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The Jass Babies Had Already Recorded for John Peel

Before the Lotus Eaters existed, Coyle's group the Jass Babies recorded a John Peel session in 1981. Coyle later recalled that the session went down well, but record companies showed no interest in signing the band.

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Four Songs Were Prepared for the Lotus Eaters' Peel Session

Coyle and Kelly put together four songs for the Lotus Eaters' 1982 John Peel session: “The First Picture of You”, “Can You Keep a Secret?”, “When You Look at Boys” and “Stranger So Far”.

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The First Picture of You Began in a Portable Studio

Kelly described how he and Coyle worked on early material using a portable recording setup. During one session, Kelly and others briefly went out to an off-licence, while Coyle recorded the vocals that ended up on the broadcast version.

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The First Picture of You Was a Hit Before Their First Gig

The band's debut single became a UK hit in 1983 before the group had played a live concert. It eventually reached number 15 on the UK singles chart, an unusual start for a band whose profile was built so quickly through a radio session and record release.

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Jem Kelly Had Been in the Wild Swans

Before forming the Lotus Eaters with Coyle, Kelly played guitar in the Wild Swans. He appeared on their 1982 single “Revolutionary Spirit”, released through Zoo Records, the influential Liverpool independent label associated with Bill Drummond.

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Peter Coyle Came from the Jass Babies

Coyle was the singer in the Jass Babies before the Lotus Eaters formed. Although the earlier band had attracted the attention of John Peel, it failed to secure a record deal and eventually broke up, clearing the way for Coyle's partnership with Kelly.

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The Two Founders Described Themselves as Chalk and Cheese

In a 2010 interview, Kelly said that he and Coyle were “chalk and cheese” in many ways, yet their musical ideas fitted together naturally. He described the connection as a creative chemistry that continued to work decades later.

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Kelly's Guitar Playing Helped Shape the Sound

Kelly said his finger-picking approach had helped create the distinctive jangling guitar style associated with the Wild Swans. When he began working with Coyle, the singer responded to the guitar parts in a different way, helping establish the Lotus Eaters' more melodic sound.

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Coyle Wanted the Guitar to Reach a Wider Audience

Coyle explained that part of his attraction to Kelly's playing was its beauty, but he worried it might not reach listeners on its own. He approached his singing as a way of responding to the guitar and making the music more accessible without losing its character.

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The Band Wanted to Escape Liverpool's Post-Punk Formula

Coyle recalled that punk had given musicians the courage to start their own bands, but the Lotus Eaters wanted to do something different from straightforward punk rock. Their softer, more melodic approach set them apart from some of the harder-edged groups emerging from Liverpool at the time.

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Eric's Club Was Part of Kelly's Musical Education

Kelly remembered going to Liverpool's Eric's club as a teenager and seeing an extraordinary range of acts. He recalled Joy Division playing to a very small audience on one occasion, while other nights brought artists such as the Clash, Talking Heads and the Slits.

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Kelly Once Supported the Cure as a Teenager

Before the Wild Swans, Kelly played in a group called Psycho Mesh. He recalled that one of his first gigs, when he was around sixteen, was supporting the Cure at Eric's in 1978. The group played only three gigs in total, according to his account.

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Michael Dempsey Was Recruited Because of His Bass Playing

The Lotus Eaters later brought in Michael Dempsey, previously the bassist in the Cure and a member of the Associates. Kelly said he and Coyle admired the Associates' album *Sulk*, liked Dempsey's bass playing and contacted him to arrange a meeting.

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The Original Line-Up Was Not the One on the Album

The band went through changes after its early radio-session period. The line-up that recorded the debut album included Coyle, Kelly, Dempsey and drummer Steve Crease, with former Wild Swans keyboard player Ged Quinn also associated with the group's early formation.

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The First Picture of You Was Produced by Nigel Gray

Nigel Gray produced “The First Picture of You”. Gray had previously worked with major acts including the Police and Siouxsie and the Banshees, bringing established studio experience to the Lotus Eaters' breakthrough single.

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The Single's Success Was Difficult to Repeat

After “The First Picture of You” reached number 15 in Britain, the Lotus Eaters struggled to achieve another comparable UK hit. Follow-up singles “You Don't Need Someone New” and “Out on Your Own” did not match the breakthrough's impact.

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No Sense of Sin Arrived in 1984

The Lotus Eaters released their debut album, *No Sense of Sin*, in 1984. Despite the reputation of “The First Picture of You”, the album reached only number 96 on the UK album chart.

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The Album's Sound Looked Back Beyond the Eighties

Retrospective coverage of *No Sense of Sin* has highlighted its links with melodic 1960s pop, particularly the Zombies and the Left Banke. This influence helped distinguish the album from the more synthesiser-heavy sound often associated with the New Romantic era.

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The Band Was Sometimes Mistaken for New Romantics

The Lotus Eaters were occasionally grouped with the New Romantic movement because of their appearance and polished presentation. AllMusic's retrospective biography argues that their music was more understated and folk-influenced than the electronic dance-pop of groups such as Visage and Duran Duran.

