One of the more curious characters of the new wave movement, singer/guitarist/songwriter Moon Martin issued several critically acclaimed yet commercially underappreciated releases from the late 1970s through the early '80s before reappearing in the mid-'90s.
Born John Martin in Oklahoma in 1945, he played in local bands, including a rockabilly group, The Disciples, while attending the University of Oklahoma. Martin relocated to Los Angeles in the late '60s and paid the rent as a session musician, playing on albums by Del Shannon and Jackie DeShannon. Soon, however, his former Disciples bandmates followed him to the land of surf and sun, changing their name to Southwind and issuing a total of three underappreciated country-rock albums on the Blue Thumb label between 1969 and 1973: a self-titled debut, 'Ready to Ride', and 'What a Place to Land'. Upon the group's split, Martin returned to session work, contributing to Jesse Ed Davis' 'Ululu', Linda Ronstadt's 'Silk Purse' and a few Gram Parsons songs. Martin also began to focus on a solo career at this time, adopting the nickname "Moon" from friends after it became an inside joke because of the songwriter's penchant for mentioning the word in his compositions.
Initial plans to record a solo album in 1974 with noted producer/arranger Jack Nitzsche failed to pan out, but several of Martin's original compositions were used by other recording artists, including the Nitzsche-produced Mink DeVille (the track "Cadillac Walk" subsequently became a moderate hit), as well as Michelle Phillips and Lisa Burns. By 1978, Martin (who by this time was known simply as Moon Martin) was finally ready to launch his solo career, with his look and music often compared to such new wave hitmakers as Elvis Costello and Nick Lowe. A total of five albums in a five-year span followed, including such titles as 1978's 'Victim of Romance' EP (whose track "Bad Case of Lovin' You" would become a hit when covered by Robert Palmer), 1978's 'Shots from a Cold Nightmare', 1979's 'Escape from Domination' (which scored Martin his sole hit single, "Rolene"), 1980's 'Street Fever', and 1982's 'Mystery Ticket', all of which were issued on the Capitol label.
Martin then dropped out of the music scene for the rest of the '80s and the early part of the '90s, before resurfacing in 1995 with a pair of releases, 'Cement Monkey' and 'Lunar Samples'. The same year, the British label Edsel reissued Martin's first four full-length releases as two-for-one CDs ('Shots from a Cold Nightmare' was paired with 'Escape from Domination', while 'Street Fever' was combined with 'Mystery Ticket'). Producer Craig Leon, who had worked with Moon Martin, confirmed that the rocker died on May 11, 2020. [SOURCE: ALLMUSIC]
Alix Plain (Alex Johnson) and Danny Hampson started the group in the late '70s, initially calling their band Luglo Slugs. After two more name changes, they became Modern Eon and made their recorded debut in 1978 on 'Street to Street: A Liverpool Album'. A handful of singles for labels like Inevitable, DinDisc, and their own Eon predated 'Fiction Tales', which quickly -and disappointingly- didn't so much register on the commercial radar as it went down the drain with little notice.
Prior to the recording of the album, the band's lineup changed significantly; guitarist/saxophonist Tim Lever, keyboardist/percussionist Bob Wakelin, and drummer Cliff Hewitt came in at various points to replace Ged Allen and Joey McKechnie. Aside from the overlooked status of 'Fiction Tales', another factor that threw a wrench into the band's progress was the injuring of drummer Hewitt's wrist. Hewitt, who resembled The Comsat Angels' Mik Glaisher with his off-kilter, toms-heavy playing, proved impossible to replace. The group went on with the tour, using tapes of Hewitt's playing to accompany them. After the tour, demos for a second album weren't completed and the band dissolved.
Sans Plain, the group continued briefly as This Time Next Year, who released one record in 1982. Lever played a number of years with Dead or Alive and eventually went into producing; Hewitt became a member of Apollo 440; Wakelin worked as an artist in the video game industry and then did work for Marvel comics for well over a decade; Plain worked briefly as a solo artist under the name Che. [SOURCE: ALLMUSIC]
Made For TV was an American musical group active in the 1980s. Their members were Tom Lyon (vocals), Alex Henze (guitar), Candy Wroth (bass) and Peter Sparling (drums). The band formed in Washington, D.C. and released their first single in 1983 (released by Conflict Records). The single contained two songs, one was original, ("So Afraid of the Russians"), and the other was a cover of The Doors ("Unknown Soldier"). The single was produced by Welsh musician John Cale, who also played baritone guitar, synth percussion and contributed with his voice via transatlantic telephone. Cale's then-collaborators David Lichtenstein (sound engineer), David Young (assistant sound engineer) and Roddy Hui (mixing) also contributed to the recording, that took place at Skyline Studios in New York City. The lyrics of "So Afraid of the Russians" focused on political issues. In 1987, the band released an EP titled 'Spies Everywhere' (on Vinyl Siding Records), which contained four more songs in addition to the two released on the single. The four songs came from the band's performance at the New York club CBGB`s. Tom Lyon was born in Portland and worked as a disc jockey in New Mexico in the 1970s. He was later a member of the band Action Memos. He died in 2002 at the age of 53. [SOURCE: WIKIPEDIE]
Although psychobilly pranksters King Kurt are best remembered for "Destination Zululand," the rambunctious smash with which they stormed the U.K. chart in 1984, to recall them purely as one-hit wonders is to decry another four years of achievement -four further singles and two full albums also bothered the charts before the group finally faded away during 1987. But even that only begins to tell the band's story, for it wasn't on cold, impersonal wax that King Kurt were at their blistering, mystifying best. It was in concert, where gigs became tribal gatherings, songs became rockabilly psycho chants, and haircuts were -well, let's just say they were mighty peculiar, and leave it at that.
The story begins in early 1981, with the band -fronted by the irrepressible Smeg, and completed by guitarist Thwack, saxophonist Maggot, and drummer Rory- rising out of the same twisted garage underground that was home to an entire army of post-Cramps psychobilly revivalists. But, whereas the majority of their rivals chose to drive their point home through more-or-less deliberate revisions of the Cramps' own take on the genre, King Kurt's eye was always focused on less ghoulish angles.
