The band parted ways with their label in November 2007 following the acquisition of V2 by Universal Music Group and subsequently signed with Skint Records.
Jon Windle and Edward 'Maz' Marriott were in several bands together from the age of 15 in Sheffield, and their first gig together was at St Timothy's Church Hall in Crookes.
Little Man Tate were originally formed as a 4 piece band by singer/guitarist Jon Windle, guitarist Edward 'Maz' Marriott, drummer Mike Balkow and former lead singer Simon Barnes in 1998 under the name Carousel Moon.
The band line up had also changed over the early years, following the departures of original lead singer Simon Barnes, and drummer Mike Balkow, who was replaced by Dan Fields.
In an interview, Jon Windle revealed the name Little Man Tate came when he was on the telephone to bass player Ben Surtees, and was trying to think of a band name.
was released on 22 May 2006, and reached number 40 in the UK Singles Chart,[3] and was first played by DJ Phil Beckett on 96.2 The Revolution and not by Steve Lamacq on BBC 6 Music.
The band released their seventh single, "European Lover" on 27 August 2007, a re-recorded version of the same track that featured on their debut album, About What You Know.
The band gave away free copies of the single at a Blackpool Empress Ballroom gig and it was made available to download from their website on Christmas Day.
[15] Ben Surtees was DJing and working on Hospital radio[16][17] After LMT, Jon Windle released two solo albums, Step Out The Man in October 2010, and Sober Minds in May 2012.
Windle is now involved in music management, working with a variety of different bands in the indie and rock genres across the UK, most notably RedFaces who were signed to Sony RCA.
Shortly after Twitter[19] and Instagram[20] accounts, also using LittleManTateOfficial surfaced, again appearing to be set up by the band, fuelling speculation in both the local and national music press that they were about to reform.
[21] On 24 March 2020, the band released a post across all social media platforms stating that an announcement would be made on 14 April, along with the #somethingshappening moniker.
On 14 April, after nearly five weeks of speculation, the band announced that a one-off reunion show would be taking place at O2 Academy Sheffield on 18 September.
[22] On 22 April, following high levels of demand for pre-sale tickets (selling out in less than 45 minutes), the band announced a second date at O2 Academy Sheffield on 19 September 2020.
Due to the COVID-19 outbreak, and the effect on live music as a whole, the band were forced to announce the reunion dates being rescheduled to 16 and 17 April 2021.
[23] On 16 October, the band announced via social media that Boy in the Anorak, the intended and subsequently cancelled 8th single, would finally receive a full release under new label Yellow Van 2020.