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The Lotus Eaters Were Reluctant Live Performers

In a contemporary 1983 interview, the band expressed reservations about the conventional touring circuit. They said they liked playing live but disliked the expectation that a group should undertake a long run of dates simply because that was the accepted rock-band routine.

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They Avoided the Usual Liverpool Club Circuit

In the same 1983 interview, the band said they had avoided becoming caught up in Liverpool's established live circuit. They worried that following the same route as other local bands would pull them into a formula they did not want to follow.

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Their Music Was Intended as an Escape

The mythological name reflected an idea of a dreamlike alternative world. In a 1983 profile, the band was presented as offering listeners an escape rather than promising to change their lives—a description that suited the hazy, romantic atmosphere of their best-known single.

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Their First Record Deal Was with Arista

The attention generated by their early material led the Lotus Eaters to Arista Records. Their first single, “The First Picture of You”, appeared in 1983, while the debut album followed the next year on Arista's Sylvan subsidiary.

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They Recorded a Second John Peel Session

The Lotus Eaters returned to John Peel's programme for a second session in October 1983. Their connection with Peel had begun before the group officially existed, when Coyle's earlier band recorded for the broadcaster.

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It Hurts Became Important Outside Britain

“It Hurts”, released in 1985, did not repeat the UK success of “The First Picture of You”, but it found an audience in Italy. The song later became associated with the band's final phase before its original run came to an end.

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The Original Band Split in 1985

The Lotus Eaters' first period ended in 1985, following the release of “It Hurts”. The group did not disappear from its members' lives permanently, however: Coyle and Kelly would eventually work together again.

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Peter Coyle Moved into Solo Recording

After the Lotus Eaters split, Coyle released the solo albums *A Slap in the Face for Public Taste* in 1986 and *I'd Sacrifice Eight Orgasms with Shirley MacLaine Just to Be There* in 1988. The unusual second title was a striking contrast with the wistful image of his former band.

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Coyle Became Involved in Liverpool's Dance Scene

Coyle's post-Lotus Eaters work extended beyond recording albums. He became involved in Liverpool's emerging club culture, founded the G-Love nightclub and worked through 8 Productions with artists connected to the city's dance scene.

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Kelly Returned to the Wild Swans

After the Lotus Eaters' initial run, Kelly returned to the Wild Swans. He appeared on their 1988 album *Bringing Home the Ashes*, continuing a connection with the Liverpool group that predated the Lotus Eaters.

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Coyle Studied Psychology

A 2010 interview noted that Coyle completed a degree in Psychology during the years after the Lotus Eaters' first period. His later career also included creative projects outside the conventional pop-band format.

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The Lotus Eaters Reformed in the Late Nineties

Coyle and Kelly eventually reunited after the original band had been inactive for years. Their comeback led to new recordings and occasional live performances rather than a simple attempt to recreate the band's early-eighties career.

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Silentspace Was Their Second Studio Album

The reunited Lotus Eaters released *Silentspace* in 2001, with some discographies dating its wider release to 2002. It was their first new studio album since *No Sense of Sin* and demonstrated that the partnership between Coyle and Kelly had survived the long break.

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The Reunion Also Produced Acoustic Performances

During a short UK run in 2010, Coyle and Kelly performed acoustic versions of songs written decades earlier alongside newer material. Kelly described the opportunity to move between old and recent songs as part of what made the project interesting to them.

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A London Benefit Gig Followed Their Barfly Appearance

A 2010 interview with the pair was originally intended to take place around their London Barfly show, but the interview was instead conducted at a separate, secret London performance a few days later. The second event was a benefit for Guy's Hospital.

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A Plug-In Called Nostalgia Was Announced as a New Album

In 2010, the Lotus Eaters announced work on an album titled *A Plug-In Called Nostalgia*. The project was discussed again in later years, although it did not become a conventional, widely released follow-up in the way their earlier albums had.

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The Band's Work Was Later Revisited Through BBC Sessions

A compilation titled *The First Picture of You* appeared in 1998, collecting recordings from the Lotus Eaters' BBC Radio 1 sessions. It offered a way to hear the group in a broadcast setting rather than only through their studio album and singles.

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No Sense of Sin Became a Collector's Album

Although *No Sense of Sin* was not a major UK album-chart success, it later acquired a cult following, particularly in Japan and the Philippines. AllMusic notes that original copies became sought after by collectors, giving the album a longer afterlife than its initial chart position suggested.

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The Album Was Reissued with Bonus Material

*No Sense of Sin* was reissued on CD in 1998 with bonus tracks. The reissue helped make the Lotus Eaters' early recordings more accessible to listeners who had missed the original releases.

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The Band's History Was Closely Connected to Liverpool's Music Network

The Lotus Eaters' story overlaps with several strands of Liverpool music: Kelly's Wild Swans background, Coyle's Jass Babies, Michael Dempsey's work

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