For a full year or so, the band rattled around the U.K. pub circuit, hanging their rat-with-cigarette backdrop from a hundred subterranean basement stages, then visiting the local butcher's shop in search of that night's collection of stage props. Smeg wore a dead rabbit necktie for a while; there might also have been an uncooked goose at one show. Whatever. Wherever the King ventured, he acquired another horde of like-minded acolytes, all of whom seemed thrilled to adhere to King Kurt's own personal dress code -"all male concert-goers must wear dresses." Neither was that the end of the audience's participation in the proceedings. Other special treats held in store by a King Kurt gig included the streams of shaving cream that flew through the air; the beer that sprayed, the blood that gushed (sometimes real, sometimes fake), the flour, eggs, and baked beans that transformed the dancefloor into a demented cookery class. And if all that were not enough, fans were also entreated to partake in the near-tribal ritual of free haircuts, inflicted upon any audience member foolhardy enough to venture near the bandmembers' proffered razors and shears.
By summer 1982, the band had prompted enough underground interest that it was imperative that they got a record out. That August, then, saw the band self-finance and release two of their finest numbers to date, the poundingly tribal "Zulu Beat," pressed on self-confessedly "revolting putrid" orange vinyl and packaged within painstakingly hand-drawn and painted picture sleeves. Nine hundred and fifty copies of "Zulu Beat" circulated via the band's shows; all sold out within a matter of weeks. First one, then another repressing was ordered and, suddenly, eyes gazed down from the mainstream ivory towers to ponder this latest mutter from the gutter. By summer 1983, King Kurt had signed to Stiff Records, and entered the studio with producer Dave Edmunds.
"Destination Zululand" was released in October 1983, a triumphant slice of thump-along madness that was accompanied by what remains one of the essential videos of the age, all rolling African deserts, weary English explorers, and -of course- savage Zulu warriors, prepared to fight the invaders to the death. And more was to follow, as new producer Steve Brown coaxed a positively staggering album out of the band, rewiring the traditional madness of their live set into a superbly landscaped chasm of chaos and noise. Again, 'Ooh Wallah Wallah' was by no means as big a hit as memory might insist (it spent one week at number 99 before fading), but still its imagery lingers longer than a lot of the year's bigger sellers. That rat again!
King Kurt's follow-up single, the album's raw revision of "Mack the Knife," followed in early 1984, the delirious "Banana Banana" a few months later. Both reached the mid-fifties point of the chart, while a smattering of stateside interest prompted Ralph Records to pick the band up for a quick mini-album, 'The Road to Rack and Ruin'. Yet having spent the past year positively hovering on the brink of a major step forward, suddenly King Kurt slipped out of view. Their next single, "Billy," bombed; so did its follow-up, "Slammers," produced by ex-Vibrators hero Pat Collier. Plans for a second Stiff album slid away and, by the end of the year, King Kurt and the label had parted company.
In early 1986, the band signed with Polydor and released its second album, 'Big Cock'. Titled, naturally, for the very large rooster that adorned the record sleeve, the album aligned the band with producer Phil Wainman, the peerless mastermind behind the early Sweet. His imprimatur was all over King Kurt's next single, a toweringly magnificent deconstruction of Stephen Sondheim and Leonard Bernstein's "America." But it passed out of sight at number 73 on the U.K. lists and, scant months later, King Kurt enjoyed their final flush of chart action, as "The Land of Ring Dang Do" inched its way to number 67, then fled. King Kurt folded quietly soon after, bowing out with the album 'Last Will and Testicle'.
Still led by Smeg, more or less the entire group promptly re-formed as the Kurts and, picking up precisely where they left off, continued wreaking havoc around the club circuit. The original glory days were not forgotten, however, and 1989 saw the punk reissue label Link Records unearth a live recording for release on CD, the aptly (if unimaginatively) titled 'Live and Rocking'. A collection of unreleased King Kurt recordings, the again prosaically monikered 'Destination Demoland', followed and, by 1990, the group had restored its name to its full glory. Since that time, King Kurt's reputation has never flagged and, if anything, has grown even wilder over the years. New albums have continued to appear on an irregular basis: 2003 brought the not-quite-ska-inflected 'Guns of Navarone', while a stream of compilations and "greatest hits" type releases have maintained a suitably rat-shaped shadow on the record racks. [SOURCE: ALLMUSIC]
Armed with only a modicum of musical ability, a self-deprecating sense of humour and no apparent fear of public humiliation, this Cockney bloke carved out a modest recording career. Anything to avoid returning to his former calling as a garbageman. He first attracted notice with his frenzied live shows, in which he showed no respect for his personal safety. He parlayed the buzz generated by fans of his stage act into a single called "Cor Baby That's Really Free." Eager to cash in on a punk phenomenon it didn't really understand, Polydor signed John Otway to a deal which would result in five albums for the label. His wilfully amateur approach was actually an asset with the ascendancy of punk. He's caught the attention of some of Britain's biggest rock stars. Pete Townsend produced and played on 'John Otway and Wild Willy Barrett', the 1977 debut. Steeleye Span drummer Nigel Pegrum also played. Paul McCartney once asked Otway to open on a tour by Wings, but he had to decline due to other commitments. Otway didn't rely on only his whacked-out stage shows or loony-tune recordings to earn a reputation as one of rock's true eccentrics. On one of his albums, three tunes had only the backing vocal track. If your copy lacked the headliner's voice, he would volunteer to come round to your place and belt out his part while you played it on your stereo. Desperate for a hit at another time in his career, he refused to admit anyone for dates on a national tour who didn't have a copy of his latest single. This worked for fans because the price of the single was less than the cost of a concert ticket. When his music career faltered, the resourceful Otway diversified before the term became popular. Co-writing a play called "Verbal Diary", he created a role for himself playing a disorganized, likable twit. By playing himself to perfection, he found other work playing the same character in commercials on the telly. Branching out still farther, Otway wrote his autobiography during a slow time for both his music and acting endeavors. "Cor Baby That's Really Me (Rock and Roll's Greatest Failure)" crystallized his strategy of marketing himself as a lovable loser. Within weeks the book outsold almost all of his albums.Encouraged by a crowd of 2,500 at his 2,000th concert in London in 1993, Otway spent the next two years to record new songs. 'Premature Adulation' was his first album in five years.As the millennium ground to a halt, Otway continued to get music and acting work where he could find it. [SOURCE: ALLMUSIC]
Taking their name from the Syd Barrett song, the effervescent power-pop unit Gigolo Aunts first came together in 1981 in Potsdam, New York as Sniper. The group -comprised of vocalist/guitarist Dave Gibbs, brothers Phil and Steve Hurley (on lead guitar and bass, respectively) and drummer Phil Brouwer- went through a series of subsequent names like Marauder and Rosetta Stone before settling on Gigolo Aunts (a suggestion from Gibbs' father) and moving to Boston in 1986.
