Level 42

Level 42 took the 80s by storm with their brand of bass driven jazz funk that came from the underground soul scene of wedge hair cuts, pegged trousers, sharp shoes and soul patrols. They led a band of UK 'funksters' and soul acts that for a time changed the face of the street scene in Britain, dovetailing with the start of the commercial New Romantic movement, Two Tone and the dying embers of punk.



Level 42 clearly became the most influential of all the British acts but the likes of Incognito, Light of the World, Lynx, and Beggar and Co to name just four, made their indelible mark and gave the scene an identity which allowed mainstream radio to embrace more easily the infectious bass lines that were the hallmark of Mark King and Level 42 for a decade and beyond.



The band's Stanley Clarke influenced riffs became synonymous with the 80s as much a part of the decade's culture as shoulder pads, puffed hair, red braces and the rubiks cube, but the revolution started in the Isle of Wight when Mark King, Phil and Roland Gould and the all important keyboard electricity of Mike Lindup joined forces and were soon spotted by inde label Elite then subsequently by label giants Polydor.



1981 saw them breakthrough into the hearts and minds of all soul- funk lovers with Turn it on, Love Games and Starchild, these underground hits cemented their arrival as a true musical force and paved the way for a period of sustained hits that marked them down as one of the decades most revered live acts.



Their success in record and ticket sales, chart positions and awards is only half the story, the band left a legacy amongst a generation of 70s teenagers who had been bought up on US funk and disco that their was life on the UK scene with home grown acts ; their music has been regularly remixed and they continue to have their bass lines and keyboard melodies interpreted by present day acts.