Phil Judd helped launch New Zealand’s Split Enz as a founding member and primary creative driver, yet soon grew disenchanted with the record business and quit the group in 1977. He rejoined the band only to leave once more, spent brief stretches alongside the storied Kiwi punk outfits Suburban Reptiles and Enemy, and then formed the three-piece Swingers. That act posted modest local success, crowned by a number-one single called “Counting the Beat,” before dissolving in the early 1980s. Judd’s first and sole solo album, Private Lives, appeared in 1982 and was trimmed to the Swinger EP for the American market, yet drew almost no notice. He turned instead to film scoring and visual art. In 1986 he teamed with former Split Enz members Nigel Griggs and Noel Crombie plus guitarist Michael Den Elzen to create Schnell Fenster, which released two albums before breaking up in 1992. Film work resumed, producing admired scores for The Big Steal, Death in Brunswick, and Mr. Reliable. Judd resurfaced in 2006 with the solo album Mr. Phudd and His Novelty Act. Although his output has remained consistently strong, his idiosyncratic brand of pop and singular viewpoint have never gained the attention they merit.
