First incarnation
Formed in 1971 in Berkeley, California, the band (then called The Warfield Foxes) moved to Los Angeles by 1973 seeking a record deal. The band consisted of Martha Davis on vocals and guitar, Dean Chamberlain on lead guitar, Chuck Wada on 2nd lead guitar and others. While in L.A., the band changed its name to "The Motels" and the line-up consisted of Martha Davis, Dean Chamberlain, Chuck Wada, Robert Newman on drums and Richard d'Andrea on bass. Both Martha Davis and Chuck Wada contributed original songs to the repertoire.
The Motels and two other local bands, The Pop and The Dogs, kicked off the local band scene with a hallmark concert at a self-produced show, 'Radio Free Hollywood' held at the venerable old theatre, Troupers Hall. (Prior to this show, few if any unsigned bands played local high profile clubs like the Whisky and The Roxy.) The band guested on Rodney Bingenheimer's popular radio show.
After recording a demo for Warner Brothers, which was turned down, they were offered a contract with Capitol but the band turned that down by disbanding in 1976. Dean Chamberlain was soon heard again in his band Code Blue and signed to Warner Brothers Records. Richard d'Andrea joined The Pits and later enjoyed almost three years with The Know. Robert Newman is a successful art director and designer. Chuck Wada still writes and performs and is a financial advisor.
Second, most successful incarnation
In March 1978, Martha Davis was approached by lead guitarist Jeff Jourard to form a new Motels. Extensive auditions resulted in a new lineup consisting of Jourard's brother Marty Jourad who played both saxophone and keyboards, Michael Goodroe on bass, and Brian Glascock on drums.
Short on funds, they shared rehearsal space with The Go-Go's at L.A.'s notorious punk basement, The Masque. Playing in Chinatown at Madame Wong's restaurant/nightclub so many times they were nearly the house band, they began to draw a faithful crowd around the L.A. music scene. By Mother's Day 1979, The Motels had signed with Capitol Records and released their first album in September of that same year. Their first single, "Closets and Bullets," made no impact on the charts, but their second single, "Total Control," found its way to the Top 20 in France and the Top 10 in Australia.
In 1980 Jeff Jourard was replaced with Martha's boyfriend Tim McGovern as lead guitarist. The band went back into the studio to record their second album, entitled "Careful." Released in June of 1980, the album made it to the #45 spot on the US album charts. In Europe and the UK, the songs "Days Are OK" and "Whose Problem?" were Top 50 hits, and the latter was also a top hit in Australia. "Danger" was a Top 20 hit in France.
The band hired record producer Val Garay for their next album. The album, "Apocalypso." was scheduled to be released in November 1981, but after hearing the final product Capitol Records rejected it. Frustrated, the band attempted to go back and rerecord the entire album. In the process, Davis and McGovern's relationship had gone sour. By December of 1981 McGovern was no longer in the band. The rest of the members forged on and finished recorded the new album with Val Garay producing. Using studio musicians to fill in for the vacant guitar spot, the band was able to finish the album by March of 1982. Having auditioned several guitarists to take McGovern's place, Guy Perry finally was given the job. The album, now titled "All Four One," was released in March of 1982.
Before any singles were released, the song "Mission of Mercy" had made enough airplay to land the #33 on the Billboard Rock Album Cuts chart. Their first single from the album, "Only the Lonely," found its way into the Top 10 in the U.S. by June. Other hits included "Take the L" and "Forever Mine." Their first successful U.S. album coincided with the emergence of MTV, which led to music videos for both "Only the Lonely" and "Take the L." Martha Davis won a "Best Performance in a Music Video" award in 1982 for her performance in the "Only the Lonely" video. By now, the band had added a sixth member, Scott Thurston.
The Motels returned in 1983 with the album "Little Robbers." Garay by now not only was producing their albums, but their videos as well; and, he became the band's manager. The first single from the album, "Suddenly Last Summer," made its way to the Top 10 in the U.S. The album went gold in the U.S., Canada, and several other countries. Despite their success, the band cancelled their tour and fired Garay as manager for personal reasons.
With new management, the band forged on in 1984. They appeared on Saturday Night Live in January. They recorded songs for two movie soundtracks: "Long Day" was recorded for Moscow on the Hudson and "In the Jungle" was recorded for the movie Teachers.
In 1985 the band released their sixth album "Shock." The first single "Shame" became a Top 30 hit on the pop charts and a Top 20 on the dance charts. Two other singles were released, "Shock," and "Icy Red."
On February 13, 1987, Davis decided to dissolve the band and go solo.She reformed a version of the band called Martha Davis & The Motels, in 1998; as of 2006 she continues to appear under that name with various lineups.
Three members of the 1978 version of the band reunited with Davis in 2004 for an appearance on Bands Reunited; rejoining Davis were Michael Goodroe, Marty Jourard, and Brian Glasscock. Also appearing in that group was Adrian Peritori (aka "Guy Perry.") The Motels also appeared on the U.S. version of Hit Me Baby One More Time in 2006, and on the Nick at Nite reality program "Class Reunion" in 2007.
