The self-titled Sunnyboys album was a landmark release in October 1981 – an incredible feat considering the band had only played their first gig the previous August. Ten months later, they released a record that would become one of the most revered albums ever released in this country.
It is a sublime statement of small town dramas born from suburban sweat and beer, fired out by a band honed sharp on pub stages.
The Jeremy Oxley story looms equally as large over the Sunnyboys as their songs. A carefree teenage surfing champion suddenly riding the sudden surge and the insatiable demands of success compounded by undiagnosed schizophrenia left him all but burnt out in his early twenties.
The 2013 documentary, The Sunnyboy, laid bare the guitarist’s troubles with the illness and its effect on the band, but also brought them back to being one – and you can’t help but take a diagnostic interest in the lyrics some 30 years later.
As well as a complete remastering of the original dozen songs, six further tracks recorded from the same sessions are included, with two live songs a nod to their fertile breeding ground of pub rock. The second disc is 17 pre-album demos played live, all hard edges and promise from songs just about to imprint themselves on the national consciousness.
Most bands would kill for tunes as good as these, yet the fact that some could barely make a spot on the Sunnyboys’ bench shows the depth and quality that the teenage Oxley had at his disposal.
Love Classic Rock?
Get the latest Classic Rock news, features, updates and giveaways straight to your inbox Learn more
