Bombsite Fanzine 1977 punk

Bombsite eZine Bob Marley Gig - Mart and Alg

2011-03-16T13:27:00.010-04:00

DREADLOCK HOLIDAY IN DEESIDE

Bob Marley, vocals, rhythm guitar
Aston Barrett, bass
Carlton Barrett, drums
Al Anderson, lead guitar
Junior Marvin, lead guitar
Earl Lindo, organ, clavinet
Tyrone Downie, keyboards
Alvin "Seeco" Patterson, percussion
The I-Threes, backing vocals

On the 12th of July 1980, Bob Marley and the Wailers performed live to 4,500 people at the Deeside Leisure Centre. The Deeside concert wasn’t actually in Chester, it was just across the border in Wales in a small town called Queensferry. The leisure centre was used mainly as an ice rink and was off the normal music circuit, but attracted enough Marley fans to sell out the venue on this night. This gig was the second to last show Bob & The Wailers ever played in the UK and his last UK show with a known recording.
Influential reggae drummer and percussion player Carlton Barrett was murdered outside his home in Jamaica on April 17, 1987. His signature rhythm style is woven into almost every recording the Wailers produced since 1969.
There was also a Gary Numan Concert at this venue later in September 24, 1980

Archive review from the Chester Chronicle

If there's one thing that stands out about a Bob Marley concert, it's the vast repertoire of top material that he and his band can produce.

Although there were a couple of songs that failed to raise the roof at the Deeside Leisure Centre during Marley's recent performance, the audience were kept cheering, clapping and chanting for 90 per cent of the time as one Marley standard after another boomed from the stage.

The concert which drew a vast crowd of around 4,500 people, opened with Marley's band Tuff Gong Uprising backing the I Three's, Marley's own backing singers. Though they received loud applause, it was nothing to compare with the roar that greeted the man himself, dreadlocks flying, pinned by a white spotlight.

The set opened with Natural Mystic, instantly recognisable, before Marley went on to play some of his lesser-known stuff. For the first hour or so, things went well enough, but then came the opening chords of Jammin', and the whole place nearly took off. The concert simply lifted to a different plane. And that was followed by Exodus.

At this point, rather aptly, the band and Marley simply got up and walked off-stage. No had the slightest intention of letting them go, and 4, 500 voices shouting for more put the message across (as if Marley wasn't intending to come back anyway).

The second part of the set included classics like Natty Dread, No Woman No Cry, I Shot The Sheriff, all played with little or no chat in between.

The music was tight without being strictly bound to the album originals, proving if nothing else that Marley is a professional and that his musicians are men of imagination and flexibility, unlike some bands who use tours simple to put across, note for note, the stuff they put on the albums they want to promote.

Last number was a loose version of Get Up Stand Up with the obligatory singalong in the middle of it. Then it was spots off, house light on.

A.F. Chester Chronicle, July 1980.

Bombsite eZine Retro Punk Art

2010-01-04T21:57:00.020-05:00

Bombsite has been commissioned to produce 77 punk artwork and promotional material, for bands, and different events. The following are some examples of our 77 retro art. If you require promotion work, 77 graphics, press kits or marketing, contact us on Facebook

Bombsite eZine 13

2009-12-20T15:35:00.002-05:00

Bombsite eZine 13
Ian England Chester punk Venue, Noise Agents, Shag Nasty, Eric's Forgotten, Wah! Heat, Kings of the Delmar, NYC punk model Steffi Kubicek, Viki Vortex, Malaysian Street Boundaries

bombsite eZine issue 12

2009-12-20T15:31:00.002-05:00

Bombsite eZine Twelve
The Derellas, The Skunks, First Time Riot, Shag Nasty, The Spitfire Boys, Radio Riot 2, The Abrasive Wheels, Danger's Close, Brown Bag Records

Bombsite eZine 2009 - The Skunks

2009-12-07T11:30:00.006-05:00

Click to enlarge Page 2 Issue 12 www.myebook.com/bombsite1977/

Bombsite eZine 2009 - Shag Nasty Review

2009-09-17T23:25:00.004-04:00

Click picture to enlarge

Bombsite Fanzine ; Punks Not Dead

2009-05-25T14:34:00.000-04:00

To balance things out, I must note that I moved to Toledo, Ohio, in 1981. And this is straight up, most had never heard of punk rock. Some had read bits in the newspaper and would comment with some humor. But the world was a much bigger place. Back then, I would run out to NY City every chance I could, to get some 3 chord energy. The Cleveland Agora would get a few bands passing through, but only a handful of enthusiasts would attend. Lords of the New Church somewhere in 82 about 100 people on a Wed night. Later, The Pistols at the Flats August 13th 1996 on the Nautica stage. The venue was no where near sold out. By the way, both concerts were classic.
Punk rock fires up where it is needed, where it is required, and then it moves on to fix another social blemish. Punk rock is a living entity that avoids commercialization, but when it is spotted, the wagoneers will try to capitalize on it, as it leaves through the back door, to relocate somewhere else in the world far away. Hence the "Punks not dead" slogan that has now circulated for about 30 years.
I will agree, some of the 76 punk in the UK was about fashion, but the culprit, was one street in London, The Kings Road, an amazing place at the time. Youths and musicians from all over world would be drawn to that street with a strong curiosity. The street was wealthy at one end and dirt poor on the other.
Europeans and Americans would stay and work the fashion stores, bars and boutiques illegally, just to be part of the vibrant scene. But punk moved on quickly to find places like Liverpool, Manchester, Glasgow and Ulster where violence and unemployment ruled the streets. There was no money for "Chelsea up market boutique" clothing here. Kids in these cities would steal clothes from thrift stores or army stores and try to create something different with spray paint or dye. The Pistols had already split and the Clash were considered sell outs when the scene was fixing these other social disasters in 78.
And so it goes, Punks Not Dead, it is still a juvenile. And finding it's new location, before big biz arrives will be an ongoing adventure for all of the people that need a fix of it's energy.
Thanks Mart

Bombsite Fanzine 2009; Ron Reyes Black Flag

2009-04-24T12:08:00.020-04:00

Ron Reyes was the second singer for California based punk rock legends Black Flag. Ron, joined Black Flag after original vocalist Keith Morris had quit to form the Circle Jerks. Black Flag needed a singer to go on a tour to Vancouver, Canada, and asked Reyes to fill in as he had been following the band and already knew the songs. Earlier he had played drums in an incarnation of Redd Kross, along with Greg Hetson, who went on to form the Circle Jerks with Keith Morris, and subsequently joined Bad Religion.

Mart; Ron you were the second singer for California based punk rock group Black Flag, Can you describe the scene and who or what influenced you during this early period?

Ron; First some history

Before Punk, I listened mostly to David Bowie, Elton John, Queen, T-Rex, Rolling Stones, Led Zep, and Black Sabbath. All British bands. But the real turning point for me from typical teen age music appreciation to rock freak musician wannabe was when I first heard and saw Kiss. The Hotter than Hell album cover blew my mind and everything changed from that point on. I went to Mira Costa High School in Manhattan Beach California. I was a total total outcast. I actually lived "on the other side of the tracks" in the Redondo Beach High school district, which was far far less preppy and snobby. But it had drug and gang problems, so my mom sent me to Mira Costa instead. Probably the worst years of my life. I had ZERO friends and would ride to school on my silver unicycle dressed in my custom made Ace Frehly silver lame space suit with full make up and 12 inch platform heals I made in wood shop. The teachers and students would laugh and ridicule but I didn't care. At this point I met 2 other outcasts in school and we started to put a band together which was mostly Kiss covers and Hendrix songs cause Gary the guitarist was a Hendrix Freak. That was when I started to think about "MAKING " music. But that didn't go anywhere and one day out of the corner of my eye I started to notice this small group of glam/punk girls in the halls. They were like a breath of fresh air, and a hint of things to come. At the same time a "rocker" girl friend of mine gave me the Sex Pistols God Save the Queen 7 inch single. THAT TOTALLY TRANSFORMED EVERYTHING. I went straight home and tore down all my Kiss Posters and started listening to the Rodney on the Roq Radio station. That's where I first heard all the British punk bands and the Ramones!!!! So the music I listened to went from fully over produced rock with tons of overdubs, effects, artsy fartsy textures and dynamics to straightforward 3 chord 1234-1234 tempos and loads of bad ass attitude.