In 1988, the band issued its debut 'Everybody Happy' to little notice, and receded from view until Gibbs began playing guitar with fellow East Coast popsters Velvet Crush, whom he joined for a U.K. tour. While overseas, Gibbs made a number of crucial contacts with the likes of Creation Records' Alan McGee and the members of Teenage Fanclub, and interest in the Gigolo Aunts began to build. A series of assured EPs -'Gigolo Aunts', 'Gun' and 'Full-On Bloom'- appeared to strong reviews, as did 1994's full-length 'Flippin' Out'. After Gibbs and Phil Hurley turned down offers to join the reunited Big Star, they issued the 1995 EP 'Where I Find My Heaven'; shortly after its release, Phil Hurley was replaced by Jon Skibic and Brouwer was replaced by Fred Eltringham. 'Minor Chords and Major Themes' appeared in 1999. [SOURCE: ALLMUSIC]
One of the founding fathers of synth pop, Gary Numan has influenced countless artists with his constantly evolving form of dystopian electronic rock music since the late 1970s. Establishing a lonely, android-like persona, he rose to fame leading Tubeway Army, a pioneering new wave band whose second album, 1979's 'Replicas', became the first of Numan's three consecutive gold-selling, chart-topping full-lengths in the U.K. The same year's 'The Pleasure Principle', his first solo effort, included the perennial favorite "Cars," which remains his biggest worldwide hit. He continued refining his sound, incorporating elements of jazz and funk into more sophisticated efforts like 1982's 'I, Assassin', and remained a consistent presence in the U.K. charts throughout the following decades. His impact continued to make itself felt; his dark, paranoid vision, theatrically icy alien persona, and clinical, robotic sound were echoed strongly in the work of many goth rock and (especially) industrial artists to come. His own work took a turn towards industrial and darkwave with releases like 1994's 'Sacrifice' and 2000's 'Pure', and the release of a tribute album, in addition to numerous dance artists sampling or reworking his past hits, helped revive his popularity. Frequently working with producer Ade Fenton since the late 2000s, Numan released some of his most acclaimed and well-received work in decades during the 2010s, with 2017's 'Savage (Songs from a Broken World)' reaching number two in the U.K., his highest charting album since 1980. He continued exploring post-apocalyptic themes with 2021's 'Intruder'.
Numan was born Gary Anthony James Webb on March 8, 1958, in the West London section of Hammersmith. A shy child, music brought him out of his shell; he began playing guitar in his early teens and played in several short-lived bands. Inspired by the amateurism of the punk movement, he joined a punk group called The Lasers in 1976. The following year, he and bassist Paul Gardiner split off to form a new group, dubbed Tubeway Army, with drummer Bob Simmonds. They recorded a couple of singles under futuristic pseudonyms (Valerium [or Valerian], Scarlett, and Rael, respectively) that attempted to match their new interest in synthesizers. Scrapping that idea, Webb rechristened himself Gary Numan and replaced Simmonds with his uncle Jess Lidyard. Thus constituted, Tubeway Army cut a set of punk-meets-Kraftwerk demos for Beggars Banquet in early 1978, which were released several years later as 'The Plan'. That summer, Numan sang a TV commercial jingle for jeans, and toward the end of the year the group's debut album, 'Tubeway Army', appeared. Chiefly influenced by Kraftwerk and David Bowie's Berlin-era collaborations with Brian Eno, the album also displayed Numan's fascination with the electronic, experimental side of glam (Roxy Music, Ultravox) and Krautrock (Can), as well as science fiction writer Philip K. Dick.
The group's second album, 'Replicas', credited to Gary Numan & Tubeway Army, was released in early 1979. Its accompanying single, "Are 'Friends' Electric?," was a left-field smash, topping the U.K. charts and sending 'Replicas' to number one on the album listings as well. (The record also included "Down in the Park," an oft-covered song that stands as one of Numan's most gothic outings.) Numan had become a star overnight, despite critical distaste for any music so heavily reliant on synthesizers, and he formed a larger backing band that replaced Tubeway Army, keeping Gardiner on bass. 'The Pleasure Principle' was released in the fall of 1979 and spawned Numan's international hit "Cars," which reached the American Top Ten and hit number one in the U.K.; the album also became his second straight British number one. He put together a hugely elaborate, futuristic stage show and went on a money-losing tour, and also began to indulge his hobby as an amateur pilot with his newfound wealth.
Numan returned in the fall of 1980 with 'Telekon', his third straight chart-topping album in Britain, and scored two Top Five hits with "We Are Glass" and "I Die: You Die"; "This Wreckage" later reached the Top 20. In 1981, Numan announced his retirement from live performance, playing several farewell concerts just prior to the release of 'Dance'. While 'Dance' and its lead single, "She's Got Claws," were both climbing into the British Top Five, Numan attempted to fly around the world, but in a bizarre twist was arrested in India on suspicion of spying and smuggling. The charges were dropped, although authorities confiscated his plane. His retirement proved short-lived, but when he returned in 1982 with 'I, Assassin', some of his popularity had dissipated -perhaps because of the retirement announcement, perhaps because the charts were overflowing with synth pop, much of which was already expanding on Numan's early innovations. 'I, Assassin' was another Top Ten album, and "We Take Mystery (To Bed)" another hit, but in general Numan's singles were starting to slip on the charts; the title track of 1983's 'Warriors' became his last British Top Ten hit.
Numan and Beggars Banquet subsequently parted ways, and he formed his own Numa label, kicking things off with Berserker in late 1984. (Sadly, longtime collaborator Paul Gardiner died earlier that year from a drug overdose.) Released in 1985, 'The Fury' became the final Numan album to reach the British Top 20. Over the next few years, he collaborated occasionally with Shakatak's Bill Sharpe, releasing four singles from 1985-1989. Following 1986's 'Strange Charm', Numan signed with IRS, but the relationship was fraught with discord from the start. The label forced Numan to change the title of 1988's 'Metal Rhythm' to 'New Anger' for his first North American release since 1981 (and also remixed several tracks), refused to release his soundtrack for the film "The Unborn", and would not fund any supporting tours for 'New Anger' or 1991's 'Outland'. When his contract expired, Numan returned to Numa for 1992's 'Machine + Soul'.
