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Here it is!
Warning: my sources are the MySpace pages of Uppsala and Philippe Cauvin, but my writings ARE NOT a copy/paste of these informations. I also checked Musea internet site and a few fanzines (ATEM, Traverses).
UPPSALA : biography
"UPPASALA is the best
known project of French guitarist Philippe Cauvin who started his
musical carrer at the age of 17, when joining Papoose (one LP and a
few singles), then Absinthe (one LP and some singles). He met bassist
Dany Lacombe in 1974 in the third and last line-up of Absinthe. When
this group disbanded, Lacombe joined the cult band XALPH. Cauvin and
Lacombe played together in the experimental orchestra MUSIQUE D'ICI
ET MAINTENANT with others members of Xalph (the keyboard player Serge
Korjanevski and the drummer André Lesgouarres) and percussionnist
Didier Lamarque.
Lamarque, Lacombe and
Cauvin soon created their own band Uppsala, wanting to create a
fusion of rock, jazz and avant-garde music. They chosed the name
“Uppsala” after meeting Costa Apetrea (guitarist of Samla Mammas
Manna) and Jukka Tolonen, both natives of this Swedish town. The
second song of Uppsala was titled “Coste and Jukka”, an evidence
of the link with those two musicians. Rehearsing, composing, working,
Uppsala became famous for their concerts all over France and began
touring abroad.
In March 1979, when
playing in Belgium, the band got wounded in a car crash. Didier
Lamarque was injuried and Dany Lacombe lost the use of his legs.
Cauvin waited for his friends to recover, recording a first solo LP
and a few tracks on some compilations, before Lacombe announced being
ready to hit the road. In may 1981, Uppsala started a tour in 15
towns, proving their will.
In 1983, the band
released its only LP, titled “Uppsala”, and a 45rpm single. For
the fans of Zeuhl music, this LP is a marvel, due to the high-pitched
vocals and the guitar technics of Cauvin, without forgetting the
dynamism of the rhythmic section.
The trio existed until
1986, while Cauvin recorded another solo LP, “Memento”, with the
help of Korjanevski.
In 1995, the LP was
reissued by Musea with two live tracks recorded in a reunion concert
of the same year, closing the history of Uppsala.
Cauvin had since returned
to his solo career, but Uppsala remains a true cult band for every
amateur of progressive music, especially for people curious about
Zeuhl and daring jazz-rock."
If anything wrong or writen in broken English, let me know.