The same girl who gave me the Sex Pistols single, told me about the Masque and the emerging punk scene in Hollywood. She would go to places like the Starwood and the Roxy to see long hair glam bands, and drop me off in her car at the Masque. I was sooo intimidated I would only go in for a moment at a time and then come outside and just listen and look from a safe distance. After the shows I would meet Debi at the Roxy parking lot after hours party.

I became a big fan of all the original Hollywood bands like The Germs, X, Weirdoes, The Sreamers, Bags, etc. Often I would ride my bicycle 20 plus mile to Hollywood to see these bands. In the early days, I looked like a little Handsome Dick Manatoba with long hair and black platform shoes left over from my glam and Kiss years. The first time I would change my dress was at the 1977 punk rock fashion show at the Hollywood Palladium. I went wrapped up in clear cellophane, all tangled up in guitar chords, hand made buttons pinned all over and a hangman's noose ta top it off. I must have looked like a Weirdoes wanna be. After that night there was no turning back. But, I was extremely shy and introverted so I would continue to go to the gigs and hang out by myself, too scared to talk to the Hollywood punks.

Mart; During the early days of punk you followed some of the bands. Can you tell us a little about who they were? What drew you to Black Flag? Was their a relationship with you and other punk bands? Good or bad?

Ron; So yeah like I said the Germs, X, Weirdoes, The Screamers, Bags, Dickies, Controlers, I loved the Avengers and the Zeros!!! etc. And it is interesting that many of these bands as well as bands like Devo, Blondie and even the Ramones had a little art school/glam damage in their roots, so I had a natural attraction to them. I don't remember there being any unifying dogma or mantra to "save the world" or "smash the state" with these bands. It was just Argh I'm fcked up with nuthin ta do so lets go crazy, but you know not in some backwoods hillbilly psycho way or some suburban jock rock way, there was something far more creative at play.

Meanwhile, my best buddy Dez and I were neighbors in Redondo beach (just a couple of blocks away from the Fleetwood where I would finally quit Black Flag mid song.) would sit around listing to Rodney on the Roq and were starting to put a band together. we were called the Happy Tampons or the Fucking PorkChops. We were heavily influenced by Wire, I think we knew the whole Pink Flag album gosh that was just so amazingly different then, anything I was into before and then there was Eater!!! Eater was cool cause they did Bowie and Velvet Underground songs. So you see, more artsy stuff. So I guess Dez and I were just a couple of arty fartsy guys?!?! He also loved the B52s, so go figure.

Then there was Black Flag. We started hearing about the Panic/Black Flag band and they were local from Hermosa Beach which was cool cause we were neighbors!!! So we started crashing their practices and I think the first time I saw them at a gig was at the Moose Hall in Redondo Beach with the Alley Cats. Holy Shit were they totally different then any other punk band I
had ever seen. There was absolutely nothing even remotely pretentious or artsy fartsy about them. They had ZERO "cool" factors you know they did not get their cloths from Poseur. But Greg Ginn just blew my mind. There was no one that came close to his ferocity and intensity! and it wasn't constrained or contrived at all. And it's not like he was the most technically perfect guitarist I had ever heard but from that moment on no one would ever come close. I loved Pat Smear, Johnny Thunders, Ron Ashton, Johnny Ramone and others but no one played with utter abandon like Greg. Chuck was a monster as well and again it was as if these guys came from another planet where they had never seen a punk band or even a regular rock n roll band or had any idea of how to behave in an acceptably cool fashion. They were NOT "cool or dignified". They were completely undignified. And Keith was just so crazy in an "I DON'T CARE WHAT YOU SAY" sort of way. and you just knew he meant it. Robo was another eccentric freak in his own quiet silent ways. Actually if there was anyone who was cool it was Robo. The way he played his drums in such an upright sitting position. Not a whole lot of outward emotion but just intensely suave.

So Black Flag sorta spoiled Punk Rock for me. At least the Hollywood artsy fartsy version. I mean I just loved all the other bands but holly shit Black Flag just made them all sound so incredibly small in comparison. Looking back, It was the beginning of the end for me as far as punk rock went. Cause, I really don't care what others say, but no one was as fierce as Black Flag in a real pure organic natural way. Others would come with their intense stage presence, scowling appearance and pre-fab sound and look but it all seemed contrived by comparison. Even my versions of Keith's songs were mere replicas. You see, I had regrettably read the punk rock manifesto script and knew what was expected. You know what I mean? It was like I was following in someone's footsteps where the mold had already been cast. Yeah, I would bring my own spin to it but the original Black Flag members never got the "memo" and if they did they must of just laughed their heads off at the notion. So as for me, I was ruined from that moment.

Mart; Many fans remember you as the real sound and energy of Black Flag and an icon for the period. Into the 80's the sound and scene developed into something else. can you give us an inside look of how that development felt to you?

Ron; A lot of that has to do with my appearance in the Decline of the "Western Civilization" movie. That movie sort of defined the era or at least a certain time and place . I haven't seen the movie in years except for clips on you tube but I think the Black Flag stuff has really aged well. That's because it was different from the other stuff. Gosh I get a kick out of listing to Greg and Chuck (back then we used ta call him Gary) they were soo full of BS just taking the piss out of every one. Chuck with his Brain surgery spiel is just classic. I was soooo nervous cause you know it was just so strange having cameras in your living room. And it was entirely unscripted and one of us were used to having people asking us our opinion about shit. The other thing is the Jealous again record is a really good record.

The "Nervous Breakdown" single introduced and defined Black Flag up to that point but the Jealous Again Sessions refined the sound considerably especially Greg's guitar work. The Guitar solo stuff on "Jealous Again" and "Revenge" are just so cool. Keith's vocals were so natural, I mean he didn't sound like anyone else at the time. And I wasn't there, but I bet, there were not many takes or overdubs. Yet I spent a lot of time on the vocals, cause I was inexperienced I guess. My voice was probably "technically" better with a greater range and more melodic then the other BF singers, but really who cares about that when it comes to Punk Rock. I guess compared to Keith, Dez and especially Henry my vocals had a sort of Pop edge to them. And you know I just loved bands like the Last, Red Cross and the Decedents, the Plugz and the Zeros. And even, oh god help me for admitting this, but does anyone remember "Shock" I wanna be spoiled??? Oh and while I am at the task of destroying any credibility as a true punk rocker, let me say I loved the Go Go's!!! Those bands sang with intensity but there was a hint of Pop flavour.

Later on my Pop sensibilities would take full form in my "Crash Bang Crunch Pop" band. But overall my favourite Black Flag singer is Henry. I don't like all his stuff, but I think he was the definitive Black Flag Singer who had the whole package. And the gigs I saw live after My war and around slip it in were just memorizing. Holy shit Henry was good at what he did!!!