The industrial-tinged 'Sacrifice', the first glimmering of Numan's return to critical favor and underground hipness, was released in 1994. Over the next few years, bands like Hole, the Foo Fighters, and Smashing Pumpkins covered Numan songs in concert, and Marilyn Manson recorded "Down in the Park" for the B-side of the "Lunchbox" single; moreover, Nine Inch Nails cited Numan as an important influence. With his fan base refreshed and expectations raised, he delved deeper into gothic, metal-tinged industrial dance on 1997's 'Exile'. However, he didn't truly hit his stride in this newly adopted style until 2000's 'Pure', which was acclaimed as his best work in years and expanded his cult following into new territory.
Into the new millennium, a number of Gary Numan compilations hit the shelves, as well as 2003's 'Hybrid', which found him reworking and modernizing his earlier pop hits. 'Jagged' was released in 2005, and incorporated more of an industrial goth sound. The album was co-produced and co-written with Ade Fenton, who returned for 2011's 'Dead Son Rising'. Numan also appeared that year on 'Gloss Drop' from post-rock group Battles, lending his vocals to the album's "My Machines" single. In 2013, he released his 20th studio album, 'Splinter (Songs from a Broken Mind)'.
The album reached the U.K. Top 20 and Numan embarked on a worldwide tour to support the release throughout 2014. The following year he started writing his next studio album and set about funding the record via fan pledges, with the fund amount exceeding its target. Focusing on the album and his personal life in 2016, Numan also found time to collaborate with Jean-Michel Jarre on his album 'Electronica 2: The Heart of Noise'. That same year, he was awarded the Moog Innovation award as well as the Ivor Novello award for inspiration. 2017 saw the release of Numan's 21st album, 'Savage (Songs from a Broken World)'. Working once again with producer Ade Fenton, Numan used a post-apocalyptic Earth as the setting for the release, charting humanity's struggle for survival and its inevitable downfall. A companion piece of sorts, 'Intruder' arrived in 2021. Like 'Savage' before it, the project focused on mapping the effects of human destruction and climate change, this time from the perspective of the Earth itself. [SOURCE: ALLMUSIC]
Often compared to dark and brooding sounds of such artists as Tom Waits, Nick Cave, PJ Harvey, and Morphine, the London quartet Gallon Drunk originally formed in 1988, consisting of members James Johnston (vocals, guitar, organ), Mike Delanian (bass), Max Decharne (drums, also keyboard player with The Earls of Suave), and Joe Byfield (maracas). Shortly after their formation, the quartet began issuing singles on their own label (Massive), most of which reached the top of the independent charts and were selected as Single of the Week in such acclaimed British music publications as NME and Melody Maker. By 1992, Gallon Drunk were ready to begin issuing full-length recordings, including their studio debut 'You, the Night...& the Music', in addition to a collection of their aforementioned early singles ('Tonite...the Singles Bar') and a live set ('Peel Sessions: Clawfist'). The buzz grew too loud for the major labels to ignore any longer, as Warner Bros. stepped in and signed the group up, issuing 'From the Heart of Town' (including the contribution of new Gallon Drunk horn player Terry Edwards) in 1993. The album was nominated for a Mercury Prize the following year, as the group supported the release with tours of Europe, the U.S., and Japan, in addition to a memorable appearance on Jools Holland's Later TV program.
Johnston took some time off from the group the following year, as he and Terry Edwards created a soundscape, 'Dora Suarez', which was inspired by crime writer Derek Raymond's novel "I Was Dora Suarez" and resulted in a sold-out live performance of the work at the National Film Theatre on London's South Bank. The same year, Johnston lent his guitar-playing talents to Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds for their 1994 spot on the U.S. festival Lollapalooza, which resulted in Johnston collaborating on several songs with Cave (as well as appearing alongside Cave and Kylie Minogue on a Top of the Pops appearance). After returning to Gallon Drunk, the bandmembers decided to split from Warner Bros., which resulted in contractual red tape that would prevent the group from issuing any new recordings until the end of 1995 ('The Traitor's Gate' EP, which the group issued on its own), supported by an appearance at the Phoenix Festival and an inaugural tour of Ireland.
Gallon Drunk's third studio full-length overall (and first for new label City Slang), 'In the Long Still Night', arrived in 1996. Featuring new members Ian Watson (guitar, trumpet), Andy Dewar (percussion), and Ian White (drums), the album was considered by both fans and press alike to be the group's finest recording yet. Up next for Gallon Drunk was soundtrack work, as they contributed music to a feature film by Nikos Triandafyllidis titled "Black Milk", as well as Geraldine Swayne's "East End". Meanwhile, Johnston made his acting debut in 2001 in the Ken Russell horror-comedy "The Fall of the Louse of Usher", based on Edgar Allan Poe's novel. Johnston issued the single "Hurricane" under the JJ Stone moniker that same year.
In 2002, bass player Jeremy Cottingham was added to the group, just prior to Gallon Drunk issuing the vibrant 'Fire Music'. Cottingham's tenure with Gallon Drunk proved to be short-lived; the group went on hiatus after 'Fire Music', as Johnston once again toured and recorded with Nick Cave (he also found time to work with the German psych-prog band Faust and Lydia Lunch's ensemble Big Sexy Noise), and when Johnston, White, and Edwards returned to the studio for 2007's 'The Rotten Mile', Simon Wring was the group's new bassist. The group's tour in support was documented on the album 'Live at Klub 007', but Wring's days in the band were numbered -he died in April 2011. Despite the loss, Gallon Drunk rallied, returning in 2012 with 'The Road Gets Darker from Here', and in the spring of 2014, Gallon Drunk released 'The Soul of the Hour', featuring new bassist Leo Kurunis. [SOURCE: ALLMUSIC]
Fast Cars were formed in 1978 by Stuart Murray and his brother Steven. They had been in a band together at Moorside High School in Swinton, Manchester (1974-76) but Steve was interested in forming a punk band while the rest were more into rock (Deep Purple, Led Zep, Black Sabbath, Bowie, etc.) so he went off, put an add in a music shop, and formed a band called The Sirens with Marc Riley, Craig Scanlon and Steve Hanley.
They were not very good at that time (although they later joined The Fall and guitarist Marc 'Lard' Riley is now a Presenter for the BBC on Radio 1 and TV), so Stuart and Steve got their old mates together and formed Fast Cars.
