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It's hard to believe that almost eighteen years have passed since
Haysi Fantayzee gave the British music scene a much-needed dose
of fun and whimsey. After years of annihilist punk anthems and pompous
New Romantic proclamations, it was time for a style and sound that
could either be eye and ear candy and nothing more, or a playful
jab at social hypocrisy.
Haysi
Fantayzee fitted the bill. In late 1981 Welsh fashion photographer/model
Kate Garner and her musician boyfriend Paul Caplin (an alumnus of
EMI act Animal Magnet) teamed up with 19 year old Jeremiah Healy
to create a fashion/dance sensation. Kate and Jeremiah were the
focal points, dressed in His and Hers matching Hillbilly/white Rasta/circus
ringmaster fashions (complete with waist-length dreadlocks) and
singing along to bouncy tunes and slinky rhythmns. Paul remained
in the background, writing songs and playing a few instruments.
When they were ready to do the record company circuit, they did
it with their trademark innovative thinking: instead of mass-mailing
demo tapes, they cashed in on their visual impact and sent out copies
of a low budget video ("Shiney Shiney") and a huge stack
of publicity photos. The ruse worked, making them one of the first
artists to get a record deal largely on the strength of their image.
Regard Records released the 7" single Holy Joe (with OK Big
Daddy on the B-side) in July 1982, and Haysi Fantayzee were off
and running. Over the following year Shiny Shiny, John Wayne Is
Big Leggy, Holy Joe (Remixed), and the LP BATTLE HYMNS FOR CHILDREN
SINGING were released to public acclaim and mixed critical reaction.
They appeared on TOP OF THE POPS and their pancaked faces graced
every music magazine and newspaper. Even after groups like Culture
Club and Dead Or Alive took the dreadlocked, androgynous look to
different dimensions, Haysi Fantayzee remained a source of public
fascination. Kate and Jeremy were clownlike yet subliminally sexy.
At first glance it seemed like they got their lyrics from a psychotic
Scrabble board, but a closer look indicated that their subject matter:
the apocalypse (Shiny Shiny), suicide (Sabres Of Paradise), and
racial discrimination (John Wayne Is Big Leggy) was far from the
kindergarten variey.
In late 1983 the group finally disbanded to pursue their own projects.
Jeremiah wrote music for TV commercials before joining old friend
Boy George at the latter's More Protein label. Kate put out a couple
of solo efforts and went back to photography, a field in which she
has excelled. Her work has appeared in LEAR'S and PEOPLE magazines,
among other publications, and she shot the album covers for Aimee
Mann and other artists. She currently lives in LA and has a young
daughter. Paul Caplan managed aspiring pop star Marilyn for a time,
but the arrangement fell apart.
Haysi Fantayzee broke ground for many of the cartoon-pop bands
around today (Aqua, the B-52s) and should be remembered as more
than mere footnotes in music history. This site is a tribute to
Kate, Jeremiah, and Paul, and also a modest thank you to Kate. In
1985 she responded to a note I sent her with a personal letter and
autographed photo. I've kept it over the years as proof that being
in the public eye doesnt always entail loss of heart. Thank you,
Kate....sincerely.
Rose Keefe
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