Mike & The Mechanics

Mike & The Mechanics

Mike & The Mechanics is an English rock and pop group from Dover, United Kingdom. It forms in 1985 as a side project for Mike Rutherford, a founding member of Genesis, and stays active from 1985 to the present. The group is known for a sound that sits across rock, pop rock, soft rock, new wave and AOR, with later descriptions also placing it near progressive rock.

Formation and original line-up

The first line-up includes Rutherford on bass, with Paul Carrack and Paul Young on vocals, Adrian Lee on keyboards and Peter Van Hooke on drums. The band’s early albums appear between Genesis releases, reflecting Rutherford’s work alongside his role in that group and the solo projects of other Genesis members, including Phil Collins.

Albums and major songs

The band’s self-titled debut arrives in 1985 and draws attention to Rutherford’s guitar work and the contrasting voices of Carrack and Young. The Living Years becomes its best-known song and the high point of its critical success; it is a number one single, sung by Carrack. The album also includes Nobody’s Perfect, which gains wider exposure through a television advertising campaign for Tennants bitter.

The third album, Word of Mouth, follows in 1991 and is less commercially and critically successful, although its lead single reaches the Top 20 with vocals by Paul Young. Beggar on a Beach of Gold follows later and is regarded by many as the group’s strongest work, with the title album and the single Over My Shoulder both charting well.

Line-up changes and later activity

After Paul Young dies in 2000, the band takes a break. In 2004, Paul Carrack becomes the sole lead vocalist and the group records Rewired under the name Mike & the Mechanics featuring Paul Carrack. The band then drifts apart in 2007 before reforming in 2010 with Andrew Roachford and Tim Howar as the new vocalists. Later activity also includes releases and live work with Carrack, Roachford and Howar in the line-up.

Membership

Members associated with the group include Mike Rutherford, Adrian Lee, Peter Van Hooke, Paul Young, Paul Carrack, Anthony Drennan, Tim Howar, Andrew Roachford, Gary Wallis and Luke Juby.