I come across a lot of stuff on-line about who is the best Black Flag singer. And there is some real heated and passionate discussion over it all. I played a small part during a short period and I really think that was meant to be. Chuck talks about the length of the songs coming from the inspiration, and I can totally relate. For me I was inspired to do what I did, and then that was it. I just wanted to have fun but Greg and Chuck were getting really serious, I just could not get behind some of the songs like Damage and Life of Pain etc.

As far as the emerging 80's west coast sound. Well, I really have got mixed feelings about all of that. By that time everyone had read the script. You know it was supposed to be fast, loud, aggressive, angry, hateful, smash the state, fuck the world, in your face blah blah blah. I totally love loud fast aggressive music even to this day, but, I really wasn't depressed or all that angry. And I really didn't feel all that oppressed or pissed off at anyone. I was just having too much fun. I was in a band, folks were digging what we were doing, girls were starting to come around and I liked girls I didn't want to piss them off or degrade them. The rest of the guys were getting into some real gross stuff which was just so much macho misogynistic crap.
Then the orange county surf jock punks started coming around and it was like they were all ex-marines or something. God I just hated the vibe they brought to the gigs. Don't get me wrong some of the suburban and OC bands that were coming out were great . Middle Class, the Crowd, Agent Orange (oh man they were fantastic!!!) the Adolescents, TSOL. Yeah, I really liked these bands. But for some reason the crowds that were emerging around these bands, and Black Flag in particular were just insane, and not in a good way, at least not from where I was coming from.

Mart; Was there one incident that you can determine as the point where punk rock exploded on the West Coast? Roughly what date did that occur? What was the influence? And who was involved?

Ron; I guess most folks would point to the emerging hardcore scene. But you know that was exactly the shit that turned me off of the whole thing. It just seemed so one-dimensional. The Weirdoes and the Dickies, X (man talk about a band with dynamics!!!), Germs, the Last, Avengers, Zeros, Screamers all had so much flavour in comparison to a lot of the hardcore stuff. Man, I can't even watch the American Hardcore movie, it just looks and sounds like crap to me (except for Bad Brains and ok a few others!!!) I know I'm gonna piss of a lot off people, but I just hated most of that stuff. Guys in that movie are getting all romantic over it and making it out to be some profoundly important part of music history. I just don't get it at all. I can feel all the hate mail coming, but hey, I'm just telling it like I saw/felt it

But I can appreciate where it came from, and by that time the Hollywood music was getting a little diluted with too much heroin and drugs, so in some respects the hardcore stuff was like a breath of fresh air.

When I moved up the coast to Vancouver bands like DOA, the Rabid and the Subhuman's were great. DOA had sooo much power with Biscuits and Rampage and Joey was so fierce. Joey is really the only North American politically inclined punk that I respect. Cause I just can't stomach most political punk. It is just so black and white it reminds me of over zealous right wing religious hate mongers. But DOA's smash the state stuff seemed so much more sincere and I always felt that it was more then just burn it down you know, I think Joey has the integrity to inspire some positive change not just hey lets fck it all up and bail.

The other thing I liked about the North West/Vancouver music scene at the time was that it was somewhat naive and immature in a good way, you know, it seemed to keep its purity for longer then the LA scene did. And there was a good mix of pop bands like the Dishrags Pointed Sticks who by the way are working on a new record and what I've heard so far is fantastic. The Modernettes were sooo much fun, and they had the Braineaters who I would later join for a while. The Braineaters had some things in common with the Screamers.

I just seemed to fit in so well with the west coast Canadian Punk Scene. There was far far less division like in the California South Bay area. A smaller population forced bands to share members so you had guys like Chuck Biscuts or his big brother Dimwit (RIP) playing in 6 bands. And there was this Fck Band thing where you would just play for fun and beer. Lots and lots of good ole Canadian beer!

I remember coming back to LA for the premiere of the Decline movie and I was around for several gigs in east LA featuring the new OC type bands. I just hated it and ran back to Vancouver. Where I kept on rockin on my terms, in a tone of fck bands and then called it a night. I would not have done it any other way.

That's it

Ron

Ron's Web Links

www.myspace.com/reyesx6

www.breakmyface.com/bands/blackflag1.html

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_Flag_(band)

Bombsite Fanzine : 77 Originals The Spurts

2009-03-31T13:49:00.012-04:00

Young energetic and free, The Spurts started their band with four school friends after catching the spirit during 1977. DIY from the start, they organized their own gigs at local community centers and at a wild youth hang out they called the bungalow. Members associated with this band would later join the Cure and Depeche Mode.
The 77 line up were Dave Coltman, Steve Manuell, Paul Langwith and Dave Walsh. After a few changes by 1979 the band members were; Steve Manuell, Paul Langwith, Perry Bamonte, & Clive Kemp. Ralph Malph played bass for a few gigs.
During 2007 The Spurts re-grouped for some gigs and some studio work, and today they are still rocking the capital and their live performances are catching a buzz.
The band line up today is; Steve, Dave, Vicki Vortex and Paul.
Here Steve Manuell tells how it was;

Mart; The original Spurts were based a few miles outside of London. In those early days would you say that you were part of the Kings Road scene? Or did you go over to see what was happening?
Steve; We were all 14 year olds (sounds so young) we went up the Kings Rd regularly, but the place was swamped with the NEW crowd . It was a real eye opener, you learn very fast, clothes, attitude, ideas, music. drugs. It was the best place to find out the latest band, event.etc.

Mart; What single event drew the band into the energy? And roughly what month year did that occur?
Steve; The day after the Sex Pistols/Grundy show on TV, me & Dave were talking about, wanting more. Suddenly there was some dangerous stuff going on, music and style. We needed this! We thought we'd find like minded people to get our own thing started.

Mart; Did you find it difficult to get gigs or did you get a break somehow? I understand that The Spurts first proper gig was at the Lindisfarne Catholic Center. Many of those early gigs were chaotic and surrounded with tension.
Was the audience receptive to your sound?
Steve; In 1977 we started the band. a couple of Woolworth's guitars, etc. We organized parties just so we could play. usually 60+ friends squashed into the Bungalow front room. The drummer Paul's dad lent us the money to buy some 100 watt speakers etc,and a place to practice. The police turning up was a regular thing. We played every where the Punks hung out in the Southend/Essex area. Youth clubs, a school, pubs, clubs. There were a lot of gigs, no money or just a couple of pounds. We got a great reaction from everyone. That first gig was scary, cos there were loads of people, but not our usual school mates. This was a proper crowd, a few down the front instantly started moving, so we were doing something right.
Loads of tension, loads of violence from bikers , teddy boys, football thugs. It all added to the determination of us to play! We played one gig straight after I had been beat up by 3 bikers.
It was the normal every week happening.

Mart; Did you record any songs? Or did the lyrics survive? And are they now part of your line up?
Steve; Some stuff survived, We had hours of tapes which sadly got stolen in 1981. There are 2 or 3 songs on tape, but not the best quality. We still play,
"Keep on coming"
"Watch out"
"Who's laughing now"
and "Sexperience" is floating about ..
I still had a lot of the lyrics, which we later made in to full songs "Germs" being one of them.
There is a demo of "keep on coming" from late 1979, but I had left, Dave had left so it was not typical "SPURTS" sound.
I would say that is how we sound now, it captures our RAW sound from then, but with a bit more experience.

Mart; I know that things sped along pretty fast for UK punk. And I believe that is why so much of the media did not understand it. And as you pointed out, it was a young scene. Can you describe who's sound or music influenced the early band? Were each of you influenced by different music?
Steve; Bowie's Ziggy was there before punk, Pub rock stuff, Dr Feelgood. When punk started main bands were Adverts, Damned, Lurkers, Slaughter & the dogs and 999. Me & Dave were the main writers then. The others in the band were dragged along at first.

