Bardeux - Bold As Love (1988) & Shangri-La (1989) DOUBLE POST!!

I'm sure that most fans of the Isle know of the dynamic duo Bardeux. They epitomize the essence of this blog, pop tarts who lingered in the lower regions of many charts, yet they managed a bigger profile than many of their contemporaries. Of course, it helped that they followed the success of Stacey Q, whose writers and producers wrote and produced both of their albums. The first album is pure Stacey, a Hi-NRG masterpiece. Though they began as Acacia (Stacy Smith) and Tairrie B. (Theresa Beth), releasing their first single "Three Time Lover" to dance chart success, Tairrie soon bitterly left the group. Her interests lied in entirely different music, and she would go on to work with hip hop maestro Easy E and release the unsuccessful gangsta-rap album Power Of A Woman in 1990. (Likely to be featured here in the future. ;) On the track "Ruthless Bitch" she disses Acacia, the group, their styles and their producer Jon St. James. (It was this song that made me realize that she was indeed the same Tairrie B!) After that failed, she ended up fronting the nu-metal-ish band Manhole (later renamed Tura Satana after the lead actress in movie classic Faster Pussycat! Kill! Kill!). Then she moved on to even harder music fronting My Ruin (personally, I'm a huge fan of all of her incarnations). Anyway, I digress. She was replaced by Jaz (Lisa Teaney) and they released their first album, Bold As Love, with the fabulous single "Magic Carpet Ride" reaching the Billboard Hot 100 and much higher on the dance chart. The next single, the moody, whispery "When We Kiss", which was considered their response to LL Cool J's "I Need Love", hit the Billboard Top 40, and was their greatest success. The singles "Bleeding Heart" and "Hold Me Hold Me" followed, to diminishing returns. With the Hi-NRG sound quickly becoming passé, St. James looked for new inspiration, and he found it in house and funk music, a sound which suited them equally as well, IMO. Jaz departed the group for reasons unknown (though my guess is that they needed a singer with more soul to compliment their new sound - and she hasn't been heard from since), and soul sister Melanie Taylor was her replacement. The single "I Love To Bass" became their next Billboard Top 100 charter and a dance sensation, thanks mostly to remixes by David Morales, and the album soon followed. The next single was "Thumbs Up", which also hit the dance charts. The third single "Shangri-La", however, barely made it onto the dance chart, and the group apparently ran their course. The only other Bardeux track since was "Be My Man", which appeared on a Thump Records compilation in 1994 and 'featured' Acacia. Melanie went on to work extensively with Bette Midler as a "Harlette" and has continued doing backing vocals and making pop-jazz music independently (her website). Acacia has been much more elusive. Thanks to the brilliant Bomitoni and his recent fab interview with Stacey Q, we do know that the two are still friends and Acacia is alive and well, but alas no music seems forthcoming. However, the early Bardeux sound has made a huge resurgence in recent years thanks to acts like Sally Shapiro and Annie, and Stacey Q is on the cusp of what is sure to be a brilliant come-back, so is a rebirth of Bardeux really that preposterous to imagine? Keep your fingers and toes crossed!!!

Video for Magic Carpet Ride

Video for When We Kiss

Video for Bleeding Heart

Download Bold As Love

1		Magic Carpet Ride
2		Three Time Lover
3		Caution
4		Bleeding Heart
5		You're My Only Kind Of Lover
6		Hold Me, Hold Me
7		Dancing In The Wind
8		Sex Machine
9		When We Kiss

Video for I Love The Bass

Video for Thumbs Up

Download Shangri-La

1		Nervous
2		Now Or Never
3		Thumbs Up
4		Just Say The Word
5		You Can Rock My Body
6		I Love To Bass
7		One Last Kiss
8		Shangri-La
9		Now I've Got Your Number
10		Hardline