Parting Is Such Sweet Sorrow" and "When You're Smiling (The Whole World Smiles With You)" and released as singles from their own independent label in 1989. They had been performing together since the mid-1980s when they were together in the early line-up of The Lover Speaks. A second EP, entitled "I Do What I Do, You Do What You Do," was also released that year. With Chris and Linda on guitar and vocals and Kevin on bass and vocals, the band started to create a buzz on their own, and they were approached by the now-defunct UK indie label A&M who would release one single and EP on their own label, Dino Records. "Rudy's Bar & Grill" was released in 1990, which featured a cameo appearance from guitarist-composer and Pink Floyd lyricist David Gilmour. The band toured the UK with Simple Minds on the European leg of their Big Music Tour, as well as performing at the Glastonbury and Reading Festivals. In 1990, they also had another minor success with the re-release of "I Do What I Do, You Do What You Do." All of this led to the band signing a deal with Warner Bros. Records in the U.S. and with RCA Records in the U.K., resulting in a recording contract and a U.S. tour with the Dixie Chicks and the alternative rock band Redd Kross. In 1991, the band released its first album under their new label. They recorded, mixed, produced and mastered the album themselves at Strawberry Studios in Stockport. The album, All The Time In The World, was recorded in nine days and contained nine tracks. In 1991, they toured with Big Country and Tiffany, as well as performing at the Warfield Theatre in San Francisco, in front of a crowd of 1,500. A second album, entitled Nowhere Fast, followed in 1993 and contained nine tracks, some of which were collaborations with The Church frontman Steve Kilbey. It received poor reviews from critics, with critics such as Robert Christgau saying that it was a "truly horrible album", though AllMusic's Greg Prato described it as "a welcome breath of fresh air" Breakup The band went through a transitional period of changes in the lineup as well as a change in musical direction in 1992 and 1993. First, Linda left the band in the wake of the disbandment of Simple Minds, which led to Chris moving to San Francisco. Eventually, The Lover Speaks dissolved as a band in 1995 and Chris went on to produce for Naked City and also released an album of his own entitled, Life on Earth. Chris also moved into production, writing and co-writing for several artists as well as acting as executive producer and/or bandleader for several bands such as Edie Brickell, New Grass Revival, and Peter Mulvey. Linda has been involved with many projects, including writing and performing in several songs for the soundtrack of the popular video game, Tomb Raider: The Angel of Darkness (1996). She has also continued to write music and has released two solo albums in the last few years. Both albums, Shine (1997) and Howling at Home (2000), were released independently. Linda joined the band Little Women (formerly called Simple Math) in 2001, and has participated in many of their live shows. They put out a live CD of their performances (The Live Album) in 2001. Reunions and return of Chris & Linda In 2001, the band reunited to play at several festivals around the U.S. and to perform on the VH1 Duets television show, where Chris performed a cover of The Beatles' "She Said She Said", and with Linda singing a cover of The Hollies' "He Ain't Heavy, He's My Brother". This reunion led to another reunion tour in 2003. In 2004, Chris and Linda once again teamed up with Linda's brother to form The Blanks, a new alternative rock band, in which Chris took the lead on vocals. Their first album was released in October 2006. In 2012, Chris and Linda reunited with their original line-up to record a new album, which was released in August 2013. Also in 2012, they released their first video in 20 years. It was the title track of the then upcoming album. Discography All The Time In The World (1991) Nowhere Fast (1993) References External links The Lover Speaks official web site The Blanks official web site The Blanks on MySpace Musicmatch Category:English new wave musical groups Category:English rock music groups Category:Musical groups from Liverpool Category:Rock music duos Category:Musical groups established in 1987 Category:Musical groups disestablished in 1995 Category:English musical duos