Mart; By 1979 you had streamlined your line up. Were you starting to get noticed and integrate with other bands?
Steve. By 79 the band was every where. A major part of the Southend/Essex scene. A lot of people used to come down from London for the gigs/parties. We would mix bands, play with/along with people like Alf Moyet. Bands used to come to the practice Bungalow on a regular bases, the early Depeche Mode lot, Vince Clark etc. Everyone was playing something then.

Mart; Paul and Perry would go on to play with some big bands. How did that occur ? or how were those contacts made? Through friends, other bands or an agent?
Steve; Paul is a very good drummer, and ended up helping out every local band at some stage. his Dad owned the Bungalow (practice place) so everyone played there. As I said before that's how he did a lot with the early Depeche's. Perry was always there, he lived at the bungalow I believe.
His brother was involved with The Cure early on, and ended up roadie-ing. Dave roadied for Slaughter, 999 and a bit with UK Subs, I think. He knew everyone up London by then.
There were never agents, only mates etc. A guy Richard from fanzine "Strange Stories" sort of managed a bit. Got a demo made (no one knows where it is now?)
In those early days we all helped each other out, a great big punk family.

Recent release The Spurts are Coming five track EP;

Mart; The band re-formed in 2007. So how does it all feel today? Is there a new scene breaking out? Does this lousy economy play into this somehow?
Steve; Well the excitement was like going back to 77, although I think its only us original first timers. The music still has the energy, but alas a lot of the people don't. There is far more apathy now. The times have changed.
Every one can sit on their arses with computers, TV, Internet, not bother to go and see live music. Regards a new scene, well I believe that the punk scene will slump back into the shadows again. Due to the next generations not getting involved. Too many old men (which I'm one of) It can't survive on nostalgia. That's not punk. Fresh ideas, fresh approach, more youth!
The economy will always push people to cry out for change. Punk should be about music revolution and social attitude change.

Web Connection
http://www.myspace.com/spurts77
http://www.thespurts.com

Bombsite Fanzine 2009; The Skunks Exclusive

2009-02-16T15:51:00.012-05:00

The UK's love of expression and freedom to innovate, has helped them produce many unique rockers. The Skunks could be characterized this way. They were part of the original core of 77 rockers that carved out a recipe for British punk music. Nobody will argue about that. With a distinguished bass line that fueled a more complex result, The Skunks have their own punk sound. And their original compositions are just as refreshing today.

Performing live, the band still has what it takes to give the nostalgic audience a reminder of how it was "back in the day". Plus, there will be plenty of 20-somethings discovering how techno dance and rap has submerged our music into a murky haze of overlaying, sampling and circuit bending.

Above; Bombsite has The Skunks playing at Liverpool Polytech on October 7th 1977 supporting the Buzzcocks. We are fairly certain the Skunk photos were taken on that evening. Confirmed date here; 20thcpunkarchives/oct/id24

Gerry : Yes Martin, we played Liverpool, wow even then, I'd read the books of Paul, George and I could relate to all of their beginnings as similar to our own. And actually we had a lot in common with the Beatles as it turned out. Their experiences in Berlin in the early sixties seemed very similar to the kind of lives we were living on the road at the time.

Martin; Whilst touring outside of London did you perform at Manchester's Electric Circus or Eric's club in Liverpool?

Gerry: The Skunks toured with Gen x, UK Subs, Wayne County, Killjoys, Spitfire Boys, XTC, and others too numerous to mention. we used to bump in to loads of touring musicians at the motorway service stations at the time, and would catch up on all the gossip and action, there were no mobile phones at the time, so a lot of things were really word of mouth. Bands then were
not famous as such so there was a bond between us all in a way. I remember Liverpool Poly very well, it was probably our first real gig. We just got up, plugged in and did our set. The audience were fantastic that night, and I think we were all highly nervous and charged for the performance, but then that became the norm for our performances throughout that time ( one of the things that the WHO picked up later in the year when we were spotted by them playing at the Vortex Club supporting Generation X ) Our singer at Liverpool Colin Ward was great as usual he for me epitomised the real Punk Rock at the time, for us it was the gateway in to live music and the opportunity to experiment with recording for the first time. Colin exemplified the youth that was frustrated and angry with the society of the time, despite working occasionally as a builder and his young age, he already had a young family and felt that music and songs were a perfect way to vent his anger. I took over on lead vocals when Colin left the band.
We supported The Buzzcocks at Manchester Free Trade Hall it was a Radio Manchester do, there must have been 5000 people in the place the night we played.
I thought The Buzzcocks were good and the locals loved them I think at the time there was piece in Sounds about Pete Shelley buying his first Council house( Sounds 1977 ).Well the first thing is we loved the Spitfire Boys. I think wed met them before the Manchester gig, possibly earlier in the year at The Roxy, Convent Garden. They were a great bunch with no pretensions', and were very good live ! I think we lost touch with them later in our career.
The other thing I would say of the time, was that people from the audience would offer to put the band up when no accommodation was arranged in advance ( which was nearly always ! ), that gives you an idea of some the character of the people.

Frank: I remember doing Eric's Club mainly because of a conversation I had after the show with Jean Jacques Burnel. He came down after the Stranglers had played in the town, along with members of the notorious gang that followed them at the time. His hand was all cut up where he'd just knocked out an over keen fan that tried grab his mic stand. He caught the end of our show and was very complimentary. I found out that we had a lot in common at the time!

Martin; Can you describe the different flavour of Liverpool verses the Manchester [or North] scene during the 77 period? The energy, the support bands, the fans etc.
A: Frank: I just remember this insatiable appetite and inquisitiveness for more that was much more intense in the North. I wouldn't say the South audiences were "blasé" but it seemed that the South had easier access to all the main bands at the time. This was London, because you only had to go just outside London, areas like Milton Keynes and Watford on the M1 corridor to see the difference. This could be why Liverpool and Manchester became such powerhouses of creativity in there own right. It seemed that the Manchester scene was more energetic, more audience and band connection than in Liverpool. That's not to take anything away from Liverpool, we loved playing there and always looked forward to it and it's just a subtle difference.

Martin; You are regarded as a London punk band, did you get to play with the Pistols or the Clash during the old Roxy, Vortex days?

A: Frank. No, we didn't play with the Pistols or the Clash, but filled in for them and often met them on the London club scene. The Pistols pulled out of a gig at "Knickers" in Keighley . We were in the middle of a tour of the North and we had a night off so we did it. Obviously we were a bit apprehensive 'cos these people had paid money for the Pistols and were gonna get the Skunks, but it turned out to be one of the best gigs we had ever done. Supporting us that night was a young very talented John Cooper Clarke.
The owner of the club was so relieved that he tipped a bag of flour over my head whilst playing our third encore ! We also covered for the Clash when they pulled out of Birmingham University , not so friendly this time ! A group of hairy, tanked up, greaser bikers infiltrated the crowd and started heckling aggressively. They were upset 'cos they'd paid to see the Clash and were not prepared to listen to us. Big mistake came when Gerry started heckling back.. We just managed to escape with a few cuts n' bruises, but fuck me it was close !!

Martin; Bombsite fanzine photographed you playing live in Liverpool during 1977. At that gig you were supporting the Buzzcocks. Can you remember any interesting events that occurred at that concert? Or maybe another Buzzcocks event?
A: Frank: I just remember how friendly, warm and welcoming it all was. Not much gobbing !
The Buzzcocks were a great band to support. They never did that old trick of keeping the PA volume down and jacking it up when they came on.

