Squeeze's 'Trixies' Mines Teenage Archives
Squeeze released "Trixies," an album built from Glenn Tilbrook and Chris Difford's rediscovered teenage songwriting attempts. The founding members delved into their archives to create fresh arrangements of early material, blending nostalgia with new creativity. The album offers longtime fans a window into the band's creative origins while reconnecting the group with their roots.
The songs on "Trixies" were penned in 1974 when co-founders Chris Difford and Glenn Tilbrook were just 19 and 16 years old, respectively. The material, originally recorded only as demos, was largely forgotten until a friend presented the duo with a higher-quality recording of those early efforts in 2023, sparking the idea to finally give them a proper studio treatment. The album is a concept record centered around a fictional nightclub, a theme inspired by Difford's reading of Damon Runyon's short stories about New York characters in the 1930s and 40s. Despite being written in the 70s, the narrative imagines a members' club of the future, in the 1980s, but with the glamorous and smoky atmosphere of a 1920s speakeasy. For the new recording, Difford has stated that he only altered about three lines from his original teenage lyrics. The project benefits from modern production and the seasoned musicianship of the current Squeeze lineup, which includes bassist Owen Biddle, who also produced the album. The current iteration of Squeeze features, alongside Difford and Tilbrook, drummer Simon Hanson and keyboardist Stephen Large, both of whom joined in 2007. The lineup is rounded out by percussionist Steve Smith, steel guitarist Melvin Duffy, and bassist Owen Biddle.