Their school days guitarist was Craig Hilton but he was doing something else, so our original line up was Steve Murray, vocals (and main songwriter), Haydn Jones on lead, Stuart Murray on bass and Tony Dyson on drums. After about 6 months Haydn left and Craig Hilton re joined them and that is who played on the single "The Kids Just Wanna Dance". They had two songs on 'A Manchester Collection' LP, released by Manchester's Object Records (bands from the Manchester Musicians Collective) that they had recorded at Cargo Studios in Rochdale with John Brierley. Their first single "Images of You" should have been released on TJM Records but they fell out with the owner, Tony Davidson, so it was never released.
They also did two tracks for 'Identity Parade' but they were removed before the final pressing. They eventually signed to Streets Ahead Records, based in Altrincham, Cheshire, and released the now very collectable "The Kids Just Wanna Dance" and "You're So Funny" which was recorded at Smile Studios, in Chorlton, Manchester, produced by the band and the owner Steve Foley, during 22/23 August, 1979. They recorded a follow up single for Streets Ahead, "Images of you" (SA 4) although it was never released, a few test pressings are in circulation.
They played up and down England between 1978 and 1980 and had a good following. They supported The Jam, The Buzzcocks, XTC, The Rezillos, Dillinger, The Chords and Bram Tchaikovsky and played with bands including The Ruts, Joy Division, The Stiffs, The Extras, The Drones, Frantic Elevators, The Freshies, The Smirks, Ed Banger, John Cooper-Clarke, The Out, IQ Zero, Not Sensibles, Salford Jets, Two Tone Pinks, Sister Ray and others. They played at the Marquee in London and various Universities, Colleges and Clubs. They were nearly signed to Polydor (they actually made demos in their studios in London) and for a short time they were looked after by Dennis Munday who was A&R man to The Jam, but it never happened, so they eventually called it a day in January 1981. They reformed officially in 2001 and are currently giging and recording. [SOURCE: THE FAST CARS]
Escorbuto Crónico is the pioneer band of the Canary Islands punk. They formed in La Laguna (Tenerife) at the end of 79, influenced by bands such Dead Kennedys, Black Flag and G.B.H. as a quartet that had to steal instruments to be able to play. A few months later, due to differences with the rest of the members, the guitarist left, leaving Lisón on drums, Bola on bass and Zurda on guitar. Some time later, Bola left the band and Txiru, Lisón's brother, joined the band to play bass. Jordi also joined the band as the singer.
Dedicating a song on the radio to "Ronald Reagan's motherfucker" made them quite popular and showed that they were a group fully convinced that punk should undermine the roots of society without stopping before any conventionalism.
In 1982 they recorded their first single, 'Documentación', on JaJa Records, and the following year and on the same label, they recorded a second single and an album, both kept unreleased.
In 1983 the band split, although very soon after some of their members integrated in the already formed Guerrilla Urbana and the singer formed one of the first Oi! bands in the Canary Islands, Conemrad. In 2005 the single 'Documentación' was re-released and in 2003 was reelased the songs they recorded for the unreleased album, titled 'La Chusma No Se Rinde'. [SOURCE: ESCENA EN KANARIAS]
Ejecutivos Agresivos was a Spanish pop music group, one of the most emblematic of what was known as "movida madrileña".
Founded at the end of the 1970s, when Carlos Entrena and Poch decided to leave Paraíso and contacted other young people to form a new band.
After playing on different venues in Madrid and opening for Paul Collins Beat, the record label Hispavox gave them the opportunity to enter a recording studio. From there, the single "Mari Pili" was released, with the song "Stereo" on the B-side. The refreshing and funny lyrics of "Mari Pili" made it not only the song of the summer of 1980 but also one of the most remembered hymns of the "movida madrileña".
Due to the overwhelming success of the band, the label decided to record a second single with the songs "Hay Pelea" and "Te Espío". However, the criticisms that appeared during those months labeled the band as commercial, label that strongly annoyed the members.
Relations with the record company deteriorated and the new album never saw the light of day. In February 1981 Ejecutivos Agresivos disbanded.
Its members then began other projects, joining mythical bands of the time: Jaime Urrutia in Gabinete Caligari, Poch in Derribos Arias, Carlos Entrena in Décima Víctima and Paco Trinidad began his career as producer with Esclarecidos and the label Grabaciones Accidentales.
In 1986 Hispavox released a mini-album with eight songs, including the tracks from the 1980 singles and four demos. [SOURCE: WIKIPEDIA]
Arriving during the waning days of pub rock, Eddie & the Hot Rods helped usher in punk rock in the United Kingdom. Working from the same bluesy, Stonesy three-chord foundation as contemporaries like Dr. Feelgood, the Hot Rods were faster, tougher, wilder, and louder than any other pub rock band. They also celebrated adolescent abandon, unlike their peers, who usually concentrated on working-class subjects. Developing a substantial cult following by relentlessly touring the pub circuit, their fast, tough rock & roll paved the way for wilder acts like The Damned and the Sex Pistols, thereby firing the first shot in the U.K. punk revolution, though they had no use for the social, political, or cultural statements of acts like The Clash and The Adverts. They made inroads on the pop charts with their 1976 debut EP 'Live at the Marquee' and the singles "Teenage Depression" and "Do Anything You Wanna Do," but by the time the latter reached the Top Ten in the summer of 1977, their bar band demeanor had already begun to appear outdated. The group disbanded in 1980, but they returned to active duty in the '90s, and the death of frontman Barrie Masters in 2019 failed to stop them, with a new lineup of the Hot Rods issuing 'Guardians of the Legacy' in 2023.
Barrie Masters (vocals), Dave Higgs (guitar), Pete Wall (guitar), Rob Steel (bass), and Steve Nichols (aka Steve Nicol; drums) formed Eddie & the Hot Rods in Southend, Essex, London in the spring of 1975. The "Eddie" in their name derived from a dummy the group would beat up during the course of their early concerts. Wall and Steel left the the Hot Rods by the end of the year, and the band only replaced Steel, hiring 15-year-old schoolboy Paul Gray as their bassist. Around this time, Lew Lewis was added as a harmonica player. Shortly afterward, the Hot Rods continued as a quartet, earning a reputation as an explosively energetic live band, thanks in no small part to their manager Ed Hollis, who turned the band on to the driving rock & roll of Detroit bands like The Stooges. Early in 1976, the group released their first single, "Writing on the Wall," on Island Records. Not long afterward, Lewis was asked to leave the band due to his out-of-control behavior; he would later form The Lew Lewis Reformer. By spring 1976, they had become the most popular band on the dying pub rock circuit, breaking house records at the Marquee Club during the summer. A live EP was recorded during these concerts and released in the fall. 'Live at the Marquee' nearly made the British Top 40, and the group's following continued to grow. By the end of the year, "Teenage Depression" became the band's first hit single, reaching number 35 on the charts, and an album by the same name became a moderate success.
