Pukka Orchestra

A Canadian New Wave band formed in Toronto in 1979. They became fixtures in Toronto's Queen St. West music scene and their debut came out in 1984. They had chart hits with "Cherry Beach Express", which is the maybe fictional account of a codename the Metro Toronto Police used of where they used to take their detainees to a deserted waterfront site in Toronto. And allegedly beat them up. They also had hits with "Might as Well be on Mars" and "Listen to the Radio". The core of the band consisted of vocalist Graeme Williamson and guitarists Neil Chapman and Tony Duggan-Smith, although the band made frequent use of guest musicians. Following the album, Williamson developed kidney problems and moved to Scotland. The band recorded a four-song EP in 1987. However, in the midst of recording their second full-length album in 1988, the band broke up. In 1992, Pukka Orchestra released their final album Dear Harry, consisting of three tracks from the 1987 EP, and several other tracks from the abortive 1988 sessions. The first Pukka Orchestra album was reissued in CD format in 2000.