Albums
Motels (1979) #175 US
Careful (1980) #45 US
Apocalypso (1981) never released
All Four One (1982) #16 US
Little Robbers (1983) #22 US
Shock (1985) #36 US
Policy (1987) #127 US
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Anthologyland (2001)
So the Story Goes (2004)
There are also other The Motels:
2) The Motels are an alternative/indie rock band consisted of four 15-year-old members formed in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil in 2006. The Motels have composed five songs, however, only one ("Under Street Lights") has been professionally recorded, and "Knapsack" is still in progress. Their music has influences from bands such as The Strokes, Arctic Monkeys, Radiohead, Bloc Party, The Libertines, The Velvet Underground, Moptop, Legião Urbana, and Franz Ferdinand.
The band, who has debuted their single Under Street Lights in two New York radios, is made up of Pedro Paulo Ferraz (vocals), Lucas Feith (lead guitar), Antonio Pedro Ferraz (bass guitar), Carlos Eduardo (Kauai) Moliterno (rhythm guitar), and Beto Damazio (drums).
Two versions of Under Street Lights and the demo of Knapsack can be previewed in their website, www.myspace.com/themotelsrio.
(3)The Motels were formed by rock/jazz guitarist Cliff Hanley in 1976, based in Glasgow, Scotland. They mixed funk with punk and added reggae to the mix, with even some bebop creeping in. An extended fill-in by Ronnie Teape for Al Kerr on keyboards also added a bit of prog-rock,too. An early incarnation of the band included Danny Thomson on piano and Louie Rose (of Georgie Fame's Blue Flames) on congas. A lead guitarist, Tam Kerrigan, typical of Glasgow's fine tradition in rock, joined the front line for some months. Several bass players joined, notably the Pastorious-influenced Billy Lang, and Gordon Blank, from another Glasgow band, The Khyber Trifles.There was darkness as well as humour in their music, and they influenced other Scottish bands of the 70s. They eventually split up in London (1981) and the members joined other bands or moved on to session work, Hanley and frontman Craig Lockhart forming a production company.
One Album: Lo-Fi (2008) UK - to hear and download tracks by this band, look for 'Lo-Fi' in Albums.
tag: punkfunk, male vocals, new wave
Trust Me
The Motels Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
It's not cheap talk
Take a chance
What harm could it do
Say you've hear it
All before now
Hurt for too long
Trust me
I'm never going to leave you
Trust me
I always will be near you
Trust me
Running out of reasons
Knowing certain things
Keeps you frightened of me
Keeps you from me
If there's any time
Or any place
If there's any words
That make any sense
Trust me
I'm never going to leave you
Trust me
I always will be near you
Trust me
Time would take too long and
Words might say to much
Trust me
I'm never going to leave you
Trust me
I always will be near you
Trust me
Time would take too long
And words might say too much
Trust me
I'm never going to leave you
Trust me
I always will be near you
Trust me
I'm never going to leave you
Trust me
The lyrics of The Motels' song Trust Me are about a person who is trying to convince their partner to trust them despite the past hurts and issues that may have caused the partner's trust issues. The opening lines of the song state that what the singer is saying is not hearsay or cheap talk and they urge their partner to take a chance on trusting them. The partner has apparently been hurt for too long and is pretending to be strong, but the singer wants to reassure them that they will not leave and will always be near.
Later in the song, it becomes clear that the partner's trust issues are related to certain things that they know about the singer. The partner is frightened but the singer assures them that there is a time and place for everything and that they should trust them. The repetition of the chorus drives the message home, with the singer telling their partner multiple times that they will never leave and will be there for them always.
The lyrics of Trust Me are simple yet effective in conveying the message of trust and reassurance in a relationship. The repetition of the chorus and the slowly building instrumentation create a sense of inevitability and security.
Line by Line Meaning
It's not hearsay
This information is not based on rumors or gossip
It's not cheap talk
This conversation is not trivial or insignificant
Take a chance
Do not hesitate to take a risk
What harm could it do
There is likely no negative consequence to your actions
Say you've heard it
Acknowledge that you are aware of what has been said
All before now
You've heard similar things previously
Hurt for too long
You have been in emotional pain for an extended period of time
Pretend to be strong
You have been putting up a facade of strength despite your emotional state
Trust me
Believe in what I am saying
I'm never going to leave you
I will always be by your side
I always will be near you
You will always have my support and companionship
Running out of reasons
There is little justification for doubting the artist
Knowing certain things
Having certain knowledge or assumptions
Keeps you frightened of me
You are scared of what the singer might reveal
Keeps you from me
Your fear prevents you from being fully honest with the singer
If there's any time
Regardless of when this conversation takes place
Or any place
Regardless of where this conversation takes place
If there's any words
Regardless of what is said
That make any sense
As long as there is some measure of understanding between the two parties
Time would take too long and
Too much time would be wasted if we don't address this now
Words might say too much
Speaking too much could reveal sensitive information
Contributed by Adalyn V. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@uralska9
i never liked this song til now. this motels version made it right. by far the better of any version.
@fairlanejay
Martha could rock it out when she wanted to.. thx
@mailman32212
can someone post the song little robbers
@MikaellaChiribogafueguina
@escaifitsjeben You´re a bad bad bad boy
@VVoodstock
4sale LP vinyl just ask me
@Noodel3
@mikaellachiriboga ehm... and that's because...