" WHEN Club Nouveau first hit the scene at the end of last year, the pundits were quick to dub them copycats of the Timex Social Club, whose "Rumors" hit was one of last summer's biggest and perhaps most unexpected. So, let's put the record straight here and now by pointing out that Club's leader, Jay King, was in fact the man behind Timex Social Club and "Rumors". However, as soon as "Rumors" made its staggering climb to the top, Timex fell apart ? literally! In fact, at the time of this writing, I'm not even sure if the group actually exists any longer.


WHEN Club Nouveau first hit the scene at the end of last year, the pundits were quick to dub them copycats of the Timex Social Club, whose "Rumors" hit was one of last summer's biggest and perhaps most unexpected. So, let's put the record straight here and now by pointing out that Club's leader, Jay King, was in fact the man behind Timex Social Club and "Rumors". However, as soon as "Rumors" made its staggering climb to the top, Timex fell apart ? literally! In fact, at the time of this writing, I'm not even sure if the group actually exists any longer.

The good news is that there's a new Club in town ? literally again! Club Nouveau is the French translation of New Club and that's precisely the way King sees it. No bitterness.

"The sad part is that Timex could have been so huge," Jay wistfully responds. "And it didn't need to have costed a whole lot of dollars. The tragedy is that some black folks are just niggers! For so long, blacks have depended too much on whites to tell them if they're right or wrong. That's not meant as a racial slur but that's the way it's been for too long.

"In the case of Timex, it was actually a couple of black guys who told the group they didn't need me and Denzil (Foster, fellow Club Nouveau member and co-producer of the "Life, Love & Pain" LP). But too many people know the truth. Too many people know who created that sound and that's why Timex has fallen apart.

"Michael Marshall, Timex's lead singer, may still be with the group but he's the only original member. One of the guys is back working at the Holiday Inn in Sacramento; another has gone back to the print shop he was working at before.

"The problem is that they didn't take care of their business and they listened to all their own little rumors. I actually feel very sorry for them. They were pretty dumb ? and I warned them right back at the beginning that this would happen if they weren't tough enough to take it.

"It's all such a damned shame because they could have achieved so much."
TIMEX'S bad fortune has turned into Club Nouveau's good fortune because they have. simply picked up where Timex left off and look to be on their way to another No. 1 record with their clever adaptation of {safm}Bill Withers{/safm}' evergreen "Lean On Me".

"That was a song that Denny (Denzil) had always wanted to record and so I'm personally so very happy for him," Jay chuckles. "Our secret is that our music is real simple. It isn't over-produced and yet it's melodic and we try to feature strong hook lines. We're not too technical and people can relate to our lyrics because they're everyday lyrics.

"It's all a combination of everybody in the new group. Denny and Thomas McElroy are every bit as talented as I am and we try to feed into every song our combined ideas. It provides a broader spectrum of different kinds of musics.

"My taste in music is very broad ? from Al Green to early Chicago and groups like America. Denny, on the other hand, is into that hard funk ? he's a Clinton maniac! Tommy is into a wide spectrum of musics, too, but he likes a lot of Jazz and Reggae."

THE interesting thing is that, according to Jay, Warner Brothers weren't that excited about the group when they first signed them. "They didn't believe we had hits in us ? at least, some people in the company didn't believe. However, once we showed 'em we did, they took out their big guns and haven't looked back since."

For the fact-finders, Club Nouveau consists of Jay King, Denzil Foster, Thomas McElroy, Samuelle Prater and Valerie Watson. The group actually hails from Sacramento, California's State Capitol city.

In closing, the- brash Mr. King offers an all-out warning to the record industry ? "now they've let me in, I am here to stay ? watch!"

Future projects should include outside productions on Theresa (for RCA), New Choice (a sort of female New Edition), Michael Cooper (former lead vocalist/guitarist with Con Funk Shun) and possibly even the {safm}Force MDs{/safm}.    (JR B&S.)