The Motels
Formed in Berkeley, California in the early '70s, the Motels comprised Martha Davis (vocals), Jeff Jourard (guitar), his brother Martin (keyboards/saxophone), former jazzer Michael Goodroe (bass) and UK session drummer Brian Glascock (ex- Toe Fat). Transferring to Los Angeles the group assembled for appearances at Hollywood's Whiskey club throughout July 1978. They attracted much music industry interest. In 1979, their stunning debut album was issued by Capitol. Like its remaining tracks, the hit ballad, Total Control, was produced by John Carter and composed by central figure Davis whose eclectic taste included blues, Broadway musicals and Stravinsky. Her onstage presence was ‘exceptionally charismatic’, wrote THE LOS ANGELES TIMES, wrongly predicting that she ‘could become one of the most influential female performers in rock’. Her boyfriend, Tim McGovern (ex-Captain Kopter And The Fabulous Twirlybirds), replaced Jeff Jourard during sessions for CAREFUL with a sleeve adorned with a print of a Dougie Fields’ painting. Though its singles, Whose Problem and Days Are OK, flitted into the US and UK charts, they fared well in regional charts in Australasia, a territory where the group made its strongest impact. At home, their albums and tie-in singles tended to hover around the lower half of the Top 40 after ALL FOUR ONE at number 16 marked the Motels’ commercial zenith there, despite scoring two US Top 10 hits with Only The Lonely (1982) and Suddenly Last Summer (1983). The group folded in 1987.