Representative Albums: "Flock: The Best of the Mutton Birds," "Envy of Angels," "Nature"
Representative Songs: "The Heater," "Another Morning," "Salty My Dear"
Biography
The New Zealand pop band the Mutton Birds was led by singer/guitarist Don McGlashan, already a highly regarded figure in his native land for his work in the legendary post-punk-era group Blam Blam Blam. Also including ex-Six Volts guitarist David Long and drummer Ross Burge, the group began recording their debut album in late 1991; following its completion, former Dribbling Darts bassist Alan Gregg was recruited to fill out the lineup. Preceded by the single "Dominion Road," the Mutton Birds' eponymous debut LP appeared on their own Bag Records label in 1992; a melodic pop effort informed by Sixties-era influences, it also spawned the hit "Nature," and fell just shy of topping the New Zealand album charts. In mid-1993 the single "Your Window" provided the Mutton Birds with another hit, and they soon signed with Virgin, issuing their sophomore LP, Salty. In 1995, Virgin also released Nature, a compilation of the earlier two albums intended for the foreign market; Envy of Angels, the Mutton Birds' third studio effort, followed a year later. After 1997's Angle of Entry, Gregg was replaced by Tony Fisher for 1999's Rain, Steam and Speed. ~ Jason Ankeny, All Music Guide
All three members came into the band with experience: McGlashan came from Blam Blam Blam and The Front Lawn, guitarist Long had played in the Six Volts and Burge had played in the Spines and Sneaky Feelings. Burge was also playing in Dribbling Darts alongside the Mutton Birds. They gained bassist Alan Gregg, also from Dribbling Darts in 1992 and recorded their first self-titled album. It went platinum in New Zealand and gained them notice outside college radio, notably for a cover of Wayne Mason's "Nature" - originally recorded by Mason in 1970 with The Fourmyula and subsequently voted in 2002 as New Zealand's greatest song of the previous 75 years. The Mutton Birds debut album remained on the charts for over a year.
For their second album, Salty, they signed with EMI Australia. It was self-produced and mixed by Tchad Blake. Again the album went platinum in NZ but received little notice beyond Australia and New Zealand.
Their next album, Nature, was a collection of songs from their first two CDs with production assistance from Neil Finn, released by Virgin Records.
Their third proper CD, Envy of Angels, was recorded in Wales and released in 1996 worldwide. It sold typically well in Australia and New Zealand, and sales increased from those of Nature in the rest of the world. This year also saw The Mutton Birds' contribution to the soundtrack of Peter Jackson's film The Frighteners with a remake of Blue Öyster Cult's 1976 classic "(Don't Fear) The Reaper". The band now moved to the United Kingdom where they would remain based until 2000.
As they began touring, David Long quit, replaced by Chris Sheehan. Two self-released CDs followed, Angle of Entry (an acoustic live album) in 1997 and Too Hard Basket (subtitled B-sides and Bastards, it contained various rarities) in 1998 as the band looked for a record company. By 1999, Alan Gregg had decided to leave the band. He was replaced by Tony Fisher for their latest CD, Rain, Steam, and Speed which was also released independently. Another independently released live album (Live in Manchester) was issued in time for the 2000 UK tour. A greatest hits collection called Flock was released in 2002.
The group have appeared on many compilation albums since the inception in New Zealand. The following is a list of these albums that have featured tracks by the Mutton Birds.
(1999) - The Best Beer Drinking Songs In The World (EMI) - "Nature"
