Retired Isle of Wight hotelier David Cowles and songwriting partner Richard Haines are finally set to release their first-ever 50/50 studio album.
US label Light in the Attic will release Memories Linger, the first-ever album by David and Richard, on 4th December.
The 12-track album has been drawn from an extraordinary archive of more than 150 recordings made by the pair between 1979 and 1985, with 9 of the songs selected for Memories Linger never previously released.
The title track, recorded more than 4 decades ago, was released digitally on 30th September across music streaming platforms, ahead of the vinyl album later this year.
David, who now lives in Brading, first met multi-instrumentalist Richard during informal recording sessions at a studio in Reigate, Surrey, in the late 1970s. David concentrated on vocals and lyrics and the pair developed a songwriting partnership combining the emerging sounds of synth-pop and new wave with their shared love of 1960s and 1970s music.
They called themselves 50/50, reflecting both the equal nature of their songwriting partnership and the friendship behind it.
Their music attracted significant industry interest. Encouraged by Genesis manager Tony Smith, 50/50 signed a publishing deal with Bocu Music in 1982, whose roster included ABBA, Colin Blunstone and Johnny Logan.
That year they released Memories Linger backed with Just Can’t Win, followed in 1983 by Talk Too Much and I Saw The Future. Despite positive feedback and further songwriting opportunities, the commercial breakthrough the pair hoped for failed to materialise.
David subsequently moved to Sandown and took over the Regent Hotel on the Esplanade, which included the Palm Terrace Bar and Restaurant, now The Reef.
His move to the Island did not end the partnership, with Richard continuing to travel across the Solent to work with David as they attempted to maintain 50/50 alongside their careers and growing family commitments.
Music eventually took a back seat and David remained in the Island hotel trade until retiring in 2007, later settling in Brading. Meanwhile, the vast collection of songs he and Richard had created remained largely unheard.
Island Echo first told the story of David’s musical past in March 2025, after recordings made by the pair more than 40 years earlier began attracting renewed international attention.
Encouraged by their adult children, David and Richard had begun seeking to regain control of their work. A 2024 feature on 50/50 in Record Collector subsequently attracted the attention of US writer Mike Sacks, who introduced their music to Light in the Attic founder and co-owner Matt Sullivan.
The American label began exploring the duo’s archive of more than 150 recordings, ultimately selecting 12 songs recorded between 1981 and 1984 for their long-delayed debut album.
Alongside the title track, Memories Linger includes songs such as Who Needs Money, Cry On My Shoulder and Facing The Storm. The recordings have been newly mastered by multi-Grammy nominated engineer John Baldwin.
The vinyl edition will also include a 12-page booklet featuring previously unseen photographs from David and Richard’s personal collections, together with liner notes by London-based broadcaster and writer Charles Donovan.
The revival of 50/50’s music has already taken one of David and Richard’s earliest recordings somewhere they could scarcely have anticipated when they made it in the early 1980s.
Just Can’t Win, originally released as the B-side of Memories Linger in 1982, has made its television debut more than 4 decades later in The Shards.
The song features in Episode 8 of the first series of the drama, introducing 50/50’s music to an audience far removed from the small number who encountered the original single when it was released 44 years ago.
Following its television appearance, Just Can’t Win will be released digitally on 11th November, giving the song its first standalone release ahead of the arrival of the Memories Linger album on 4th December.
The renewed interest in 50/50 has also brought David and Richard back together musically. The longtime friends have returned to the studio together for the first time in decades and are continuing to sift through ideas and recordings from their remarkably prolific years together.
Richard said:
“Dave and I had something incredibly special going on. Yes we worked hard up in my studio but above all we had the most fun, the biggest laughs and the best friendship which led to magic happening.”
He said the pair had always believed strongly in the songs they created and remained hugely proud of their body of work.
David said:
“We are still sifting through ideas we recorded some 45 years ago with as much enthusiasm now as we had then.”
Memories Linger is due for release on 4th December and can be pre-ordered on vinyl from Limited Addition Records.
Great story.
Cannot beat the sound of music being played on Vinyl.