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The Chameleons (called The Chameleons UK on some American releases) were a post-punk band that formed in Middleton, in Greater Manchester, England in 1981 (see 1981 in music). They consisted of singer and bassist Mark Burgess, guitarist Reg Smithies, guitarist Dave Fielding, and drummer John Lever (replacing original drummer Brian Schofield). The core quartet were sometimes augmented live by keyboardists Alistair Lewthwaite and Andy Clegg in the 1980s, and percussionist/vocalist Kwasi Asante during their reunion period (ex-Magazine drummer Martin Jackson also briefly replaced Lever during 1982-83 while the latter was on sabbatical).

Through Mark Burgess' vocals and dark and ironic lyrics, their songs often dealt with personal themes of childlike innocence and a reverence for nostalgia. Musically, perhaps most notable in their work was the band's innovative and distinctive use of dual guitar melodies, courtesy of Reg Smithies and Dave Fielding, as opposed to the traditional rhythm-and-lead guitarist format prevalent in rock music even to this day. These arrangements were often characterized by the use of delay and choral effects.

The band initially released three studio albums in the 1980s, following 1981 debut single "In Shreds" (the fruit of a brief signing to Epic), and several radio sessions for late legendary Radio 1 DJ John Peel. The Chameleons released their first full-length studio LP, the critically-acclaimed Script of the Bridge, on the Statik label in 1983. The album features a blend of rhythmic electric guitar textures, providing a moody and intense backdrop for Mark Burgess' haunting vocals. After their third release, 1986's Strange Times and the 1987 sudden death of band manager Tony Fletcher, they abruptly disbanded. Burgess then fronted The Sun and the Moon (with Lever), who issued only one eponymous album on Geffen in 1988, followed by an array of solo projects. Guitarists Fielding and Smithies formed The Reegs, who released two albums: Return of the Sea Monkeys (1991) and Rock the Magic Rock' (1993).

The Chameleons were, for all practical purposes, extinct for well over a decade before a small series of successful live dates in 2000 and the concurrent release of the album Strip (which reworked older material in an acoustic format). After a final studio album, 2001's Why Call It Anything?, another unplugged album (This Never Ending Now), and a successful reunion tour which took them across Europe and the United States, the band dissolved once again in early 2003 due to personal differences.