Guitarist Mike Connell formed the band in 1984, along with his brother David Connell on bass, Doug MacMillan on vocals, and future filmmaker John Schultz on drums. This initial four-person line-up was quickly supplemented by the addition of George Huntley on second guitar, keyboards, and vocals. Around the same time, former Johnny Quest drummer Peele Wimberley replaced Schultz, finalizing the "classic" line-up of the band.
From the beginning of the group, Mike Connell wrote both the music and the lyrics of the majority of the band’s songs, although he was not the band's primary lead singer. Connell’s influences included the 1960's guitar pop of his childhood, including The Byrds and The Beatles; in an early interview, he stated that the first song he wrote as a teenager was titled “Psychedelic Butterfly."
Like Peter Buck of R.E.M. and Johnny Marr of The Smiths, Connell and Huntley played Rickenbacker guitars for the first several years of the band’s career, creating a jangly, folk-rock sound reminiscent of The Byrds and other Southern U.S. and North Carolina bands of the era, such as the dB's and Let's Active.
A re-recorded version of “Darker Days” provided the title track to the band’s debut album, which was produced by fellow North Carolinian Don Dixon and released in 1985 on Elvis Costello's Demon Records in the UK and the band’s own Black Park Records label in the U.S.
After touring heavily behind Darker Days, the Connells re-entered the studio in 1986 with Dixon and R.E.M. producer Mitch Easter to record their second album, Boylan Heights. The decision to work with Easter continued to perpetuate the comparisons to R.E.M.
Although the band shopped Boylan Heights to various labels, the major record companies, including Columbia Records, which expressed some mild interest, passed on it; the record was ultimately released in 1987 on mid-major TVT Records, which had made its name releasing a series of "Tee Vee Toons" television theme song compilation CDs. TVT would prove to be no commercial match for R.E.M.'s own mid-major label, I.R.S. Records, and over the next decade, The Connells would engage in a series of disputes with the label, on at least one occasion suing, unsuccessfully, to break their recording contract.
Despite the problems with TVT, Boylan Heights was a substantial college radio hit, and The Connells continued to tour relentlessly. During this period, both Connell and Huntley began to move away from their twelve-string Rickenbackers towards six-string Fender and Gibson guitars, leading to a heavier, less folky sound on Fun and Games, the 1989 follow-up album.
Fun and Games was quickly followed in 1990 by One Simple Word, which was recorded in Wales with U.K. producer Hugh Jones.
After a three-year recording hiatus, which included more legal jousting with TVT Records, a rejuvenated Connells released Ring in 1993. While European music fans made Ring a platinum record outside the United States, such high level success in America remained elusive. 1996's Weird Food and Devastation failed to build on the momentum established by its predecessor.
In 1998, the band released Still Life, which marked their final album for TVT. The band released Old School Dropouts on the revived Black Park Records label in 2000. The band recorded the record themselves and promoted it sparingly in the American South.
Peele Wimberley and George Huntley have since left the band. Wimberley briefly played with another band called Parklife, and then moved to Los Angeles to pursue interests in Hollywood and in electronic music. He is currently a member of the Los Angeles band, The Lamps.
Huntley is now selling real estate and working part time at the University of North Carolina music department.
Peele Wimberley was replaced on drums by Steve Ritter; after several years Ritter was soon replaced by Chris Stevenson on drums, and Mike Ayers took George's place on lead guitar. The new lineup recorded the album Old School Dropouts.
In 1993, they released "''74-'75" which remains their most popular song. It is based on experiences of the Class of 1975 in a high school in Raleigh, North Carolina. The video juxtaposed original yearbook pictures with the class members as they appeared at the time. And then in 2015, the producers tracked down the original members once again, and produced a remixed video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p6l3Lh2cb_g
The last official release of the band was in 2001. They still occasionally perform together, including a reunion concert in 2020.
