Shadowy Men On A Shadowy Planet

Vital Facts

•  Members- Don Pyle (drums), Reid Diamond (bass), Brian Connelly (guitar)
•  Formed in 1984
•  Instrumental since 1985
•  House band for The Kids in the Hall show during entire series run
•  Released 3 albums (which are still available) Released many 7-inch 45s (which are not still available)
•  Announced their breakup on January 1st, 1996
•  The members of Shadowy Men on a Shadowy Planet have since been part of a few different bands, Phono-Comb (with Reid and Don) was one of them.

Bio

"We bought some instruments. We started playing them. We got a rehearsal space. Ken stopped singing with us. We were offered a show. We picked a name. People clapped.

We made a single. We played a lot. We made another single. We played on the west coast. We made another single. We played on on the east coast. We made another single. We toured all of Canada. We made another single. We did one song for 'It Came from Canada Vol. IV". We did the soundtrack to Ron Mann's documentary. It was called COMIC BOOK CONFIDENTIAL. It won a Genie. We did the soundtrack to MYSTERIOUS MOON MEN OF CANADA. It won a Genie. We did a song for SOUNDS (U.K.) magazine. It was on their album 'Beautiful Happiness'. We did a recipe for papiér maché. IT was on the Boys and Girls Club of Canada's Celebrity Cookbook. We made two rock videos. They got shown on TV a lot. They were on the U.K. CND benefit video with Morrissey and they Pet Shop Boys. We never got to meet them. We toured across Canada. We made another single.

"We compiled them into an album. We called that album SAVVY SHOW STOPPERS. We signed to Glass Records of London, England. Glass went bankrupt. We signed with Cargo Records of Montréal, Canada. They didn't. They put our album out. They put a cassette out. They put a compact disc out. It went to number one on the national campus charts. It got a great review in '  ' magazine. People bought it. We went on tour. We travelled the Toronto-San Diego dogleg. The tour was an 'unqualified success'*. We saw Marty Balin at Haight-Ashbury. We got to know Saskatoon. We continue to do music for the KIDS IN THE HALL TV series. We haven't seen Lorne Michaels this year.

Estrus Records of Washington asked us for a song. We gave them one. They put it on their lunch pail box set. K Records of Washington asked us for some songs. We gave them four. The put them out as 'Music for Pets'. We did some photocopying. We bought a dog. It ran away.

* Quoted from the film "New York, New York" and not said in reference to us or out tour."

Trivia

•  "Having an Average Weekend" is the "theme song" for The Kids in the Hall show. The song is on their first album. The album IS still in print and can be purchased at .
•  Shadowy Men used to play before the KITH began their show. Shadowy Men often ended their set with "Having an Average Weekend." As time went on, the sound of "Having an Average Weekend" signaled to the crowd that the KITH were about to begin. The two begin linked.
•  Bruce, Brian, and Reid knew each other back in Calgary. Brian also plays on Bruce's Shame-Based Man.
•  Any bumper music you hear during the KITH show is being played by Shadowy Men. One of the more memorable bumper snippets from the show (if you've heard it), is the rockin' version of Having an Average Weekend. This version was a heavy metal spoof of themselves which was released on a promo single for Sport Fishin'. Since this single is not for sale, I've made it available in RealAudio format.

Print Interviews/Articles

If you ordered something directly from Shadowy Men (at least during the time period when I did), Don would enclose photocopies of press clippings. Here's the text to the ones I have.
•  Rolling Stone- "Hot Picks." (April 18, 1991)
•  Now- "Shadowy Men Come to Light With Surfing Sound." With some info about their KITH show gig. (Jan. 31-Feb. 6, 1991)
•  Imprint- Record review of Savvy Show Stoppers. (September 28, 1990)
•  Now- "Shadowy Men Cut Cool Debut." (August 2-8, 1990)
•  Mirror- "Wipeout." Give a great sense of what they're all about. (July 12, 1990)
•  See A Shadowy Page on a Shadowy Web.

Images

These are all the pictures I have related to Shadowy Men on a Shadowy Planet.
Click to see larger version. Also, see A Shadowy Page on a Shadowy Web.

Discography

Albums
•  Sport Fishin' - The Lure Of The Bait, The Luck Of The Hook (1993)
•  Dim The Lights, Chill The Ham (1991)
•  Savvy Show Stoppers (1990)

Singles & EPs
•  It's A Wonderful Record! (1993)
•  Take Outs (1993)
•  Sport Fishin' Accessories (1993)
•  Dog & Squeegie (1992)
•  Tired Of Waking Up Tired (1991)
•  Music For Pets (1991)
•  Reid Does Neil (1988)
•  Explosion Of Taste (1988)
•  Live Record With Extra Bread And Cheese (1987)
•  Schlagers! (1987)
•  Wow Flutter Hiss '86 (1986)
•  Love Without Words (1985)

Other Media

•  Having an Average Weekend '78- RealAudio file of an "alternate" version of the "KITH theme" which appeared as bumper music during the last season. (56K modem recommended)

Dedicated Links

•  A Shadowy Page on a Shadowy Web

Contributors To This Page

•  Everything on this page: Trista Lycosky