Carl and the Passions – "So Tough" time, decided to spice up the structure of The Beach Boys by hiring third guitarist Blondie Chaplin, whose soulful singing brought a strong R&B element into the band's sound. Drummer and singer-songwriter Ricky Fataar also joined at this time, as Dennis Wilson had suffered a debilitating hand accident. Both South Africans, Blondie and Ricky were discovered by Carl while playing in seminal South African band the Flames in London, c. 1969. The album sees the Beach Boys entering a period of roots-based rock. Not long after the sessions began, Bruce Johnston had a falling out with manager Jack Rieley and
The Passions (UK band) The album was produced by Fiction head Chris Parry and engineered by Mike Hedges. In May, the Passions embarked on a UK and European tour supporting labelmates the Cure. Bidwell left after the tour (joining the Wall), replaced in July 1980 by David Agar, and the band were dropped by Fiction. A meeting with Peter Wilson, the in-house producer for Polydor Records, led to the band signing to that label, which released their third single, "The Swimmer", on 1 October 1980. Their major chart hit, "I'm in Love with a German Film Star", was released as the band's fourth single