Laid Back is a Danish group formed in 1979 in Copenhagen by John Guldberg and Tim Stahl, a group that really started their career in 1981 when their first Single "Maybe I’m crazy" was released. Title taken from their eponymous debut album. A first Single with notable success. But notorious success limited… in Denmark !
Another local success the following year in 1982 with a certain title called… "Sunshine reggae". A title that will be included in their new album "Keep smiling" which was released in 1983. And it is this addition that will change everything : the Single becomes 'visible' thanks to the album and will make a real worldwide hit, exploding the notoriety of the group overnight.
Still from the same album, it is the Single "White horse" which was released a year later in 1984 and which not only was to make a worldwide hit again, but also remained as their first top hit in the USA. A success amplified by particularly ambiguous lyrics which deal in particular with sex and drugs.
The years go by but are not necessarily alike. The group disappeared from international radars for several years despite the release of several Singles. The albums "Play it stright" released in 1985 and "See you in the lobby" released in 1987 were not very successful.
In 1988, there was a big surprise with the tribute paid by the English group New Order to Laid Back through the song "Fine time". A supported tribute all the more rewarding from one of the biggest groups of the moment.
Success returned in 1989 with the release of the Single "Bakerman". A success amplified by the clip of Lars Von Trier in which the members of the group parachute while playing their instrument… A new global mega hit which will unfortunately be the last.
Which will not prevent the group from continuing the adventure subsequently and producing titles of significant quality.
To discover or rediscover...
Discography (among others ...) :
80s Decade :
Maybe I’m crazy 1980
China girl 1981
Sunshine reggae 1983
High society girl 1983
White horse 1984
Elevator boy 1984
One life 1985
It’s a shame 1987
Bakerman 1989
90s Decade :
Highway of love 1990
I can’t live without love 1993
We don’t do it 1995
Key to life 1999
2000s Decade :
Feels like heaven 2000
Beautiful day 2003
People 2004
Happy dreamer 2004
Bakerman 2006
2010s Decade :
Cosmic vibes 2011
Goldtop 2011
Cosyland 2012
Get laid back 2012
Clear your mind 2013
Rocketship to Mars 2013
Brother 2013
Healing feeling 2019
Next life 2019
Walk with the dreamers 2019
2020s Decade :
My baby blue 2023
Sitting in my sofa 2023
Wooden house in Sweden 2023
Mig 2024
Tracks :
1980 ... beginnings that will be qualified as sympathetic. But certainly not enough to be able to claim to play in the big leagues. They will still have to work, it's clear...
1981 ... in the same vein. A quality which remains very average for the moment and which does not risk propelling them to the top of the Charts
1983 ... then THIS title comes ! When Scandinavians get into reggae, this is the result. A very astonishing paradox which will nevertheless bring them glory and fortune. They sign here quite simply one of the most emblematic titles of the decade, light and fresh at will and which is good for morale, quite simply. MAS-TER-FUL !
1983 ... a BIG year 1983 with a second title of very good quality in the wake. After a few years of trial and error, the band has finally found the style and sound to match. All good !
1984 ... the group is really on a hyper-buoyant dynamic since he now connects top hit to top hit. He even obtained with this title his first big success in the USA. Recognition is now global !
1985 ... a success in the United States which cannot be denied because it is precisely in this country that this title will break through. Anyway, the great adventure continues !
1987 ... after 3 euphoric years, the group plunges somewhat into the depths. And yet, quality is always essential. But often goodwill is not enough, especially when the competition in the face does not give any gifts ...
1989 ... not much until this year 1989. A winning comeback that allows them to record a last global top hit, on a track, which however, does not risk igniting the Dancefloor. Astonishing ...
1990 ... one would have thought that the group would not survive the passage of the decade 90. Oh no, a Danish, he clings. And my faith, they deliver us here a most interesting Intimist title. Like what, nothing is ever lost !
1993 ... and the adventure continues quietly, but surely. Admittedly, the group struggles to stick to the musical standards of the moment but whatever, the main thing is to participate as they say ...
1995 ... and it is true that at times, we still come close to caricature. Because to release a title of this kind in the middle of the years 90, it was necessary to dare. They did it !
1999 ... well, this time, it is indeed the end of the international career, 20 years after their debut. Who could have said they were going to last that long ? Few people at their beginnings, it's clear ...
2000... end of the international career, of course, but certainly not the end of the adventure, that's for sure. Because the duo still has things to say and especially to sing...
2003...we're not going to lie to each other, the best are now behind them. But what they continue to offer in this decade 2000 is far from being devoid of interest, it is clear...
2004...you still have to remember that the adventure started more than 20 years ago and they are still there. Which is not nothing...
2004...not to mention that they certainly don't intend to stop there. As long as they enjoy doing what they do, the adventure will continue again and again...
2006... they don't care whether there is success or not now. If there were, it would be better, but if there isn't, it doesn't matter at first sight...
2011...and here they are again the following decade in purely instrumental mode. An astonishing parenthesis that shows another facet of their talent...
2011...it's really hard to imagine that it's the same people who produced 'Sunshine reggae' and yet. Like what, you should never trust appearances...
2012...at this stage, nothing and no one can tell them to leave it at that. Who would blame them frankly for continuing to believe in it a little bit...
2012...especially since they evolve with the times and try to stick to the latest musical developments of the moment. And rightly so...
2013...they will produce no less than 4 albums during this 2010 decade, just that. The duo don't give up and tell themselves that in music everything is always possible...
2013... not only is there quantity but there is also quality, which doesn't spoil anything. The level of inspiration isn't as great as it was when they started, but it's still high level all the same...
2013...they will go all the way together because for them music is part of their DNA. And as we understand them...
2019...the duo ends its 4th decade in great shape. Always something new to say, always something new to sing, always the same desire to move forward at all costs...
2019 ... so we imagine that this new opus will not be the last. Because we now know, with them, nothing is ever over...
2019...now remains to be seen when they will return next time. Because there is still a moment when the weight of age will seriously be felt...
2023...
2023...
2023...
2023...
2024...
Wiki :
Official Website :
Greatest Hits :
Discography :