Hombres G
Hombres G is a Spanish pop rock band, formed in Madrid in 1983. They are widely considered one of Spain's most prominent pop groups of the 1980s and early 1990s. The band consists of lead vocalist and bassist David Summers, lead guitarist Rafael Gutierrez, rhythm guitarist and pianist Dani Mezquita, and drummer Javi Molina.
Hombres G made their live debut at Madrid's Rock-Ola in 1983. Their sound was influenced by the early Beatles and the British new wave movement. They found commercial success with the release of Hombres G and the song "Devuélveme a mi chica". The youthful and adolescent nature of their music attracted a large audience, both at home and abroad – thousands covered the Gran Vía Madrileña during the release of their two films and Lima's Jorge Chávez International Airport was nearly closed due to the 20,000 fans that congregated on the landing runway during their first visit to Perú.
The group's sound began to expand and show more adult concerns with the albums Voy a pasármelo bien and Ésta es tu vida. Hombres G went on hiatus after the release of their 1992 album, Historia del bikini. David pursued a solo career, Rafa and Dani remained involved in the music industry, and Javi devoted time to his bar in Madrid.
The group reconvened in 2002 and released Peligrosamente Juntos, a collection of new material, demos, and hits. Hombres G also embarked on an international tour. In 2003, a variety of groups paid tribute to them – Voy a pasármelo bien, un tributo a Hombres G was released in Europe and ¿Qué te pasa? Estás borracho: Un tributo a Hombres G in the Americas.
Todo esto es muy extraño was the first studio album released after the end of their hiatus. The following year they completed a sold-out tour with the Spanish pop rock band El Canto del Loco. Their next album, 10, received a nomination at the 2008 Latin Grammy Awards. Since then, they've released Desayuno continental, En la playa, 30 años y un día, Resurrección, y La Esquina de Rowland.
History
Formation and the first singles (1982–1983)
Rafael Gutiérrez Muñoz and David Summers Rodríguez met in the hallways of Televisión Española by mere coincidence in 1982; they were participants in the show Aplauso.Rafael's brother, Felipe, played bass in the rock band Tequila, but they'd recently dissolved. Rafa saw no definite role in the groups he had been part of: Plástico,, and Los Zombies de Bernardo Bonezzi.
David knew how to play clarinet, an instrument he studied due to his admiration for clarinetist Benny Goodman. Rafa asked David to play clarinet in the new group he was forming with his brother Felipe.
However, David was already committed to forming a group with his two childhood friends, Daniel Mezquita Hardy and Francisco Javier de Molina Burgos. The three were classmates at the Facultad de Ciencias de la Información de Madrid. They'd been playing months prior under the names "Los Residuos" and "La Burguesía Revolucionaria".
David welcomed Rafa's invitation to play music together, but instead asked him to play guitar with him, Dani, and Javi. Rafa accepted. They discarded their first idea of a name, "Bonitos Redford", and found inspiration in the 1935 James Cagney crime film G Men, which in Spain aired as "Contra el imperio del crimen". In the film, the G-Men were agents of the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
Hombres G joined the independent recording company, Lollipop, who in 1983 released their first two singles: "Milagro en el Congo / Venezia" and "Marta tiene un marcapasos / La cagaste, Burt Lancaster". Assisting in the recording process were Fernando Cabello and two friends of the group, Eva Dalda and Lydia Iovanne.
The group's early sound was reminiscent of La Movida Madrileña and shared similarities with, Los Ejecutivos Agresivos, Los Nikis, and Alaska y los Pegamoides. The rhythm and speed of the group's songs was also inspired by the sound of the American rock band, The Ramones.
Live debut, a new recording contract, and the first album (1984)
Hombres G made their live debut at Madrid's Rock-Ola in 1983. Lollipop encountered financial difficulties and was unable to support the band beginning in early 1984.Not long after, the group was interviewed by Radio España with the purpose of promoting one of their performances. That is where they met Paco Martín, recent founder of the recording company, Twins. Ricardo Chirinos, vocalist of Pistones, had suggested the group to Martín. After listening to the interview and viewing the concert later that night, Martín was convinced that Hombres G was the group that he and fellow founder Pepe Escribano were looking for. He talked with the group after the show and the contract was set to be signed the next day.
Recording on their debut album, Hombres G, commenced two weeks later at Trak studios under producer Paco Trinidad. Included in the album were a new version of "Venezia" and "Devuélveme a mi chica". The album featured two covers: "No lloraré", based on "I Never Cry" by Alice Cooper, and "Sin Ti", a remake of the song "Reality" by Romanian composer Vladimir Cosma. The album contained a very accessible pop sound, enjoyable lyrics, and youthful romanticism. The front cover is a still from the 1963 American science fiction comedy, The Nutty Professor.
A few weeks later, it seemed Hombres G was not going to enjoy commercial success. Escribano became impatient and abandoned the company. Two weeks later, radio support and album sales increased. Six months later, the album reached 50,000 copies and a year later: 150,000. Sales eventually reached the millions.
Popularity and promotion (1985)
Hombres G experienced increasing popularity. Their first performance at the Gran Musical de la Cadena SER was scheduled for noon, as was the tradition. However, fans began to congregate at the front door beginning at 4 in the morning.The group made over 100 performances in 1985, in addition to television appearances and promotion in youth magazines. Many of their fans were female adolescents and the group found itself increasingly pressured, for they could no longer stroll through the streets of any Spanish city without hordes of girls following them.
The second album and distribution throughout the Americas (1986)
The group returned to Trak studios in February 1986 to begin recording their second album, La cagaste... Burt Lancaster. 60,000 copies of the album were ordered a month before its release. Hombres G salvaged one of the songs from the Lollipop era, "Marta tiene un marcapasos" – the single went on to top the sales charts in Spain. The album's sound has been described as less punk and more new wave than its predecessor. It made use of ska rhythms and was influenced by the slow sounds of the 1960s. The cover of the album featured an image of the American actor, Burt Lancaster, continuing Hombres G's string of references to American cinema.Their second album was even more successful than the first. The group began to receive proclamations of love, letters written in blood, and others in which the senders threatened suicide if they couldn't have a date with the group. One fan from Zaragoza sent more than 200 individually numbered letters.
That summer, Hombres G went on tour, which included a performance at the Madrilenian bull arena Las Ventas, where the public began to congregate outside the venue beginning at 8 in the evening of the day before.
With a consolidated market in Spain, Paco Martín placed his bet on taking the group to the Americas. He sent copies of their albums to companies across the American continent, receiving the first response from the Peruvian offices of CBS. Hombres G was edited in Peru in mid-1986, and in a few weeks, the album surpassed 50,000 copies. La cagaste… Burt Lancaster was published later, but received a similar response. The next phone call was from the central offices of CBS in New York, to distribute Hombres G throughout all of America. Hombres G found success in Mexico and Venezuela, where their albums obtained gold and platinum certification. Following the summer of 1986, sales of their first two albums reached nearly a million copies in Spain.
In December 1986, the group was invited to attend the gala of the Bravo Awards. The group was nominated in three categories and won "Mejor Agrupación de Habla Hispana".
Release of the first film and third album (1986–1987)
David's father, Manuel Summers, was one of the most popular comedy film directors in Spain. The group received the offer to star in an autobiographic film. The result was Sufre mamón, a movie filmed in Ibiza and Madrid, and which was set to premiere in March 1987.Once filming was finished, Hombres G began to work on their third album. The group didn't have much time to write new compositions, but the fast and tight lifestyle that they'd recently experienced served as inspiration. David isolated himself for a week at a cottage his family owned in Huelva, writing 12 compositions. For the next 15 days, the group finished work on the songs. A week later, Hombres G left for Manchester with Chilean producer Carlos Narea, and recorded Estamos locos... ¿o qué?. The album featured a variety of sounds, including songs based on very rapid rhythms and more traditional rock influences. The themes of the lyrics concerned romance, intimacy, and masochistic tendencies.
The release of the album coincided with the release of their first film. When the film premiered, it caused the collapse of the Gran Via Madrileña, where nearly 10,000 fans crowded the streets. When the group arrived, dozens of journalists and graphic reporters attempted to obtain snapshots. For security reasons, the four found themselves obligated to remain inside one room for several hours, and were unable to view the film until much later. Their assistants faced a similar scenario: even though they were able to gain entrance to the screening, they were unable to hear it due to the deafening murmur originating from the street and the constant singing of the fans watching the film.