The following band members reunited in 2005 to create the new album "Gathering of the Faithful" which had a European release in 2006 and will have a U.S release on 8/21/07!
Richard Black (vocals)
Spencer Sercombe (guitar)
Christian Heilmann (bass)
Glen Sobel (drums)
Influences
PLEASE help promote Shark Island by selecting, copying and pasting the following code to put the above banner on your myspace page or website:
Sounds Like
Click the following play button to see the Shark Island video for "Paris Calling" from the album "Law of the Order":
This is the official Shark Island myspace page for the promotion of the reunited Shark Island band, as requested by the record company, Manifest Music and as supported by the current band members.
Shark Island was a rock band from the Los Angeles area that played heavily during the '80s.
The band was officially started in 1979 by singer Richard Black and guitarist Spencer Sercombe, with the name Sharks. Black and Sercombe had met in high school and were playing together for some time.
The band changed its line-up frequently during their first years, and released an independent album called Altar Ego in 1982. During these years the band turned into one of the hottest live bands from the L.A. scene.
In 1985 they changed their name to Shark Island and released another independent album titled S'cool Buss the next year. Following in the tradition of bands like Van Halen, Motley Crue and other LA bands, Shark Island was also the house band at the world famous Gazzaris on the Sunset Strip. Bill Gazzari even helped produce their first single, a cover of the Frank Sinatra song "New York, New York".
Despite being dubbed as one of the best rock bands of the scene, the band failed to get a record deal. Supposedly they were signed by A&M but dropped later, only to be picked by Epic. During these times, the line-up continued to shift with drummer Walt Woodward leaving to join The Scream, and on-and-off guitarist K.K. Martin definitely parting ways with them due to "artistic differences".
Bassist Chris Heilmann and drummer Greg Ellis joined in 1989 to record and release the band's only official album titled Law of the Order.
After that, the band just vanished from the scene, with most of its members joining other projects. Apparently there were some unreleased songs recorded sometime in the late 80s or early 90s, but nothing else was released.
In 1989 Shark Island's "Dangerous" and "Father Time" were both featured in the movie Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure, and were released on the soundtrack album.
In 2006 Shark Island released "Gathering of the Faithful" 13 songs of true Shark Island magic. Richard Black (Vocals) , Spencer Sercombe (Guitar) and Chris Heilmann (Bass) were joined on by Glen Sobel (Drums).
Using the free, secure and reliable Paypal service you can click on the following Paypal shopping cart link to order the special Collector's Edition "Gathering of the Faithful" Compact Disc, at a special NEW **ROCK BOTTOM** PRICE of ONLY $10 USD (plus shipping and handling):
Been telling people about you guys for years! Hi Chris! :) Scott (your neighbor from Hollywood) p.s. I'll never forget the time I went to see you guys and L.A. Guns at Club Iguana in Tijuana and almost got arrested. Except for that, it was an awesome night! ;)
Hey Guys! Thanks for the letter! I still listen to that brilliant Law of the Order cd! And one of my treasured items is my fully signed Alive at the Whiskey 12 inch vinyl. What a great band! Hope to see you rock out live one day! Cheers Dakeno
Thanks for the add. I love your music!!! I was listening to the songs on your page and it brought back so many memories. I'm so glad to see you guys still rockin. And I will definitely let my friends know. Peace.
Ahhhh...Shark Island. I was but a wee teenaged bad boy when I first saw this band in L.A. In the early 80's....and from day one I knew I was watching true greatness. Lots of bands "tried" to be legit, tried to imitate the authentic Los Angeles swagger that only a handful of LA bands could really claim as their own...bands like Smile, Snow, Redi Killowatt and The Sharks. I loved the sharks. They just burned, man, they came to play and took you fron the first song all the way thru the night. Spencor was playing bright yellow BC Rich mockingbirds back then, they looked sexy and sounded bad ass, and Rick Czerny was far and away "the" quintissential frontman with a unique and recognizable voice and absolutely huge stage presence....look man, I'm a frontman myself and I've seen them all from Los Angeles to Detroit and Rick was IT - we all learned from him, we all owe him immense credit. I'm 43 years old now...which is a touch above my 20's, and I now live in Detroit, where I'm once again fronting my own band of spiritually fueled hard rock. Seeing the reunited Shark Island is a great encouragement and a reminder that some cowboys go out like that....after all God DID give rock and roll to ya... Tell your friends about Shark Island. Buy the CD, promote them shamelessly, cause once it's over, you'll never see the likes of this kind of band again. Shark Island - I salute you!!!
Yes I will tell my peeps about Shark Island!! I grew up watching Rick and Spencor and they were a HUGE influence on my own musical development. I'm a rock singer in Detroit now, and I've told many people about "The Sharks" from back in the day....everyone in LA owes you a debt of gratitude and being well over 21 myself and still doing rock music, its a great encouragement to see you guys giving it another shot. God empowers us at the strangest of times....just because we get older does not mean we should ever stop beleiving in what we do....
