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The Adventures are a pop group formed in Belfast in the 1980s.
The band later moved to London where they signed to Chrysalis Records and released their first single in 1984. Following their debut album release a year later the group moved to Elektra Records and scored their biggest hit, "Broken Land". The song was written by guitarist Pat Gribben and reached number 20 in the UK Chart, and was also the most played song on BBC Radio 1 in 1988.
The band were actively recording and touring from 1984 up until 1993, and despite the backing of Simon Fuller (who would go on to create the Spice Girls), The Adventures never quite achieved a significant commercial breakthrough. In recent years, the band have reformed to play low key live gigs and festivals in Belfast, though no further studio recordings have been made.
Background Lead vocalist Terry Sharpe and guitarist Pat Gribben first worked together when in 1978 they joined punk band The Starjets. The band experienced limited success and disbanded in the early 1980s. Sharpe and Gribben then formed The Adventures in early 1984 with Gribben's wife, Eileen, Gerard Murphy, Tony Ayre and Paul Crowder. They signed to Chrysalis Records and were taken on by upcoming manager, Simon Fuller, who saw them achieve much publicity and promotion in the music press. Despite this promising start, their debut single, "Another Silent Day", released in the summer of 1984, failed to chart highly. Further singles were released, all of which were minor hits in the UK Charts, but no major breakthrough was achieved
. Their debut album, Theodore and Friends, released in 1985 while the group were on a world tour supporting Tears for Fears, received much critical acclaim, but again, no significant sales.
The band laid low for the next two years. During this time,
The band combined pop/rock with a folk music sound for their third album, Trading Secrets with the Moon. Released in early 1990 along with a couple of singles, the album failed to capitalise on their earlier success and only appeared briefly on the UK album Charts, stalling at no.64. This ended their contract with Elektra.
With another rethink and now down to a quartet, The Adventures returned in 1992 with the single "Raining All Over the World". Now signed to Polydor Records, the song reached #68 and was to be the group's final chart appearance. A fourth album, Lions and Tigers and Bears, was released in 1993. Despite featuring a new single, a contemporary reworking of the 1960s hit "Monday Monday", the album met with tepid response and failed to chart. The group were then dropped by Polydor, and essentially broke up soon after.
Pat Gribben continues to write songs and is currently working with singer Ryan Molloy, while Terry Sharpe spent some years performing in a cover band, The Dead Handsomes. The Adventures regrouped briefly in 2007 for some gigs in Belfast, but no major reunion was ever organised. They regrouped again in 2009 to perform further small scale gigs in Belfast, as well as appearances at the Time To Be Proud and Féile an Phobail Festivals during the summer.
Band members- Terry Sharpe, vocals
- Eileen Gribben, vocals
- Gerry "Spud" Murphy, guitar & percussion
- Tony Ayre, bass
- Paul Crowder, drums
- Pat Gribben, guitar
DiscographyAlbums- 1985: Theodore and Friends #65 GER
- 1988: The Sea of Love #30 UK, #144 U.S.
- 1989: Trading Secrets with the Moon #64 UK
- 1993: Lions and Tigers and Bears
Singles
Copyright Citations
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