It Bites


It Bites are an English progressive rock and pop fusion band, formed in Egremont, Cumbria, England, in 1982 and best known for their 1986 single "Calling All the Heroes", which gained them a Top 10 UK Singles Chart hit. Initially fronted by Francis Dunnery, the band split in 1990, eventually returning in 2006 with new frontman John Mitchell. This lineup toured and produced two further albums plus two live albums.
By May 2019, confusion emerged surrounding the future of the band: while drummer Bob Dalton stated the band will no longer write, record or play live, frontman John Mitchell said that both he and keyboard player John Beck are writing new material and were not consulted about the split, only finding out through social media.

Musical style

Described as having "a strong art-rock tendency" by AllMusic, website Über Rock stated, "It Bites have always been one of the more curious cases of the progressive rock world. Their first impression on us back in the 1980s was that of a pop band. But a pop band doing what no pop band had the right to do – successfully mix catchy tunes with complex musicianship and, god forbid, distorted guitars."
The band's musical development can be split into four clear phases – their The Big Lad in the Windmill phase ; the Once Around the World phase ; the Eat Me in St. Louis phase ; and the reunion phase with John Mitchell.

History

It Bites lineup 1 – 1982–1990

Early years: 1982–1985

Originally formed by drummer Bob Dalton, bass player Dick Nolan and guitarist/singer Francis Dunnery, It Bites started out in early 80s in the market town of Egremont in Cumbria, UK. Keyboard player John Beck from Whitehaven joined the group later in 1982, and for a short period of time It Bites also featured saxophonist Howard "H" Smith, a period in which the band worked playing gigs at nightclubs around Cumbria.
The band then split up at 1983, when Dalton and Nolan moved to Birmingham, Dunnery to London and Beck to Manchester. One year later, It Bites reunited in 1984 after a meetup in Egremont, and this time opted to relocate entirely to London.
All four members moved into a squat in Peckham and spent a year living hand-to-mouth and writing original material. Bob Dalton later commented "it was actually the perfect situation because all we could afford to do was write songs 24/7. All that time was the making of us. We became strong writers and strong players." Their demo tape eventually secured them a management deal with Martyn Mayhead, and shortly afterwards a recording contract with Virgin Records.

Success – 1986–1988

In March 1986, It Bites released their first single "All in Red", which only charted modestly. Their second single, "Calling All the Heroes", was released in June 1986 and became a big hit, reaching No. 6 in the UK Singles Chart and gaining the band a huge amount of radio play and many television appearances. The third single, "Whole New World", also charted, but not at such a high position peaking at number 54. All three singles appeared on the first It Bites album The Big Lad in the Windmill, which was released in the summer of 1986 but met with only moderate commercial success, despite charting at number 35.
The band toured with Go West and Marillion in late 1987, played major European outdoor festivals and supported Robert Plant in early 1988. This diverse set of support slots revealed a problem in marketing the band which would last throughout their career. It Bites' blend of contemporary 1980s producer-pop, progressive rock and hard rock would draw criticism from some music press writers who accused the band of failing to settle on a coherent direction. Despite this, the band forged a loyal and enthusiastic following in the UK.
The band began recording their second album Once Around The World with producer Mark Wallis in mid-1987. Footage of this process was broadcast on Channel 4 TV's "Equinox" programme Twang, Bang, Kerrang! and "Midnight". The first single from the album "Old Man and the Angel" peaked at number 72 in the singles charts. Despite its split nature, the final album was consistent in tone and sound and was popular with fans. During this period, Dunnery also gained some press attention for his invention of the Tapboard, an instrument based on two paired guitar necks and using a ten-finger tapping technique to create exceptionally fast and clear melodic runs and chording.

