Translator

The four-piece Translator emerged from San Francisco as a Beatles-inspired outfit that fused high-energy pop with poised yet atmospheric melodies. Steve Barton and Bob Darlington served as the dual singer/songwriter/guitarists whose work drew on Merseybeat, lean rock, and psychedelia, while bassist Larry Dekker and drummer Dave Scheff anchored a lineup that remained unchanged throughout the band’s first seven years and later reunion appearances. After forming in Los Angeles in 1979 and moving north, the group landed on Howie Klein’s 415 Records when a demo reached college station KUSF; the loose yet understated “Everywhere That I’m Not” quickly became their calling card.

That track anchored the David Kahne-produced debut Heartbeats and Triggers (415/Columbia, 1982), an underground and college-radio favorite, whereas the 1983 follow-up No Time Like Now, also helmed by Kahne, met with less success. Seeking distance from rigid new-wave constraints, Translator enlisted Ed Stasium to shape the expansive self-titled third album released in 1985. Increasing psychedelic leanings turned concerts into three-hour explorations steeped in traditional San Francisco rock improvisation. Evening of the Harvest (1986) captured a seasoned ensemble at its most cohesive, merging rock drive with subtler textures, yet it also marked the close of the original run when the band dissolved quietly that December. Columbia compiled Everywhere That I’m Not: A Retrospective the same year; further overviews arrived with Translation (Oglio, 1995) and Everywhere That We Were: The Best of Translator (Columbia/Legacy, 1996), accompanied by reunion shows in 1993 and 1995.

In 1996 the group received notable recognition when its version of the Beatles rarity “Cry for a Shadow”—originally the B-side of the 1983 single “Break Down Barriers”—was taken by some listeners as a newly recorded track by the surviving Fab Four for the Anthology documentary series. Occasional reunions persisted, and Barton also pursued solo work. Translator’s appearance at the 2006 SXSW festival in Austin, Texas, highlighted how its concise, roots-oriented 1980s approach resonated with the era’s back-to-basics rock revival. The original members returned to the studio in 2012—26 years after their last sessions—to record Big Green Lawn and performed several well-received shows in support. Omnivore Records issued Sometimes People Forget in 2015, a set of previously unreleased demos cut between 1979 and 1985.