The Flying Lizards is an English band you might never have heard of before, and there’s really not all that much to tell about them. Those amongst you that do know them, probably have a New Wave Classics compilation album lying around somewhere, featuring the song Money.

The history of the song is actually more interesting than the history of the band. Money was written by Tamla Motown founder Berry Gordy (together with Janie Bradford) at the time when he was foudning the record label and originally released in 1960 by Barrett Strong. It can therefore be considered to be the first hit record for Motown. The most famous cover was released in 1963 by a Liverpool-based band called… The Beatles (as the final song on their second album With The Beatles).

The song was covered quite a few times, and in 1979, this catchy cover version by The Flying Lizards brought the song again to the charts (as high as number 5 in some countries).