Early in 1976, former Kursaal Flyers guitarist Graeme Douglas joined the Hot Rods, and with this addition, the group became slightly more radio-friendly and a little less raw. "Do Anything You Wanna Do," a powerful pop single which was credited to the Hot Rods, illustrated their new sound and became their first genuine hit, reaching the Top Ten in the summer of 1977. Although the success of "Do Anything You Wanna Do" was encouraging, the slicker record and its accompanying album, 'Life on the Line', arrived at the dawn of the punk era, which was perceived as considerably rawer and more dangerous than the Hot Rods. The band continued to perform, but their crowds were beginning to shrink dramatically. 'Thriller' was ignored upon its 1979 release and Island dropped them shortly afterward. The group moved to EMI. Early in 1980, Douglas left the band, followed shortly afterward by Gray, who joined The Damned; he was replaced by Tony Cranney. In the wake of these departures, the Hot Rods released a final album, 'Fish N Chips', in April of 1981, but after it was ignored, the band broke up. Barrie Masters joined The Inmates and Steve Nichol joined One the Juggler.
After The Inmates and One the Juggler failed to make an impact, Masters and Nichol re-formed the Hot Rods with guitarist Warren Kennedy and bassist Tony Cranney. The new lineup recorded a live album for the independent Waterfront Records, but the group broke up shortly afterward. In 1985, the group re-formed with Masters, Nichol, Kennedy, and bassist Russell Strutter.
In 1992, the original, classic lineup of the Hot Rods -Masters, Nichol, Higgs, and Gray- reunited for a European tour. Upon its completion, Higgs left the group, and the remaining trio continued with guitarist Steve Walwyn, who was on leave from Dr. Feelgood due to Lee Brilleaux's illness. Shortly afterwards, former FeelgoodGordon Russell joined. He too was only briefly a member of the band, and was replaced by Mick Rodgers, a former member of Manfred Mann's Earthband. In 1994, the Hot Rods were offered a one-shot contract with the Japanese label Creative Man Records, and the group made its first album in 16 years with 'Gasoline Days'. The record was released in the U.K. in the spring of 1996 and in Japan. The following year, Rodgers returned to the Earthband and replaced by Madman Keyo. That year, Nichol suffered a car accident, and while he recovered, Jess Phillips was the group's drummer.
The Hot Rods toured frequently in the 2000s, and even issued a pair of studio albums, 'Better Late than Never' and 'Been There, Done That'. In April 2019, the Hot Rods staged a special concert, with the then-current lineup of the group -vocalist Masters, guitarist Richard Holgarth, bassist Ian "Dipster" Dean, and drummer Simon Bowley- were joined by former members of the group (including Lew Lewis, Steve Nicol, Paul Gray, and Graeme Douglas) as well as several special guests (including Captain Sensible of The Damned, Duncan Reid of The Boys, and Leigh Heggarty of The Ruts. Just six months later, Barrie Masters, the last original member still in the group, died on October 2, 2019. While the band considered throwing in the towel, their fans encouraged them to continue, and bassist Dean was promoted to lead vocals and harmonica, while Mic Stoner signed on to play bass. They stayed busy on the road, and in 2023 the new lineup released a studio album, 'Guardians of the Legacy'. [SOURCE: ALLMUSIC]
Essentially a two-man project of Massachusetts natives Kirk Swan and Seth Tiven, with a rotating rhythm section, Dumptruck was, for a brief moment, among the favorites of U.S. college radio in the mid '80s. They combined the jangly power pop sound of the Southern alternative scene with intelligent lyrics and a melancholy twist. Swan left late in 1986, leaving Tiven to carry on for one more album, 'For the Country', before dissolving the band in 1988. The band re-formed after settling legal disputes with their label in 1995 with a small-scale club tour of the U.S. and a new record deal. 'Days of Fear' followed that same year; 'Terminal' was issued five years later and 'Lemmings Travel to the Sea' appeared in early 2001. [SOURCE: ALLMUSIC]
Starting with their intentionally confrontational (and controversial) name, New York City's Cop Shoot Cop are descended from the darker impulses of the early-'80s no wave movement that produced noisy, disagreeable, anti-social, but often very intriguing bands such as Mars, DNA, and Teenage Jesus & the Jerks. As with those combos, the Cops eschew the impulse of pop altogether, preferring a rumbling, clattering, deafening, metallic sound that focuses on the band's two-bass, no-guitar attack. The song narratives tend toward simplistic doom-and-gloom observations -a point they often belabor. But when this bummer-rock clicks, it's oddly compelling, if slightly intimidating stuff, crammed to the gills with the standard litany of contemporary urban angst: anomie, alienation, and boredom. Add to this the odd meters, low-end bassist Natz's yelling (he never describes it as singing), and forays into pure noise, and what you end up with is an anti-rock style that, despite its repetitive tendencies, is furious, frightening, and powerful. Despite the inherent anti-commerciality of their music, as well as the band's disdain for corporate-controlled major labels, they did land a contract with Interscope Records, part of the Atlantic family. Despite the more accessible sound of their later records, Cop Shoot Cop remain an acquired taste, even for those who like their rock edgy and uncompromising. [SOURCE: ALLMUSIC]
Sex Pistols may have been the first British punk rock band, but The Clash were the definitive British punk rockers. Where the Pistols were nihilistic, The Clash were fiery and idealistic, charged with righteousness and a leftist political ideology. From the outset, the band was more musically adventurous, expanding its hard rock & roll with reggae, dub, and rockabilly among other roots music. Furthermore, they were blessed with two exceptional songwriters in Joe Strummer and Mick Jones, each with a distinctive voice and style. The Clash copped heavily from classic outlaw imagery, positioning themselves as rebels with a cause. As a result, they won a passionately devoted following on both sides of the Atlantic. While they became rock & roll heroes in the U.K., second only to The Jam in terms of popularity, it took The Clash several years to break into the American market, and when they finally did in 1982, they imploded several months later. Though The Clash never became the superstars they always threatened to become, they restored passion and protest to rock & roll. For a while, they really did seem like "the only band that mattered."
