It’s unclear whose idea it was to sign the contract in Trafalgar Square, or quite what (if any) the significance was.

The significance of a record deal though, is very clear. The long term commitment to your future is laid out in a legally binding document. In the pre-internet days, having a record deal was the absolutely defining difference between a band who were just “having a go” and one actually doing it “for real”.

There was no YouTube, no social networks and besides trading cassettes, no real way of getting your music out to people without a record company to help. Having a deal meant that people were going to hear about you and that things were going to happen.

Sixteen years later at the time of writing, the band still are operating within this contract. Quite whether anyone saw this being where the journey would lead is hard to say. One thing is clear, though, there was no shortage of ambition from all concerned.

R42