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Night Shift started out in Birmingham in 1973. Originally a rock three-piece, they switched to reggae after an encounter with the late Laurel Aitken in 1978 as Reality. At the time a fresh reggae wind blew over England, bands like the Specials, UB40 and the Selecter were formed and Reality got swept up in it. Jamaican born singer/guitarist Robert Green was the main songwriter of the band and easily adapted to their new style. The original three-piece was augmented by saxophone and keyboards and soon they developed their own exciting and innovative sound.
UB40 saw them in 1980, were blown away and asked the band to support them on their forthcoming tour. UB40's original producer Bob Lamb signed Reality to his label and recorded their first album "Make a move" and the song "Tell me what's going on in your mind" got to number 20 in England and charted in Canada.
Soon they were touring all over Europe and came to Holland for the first time in 1982. They met the most famous Dutch reggaeband "Doe Maar" and did several festivals with them. Soon after, for practical reasons, they decided to move to Holland, where they recorded their second album "Public Eye" with producer Peter Vincent. "Soweto" and "Circumstances" were the songs that charted in Holland. The... Read More ... years that followed were spent touring England and Europe, either on their own or with UB40.
In Ernst Jansz and Jan Hendriks' studio, aptly named "the Bunker", they recorded their third album "Face Reality" in 1986, but it wasn't until 1989 that the album was released and then in Holland and Japan only. Most of the original members had left by that time, but Reality was still a touring band with English and Dutch musicians. They released their final album "Good news week" on their own label, but it failed to chart. Reality disbanded in 1998. Robert Green felt he needed a change of direction and concentrated on recording, working with other musicians and finding another approach on songwriting. He just completed his solo album "Foundation Woman".
Since 2010 REALITY is back. Unfortunately Gibson Sampson, our long time bass player has left the band. He has returned to England for personal reasons. John Spruijt, the guitar player has retired. Steve Willikin, who has replaced Gibson is a good and experienced bass player. With Steve as a new member and Violet Permis Levyssohn as a new backing vocal, the band is back on track. With a mixture of old and brand new songs the band still manages to create their own sound, rootsbased with an ever growing manifold of influences, like rock and soulmusic. The songs are a unique blend of social awareness, strong melodies and catchy hooklines. The maturity of the band is evident in their performance, which is an energetic and uplifting experience.
Members:
Robert Green, Clif Morris, Gibson Sampson, Frans Mathyssen, John Spruijt
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