'74
The Connells Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
And the rain runnin' down
There's no reason
And the same voice comin' to me like it's all slowin' down
And believe me
I was the one who let you know
I was your sorry ever after seventy-four, seventy-five
It's not easy
Nothin' to say 'cause it's already said
It's never easy
When I look on in your eyes then I find that I'll do fine
When I look on in your eyes then I'll do better
I was the one who let you know
I was your sorry ever after seventy-four, seventy-five
Givin' me more and I'll define
'Cause you're really only after seventy-four, seventy-five
Got no reason for comin' to me
And the rain runnin' down
There's no reason
When I look on in your eyes then I find that I'll do fine
When I look on in your eyes then I'll do better
I was the one who let you know
I was your sorry ever after seventy-four, seventy-five
Givin' me more and I'll define
'Cause you're really only after seventy-four, seventy-five
I was the one who let you know
I was your sorry ever after seventy-four, seventy-five
Givin' me more and I'll define
'Cause you're really only after seventy-four, seventy-five
Seventy-four, seventy-five
Seventy-four, seventy-five
Seventy-four, seventy-five
The first verse of '74 '75 by The Connells speaks about a person coming to the singer without any reason during a rainy day. The person's voice sounds like it is slowing down, which could be interpreted as the singer feeling the weight of their words. The singer claims that there is "no reason" for the person to come to them, but they still believe them. The singer then reminisces about being the one who informed the individual of something, and they were their "sorry ever after seventy-four, seventy-five." This line could suggest that the singer was the reason for the individual's pain or sorry state in the past.
The second verse talks about how there is nothing that can be said that hasn't been mentioned before, and the situation is challenging. However, when the singer looks into the eyes of the person in question, they feel like they can do better. The chorus repeats that the singer was the one who let the person know that they were their "sorry ever after" around 1974 or 1975. The individual seems to be more interested in pursuing seventy-four and seventy-five than anything else. It's possible that these numbers hold significance for both the singer and the individual, and they route their emotions through them.
Some possible interpretations suggest that the song is about regrets, missed opportunities, and the passage of time. Some have also analyzed the lyrics to be about a failing relationship or someone reminiscing about their youth. The singer could be apologizing for their actions or inaction that led to the other person's hurt. Ultimately, the song evokes a sense of melancholy and the feeling of being stuck in a cycle with a past that cannot be undone.
Line by Line Meaning
Got no reason for comin' to me
There is no convincing reason why you come to me
And the rain runnin' down
The rain is pouring down
There's no reason
There is no justification
And the same voice comin' to me like it's all slowin' down
I hear the same voice, and it seems as though everything is slowing down
And believe me
And trust me
I was the one who let you know
I was the one who informed you
I was your sorry ever after seventy-four, seventy-five
I was your disappointing outcome from the years of 1974 to 1975
It's not easy
It's difficult
Nothin' to say 'cause it's already said
There is nothing to say because it has already been said
It's never easy
It's never simple
When I look on in your eyes then I find that I'll do fine
When I gaze into your eyes, I realize that I'll manage
When I look on in your eyes then I'll do better
When I stare into your eyes, I'll improve
Givin' me more and I'll define
Provide me with more details and I'll clarify
'Cause you're really only after seventy-four, seventy-five
Because you only care about the years of 1974 to 1975
Seventy-four, seventy-five
The years of 1974 to 1975
Lyrics © CONCORD MUSIC PUBLISHING LLC, Peermusic Publishing
Written by: David D Connell, Michael Collier Connell, Timothy W Harper, George Harris Huntley, Douglas John Macmillan, Stephen Jacob Potak, William Jr Wimberley
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@clownbasher2911
Lyrics
Got no reason for coming to me
And the rain runnin' down
There's no reason
And the same voice
Comin' to me like it's all slowin' down
And believe me
I was the one who let you know
I was your "sorry ever after"
'74-'75
It's not easy
Nothin' to say 'cause it's already said
It's never easy
When I look on your eyes
Then I find that I'll do fine
When I look on your eyes
Then I'll do better
I was the one who let you know
I was your "sorry ever after"
'74-'75
Giving me more and I'll defy
'Cause you're really only after
'74-'75
Got no reason for comin' to me
And the rain runnin' down
There's no reason
When I look on your eyes
Then I find that I'll do fine
When I look on your eyes
Then I'll do better
I was the one who let you know
I was your "sorry ever after"
'74-'75
Giving me more and I'll defy
'Cause you're really only after
'74-'75
I was the one who let you know
I was your "sorry ever after"
'74-'75
Giving me more and I'll defy
'Cause you're really only after
'74-'75
Source: Musixmatch
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