The shift towards hard rock – 1989

The third album, Eat Me in St. Louis was recorded in early 1989 at Musicland Studios in Munich, Germany, produced by Reinhold Mack. The album featured a harder-edged, more guitar-orientated sound than before, with shorter, punchier songs and the direct progressive rock influences cut back. In contemporary interviews, Dunnery claimed to have become dissatisfied with the more technical and virtuosic side of It Bites' music as demonstrated on the previous album – "That was very important to us at the time. We wanted to say to people, Look, but aren't we very clever? I can't be bothered now to write all them long sections, I just wanna see some good songs... Instead of flying around at 9,000 miles an hour, I've been playing tunes that people can remember." However, the band also chose to commission the artwork for Eat Me in St. Louis and its early single releases from the progressive rock sleeve artist Roger Dean, in what Dunnery admitted was a calculated attempt to play on their own "progressive rock" reputation and to "annoy people."
On its release, Eat Me in St. Louis scored excellent reviews in rock magazines Kerrang! and RAW and spawned the minor hit single "Still Too Young To Remember". During this period, Virgin made strong attempts to break the band as a serious hard rock act with several re-releases and video shoots for "Still Too Young To Remember" and the follow-ups "Underneath Your Pillow" and "Sister Sarah". Although Virgin's efforts to boost the band's commercial profile were ultimately unsuccessful, the band still proved themselves popular as a live act, playing sell-out gigs across the UK, US and Japan, and touring with Jethro Tull and the Beach Boys. Certain band members also participated in outside projects – Nolan recording with Tony Banks and Dunnery singing backing vocals on the debut Anderson Bruford Wakeman Howe album during the same year.

Departure of Francis Dunnery – mid-1990

It Bites showcased some new post-Eat Me in St. Louis material on an eight-date UK tour during March and April 1990. In June 1990, the band travelled to Los Angeles, to start writing and recording their fourth album. This was intended to be the record to break the American market, and Dunnery promised simpler songs with "a stronger taste of blues." However, tensions within the band reached breaking point during the pre-rehearsal period, and it was confirmed to the band's fanclub in November 1990 that the band had parted company with Francis Dunnery. Dunnery is rumoured to have demanded full band leadership and control over material, and it's also claimed that he clashed with former creative foil John Beck to the extent that he demanded Beck's expulsion from the band.

It Bites lineup 2 (Lee Knott briefly replaces Francis Dunnery) – 1990

Now minus Dunnery, the remaining trio initially stayed on in Los Angeles, continuing to write and auditioning new singers. Returning to England, they recruited Lee Knott as the new It Bites singer. Knott had previously fronted the band Innocence Lost, who had played support slots to It Bites on previous UK dates. During this period, John Beck had also switched instruments, later recalling that "at the time I think we were all sick of what was happening and wanted a total change. I was playing guitar, and a little bit of keyboards, but mainly guitar. It was a change for me, and Bob & Dick were happy doing that."
A new It Bites album was initially scheduled for early 1991. This was ultimately replaced by a live album covering the Francis Dunnery years, Thank You And Goodnight, which was mostly drawn from Eat Me in St. Louis tour recordings and released in August 1991.
In an attempt to refresh their identity, the Knott-fronted It Bites renamed themselves as Navajo Kiss and played several gigs under that name. The concerts featured new material plus a vigorous cover of "Murder of the Planet Earth". A second name-change – to Sister Sarah – followed, but the band split quietly within the year due to lack of enthusiasm from audiences. John Beck would later admit "we found out pretty soon that people weren’t about to go along with such a change in direction." The various band members went their separate ways but remained in touch.

