As Bachelors Anonymous (1984–1992), Robert Berg and David Hughes probed an ambivalent, tenebrous area of pop music, inventing images of the flesh—its compulsions and its ethers. Through the uneasy seduction of Berg’s melody and Hughes’s lyric, the work succeeds as a synthesis of artistic expression within the popular form.
Reviews, articles, and interviews about Bachelors Anonymous have appeared in L.A. Style, Music Connection, The Advocate, Frontiers, and the Los Angeles Times. The band’s music has been described as “Eurotech No-Pop,” “social realist,” and “insistently danceable.” They have appeared at venues as diverse as Club Lingerie, Café Largo, and poolside at a West Hollywood athletic club. Bachelors Anonymous has participated in benefit events for U.S. Senate-hopeful Harvey Gantt, ACT UP/LA, High Performance magazine, and Los Angeles Contemporary Exhibitions (LACE).
The band has released a six-song cassette and 45 r.p.m. single on their own label, Significant Other, and have a publishing arm, Celibataire Music (ASCAP). Their music video “Looking For You” has been shown on local cable television.
About the Bachelors . . .
Robert Berg (vocals/keyboards/composer) was born in Saskatchewan and was classically trained in piano and flute. He has been composing and performing since 1971. He was previously a founding member of both The Mystery Group in San Francisco and The Razor’s Edge in Hollywood. He is the composer of the acclaimed AIDS! The Musical!
David Hughes (vocals/lyrics) was born and raised in the Rocky Mountains. After years of working as a full-time political activist and organizer and an aborted attempt at a formal education in music and art, his performing career began in the ’80s with solo performances and the pan-sexual rap group Age of Consent. He has studied and/or collaborated with poet Alan Ginsberg, choreographer Rudy Perez, and performer Josie Roth, among others.
In addition to their work in Bachelors Anonymous, Berg and Hughes’s collaborations include the score for the Rudy Perez Performing Ensemble’s Made in L.A., Terri Lewis Dance Ensemble’s Bachelors, and John Fleck’s award-winning I Got the He-Be-She-Be’s.
The above is taken from one of several biographical profiles, January 1992. See also Welcome To Our World and How We Met for more about Bachelors Anonymous. We’ll be telling more tales as time goes on, so feel free to subscribe (see form at right) to be kept in the loop.
Header image:
Rocky Schenck
I used to be friends with David Hughes many years ago but fell out of touch.
Chris, you were art director for our music video of “Looking for You” thirty years ago. Great to hear from you.