For a band that constantly sang about revolution and the working class, The Clash had surprisingly traditional roots. Joe Strummer (born John Graham Mellor, August 21, 1952) had spent most of his childhood in boarding school. By the time he was in his early twenties, he had busked on the streets of London and had formed a pub rock band called The 101'ers. Around the same time, Mick Jones (born June 26, 1955) was leading a hard rock group called the London SS. Unlike Strummer, Jones came from a working-class background in Brixton. Throughout his teens, he was fascinated with rock & roll, and he had formed the London SS with the intent of replicating the hard-driving sound of Mott the Hoople and Faces. Jones' childhood friend Paul Simonon (born December 15, 1956) joined the group as a bassist in 1976 after hearing the Sex Pistols; he replaced Tony James, who would later join Generation X and Sigue Sigue Sputnik. At the time, the band also featured drummer Tory Crimes (born Terry Chimes), who had recently replaced Topper Headon (born Nicky Headon, May 30, 1955). After witnessing the Sex Pistols in concert, Joe Strummer decided to break up The 101'ers in early 1976 in order to pursue a new, harder-edged musical direction. He left the band just before their first single, "Keys to Your Heart," was released. Along with fellow 101'er guitarist Keith Levene, Strummer joined the revamped London SS, now renamed The Clash.
The Clash performed its first concert in the summer of 1976, supporting the Sex Pistols in London. Levene left the band shortly afterward. Hiring Bernard Rhodes -a former business associate of Sex Pistols manager Malcolm McLaren- as their manager, The Clash set out on the Pistols' notorious "Anarchy Tour" late in 1976. Though only three concerts were performed, it nevertheless raised The Clash's profile and the band secured a record contract in February of 1977 with British CBS. Over the course of three weekends, they recorded their debut album. Once the sessions were completed, Terry Chimes left the group, and Headon came aboard as the band's drummer. In the spring, The Clash's first single, "White Riot," and eponymous debut album were released to great critical acclaim and sales in the U.K., peaking at number 12 on the charts. The American division of CBS thought 'The Clash' wasn't fit for radio play, so it decided not to release the album. The import of the record became the largest-selling import of all time. Shortly after the U.K. release of 'The Clash', the band set out on the whirlwind "White Riot" tour supported by The Jam and the Buzzcocks; the tour was highlighted by a date at London's Rainbow Theatre, where the audience tore the seats out of the venue. During the "White Riot" tour, CBS pulled "Remote Control" off the album as a single, and as a response, The Clash recorded "Complete Control" with reggae icon Lee "Scratch" Perry.
Throughout 1977, Strummer and Jones were in and out of jail for a myriad of minor indiscretions, ranging from vandalism to stealing a pillowcase, while Simonon and Headon were arrested for shooting racing pigeons with an air gun. The Clash's outlaw image was bolstered considerably by such events, but the band also began to branch out into social activism, such as headlining a Rock Against Racism concert. Released in the summer of 1978, the single "(White Man) In Hammersmith Palais" demonstrated the band's growing social consciousness. Shortly after the single peaked at number 32, The Clash began working on their second album with producer Sandy Pearlman, a former member of Blue Öyster Cult. Pearlman gave 'Give 'Em Enough Rope' a clean but powerful sound designed to break the American market. While that didn't happen -the album peaked at 128 on the U.S. charts in the spring of 1979- the record became an enormous hit in Britain, debuting at number two on the charts.
Early in 1979, The Clash began their first American tour, calling it "Pearl Harbor '79." That summer, the band released the U.K.-only EP 'The Cost of Living', which featured a cover of The Bobby Fuller Four's "I Fought the Law." Following the later summer release of The Clash in America, the group set out on its second U.S. tour, hiring Mickey Gallagher of Ian Dury's Blockheads as a keyboardist. On both of their U.S. tours, The Clash had R&B acts like Bo Diddley, Sam & Dave, Lee Dorsey, and Screamin' Jay Hawkins support them, as well as neo-traditionalist country-rocker Joe Ely and the punk rockabilly band The Cramps. The choice of supporting acts indicated that The Clash were becoming fascinated with older rock & roll and all of its legends. That fascination became the driving force behind their breakthrough double album, 'London Calling'. Produced by Guy Stevens, who'd formerly worked with Mott the Hoople, 'London Calling' boasted an array of styles, ranging from rockabilly and New Orleans R&B to anthemic hard rock and reggae. Retailing at the price of a single album, the record debuted at number nine on the U.K. charts in late 1979 and climbed to number 27 on the U.S. charts in the spring of 1980.
The Clash successfully toured the U.S., the U.K., and Europe in early 1980, during which time the pseudo-documentary "Rude Boy" was released in England. During the summer, the band released the Dutch-only, dub-inflected single "Bankrobber," which they recorded with DJ Mikey Dread; by the fall, the British branch of CBS was forced to release the single due to popular demand. Shortly afterward, the band went to New York to begin the tension-filled, self-produced sessions for their follow-up to 'London Calling'. In November, a U.S.-only EP of odds and ends entitled 'Black Market Clash' was released. The following month, the triple-record set 'Sandinista!' appeared in the U.K. and the U.S. The critical reaction to the album was decidedly mixed, with American critics reacting more favorably than their British counterparts. Furthermore, the band's audience in the U.K. was shrinking slightly -'Sandinista!' was the first record the group released that sold more copies in the U.S. than the U.K.
After spending much of 1981 touring and resting, The Clash reconvened late in the year to record their fifth album with producer Glyn Johns, a former engineer/producer for the Rolling Stones and Led Zeppelin. Headon left the band shortly after the sessions finished; the press statement said he parted with the group due to political differences, but it was later revealed that the split was due to his heavy drug use. Headon was replaced with their old drummer, Terry Chimes, around the spring release of 'Combat Rock'. The album was The Clash's most commercially successful effort, entering the U.K. charts at number two and climbing into the American Top Ten in early 1983, thanks to the Top Ten hit single "Rock the Casbah." During the fall of 1982, The Clash opened for The Who on their farewell tour. Though the tour helped 'Combat Rock' scale the U.S. charts, The Clash were routinely booed off the stage on every date of the tour.
