An all-female group from Bedford that released their first single in 1986 are enjoying a revival just 38 years later, thanks to being rediscovered by a new generation of music lovers.
Zenana was formed in the mid-80s by Penny Griffiths, Ruth Elder, Anita Gabrielle Tedder and their manager Steph Daniels. They were early adopters of the synth-pop sound of the 80s, with Anita’s brother, Michael, helping them to home-record the song.
They released one single, Witches, in 1986, which, Anita said, “died a death” and they disbanded shortly after. However, a series of recent coincidental events have led them to enjoy a revival with YouTube views of one of their live performances going from 800 to 10,000 views since Monday (4 March).
As Anita told the Bedford Independent just before International Women’s Day, “It’s weird after 40 years to be an overnight success”.
The second act of their story began in 2022 at a party held by Anita and Steph to celebrate their 40th anniversary. Singer/songwriter and Ed Sheeran collaborator, Amy Wadge performed at the party and afterwards, Anita put on the Witches backing track and the trio sang and danced to the track for the first time in 30 years.
“It was such fun to be together and performing as Zenana on that evening,” said Anita. “Amy [Wadge] said that if the single was re-released she would buy it, but we didn’t think anything much of it. It was all just a bit of fun.”
By extraordinary coincidence, the following day Anita received a message from a young DJ who had discovered the 7″ single of Witches in a second-hand shop.
“The message was from Kiernan Abbott, a DJ interested in 80s synth-pop,” said Anita. “He said he’d found the song, absolutely loved it and suggested that we should re-release it.”
Fast-forward to September 2023 and the official launch of the Zenana four-track EP at Slide Record Shop in Bedford and Matt Anniss and Gareth Morgan, known as Bedmo Disco, showcasing their six-minute ‘Witches’ remix.
This, in turn, led DJ Antalheitlager of Dutch record company, Rush Hour Records to sign the group and re-release the original version of Witches together with the Bedmo remix.
Described by Q magazine as “a synth-heavy number that drew on the emerging Chicago House sounds while keeping a firmly poppy sensibility (imagine Bananarama after a visit to the Hacienda)” the song is now tipped to be a Euro club banger.
And all week the group has been in high demand with TV and radio interviews allowing them to share their music with a new generation of listeners.
“We’re really feeling the love,” said Anita.
“All of us have health conditions so we don’t take anything for granted – we’re just enjoying the ride because none of us knows what is round the corner.”
One thing that is obvious from speaking to Anita, Penny, Ruth and Steph is that they are great friends enjoying this unexpected second wind of fame, wherever it takes them.
You can listen to their EP and find out more about the band here.
Zenana are performing at this year’s Bedfringe Festival at the Quarry Theatre, so watch this space for more details on when you can catch them live.
