SMALLER BACK, BIGGER THAN EVER
Bands are always getting back together these days. Some do it because they just feel like picking up a guitar and playing with their mates again.
Some unashamedly do it for the money – and yes, I am thinking of those brothers from Manchester who did pretty well out of a reunion last summer. In fact, bands like our very own The Farm are incredibly rare in that they have never split up (even though rumour has it that they were once advised to do this very thing for financial reasons by their then manager). Instead, they are still playing great live shows and last year released some of their best music ever.
Smaller are one of those bands that I never thought I’d see playing together again. Fronted by singer Digsy, they were always a pretty volatile bunch even when things were going well. So getting the band back together 30 years on seemed highly unlikely, but somehow here they are with the second of their comeback gigs coming soon and news that their second album, long presumed lost, is finally about to be released.
I first saw Smaller in the early 90s when they were supporting their cousin’s band The Real People, fronted by brothers Tony and Chris Griffiths. Smaller themselves had their own set of brothers, with Digsy as lead singer and brother Steven as drummer.
The Real People famously were hanging out with and helping the unsigned Oasis at this time, and Digsy and his brother also got on famously with the Gallagher brothers. In fact, I first met Oasis when I was DJ’ing at Le Bateau on the Thursday indie night and Smaller were headlining. Chris Griffiths asked me if their mates could play a short set using Smaller’s gear. I agreed, and Oasis strode up and played a brilliant set of songs (all of which ended up on their first album).
It was probably eight months or so later when I interviewed Noel and Liam in the studio where they had just finished their debut album, and I remember Noel in particular talking about how great Smaller (and Digsy in particular) and The Real People were. The impact Digsy had on him resulted in the song “Digsy’s Dinner” featuring on Definitely Maybe. I can’t think of anyone else Noel has named in a song title, so that’s something of an honour, I guess.
Digsy was definitely a character. Smart, funny, very cutting, and with a love of partying, to put it politely. (And I do vaguely remember one night out with him and another lad who is now one of the most influential people in the music industry, when we ended up getting thrown out of the Adelphi Hotel where the record company fella was staying. We must have been doing something really bad to have got thrown out of that high-class establishment.)
This association with the Gallaghers undoubtedly helped raise the profile of Smaller, who were able to capitalise on it—not because they were mates with Noel and Liam, but because they had some great songs. Digsy had always had a knack for melody, even going back to his days with earlier band Cook Da Books. And now, with a bunch of great musicians around him, Smaller were a force to be reckoned with. Alongside brilliant live shows (including supports on Oasis arena shows), they released a string of stunning singles in the mid-90s including “Stray Dogs and Binbags,” “Wasted,” and “Is.” All those tracks still stand up, and “Wasted” in particular still sounds amazing. Their debut album Badly Badly came out in 1997, but it seemed their moment had gone by then. Amidst fallouts within the band, a second album was recorded, but the band split and it was never released and thought lost.
To be honest, I never thought about Smaller after that, other than occasionally hearing some of the singles on playlists, which reminded me of how good they were. I bumped into Steven occasionally at gigs and was aware that Digsy was still playing the pubs and clubs circuit around town. Then a few months ago, I was taken aback to receive a call from Steven saying the band were getting back together and asking me questions about rehearsal rooms they could use and gigs they could play.
Given the band’s turbulent history, I thought it would all amount to nothing, but to my surprise they have already done one gig and have another one booked in for 25th April at Camp and Furnace. The band line-up is intriguing too, with Digsy obviously taking his role on vocals and guitar, his brother Ste on drums, long-standing member Jason Riley on bass, and with the addition of guitarist Alan Gillibrand they have played a blinder. Alan is one of the finest indie guitarists the city has ever seen and, despite stints with The Tambourines and The Real People, never got the gig he should have that would have displayed his talents to a wider audience.
According to Steven, the band are taking it easy and just looking at doing occasional gigs while, in the meantime, their long-forgotten second album is about to be mixed, with release plans announced soon.
Who knows how long this will all last. I hope that age and time have helped ease the tensions that existed in the band. But just in case it all goes wrong, make sure you get out there and see one of the city’s most legendary frontmen singing those incredible songs again.