Although The Clash were at the height of their commercial powers in 1983, the band was beginning fall apart. Chimes was fired in the spring and replaced by Pete Howard, formerly of Cold Fish. During the summer, the band headlined the U.S. Festival in California; it would be their last major appearance. In September, Joe Strummer and Paul Simonon fired Mick Jones because he "drifted apart from the original idea of The Clash." Jones formed Big Audio Dynamite the following year, while The Clash hired guitarists Vince White and Nick Sheppard to fill his vacancy. Throughout 1984, the band toured America and Europe, testing the new lineup. The revamped Clash finally released their first album, 'Cut the Crap', in November. The album was greeted with overwhelmingly poor reviews and sales; it would later be disowned by Strummer and Simonon.
Early in 1986, Strummer and Simonon decided to permanently disband The Clash. Several years later, Simonon formed the roots rock band Havana 3 A.M., which released only one album, in 1991; following the record's release, he concentrated on painting. After reuniting with Jones to write songs for Big Audio Dynamite's second album, 1986's 'No. 10 Upping Street', Strummer drifted between a musical and film career, appearing in Alex Cox's "Straight to Hell" (1986) and Jim Jarmusch's "Mystery Train" (1989). He also scored "Permanent Record" (1988) and Cox's "Walker" (1987). Strummer released a solo album, 'Earthquake Weather', in 1989. Shortly afterward, he joined The Pogues as a touring rhythm guitarist and vocalist. By 1991, he had quietly drifted away from the spotlight. For the remainder of the decade, Strummer was quiet, appearing on only one other recording -Black Grape's 1996 Top Ten hit "England's Irie."
Though Strummer and Simonon were both quiet and Jones was busy with various incarnations of Big Audio Dynamite, rumors of a reunion continued to circulate throughout the '90s. When "Should I Stay or Should I Go?" appeared in a Levi's television commercial in 1992, the song was re-released in the U.K. by CBS, and it shot to number one, fueling even more reunion speculation. The rumors appeared again in 1995 and 1996, when the Sex Pistols decided to reunite, but The Clash remained quiet. 'Live: From Here to Eternity', assembling material recorded between 1978 and 1982, was released in 1999, shortly followed by the documentary film "Westway to the World!". The Clash were elected for induction into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in November 2002 and were making plans to reunite to commemorate the event that following spring when Strummer suddenly died from a congenital heart defect on December 22, 2002. In the wake of his passing, the remaining members of the band attended the induction ceremony in March of 2003, then quietly tabled any plans for a reunion.
Over the next decade, both Jones and Simonon were musically active. Jones produced both albums by the acclaimed rock group The Libertines -who themselves bore a distinct debt to The Clash- and Simonon teamed with Blur's Damon Albarn for the 2007 band The Good, The Bad & The Queen. This project lead to a Jones and Simonon reunion under the auspices of Albarn's group Gorillaz; the pair both performed on the 2010 album 'Plastic Beach' and they both appeared on the supporting tour, marking the first time they shared the stage since The Clash.
In 2013, the group released a major archival project called 'Sound System' containing new remasters of the band's first five albums, three additional CDs of rarities, singles, and demos, plus a DVD. Along with the box set came a new compilation called 'The Clash Hits Back', which mimicked the sequence of their July 19, 1982 set list at the Brixton Fair Deal. Things were quiet on the reissue front until the 2022 release of 'Combat Rock: The People's Hall Special Edition', which added a bonus disc of tracks that included a handful from the rejected Mick Jones "Rat Patrol from Fort Bragg" mix of the album. [SOURCE: ALLMUSIC]
Bullet LaVolta was an alternative rock band from Boston, Massachusetts, formed in January 1987 by four college disk jockeys: Clay Tarver (guitar, later of Chavez), Bill Whelan (bass), Corey "Loog" Brennan (guitar) and Chris "Cruster" Guttmacher (drums). The band later added singer Yukki Gipe (Kurt Davis) after he responded to an advertisement. The band's style of music was a kind of punk, heavy metal, and hardcore punk hybrid, reminiscent of diverse bands such as Naked Raygun, Motörhead and early Fugazi.
Bullet LaVolta performed their first show at a dive bar in Boston called Chet's Last Call to a crowd of about fifteen people, but soon became one of Boston's most popular live acts. They gained most of their notoriety by playing college shows in Boston (usually at either MIT or Harvard, with bigger acts like The Lemonheads, Dag Nasty, and The Rollins Band).
The band released their self-titled EP on Taang! Records with Moving Targets guitarist Kenny Chambers joining the line-up in 1988. In 1989, they recorded and released their first full-length album, 'The Gift', originally released on Taang!. The band's road manager around that time was actor Donal Logue. In 1990, they released the 'Gimme Danger' EP (which includes a cover of "Detroit Rock City") on Metal Blade before signing to RCA Records, who purchased and re-released 'Bullet Lavolta' and 'The Gift' on a single disc. The record was reviewed in People magazine and given a good rating. The album sold modestly and the band became well-known enough that their contract was renewed by RCA. A year later, they recorded and released their follow-up, 'Swandive', which debuted the same day as Nirvana's album 'Nevermind'. 'Swandive' was produced, mixed and engineered by Dave Jerden, who has also produced Jane's Addiction, Alice in Chains, Social Distortion, Fishbone, and Anthrax. Bullet LaVolta played a show with Nirvana around the time of the album's release, with the opening act being an unknown early incarnation of The Smashing Pumpkins. In late 1991 the band went on tour with Corrosion of Conformity and Prong in support of 'Swandive'.
The band broke up in 1992, the same year Matador Records issued an album of older recordings (mostly from 1987 and 1989) called 'The Gun Didn't Know I Was Loaded'. As of November, 2015, none of the band's releases are in print by any label but 'Swandive' and 'The Gift' are available via digital download. Yukki Gipe was later the lead singer of a band called The Konks and played drums under his given name for Kustomized. Drummer Todd Philips drums in Model/Actress, the band formed by ex-Brainiac bass player and video director Juan Monostereo and former Chamberlain members Curtis Mead and Charlie Walker.
As of December 2014, Kenny Chambers plays with The Stone Strangers as well as maintaining a solo career.
Bill Whelan died by suicide on November 1, 2021. [SOURCE: WIKIPEDIA]
