The Train Set

The Train Set

The Train Set are a UK indie pop group that emerges in the mid-1980s from the Crewe and Winsford indie music scene. The core line-up forms around school friends Clive Jones on vocals, Andy Boote on guitars and Mark Shaw on bass. They add Adam Halford on drums, who comes from Winsford, and Dave Hassall on keyboards, who comes from Chester.

Career and releases

The band gains attention on the Manchester and Liverpool gig circuit and in the national music press. They sign to Manchester DJ Dave Haslam’s Playhard label and release two 12-inch singles. Their debut recording is She’s Gone/Untouchable/Sink or Swim in 1988, followed by Hold On/Harped On About You/All Blown Over in 1989.

Press and touring

The Train Set are managed by Nathan McGough, who also manages The Happy Mondays, and they tour the UK with bands including The Happy Mondays and James. They appear in NME and Melody Maker, with interviews and features by Stuart Maconie and Robin Denslow. Their debut single She’s Gone is single of the week in both the NME and the Manchester Evening News in August 1988, and the Record Mirror describes them as “rather wonderful”.

Later activity

After a long break, Firestation Records releases the band’s singles and unreleased material on the compilation Never California. That set appears in 2015 and receives airplay and positive reviews. The band later is in the studio rehearsing.