Squeeze Lineup Stays 'Feisty' for Live Shows

The version of Squeeze touring this summer with Cheap Trick and the English Beat bears little resemblance to the one first came together in London in 1974. Of course, that original lineup lasted only a couple of years, giving way to another that remained intact only through the band's second album, 1979's 'Cool for Cats.'

In the three decades since, the group has changed rosters enough times to warrant a color-coded personnel chart on its Wikipedia page. Despite the revolving-door status, Glenn Tilbrook, who along with co-frontman and songwriting partner Chris Difford is one of two original members, says today's Squeeze is faithful to the group's music.

"When Squeeze got back together, we went back and learned the records," Tilbrook tells Spinner of the group's 2007 reunion tour, its first since splitting up in 1999.

"Squeeze, over the years, I don't know how many people we had -- 45?" he adds. "It was an ever-changing lineup. It's easy to accommodate [new] players, and when you do that, your songs gradually change. What I wanted to do when we got Squeeze back together was say, 'Let's not do that.' Let's say, 'Here's how the songs are. We're going to play them that way.'"

Rounding out the current lineup are keyboardist Stephen Large and drummer Simon Hanson -- both from the Fluffers, the band Tilbrook uses on his solo albums -- and bassist John Bentley, who was a member of Squeeze from 1980 to 1982 and played on such hits as 'Cool for Cats,' 'Tempted' and 'Black Coffee In Bed.'

"It's like your own best cover band," Tilbrook says of the group, adding that he aimed for both "passion and precision." "I wanted it to feel hard and feisty and right, and if I say so myself, we really have done that."

The true test may come if Tilbrook reaches into the vaults and tries playing one of the band's more obscure numbers.

"I think our set is going to gravitate toward hits, but the other thing that would make it interesting for us and our diehards is to pull some cats out of the bag that haven't been pulled out before," he says.