Post-split (sessions, Superior, Unicorn Jones and Dunnery solo) – 1990–2003

After the split of It Bites, Beck and Dalton joined John Wetton's band for a Japanese tour and a live album, Chasing The Dragon, with Beck moving on to become one of the keyboard players for the Alan Parsons Project. Nolan eventually established himself as Ray Davies' bass player of choice. Dalton played drums for Chris Norman and Ray Davies and moved into teaching at the Academy of Contemporary Music in Guildford. Lee Knott spent some time in management, and briefly resurfaced as the instrumental half of Superior. Francis Dunnery, now based permanently in the US, re-emerged in 1991 to begin a successful solo career which continues to this day.
A partial It Bites reunion appeared in 1996 in the shape of the band Unicorn Jones. This project featured John Beck, Dick Nolan and singer David Banks. Banks had approached Beck and Nolan to help him record an album of Burt Bacharach covers, but the trio had been sidetracked into recording a bizarre cover of Motörhead's "Ace of Spades" Lemmy's timeless vocal with David's crooner voice and transform. This cover version spawned the Unicorn Jones band, which recorded one album – 1996's 'A Hundred Thousand Million Stars' – but did not play live.
Beck and Dalton reunited in 2005 as members of the band Kino, a progressive rock band which also featured Marillion bass player Pete Trewavas and British prog scene regular John Mitchell on lead vocals and guitar. The band initially featured former Porcupine Tree drummer Chris Maitland, but the latter was later replaced by Dalton. Kino's album 'Picture' was well-received on the British prog rock scene during 2005, and the band performed versions of the It Bites songs "Kiss Like Judas" and "Plastic Dreamer" at live concerts.

Reunion of It Bites lineup 1 (the Union Chapel performance and subsequent writing sessions) – 2003–2006

On 30 August 2003, during a solo concert at the Union Chapel in London, Francis Dunnery was joined onstage by his old It Bites band-mates for the first time since 1990. John Beck joined Dunnery for a duet on the It Bites song "Hunting The Whale", following which Dick Nolan and Bob Dalton also joined in for a gig finale of "Still Too Young To Remember". Following this, it was announced that It Bites would be getting back together to write and record a new album followed by a tour. Although some writing and initial recording did take place, the full reunion of the original lineup never materialised. The brief reunion did, however, act as a spur for some archive It Bites releases – the Live at Montreux album and the DVD Live in Tokyo Both were released by Bob Dalton on behalf of the band.

It Bites lineup 3 (John Mitchell replaces Francis Dunnery) – 2006–2008

In 2006, It Bites opted to formally reunite, but with Beck and Dalton's Kino bandmate John Mitchell replacing Dunnery as lead singer and guitarist. According to an interview on francisdunnery.com, dated 15 October 2008, Dunnery said Bob Dalton called him out of the blue and said he was no longer wanted in the band. Dalton explained to Dunnery that they already had someone to replace him. Mitchell had been an enthusiastic It Bites fan since his teens, and was happy to take on the role. John Beck commented "I’ve met guitarists that could manage Frank’s licks but weren’t singers, or the other way around. John’s the first to do both. It’s all been so natural, I don’t even remember agreeing to do this; it took on a life of its own."
The new It Bites made their live debut for a well-received tour in winter 2006, playing material from the original three It Bites albums as well as premiering three new songs – "Memory of Water", "Playground" and "Lights". The tour also spawned a live album called When The Lights Go Down, released in 2007. The band began recording material for a new album between 2006 and 2008, opting to self-produce. Recording sessions were completed in May 2008.

