The original line-up was Miles Hunt (whose uncle Bill Hunt was keyboard player with Wizzard), Malcolm Treece, Rob "The Bass Thing" Jones (d. 1993) and Martin Gilks (d. 2006). The group originated from an earlier collaboration with group members of Pop Will Eat Itself (aka PWEI), called From Eden, which had Miles Hunt on the drums.
In 1990, Martin Bell (aka, Fiddlie), an accomplished fiddle and banjo instrumentalist, joined the band and Paul Clifford replaced Rob Jones on the bass after Jones left the band.
The band initially split on July 14, 1994 at the Phoenix Festival near Stratford-on-Avon, with Miles Hunt forming Vent 414 and Malc Treece, Martin Gilks and Paul Clifford teaming up with ex-Eat frontman, Ange Dolittle, to form We Know Where You Live.
Following the split of Vent 414, Miles Hunt took to touring an acoustic solo show performing old favourites and new material. During this period, he toured and released an album under banner of The Miles Hunt Club, featuring Stuart Quinnel and Andres Karu (who would later featuring in subsequent line-ups of The Wonder Stuff) as well as Michael Ferentino fom the Amazing Meet Project.
The band later reformed for a few live tours from 2000 onwards including a sell out 5 night residency at The Forum, London. For this incarnation, Stuart Quinnel took over on bass from Paul Clifford.
Their first new album for over a decade, Escape From Rubbish Island, was released in September 2004. The line-up for this album was Hunt and Treece plus Andres Karu and Mark McCarthy (formally of Radical Dance Faction).
This line-up (plus Erica Nockalls on violin) continued into 2006 with the release of their new album Suspended By Stars.
Scheduled for 2011 is a tour supporting The Levellers for which the line up has changed again, with Andres Karu being replaced on drums by ex-Pop Will Eat Itself member Fuzz Townshend.
Some Sad Someone
The Wonder Stuff Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
People go by,
So once around the park before I die.
I hate this jealous feeling and I
Want to cry,
So once around the park before I die.
Don't say that you are sorry, no.
It was when she walked away I thought
Was it worth all the worry and THE
Risk to my health.
And the opening line of every song
That I heard,
Told about some fella having trouble
With his girl.
And don't try to console me,
I don't wonna know.
The Wonder Stuff's "Some Sad Someone" is a melancholic song that tells the story of a disheartened individual who is watching the world go by. The opening lines of the song describe the singer sitting and watching people passing by, feeling jealous that they are happy and carefree while he is not. He desires to take one last walk in the park before he dies, highlighting his desolate state of mind.
The middle section of the song discusses the singer's past relationship and the worthlessness of his worries and the toll it took on his health, which makes him question whether it was all worth it in the end. The final part of the song displays the singer rebuffing any attempt to console him as he is not ready to face the reality of his desperation.
One of the most fascinating elements of the song is the use of the ambiguous phrase "some sad someone" which could refer either to the singer or any other person. The song was released in 1990 and was part of The Wonder Stuff's fourth studio album, "Never Loved Elvis." Vocalist Miles Hunt wrote the lyrics of the song while the music was composed by Malc Treece.
Line by Line Meaning
I'm sitting watching all the merry
People go by,
I'm feeling isolated and alone as I sit and watch life go by around me.
So once around the park before I die.
I want to take one last walk around the park before I die.
I hate this jealous feeling and I
Want to cry,
I'm feeling overwhelmed with jealousy and sadness.
So once around the park before I die.
I want to take one last walk around the park before I die.
Don't say that you are sorry, no.
I don't want to hear apologies.
It was when she walked away I thought
To myself,
I had time to reflect on my situation when she left.
Was it worth all the worry and THE
Risk to my health.
I'm questioning if the stress and health risks were worth it for the relationship.
And the opening line of every song
That I heard,
Every song I hear seems to be about romantic heartache.
Told about some fella having trouble
With his girl.
The songs all seem to be describing someone going through relationship issues.
And don't try to console me,
I don't want anyone trying to make me feel better.
I don't wonna know.
I'm not interested in hearing words of comfort or advice.
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: MALCOLM ROY TREECE, MARTIN RICHARD GILKS, MILES STEPHEN HUNT, ROBERT JONES
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind