Thanks so much to Grant Madden for this great and extensive interview. If you are looking forward to hearing more from the band, don’t doubt getting in touch with him, and I’m pretty sure he’ll sort it out for you. More information how to get in touch with him below of course, you have to do your reading homework Time to discover one of Rutland Records best kept secrets.

++ How did Halftime Oranges start? How did you all meet? Maybe at a football game?

We were all already in bands or had been in bands. I was tiring of the band I was in and David’s band was dormant and I chatted with him about the idea of a band with a football theme at some gig ( I can’t remember which, the venue was the Norwich Waterfront I remember that ) and so we had a go at writing some songs and the initial rush of enthusiasm got us going. I suspect I had some foolish ideas in my head that this was a wonderful idea that would make us very famous, sadly it didn’t.

++ Why the name Halftime Oranges?

We obviously wanted something football related so played around with a few ideas. This one comes from an old tradition in the UK in football (most outdoor team games really) to have a plate of orange segments to eat at half time. It’s an old fashioned idea though, it’s unlikely to happen much now. Isotonic drinks and the like have put paid to it.

++ Were any of you involved with other bands prior to Halftime Oranges?

Yes. David and Will were in The Potting Sheds (excellent band there is a myspace site if you look them up I’m sure you will all like them)
I was in a band called The Passing Clouds
David James was in Grand Designs and then A who went on to sign a major deal and become famous.
Flob was in other bands at the same time, one of which The Pitkins were very good we often played gigs with them.

++ So tell me, why this indiepop/football passion of yours? I love both as well, but.. how come you decided to mix them both together? Did you all support the same team?

I guess they were my 2 big interests at the time (and now) and I thought why not.
I think it worked well sometimes (and sometimes not so well) some of the songs are just silly or contrived but generally even though not many people outside of our part of England ever heard us I like what we did.
I’ve been in 4 bands but this is the one I remember the most fondly.

++ Has Norwich changed a lot? Any favourite bands from back then? What about Norwich football? any good?

I should say The Potting Sheds (who were primarily a Lowestoft band but as is the way with these things if you were from within 50 or more miles of Norwich you were a Norwich band) were a great band not just because David and Will were in them.
Also The Spinning Jennys were wonderful (they released 1 single on teatime records which is much loved in my house.)
There’s always been lots of bands around Norwich, probably more than ever now, and lots of places to play.

Norwich football has been on the slide in recent years, for instance their highest ever finish in England, 3rd in what is now the Premiership was achieved
in 1992-93 season, when the band started. Whereas last season they were relegated to the third tier of English football (the first time for 50 years) and started this season with a 7-1 home defeat, however
things have picked up since and there is hope they may get promotion back up a level this season, maybe via the play-offs which would mean a Wembley final which would be great.
The 2nd biggest team in Norfolk, Kings Lynn have folded this season for financial reasons even though on the pitch they were doing well.
And Lowestoft Town are having a fantastic year, having made it to the first round of the FA Cup and are top of their league.

++ How did you end up signing to Rutland records? Were you good friends with Ruth Miller?

We sent out some demo recordings we had done to a few labels that we thought would be sympathetic (and to some who were chosen badly at random in that they were hip hop labels – I blamed David) to see if there would be any interest and Rutland were happy to release it.
It was great that they liked it and wanted to have it us release records on their label.
We also got to play some gigs with them and Terry played guitar with us on a radio session once.

++ There’s a song by you called “What’s the fuss with Ryan Giggs”. I guess you dislike Man U? Please tell me more about this!

I don’t hate them, I know I am supposed to but I have mellowed with age.
So really its just a silly rhyme song, I quite liked the idea of its ludicrousness.
Giggs is and always has been a brilliant player.

++ This song was included on the Clive Baker Set Fire on Me album, the only one I’ve got the chance to listen so far. It has so many nice stories, vignettes, of famous players, stadiums and even coaches. How did this album shape up? What was the creative process behind it and what about the recording of it?

It was a hodge podge of stuff we’d done up to the point of releasing it.
We’d had several recording sessions with various line ups and they were the best songs and best recordings we had.
The songs were all written at about the same time though in the 2 years or so between us forming and getting the album together.
The second album was done at one recording session with the same 5 people and even if the songs aren’t any better or worse I think we did them more justice. We sound a little bit more competent on that album.

++ Why the name “Clive Baker Set Fire on Me”?

It’s from a song we never recorded ‘Clive Baker Set Fire to me, with an aerosol made from Brut33′
Clive Baker went to the same school as someone who played bass in the band for a while and the school bullies at their school apparently (I think its a bit far fetched myself)
threatened younger boys with home made flame throwers using aerosols of cheap male after shave (brut 33) sprayed through a flame.
Clive Baker went on to be a goalkeeper for both Norwich City and Ipswich Town, the 2 big sides in this area. And if you look him up on ‘Flown from the Nest’ (www.ex-canaries.co.uk) the brilliant website
about Norwich City players past and present, he now works in the Insurance Industry, which is what me and David were doing when we formed.

++ There’s not much information online about this Grant, so what’s the full discography of The Halftime Oranges? and if you can, include demo tapes and compilation tracks

I got the following from (http://www.last.fm/music/Halftime+Oranges/+wiki) where there is also a biography and some reviews.

DISCOGRAPHY

April 1995
Peel Park E.P.
Rutland Records RUTEP9 7 inch vinyl
The only Cockney Rebel / Billy’s Boots / Terry Butcher / No goals, no dolly birds, no Jensen Interceptor / Cats go for Go-Cat

October 1995
Cantona The Album
Exotica Records Pelé 10CD CD and cassette compilation album
track – Eric (Please don’t go)

February 1996
Clive Baker Set Fire To Me
Rutland Records RUTCD3 CD album
Terry Butcher / A million ways / The only Halifax supporter / Single leather football / What’s the fuss about Ryan Giggs / Blues for John Gidman / Wembley / Billy’s Boots / Saturday / Hair / Bob Stokoe says / Battison / The only Cockney Rebel / East Fife 4 Forfar 5 / He can watch the football

October 1997
Rotterdamnation
Rutland Records RUTCD5 CD album
Any team will do / Terrace girl / Vinny Jones / Six point Christmas / Panini / Zig zag to the onion bag / A gospel song / Second city blues / Billy Dane’s grown up / The girl from 4b / Theme from Orange / Yesterday’s hero / Occupations / Stars / Moving the goalposts

April 2000
Singing The Blues – The Songs Of Ipswich Town F.C.
Cherry Red Records CD GAFFER 32 CD compilation album
track – Terry Butcher

February 2001
Highbury Anthems – 18 Gooner Classics
Cherry Red Records CD GAFFER45 CD compilation album
track – The only Cockney Rebel

March 2001
Everything Went Pop!
Meller Welle Produkte MEL 32 CD compilation album
tracks – Pass, shoot & score and All my resolutions

As well as this there were tracks on Rutland Tapes and

1990s
Beyond the Valley of the Polar Bears
Red Roses For Me Fanzine Compilation Tape.
tracks – Give it to Shilton and We Only Sing When We Are Winning

++ Also what story is behind the name “Rotterdamnation”? Does it have to do with England 2-0 loss in 1993 that signified you not qualifying to the World Cup 1994?

Yes it does, I lifted the phrase from a headline in The Sun (a British newspaper).
A miserable game.
England games often can be.
I liked the word and noted it down in my memory for future use when I read it.
I like town and place names in songs.

++ Who would you say influenced the music of Halftime Oranges? Do you still listen to indiepop records?

I loved indie pop at the time and I still do.
The bands that influenced me were the C86 indiepops ones/Sarah label bands/Bands releasing tracks on tapes and fanzine flexis – also the local indie pop bands like The Spinning Jennys seeing them live inspired me to want to be in a band who tried to make you smile.
I moved house recently and it meant packing and unpacking lots of my music and the whole process was slowed up by me wanting to play old records I’d forgotten I have, lots of them indiepop.

++ What about gigs? Did you play many? Which were the best ones?

Whilst we were going we played fairly regularly in Norwich, mainly at the gigs put on by The Wilde Club and a few others around this area but we didn’t venture further afield much.
They were often shambolic due to our lack of rehearsal time.
For our first gig we supported Velocity Girl and I think that went well. We got them to sign a football which we gave out raffle tickets for to everyone who came to the gig and then we drew out the winner on stage during our gig. If nothing else it got people to watch us who’d come for the main band and I wonder if the person who won still has that ball.
We also used to like to support Prolapse when they played in Norwich, they were a great band.
We played with The Pastels when they played in Norwich and that was good.
Also we played a Rutland Records night in Leicester with Po and Super Eight which was excellent.
I remember a big loss making gig we put on in Lowestoft with The Beatnik Filmstars too.

++ So who was the best English player ever? what about who’s the best right now? How do you see England chances towards the South Africa world cup?

Hard to say if I haven’t seen players from the past, I suspect it is Bobby Charlton but I’d like it to be someone like William Fatty Foulkes. It wouldn’t
work now but 100 years ago they obviously just put the big fat lad in goal because he’ll cover more space and it obviously worked. He is attributed with saying
“Call me anything you want, but don’t call me late for dinner”

The best player we have in the England team right now is Rooney, he is the one who if he got injured now and had to miss the World Cup we would feel the most
deflated over losing.

The World Cup draw was kind to England.
I think we can progress out of the group stage, but whether we can go far I am unsure.
Recently when we have played the top sides (Brazil and Spain) we haven’t looked as good
There is always hope though and as we build towards the tournament starting I will be getting more and more excited.

++ On the last page of the debut album there’s and ad for “Philosophy Football”. What was this all about?

They are the self-styled “sporting outfitters of intellectual distinction”.
See http://www.philosophyfootball.com/ for more details. In summary (and I lifted this from their website)
It all began in October 1994. A bright spark by the name of Geoff Andrews who’d had to stomach a dull draw between Spurs and QPR at White Hart Lane, was round at Mark Perryman’s flat in Tottenham and suggested a t-shirt with the immortal words of Albert Camus “All that I know most surely about morality and obligations I owe to football” across the chest. For reasons he’s never been able to rationally explain Mark retorted “not a t-shirt, a goalie’s top”.
Soon enough Mark had rustled up enough orders to make the job worthwhile. But design is something Mark remains blissfully ignorant of. Help was at hand in the shape of artistic genius Hugh Tisdale, who was then designing a lefty newspaper Mark’s partner edited. Knowing Hugh was a Villa fan Mark reckoned he might be up for the idea. And up for it, Hugh certainly was. A beautifully crafted bottle green shirt, quote on the front, name and squad number on the back was produced. And in short they’ve never looked back.
Basically they make fantastic t-shirts (and more stuff) featuring quotes from famous people connected sometimes obliquely.
Mark Perryman who is involved in running the organisation is an all round top bloke who does wonderful work promoting England Football Supporters as
good people. I’ve met up with him on numerous trips abroad to watch England play where he will arrange for fans to visit local schools, play fans matches between the England and opponents supporters, visit historical sites, sites of remembrance.

++ Do you go often to the stadium? Which stadium has impressed you the most?! What about the classic question, Pele or Maradona?

All the time.
I love watching live football at all levels.
I like to follow England around the world which has taken me to some great stadiums but equally I watch local football in little stadiums which aren’t much
more than marked out pitches, with small crowds of a handful of people.
Maradona I think it is more because I have seen him play in real time, all I have seen of Pele was old film to me though he looked brilliant.
They are both geniuses so hard to say. One’s opinion can change everyday on this.

++ When and why did Halftime Oranges call it a day? What did the band members do after? Are you all still in touch?

It just drifted to an end.
I can’t remember us saying right that’s it, rather we just did less and less gigs and there was nothing to get together to rehearse for.
There was a gap before the German release when we’d virtually stopped but we got back together to record that.
Nobody fell out so yes I think we are all in touch with some or all of each other.
David is a teacher now.
Flob top photographer and in Cure tribute band and I think another band (one of his old bands reactivated)
Will works where I work and does still play in a band
I have done some stuff since.

++ So, this weekend, watching football. Will you have beer? snacks? How does it work for you?

I’ll either watch or play some football.
I hate it when I am doing neither.
It’s nice to drink beer at a game but it always depends upon how I am getting there, if I am driving I can’t.
I have a theory regarding food that the lower down the league system a club is, the better the food, maybe it is because it will be made there not a corporate mass produced thing.

++ Thanks again so much! Anything else you’d like to add?

I have some halftime oranges album cds at my house so if anyone would like one send me an email to oranges500{a}yahoo.co.uk with your details and I will pass one on. If you have a like minded trade all the better but a nice email requesting one will suffice.

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Listen
Halftime Oranges – Terry Butcher