Martin; Tony Wilson was an integral part of developing the early scene around Manchester. Did he play any role at your Manchester events?
Frank: Not to my knowledge.
Gerry: I think Tony may have compared the Free Trade Hall show, I'm afraid we never met him but obviously we were aware of Joy Division, and to this day Love Will Tear Us Apart is my favourite song. My other regret is not getting to meet up with Paula Yates !!

Martin; It is interesting that you brought up the Spitfire Boys. They have almost been lost from the Liverpool radar. But, during the day they were an energetic punk band and way ahead of other Liverpool bands. Their single British Refugee is a classic 77 punk gem. And singer Paul Rutherford would go on to become a crucial part of British pop culture with Frankie Goes to
Hollywood. Do you have another Skunks Spitfire Boys incident or memory?

Gerry: We knew the Spitfire Boys pretty well, they were around the same age, and we had a lot in common, what with starting out at about the same time. We cant remember when we first bumped in to them, may have been one of the Northern shows, I know they played Manchester Free Trade Hall on the same bill as The Buzzcocks and us. Think we spent a lot of time just generally fooling around !! We kind of lost touch when we went back South and they were based up North. I remember their music though, it was really high energy with some great songs. I didn't realize Paul went on to Frankie's though! Seem to remember playing on the same bill as them possibly with the Killjoys. The Killjoys had a lovely looking bass player who we all fancied!

Martin; From the more up market Sloane Square, to the council estate district called World's End a visit to the Kings Road in the late 70's was a journey towards self expression. For the punks who colonized it in 1976, there was revolution in the air, and the hot weather that year helped, too. Were the Skunks drawn to the Kings Road clubs, pubs and record stores? Do you remember the Man in the Moon where so many punks got started?

Frank: Being only 14 in '76 and having grown up in Clapham, The Kings Road was a whole new area to explore. Colin Ward, our first singer when the band was called Dole Q, enticed me down there the first time, 'cos he was part of the "arranged" Punk 'n Teds fight. I have to say, although I liked a scrap in those days, it just did not feel right.
We had our musical and fashion differences, and I liked there stuff, so why were we fighting?
I later went on to write a song called "Backstreet Fighting" which was influenced by this and all the troubles in Brixton with the line "It's not ourselves we oughta fight " Over the years we spent more time in Kings Road. Saturday was the big day for groups of punks hanging around outside shops like "Boy". That summer of '76 was amazing. You could sense the whole movement taking pace and it was great to be on the "inside" of it.
We always started at the Sloane Square end, where the 137 bus stopped and would make a beeline for Malcolm McLaren's shop SEX, renamed Seditinaries and later BOY. We then wondered up to Worlds End and things would just develop. Some of the best days and nights happened where nothing was planned or structured, you never knew where or who you would end with! I can't remember if we ever played The Man In The Moon?

Gerry - Yeah the Kings Road on a Saturday was a laugh. Imagine all the Sloane Ranger debutantes in their Barbour jackets and Wellingtons, mixed in with the squaddies based in the Army barracks stationed nearby, then you had us lot all punked up, and then the obligatory Teddy Boys who would come down to see what was going on!, and the poor ordinary residents out doing their shopping! I suppose it made for a pretty intimidating atmosphere, but somehow every one put up with everyone else I bought some nice shirts in the Boy shop ( think it was pretty expensive though ! )
I think I remember nearly getting caught spraying the SKUNKS !! graffiti over there back in the day! What we wouldn't do for some free publicity ! In fact the graffiti on London bridges, and even outside the Roxy stayed there for years ! I think a lot of Joe public from that time remember us purely because of the graffiti they would drive past every day!

Martin; On Tuesday June 7th 1977, the high day of Queens Jubilee celebrations, the Sex Pistols attempted to interrupt the Jubilee festivities by playing live from a boat on the River Thames. The long holiday weekend started on Friday June 3rd, The Bombsite Boys hitched down to London. Can you remember what the Skunks were doing? [I see you played Brighton on Sat]

Gerry: Think we might have gone over to the Nashville rooms. We never did get to play the Brighton gig as Hugh Ashton our bass player broke his finger when we were moving our equipment in to the venue. Some great parties over there though. The clubs always seemed to be in really small places like the basements of some of the houses near the sea front.

Martin; The Skunks were seen as having a young Who sound, and as I remember, The Skunks were somewhat linked between punk and the 77 mod movement. As young guns were you inspired by The Who's music? Did your meeting and further partnership with them change your focus away from Punk and more toward the Mod revivalist scene?

Frank: Briefly maybe, but we were just developing as musicians and Gerry started playing a synth. It was just a natural progression. You learn't a few more chords and wanted to use them.
We never wanted to say "hey look how clever we are,'cos your all playing with three major chords and we can throw in an augmented 9th!" It was more just enjoying being a bit more "musically challenged "without trying to recreate the likes of Emerson Lake and Palmer!
If anything, we moved towards a punk version of the new romantics. We were started hanging out with Steve Strange at "The Blitz" and he and Rusty Egan tried to poach us from our management. Steve's parties were the stuff of legend!!

Gerry - Yeah I'd agree, Pete always liked the music we produced, and it gave us the opportunity to play and record at Maison Rouge Studios in Battersea, and Pete's Eel Pie Island set up. Plus we had some decent amps and guitars for a change, so if anything they helped us to develop our sound even more. Had some funny experiences where we met Genesis in the bar at Maison Rouge, and over drinks we helped them with the design of one of the album covers ( it was a jigsaw on the floor ), but they still went on to use it! Seem to remember Elkie Brooks popped in once to say hello, that was a funny meet ! On the sound, I think its fair to say that as we had been going to the Marquee most Saturdays pre 77 , we heard Baba O Reilly, and Teenage Wasteland quite a few times . I don't think we intentionally modeled our music on the Who, it just happened that we sounded very much like them when ( especially when we played live ! )

Martin; I read that Alex Harvey was with Pete Townsend at a gig during 1977. The Alex Harvey band was part of the earlier pub rock scene, and would have an influence on the later scene. Did the Skunks get to meet Alex Harvey on that evening?

Frank: Alex Harvey was with Keith Moon and Pete Townsend the first night we met them when we supported Generation X at The Vortex. Had a piss next to him and could not help look over the pissoir, .Yep, I saw Alex Harvey's cock!

Gerry - I don't think either of them were at the Twickenham gig. I borrowed Petes 1952 Fender Telecaster for that show, and unfortunately busted the neck, when I missed the down stroke of the closing chord of the closing number! I had some explaining to do when I had to give it back the following Monday in pieces ! He was great about it , to be honest, even though it cost 2k to put it back together ! Still I must be the only musician / guitarist that can boast that I have smashed up one of Pete Towsends guitars!!!
On our My space site, there are pics from the gig, and also a record book from one of the audience who scored it a measly 4 out of 10, I didn't think we played all that bad!!

Martin; Do the Skunks plan to play live in the future?
Frank: We have been invited to play at Rebellion next year, and a massive gig in Poland this coming August. Yes, and we played Bar 12 back in June 08, with Lloyd Grossman and Eddie Ten
Pole amongst others. (Camera phone videos of the show are also available on the Skunks site : skunksukofficial )
I think everyone who was there that night would say it was a fantastic night. And really reminded me of what it was like to see and hear what we would have sounded like in the Skunks heyday , we haven't changed that much. Still as mad as ever, although Id like to think we have improved musically !
We probably won't go full time touring, but you might see us pop up here and there, as occasional support. Gig details will be on the My Space site. skunksukofficial

Good from the Bad
Back Street Fighting
Above were released on Eel Pie Island Records, only 2000 were printed and its now a collectors item

Bombsite Fanzine 2009; Magnum 77 Dead Boy

2009-01-15T13:53:00.019-05:00

Although they originated in Cleveland Ohio, as one of the offshoots of a proto-punk band named Rocket From The Tombs, the Dead Boys quickly moved to New York and gained a reputation one of the most important punk bands surrounding the legendary CBGB's club in the late 1970s.

