The Colourfield

In the summer of 1983, as Fun Boy Three reached the peak of their popularity, Terry Hall dissolved the group. Partnering with former Swinging Cats members Toby Lyons and Karl Shale, he relocated to Manchester and launched the Colour Field, an ensemble whose sound proved lusher and more melodic than that of his prior band. January 1984 saw the release of their debut single, “The Colour Field,” which narrowly missed the Top 40. Later that summer “Take” appeared, yet it remained far outside the upper chart positions. The Colour Field achieved their first hit in January 1985 when “Thinking of You” climbed to number 12. “Castles in the Air” followed but likewise failed to chart, surfacing only weeks before the band’s debut album, Virgins and Philistines. The LP, like the singles that preceded it, never secured a broad audience. Their second album, Deception, arrived in spring 1987. During those sessions Lyons exited, leaving Hall to finish the record alone; he recruited Raquel Welch’s band to help complete the project. Unhappy with the results, Hall disbanded the Colour Field by the close of 1987. Terry Hall died on December 18, 2022, from pancreatic cancer at the age of 63.