“Shall We Dance” (1981) – Bram Tchaikovsky* Written by Bram Tchaikovsky * LP: Funland * 45: “Shall We Dance” / “Miracle Cure” * Producers: Nick Garvey and Bram Tchaikovsky * Label: Arista
Bram Tchaikovsky, from Lincolnshire, UK, was the stage name for Peter Bramall, formerly of the Motors. Because promotional images tended to show him standing as one of the blokes among his touring band, “Bram Tchaikovsky” was usually referred to as a group. (Joel Whitburn’s chart books still list the name this way, in the B section.) When Bram Tchaikovsky toured with Alice Cooper in 1980, then, the bill featured two groups that suffered from solo artist vs. band name confusion. (Alice had fixed the problem earlier by legally changing his name.) It was US touring that likely gave Tchaikovsky the stateside chart edge he didn’t enjoy back home. His 1979 “Girl of My Dreams” cracked the Top 40, while “Shall We Dance” — in spite of its potential for even broader early-eighties appeal, with its stuttering guitar, minimalist bursts of fluorescent keyboard, and promise of bliss via the dance floor — bubbled under at #109. Tchaikovsky, sadly, would resign from the music biz after this.