In the group's heyday Jeff Magnum, Stiv Bators, Cheetah Chrome and the Boys were loud, brash, violent, and nihilistic, and by the end of 1977 they were touring the UK with the Damned. The Dead Boys took punk rock to new heights with their audience incitements and fast, three-chord songs they produced a sense of havoc and punk rock freedom. Their classic first record, Young, Loud, and Snotty followed, and has made a huge contribution to American punk rock culture. Characterized by Stiv Bator's nasty audience provoking antics, along with the band's aggressive power chord punch, the Dead Boys have earned their title as one of the greatest and most influential punk bands in history. Back in the day their punk classic "Sonic Reducer" offended everyone it was meant to offend and became the band's anthem. The Dead Boys took American punk into a new realm of rock and inspired many bands with their excessive brand of destruction. The band's legacy continues to grow and both Pearl Jam and Guns 'N' Roses have covered their material, and we should expect others to follow. In this Bombsite Webzine exclusive Bass player Jeff Magnum reflects on the way things started for the Dead Boys.

The Dead Boys were: Stiv Bators (vocals); Jeff Magnum (bass); Cheetah Chrome, Jimmy Zero (guitar); Johnny Blitz (drums).
Rocket To The Tombs: members included the Peter Laughner and Dave Thomas, who went on to form the legendary Pere Ubu.

Martin: The Dead Boys will be remembered as one of the most significant punk rock bands to develop out of the US in the mid 70's. There was an interesting scene blossoming from Michigan and Ohio that included Iggy, the MC5's, old partners Pere Ubu and the Dead Boys. Maybe it was a social, or a new generation of expression. Can you help to describe what it was that assisted the music development?
Jeff: Boredom! I really believe that whole blue collar, rust belt, midwest-stuck-working- in-a-factory-forever- mentality had a huge effect on the high energy bands ya mentioned. Those were desperate times, working some loser job in a nowhere factory by day, and drinking beer in dumpy bars with your friends and bitching about yer life at night. Fed up with crappy hippie
bands and their dull 15 minute jams, some people got creative in this deep misery and wrote great songs and made great albums. Kinda like how "punk" was born outta frustration, well that was a mouthful.

Martin: Were there other mid west bands that were just as expressive who have been forgotten over time? Roughly when did you first hear the punk rock term used?
Jeff: I'm not sure I know what years yer referring to, so here's my all over the place answer! In the late 60's a band called Black Pearl made a really good LP on Atlantic Records (SD 8220) that I still listen to. I didn't like alotta the Cleveland bands in the early 70's, the bar bands found brief
success playing bullshit cover songs and dressing up like Peter Frampton, and the Cleveland "punk" bands in the day did nothing for me. Nobody was better than us. I think I first heard the word "punk" in 1976 on an NBC-TV news magazine program called "Weekend". They did a story on the Damned and the Brit "punk" scene.

Martin: There was something drawing the garage scene to New York venues, the Mud Club, Harrah's and CBGB's were becoming stimulated with a new type of rock and roll. When or how did you realize that you needed to be part of that movement?
Jeff: Things were not working out for us in Cleveland. Moving to New York was an option that could not be ignored. We got labeled as a "punk" band and things took off and life improved (we got a "manager", a record deal, and a NY audience that loved us).

Martin: The chemistry between the Dead Boys and the Damned appeared to blend very well, leading both bands to develop the frontier of punk rock by marrying the US scene and the UK scene together. By November 1977 the Dead Boys were preparing for a UK tour alongside their newly formed alliance. How were your expectations looking forward to playing the UK? Were you aware of the controversial nature of the scene?
Jeff: Don't make too much outta the Dead Boys/Damned "alliance". We opened for them on their second album tour in England, Scotland, and Wales. Nobody had ever heard of us (the 1st Dead Boys LP had not yet been released in Europe) and I thought we blew 'em off the stage night after night. I gotta admit that some of the shows got pretty intense with the kids and their punky ways, but what the hell. I knew they weren't just gonna stand there and watch us.

Above; The Dead Boys 1977 UK Tour Poster [Credit Johna Collection]

Martin: By late 1977 many UK regional councils and authorities were working overtime trying to shut down this outrageous youth phenomena called punk rock. The attendance for the Damned, Dead Boy 77 UK tour was affected by these government restrictive mandates. Was this something you were aware of, or had been expecting?
Jeff: Is that for real? Sounds like something the Damned mighta made up to explain their low attendance on their tour. Actually, I remember some punk kids saying at the time that punk was over and done in England, the scene was dead. I just figured attendance was low for the Damned because they (and that LP) weren't very good.

Martin: On November 18th you joined the Damned tour in Cambridge England. On November 20th the tour reached Manchester's Elizabethan Room and then on December 7th it was back up north to play Liverpool's Mountford Hall. Was there an incident or something you remember from the tour about your Manchester or Liverpool dates? Do you remember Eric's night club in Liverpool?
Jeff: No.

Martin: During your first UK tour did you get to spend time with the Sex Pistols or the Clash?
Jeff: Hell no. They didn't come out and hang with us, maybe because "punk" was an American thing and we did it better.

Martin: During your 1976 term playing in NY with the Dead Boys, were you and the others close to the Ramones?
Jeff: Personally, I was never "close" to any of the Ramones. I loved 'em live, and their first 3 albums were great.

Martin: You most recent project with the Cyclones see you playing bass on their new records. Is there a tour of some other material being released soon?
Jeff: Cyclones Vin and Dave asked me if I would play on 3 tunes. I did and I had a blast! It's a good rockin' CD and they should be proud of their work!
Martin: Yes thanks Jeff and thanks again for your contribution to rock and roll.

Above; Dead Boys Sonic Reducer Live

Web Connections

Jeff Magnum MySpace

The Dead Boys MySpace

The Cyclones MySpace

Bombsite Fanzine 2008; Shag Nasty

2008-12-08T20:16:00.034-05:00

above; Original London Punks Shag Nasty
Shag Nasty got an early start on the anarchy scene with their first shows at the now legendary "Man in the Moon" pub venue on Chelsea's Kings Road during 1976. Band members Gary Sharp and Riff Starr were friends with Joe Strummer, who gave them £500 from the Clash's advance from CBS Records to get Shag Nasty started. The band toured mostly around London, but on Sunday 17th July 1977 they arrived in Birmingham to play the "Britain's Burning" outdoor punk concert. Shag Nasty were headlined alongside the Clash, the Saints, Subway Sect, Cherry Vanilla and others, before the gig was canceled by the local council. The ensuing event was a venue switch and an enthusiastic gig at Barbarella's night club.
In this Bombsite Zine 2008 exclusive, Shag Nasty guitarist Riff Starr, and bass player Straka , discuss how the band were associated with the early London punk core. Including, how original drummer Paul 'B. P.' Hurding moved on to join X-Ray Spex, and their close ties to "The Stables" in Camden town.
Shag Nasty released one single during 1977. The raw, but energetic sound of "Looking for Love" should be part of any 77 punk enthusiasts collection.
During 2008 Shag Nasty regrouped to tour Britain and have stepped back in the studio to put final touches on some recently discovered original recordings.

