Level 42 Trivia Quiz

Answer: The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy

The band wanted to just use a number for their name and the preference was for "88" which was the number of the bus they used to travel to the recording studio. However, they soon came across another band called "Rocket 88" and so the name was dropped.

Just who came up with the idea of 42 is disputed, with bassist Mark King, guitarist Boon Gould and producer Andy Sojka all claiming it was their suggestion. What is not disputed is what book provided the inspiration, with all three claiming to have been reading Douglas Adams' "The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy" at the time the band name came into being. In the novel, a supercomputer named "Deep Thought" is tasked with providing the answer to the question of "Life, the Universe and Everything" (also the name of the third novel in the "Hitchhikers" quadrilogy). After going through several millennia of computations, Deep Thought proclaims the answer to be "42".

Also disputed is who came up with the addition of "Level" to the name although it believed to be one of the band's lawyers. The word apparently came from what was, at the time, the tallest car park in the world which was 42 stories high.

Answer: Wally Badarou

Badarou was mainly only a studio member of Level 42, rarely appearing in public, although he did appear in the video for the single "Love Games". He contributed keyboards to many of the early Level 42 recordings before producing and writing for them.

At the same time as his contributions to Level 42's work, Badarou was also recording his own solo work, starting with the 1982 album, "Back to Scales Tonight".

Answer: M

M are probably best known for their massive hit "Pop Muzik" which reached the number one spot in the US Billboard Chart and number two in the UK singles chart in 1979. M was the project of producer Robin Scott and had a constantly changing line-up of performers. "Pop Muzik", which appeared on the album "New York * London * Paris * Munich", featured the keyboard work of Wally Badarou. Other tracks on the album featured Phil Gould on drums.

The follow-up album, "The Official Secrets Act", also featured Gould on drums, and Gould introduced Mark King to Scott who asked him to play guitar and bass on the album.

Answer: Love Games

The 1981 single, "Love Games", taken from the band's eponymous first album, just snuck into the top 40, peaking at number 38. It was another two years before "The Chinese Way" gained them a second top 40 placing.

Answer: Earth, Wind and Fire

"Standing in the Light" was the first Level 42 album to reach the top ten of the UK album charts, reaching number nine, and also featured the band's first top ten single in the UK, "The Sun Goes Down (Living It Up)" which peaked at number ten.

The album was recorded in Los Angeles and was produced by Larry Dunn and Verdine White, keyboardist and bass player respectively of Hall of Fame inductees "Earth, Wind and Fire". As well as producing eight of the nine tracks (Wally Badarou produced the ninth), Dunn and White provided instrumental work on the album as well.

The influence of Dunn and White helped to make Level 42's sound more commercially acceptable, with the album featuring shorter tracks and greater energy than the previous efforts.

Answer: Something About You

Written by all four members of the band and Wally Badarou, "Something About You" was the second single released from the "World Machine" album following "A Physical Presence". It provided a second UK Top Ten hit for the band, peaking at number six before hitting the US Billboard Hot 100 and rising to number seven.

The follow-up single, "Leaving Me Now", reached number 15 in the UK but failed to chart in the US.

Answer: United Kingdom

The song peaked at number three in the UK singles chart which is the highest that Level 42 have ever achieved. As well as Switzerland, Denmark and Germany, "Lessons in Love" also hit the top spot in the South African singles chart and reached number twelve in the Billboard Hot 100.

Answer: Go West

Initially Murphy was a session artist, working primarily with Kate Bush, and he was hired by Go West for the recording of their eponymous debut album, being invited into the band in the process. Murphy played on Go West's biggest UK hit, "We Close Our Eyes", which reached number five in 1985.

After recording a second album with Go West, "Dancing on the Couch", Murphy joined Level 42 in 1988 for the recording of the "Staring at the Sun" LP. It was, sadly, his only studio album with the band. In October 1989 Murphy, who had contracted AIDS, developed pneumonia and died. The band described him as "irreplaceable".

Answer: Forever Now

Gould had left the band citing nervous exhaustion and disappointment at the direction the band was going. He was unhappy with the more pop-orientated sound that the band was pursuing, which was far removed from the jazz and funk-inspired roots of the band. Therefore it may seem somewhat ironic that the band should turn to him when the popular hits dried up, and a touch surprising too as King and Gould had a significant falling out subsequent to his departure.

King contacted Gould out of the blue, to ask him to provide drums as a session musician on the "Forever Now" album and he also provided the majority of the lyrics for the songs. The album produced three singles which all charted in the UK with the album's title track faring best, peaking at number 17.

Following the release of the album, Gould left the band once again, due to unhappiness with the record label and unwilling to go on tour.

Answer: Mark King

Lindup was invited to return to the band but decided against touring. He did, however, agree to be part of the band should it ever return to the studio and therefore he rejoined the band in 2006 for the recording of the "Retroglide" album. Boon Gould co-wrote many of the songs on the album and Phil Gould co-arranged the track "Ship" with his brother, making the song the first to be worked on by all four original members since the Gould brothers departed the band in 1987.