The Mighty Lemon Drops - Laughter (1989)

Formed in Wolverhampton, England, in 1985, the Mighty Lemon Drops were a psychedelic-influenced post-punk band with a guitar-based pop sound that drew comparisons to Liverpool's Echo & the Bunnymen. Originally called the Sherbert Monsters, the lineup consisted of singer/guitarist Paul Marsh, guitarist Dave Newton, bassist Tony Linehan, and drummer Keith Rowley, with Newton and Linehan contributing most of the songwriting. In December of 1985, the group released their debut single "Like an Angel" on regional indie Dreamworld Records and it rose to number one on the U.K. indie chart. After appearing on NME's influential C-86 compilation, the band signed with Geoff Travis' new Chrysalis subsidiary Blue Guitar in the U.K., and with Sire in North America for their debut album Happy Head. The album was well-received and was reported by a Sounds magazine critics poll to be one of the 50 best albums of 1986. They followed up with 1987's Out of Hand and then again in 1988 with their third album World Without End, which yielded the hit "Inside Out." World Without End rose to number 33 on the U.K. charts and to number one on the U.S. College chart in 1988. Later that year, the band parted ways with Chrysalis but kept their contract with Sire in the U.S. During sessions for their fourth album, Laughter, Linehan left the band and was replaced on bass by Marcus Williams. The band remained popular in the American modern rock scene during the late '80s and Laughter debuted at number one on the College charts, even managing to crack the Billboard Top 200 pop chart. The band continued writing and recording their brand of well-made, melodic alt-pop, releasing Sound… Goodbye to Your Standards in late 1991 and their final studio album, Ricochet, in 1992 before disbanding later that year.