The new band line up is
Riff Starr (Original Band Member) on Guitar and BV
Nick Aloha Starr (Original Band Member) on Drums
Bow Starr (New Band Member) on Lead Vocals
Straka Starr (New Band Member) on Bass Guitar and BV

Martin -Some of your first gigs were down at the "Man in the Moon" on the Kings Road. Many punks from other parts of the UK heard the calling and would make there way down to London during the early scene, even before we had a name for what was going on. Bombsite 2008 wrote about a weekend where the Unwanted were playing and Joe Strummer, Mick and Paul arrived on Motorcycles to hang out at the joint. Can you recall an interesting incident or something that happened at the Man in the Moon that describes the period?
Riff -It wasn't unusual for Joe and the rest of the Clash to go down to "The Man in the Moon". It was a regular place for most punks in the London scene, especially on the Sunday evenings, when the X-Ray Spex “Punk Promotions” were happening. Otherwise, midweek everyone including those who were known as the poser punks would go down to The Roxy. The Roxy was probably the best known and most popular of the London punk venues. A real happening place to go to. For those of you who don’t know, the “Poser punks” were those who had loads of cash, bought themselves into the scene, and had the latest top designer £100.00 bondage trousers and the like. We all know one don't we? They were quite different from the average Joe, who would sort out their own gear, instinctive and more expressive.

When Joe Strummer would go down the "Man in the Moon", he would usually arrive pillion on the back of Sebastian Conran’s motorcycle. For those of you who don’t know Sebastian, he had a beautiful Gold Suzuki 750 – four. It was a great bike. Sebastian was a great friend of Joe's in the early days. They drifted apart later, but I think that was because The Clash camp forced him out somehow. Although, I don’t know much about it. They used to hang about together a lot, and were really close, I thought. Sebastian was very much involved with the “Clash factory”, helping out with all things Clash.

The Clash had a lot of good people around them. Helping with clothes design, music sleeve art etc. I remember, the band were very focused on what they wanted to say, and they had the right people, committed people helping them achieve it. Bernie Rhodes was big on The Clash, I mean B.I.G, Big.

Going back to the "Man in the Moon", I recall one occasion at the venue when we played with X Ray Spex. We borrowed some of their gear to play that night. I must say, we got a little carried away with our heads and the moment. We ended up smashing or damaging some of their gear and Poly went nuts. I doubt that she has had many good word to say about us. She didn’t back then, and probably still doesn’t today. After all these years, sorry Poly!! The trouble was the music and the scene could become quite intense, it was part of the moment and movement I guess.

The "Man in the Moon" had a great reputation, and many bands can now be linked back to it. It sounds like it was some great big punk venue! But it was really quite small. I recall you could only get about 50 or so people in there at any one time. It was downstairs in the basement area.
The Spex would always arrange the gigs there, and they would headline there most weeks. I think each Sunday, with other bands supporting them, Poly was giving them a bit of a break. Like us - Shag Nasty, Adam and the Ants, Menace etc. A lot of the punk crowd were made up of friends of the bands. Many of the punters were on the band guest lists in one way or another. I doubt anyone made anything on it, but it wasn’t about making money from what I could see. It was about the scene and the message. It was really cool, very intimate. I never saw any trouble inside, but outside was a very different story. There was always violence. It would get you down! It was like all punks were enemy number one. There was always loads of violence on the street there locally. The Teds, the Teds hated the punks so much! You would always get large groups of Teds, hanging out. Looking for punks to kick up in the air. They would single you out, and you had to be quick on your toes, It wasn’t fun.

I remember one evening after playing there, leaving with my brother in law Steve (at the time), carrying my guitar case. As we were walking towards the train station I got abuse from a small group of Teds. I couldn’t keep my mouth shut and I had to have a dig back. Guess what? It wasn’t before long we were getting chased down the road by a multitude and we were clearly heading for a kicking. We got away. It is surprising how fast you can run when you need to. We both escaped a good kicking that night.

The only Northerners I can remember at the "Man in the Moon" were the guys from Screwdriver. I can’t remember them playing there. They might have done, but I can remember them hanging out there a few times. London was a great place, still is of course. But at that time it was dangerous being a punk. People hated punks, especially Teds. I remember it became a regular thing that Teds from as far away as France would come over for the weekends just to kick punks up in the air. That wasn’t much fun.

Martin - Do you remember The Clash, The Pistols or others as regulars at the Man in the Moon?
Riff - I can’t recall the Pistols ever being down at the Man in the Moon so to speak. I do remember Sid Vicious, but I think that was before he joined them, I’m not sure. They were always down the Roxy. The Roxy was the place to hang out, the place to be. I only ever remember them being there. I remember one night, I don’t know how it happened, but had words or something with Johnny Rotten. It ended up with someone from “their click” coming over to sort me out, or something? Things didn’t work out with Johnny’s plan though, and he got pissed off, as the guy he sent over was an old school friend of mine (Barry Jones), We used to live in the same area of London, and we ended up just chatting, drinking and having a laugh about it.

I remember The Clash at the "Man in the Moon" Joe was there more than the others. Regulars also included Adam and the Ants, Suzy of the Banshees and the guys from Swank. They were a good band, the singer is now actor Gary Olsen, great guys. It was a great scene, intimate and mostly good natured, that is inside?!

above; Shag Nasty's 1977 Classic Punk Single
Martin - During 1976 The Kings Road was the epicenter for the punk scene in the UK. There was something in the air that summer. What do you remember as an incident, gig or political that would ignite the UK punks that summer?
Riff - I don’t think there was a single unique event that caused the explosion in the true sense! It kind of crept up. Initially, there were only a handful of punks, and then you looked around and the numbers started to swell. The movement just got bigger and bigger and it was all about the music, the message, the rebellion, and later fashion and image took over. The explosion, I suppose you can call it that, was when the fashion shops took hold of it. People eventually just got a taste for it and this caused the movement to gather a little speed. Vivian Westwood’s designs really captured the mood and image of the punk scene, and everyone just copied what she was putting together. That’s how I saw it anyway.

Martin - You mention that Joe Strummer lent the band cash to get things off the ground for Shag Nasty. Did you ever pay the money back?
Riff - Well, when we say loan. We actually mean it was more of a bung of some cash to some friends, it was a gift. Joe gave us the money, that is Gary and I. Tosh and Paul joined as a consequence of what came next. You see Gary (Shag Nasty singer) was a great friend of Joe's. Gary and Joe worked together in a kitchen in some hotel. This is before the The Clash days when Joe was in the 101’ers. They were really quiet close. We hung out together and we saw the 101’ers loads of times. We had the same desires when the punk scene erupted. We put Shag Nasty together on the back of the £500.00 Joe gave us from the CBS advance, when the Clash got signed, this was big money. The average weekly wage from what I remember then was probably only about £25.00. So this was heavy. I remember Gary and myself meeting Joe down at The Roxy when he gave us the money. Having a good drink together over it, celebrating if you like, on what musical venture we were about to embark upon. I remember getting an old Arbiter guitar, an Amp head, speaker and fuzz box. The money also meant we were ready to advertise for other members for the band. We put an advert in The Melody Maker. That was the best paper to put an advert in, so you got to the right people. Tosh (bass player) and Paul (Drums) answered to the add. Paul who was called Paul BP - Big Paul. Hurding left us and joined the X Ray Spex later on. When Tosh and Paul joined the band we actually had our auditions at the Clash camp in Camden, "The Stables” is where the Market is now.
All things “Clash” really came from The Stables. Songs, clothes, art work, everything, It was like Clash HQ. I remember Bernie didn’t really like us there. He didn’t like anyone there when the Clash were rehearsing, probably to keep the band focused on their material, I don’t know. Any how we rehearsed there as well, It was a great place. You actually felt part of something, the buzz. I remember Don Letts, Rodent and later Glen Matlock used to of course hang out there. When Glen split from the Pistols his new band the rich kids rehearsed there, like us.