It Bites lineup 4 (Lee Pomeroy replaces Dick Nolan) – 2008–2012

On 23 June 2008 the band announced a further change to their line-up with the departure of another founder member, bass player Dick Nolan. The band's statement revealed that all bass playing on the forthcoming album had in fact been performed by either John Mitchell or John Beck – in what the band referred to as "Genesis-style", a reference to the 1978 Genesis album ...And Then There Were Three... – and that It Bites had reluctantly parted company with Nolan due to his lack of involvement and commitment. Nolan was replaced by Lee Pomeroy, an established British session bass guitarist and multi-instrumentalist who'd played with Take That, Mike Oldfield and Rick Wakeman's New English Rock Ensemble and shared It Bites' appreciation of English progressive rock musicians. Pomeroy had apparently been originally recommended to the band by Nolan.
It Bites' comeback album – The Tall Ships – was pre-released to members of the It Bites internet forum on 21 July 2008, with a full release following on Inside Out Music in October 2008. The album generally gained good reviews and was considered an excellent comeback ranking with the best of the band's previous work.
With Pomeroy installed, It Bites supported Status Quo at the latter's Whitehaven concert on 2 August 2008 and went on to their own headline tour around the UK between 26 September and 7 October 2008 with neo-prog rock newcomers Touchstone as support.
In summer 2009 It Bites played the Three Rivers Progressive Rock Festival and also toured Japan, with Level 42's guitarist Nathan King covering for an unavailable Lee Pomeroy as bass player. The band went on to play further British concerts in autumn 2009. A live album called This Is Japan – recorded at a Tokyo concert on 3 July 2009, and featuring King – was released in February 2010.
On 28 February 2010, the band released a re-recorded version of their 1986 hit "Calling All The Heroes" in order to raise funds for flood relief following the Cumbrian floods of late 2009. For this release, the band were joined by various guest performers including former members Francis Dunnery and Dick Nolan. Dunnery re-sang the opening lines of the song, with the rest of the vocals handled by John Mitchell, John Wetton, Jason Perry and Steve Hogarth. Further instrumental contributions came from Nolan, Geoff Downes, Jem Godfrey and various members of Marillion. It Bites played more UK dates in March 2010 and two more dates in Japan during the same month.
During 2011, Mitchell and Beck spent time writing for the next It Bites album. Later in the year, the album was recorded at Mitchell's own Outhouse Studios with a full band of Mitchell, Beck, Dalton and Pomeroy. In 2012, the band announced that the album would be called Map of the Past and that it would be a concept album – "inspired by the discovery of an old family photograph, Map of the Past is a highly personal journey that explores love, passion, jealousy, anger, remorse and loss through the eyes of a previous generation against the backdrop of Britain as it enters a new century and one of the most defining periods of its history." The album was released on 26 March 2012.

Final years (2013–2019) and future plans

It Bites continued to play and tour infrequently over the following years, despite the involvement of band members with other projects. The last full band tour was in 2013, although Mitchell and Beck performed an acoustic duo house concert tour in 2014. However, most band activity during this period was restricted to archive releases.
In 2014, all of the albums from the band's period with Francis Dunnery as frontman were released in the boxset Whole New World – The Virgin Albums 1986–1991.
In 2018, the band released another archive box set, Live in London, which contained full live recordings from three different concerts during the Dunnery era. On 18 September 2018, while announcing to fans on Facebook that the pressing had now sold out, Bob Dalton also commented "once again I have been astounded by your unwavering loyalty to It Bites and only wish there was something else on the horizon to be able to offer you but as it stands, this is the final offering from us. I sincerely hope you enjoy the new CDs and it was a pleasure creating this for you."
On 25 May 2019, Bob Dalton announced the apparent end of the band on Facebook, stating "unfortunately It Bites won't be touring or gigging again, we don't have any plans for anything else in the future but it was a great time and we do appreciate all of you who have followed us through the years." However, a few days after Dalton's announcement John Mitchell revealed that neither he nor John Beck had been consulted about dissolving It Bites, and that even if the band had split up he might still continue working with Beck. He clarified "neither of us were consulted with or informed of the announcement – we have been looking into the possibility of releasing The Tall Ships on vinyl, and had made arrangements to write together in the coming weeks. If Bob doesn't wish to be part of this endeavour, that is entirely down to him but we would have appreciated a combined discussion and agreement before making such an announcement. Obviously this doesn't prevent John and I from making music together, whatever the outlet for this now may be!"
During this period, Francis Dunnery has also intermittently toured Britain with a band he refers to as "Francis Dunnery's It Bites".

Personnel

Final lineup members

;Touring musician

Studio albums

DVDs