Bernie was great with the Clash. He was a driving force with them. Even down to his car! He was 100% behind supporting them. I remember he had an old Renault. I can’t remember the model, but it had “the Clash” as the registration [license plate] number, It was CLA 5H, a really cool plate.

Getting back to the £500.00. I can’t remember paying it back in anyway. Or even being asked for any of it back. Joe was like that, It was a starter if you like for some friends. Joe was spirited that way. If it hadn’t been for Joe, “Shag Nasty” wouldn’t have happened and BP in turn probably wouldn’t have been the drummer in the Spex!

"Shag Nasty" had some great times and some not so. Like losing Paul (BP) Hurding to the X- Ray Spex. He was a great drummer and probably more of a musician than the rest of us. He also had more of a musical drive and you could see it. This is probably why Poly poached him from us. She knew he was good. They watched him grow and had a place that needed to be filled, and Paul was put into that place. It was the right place at the right time for him. Soon after Paul joined them they started recording, I think, and then they went on the USA tour. There was no hard feelings. Still none now.

Nick Shirley then joined the band and we carried on playing. Gigging mostly around east London and down on the west scene. Things were going ok. We started getting a good following, but because of differences between us at the time we drifted apart. Our last gig I think was headlining at Ronnie Scot’s. I can’t remember the date, it's a shame. We had I think great potential, but it didn’t work out.

Now we’re back and loving it. A bit older and more experienced, but we can see the same problems now as back then. They say nothing changes. Any how we’re here and we are gonna be around for a while!! Enjoying it.

above; London Punks Shag Nasty 2008

Martin - In the Joe Strummer movie "The Future is Unwritten" some old friends of Joe sat around a campfire and recall memories of this punk hero. Is there something that you recall about the man that you will remember forever?
Riff - The thing that really described Joe for me, and summed him up was passion, his passion for music. How he linked everyday life, not just here, but anywhere in the world to his music. The lyrics, the feel, the message. He was very passionate about music, as a means of being able to translate the message, any message through his music.

I remember he always wanted to own his own radio station. To play music and expose the tunes and artists he loved and moved him so. He understood the scene, and he wanted passionately to be part of it. He did, he moved from the 101’ers to the Clash as he saw what was happening. He was able to absorb what was happening around him and his London. The time, the politics, the unjust things that were also happening, and he saw its relevance. He acted like a punk activist. He saw the writing on the wall.
It said “The Clash” and he became a spokesperson for a whole generation.

Martin - Can you explain the reggae and or dub part of how punk music unfolded?
Riff - Some musical onlookers don’t understand, or see a natural link in genres. My view on this and why these genres merged is explained two fold.
Firstly - similarities can be seen when you look at the origin of both Punk and Reggae styles. Both styles of music really emerged from social depression, or environments or situations where people spoke out against their oppression, or what they felt they were experiencing, from their governments or governing bodies.
Secondly – By virtue of the above ideology, both musical styles have some common goals or a common bond. Bands or musicians that played either style found themselves playing alongside each other and sharing stages together.

Both styles, Reggae and Punk then cross pollinated over time, thus creating blends of both of these styles. They began to co exist, drawing each of the styles together and becoming on occasion even more experimental.

Martin - During 1977 Shag Nasty would start to see gigs where the they played alongside reggae bands.
Riff - Shag Nasty featured a couple of times on the bill of great Reggae artists such as Dillinger, Clint Eastwood and Burning Spear. I can’t remember the dates but recall each gig were within weeks of each other in the latter part of 1977. The first of the two gigs was at a venue in Brighton supporting Dillinger, together with Burning Spear and the second in London at The Rainbow Theatre again supporting Dillinger with Clint Eastwood. Both gigs were packed with both Reggae and Punk fans.
I recall in the early days Joe Strummer and Mick Jones of the Clash going out to Jamaica to soak up the Reggae musical scene for themselves; seeking to also experience life in Jamaica. No doubt looking for musical inspirations. I seem to recall the trip gave rise to inspiring the great Clash song “Safe European Home” on the “Give them enough rope” album. The Clash went on to mix and match or merge many other musical styles over the years within their music; but one thing in my view was consistent throughout was the influence of Reggae and or Reggae dub.

Martin - Did Shag Nasty get to play any punk venues in Manchester or Liverpool during 77? Was there a difference with the punks in the North of Britain?
Riff - The furthest North Shag Nasty played was Birmingham, on the Britain’s Burning Clash tour. It was difficult getting gigs outside the London scene, as everyone hated you. They didn’t want you there! Initially anyway. There was a good scene outside London and punk was quiet unified, but, It was more often than not local shows, for local punks in Punk satellite venues. Pushing their own messages. Doing their own scene. These satellite venues soon started to pop up everywhere, I guess through local persistence and passion. Punks were not going to go down without a fight. We seemed to play most of our gigs in London.

From what I remember the Punks scene was quite universal. I remember the scene was strong in a few places, Manchester, Birmingham and Sheffield. And, the band and fan relationships were strong and unified. I think this was due to the fact that punk music was all about getting up there and doing it yourself. Anyone and everyone was encouraged to pick up a guitar and make good music. The music was no longer being dictated by the likes of the “Jimmy Page’s” and the “Rick Wakeman’s” of the world of music. The rules had changed. This is why I think real punk music is in the main basic, raw, intuitive, approachable musicians not aloof and self indulgent. Anyone should be able to play it.

Fans were bands and bands were fans. There wasn’t a divide between them. I think those punk musicians or bands that forgot this weren’t or aren’t real true punks. They were or are something really quite different. Make your own mind up on who these were or are. You don’t need some old punk like me to tell you.

Web Connections
Shag Nasty Myspace
Shag Nasty Web Site
2008 Distorded Magazine

Bombsite Fanzine 2008; Rob Jones of Crash Course

2008-11-08T08:49:00.026-05:00

Above; Rob Jones, Crash Course, Wah! Heat & The High Five,
Photo courtesy of Francesco Mellina Collection.
Bombsite fanzine recently caught up with Rob Jones whose early musical career started during a magical time for Liverpool. As an Eric’s club regular Rob started hitting skins at a young age and would later show elements of his creative song writing ability.
His first band Crash Course was mostly Eric’s club members and existed from December 1978 until January 1979. Band members included Andy Eastwood (voc) (later Sex Gods, Divine Thunderbolt) & Rob Jones (drms) (later of Wah!), Mick Reid (gtr) (later of Nightmares in Wax), Paul Cunningham (bass) (later of Glass Torpedoes). The band managed to record a live EP but it was never released. Pete Wylie (ex Crucial Three, Nova Mob later of Wah!), joined the band a little later and played rhythm guitar. The band remained together for about a year.

Martin -Would you be interested in assisting me with an interview, and some commentary to describe this exciting period for Liverpool and British Music?
No problem. Fire away
Cheers Rob

Martin - During 1977, Liverpool started to cultivate a style and sound of its own. Can you describe what drove you to be lifted by this creative scene?
Rob - Simply music, and I was at the right age at the right time, Crash Course got to play Eric’s and I saw hundreds of bands their over the years. Initially bands coming out of Eric's were punk, but that changed with Echo and the Bunnymen, The Teardrops Explode, OMD, Wah etc they were more rocky and tuneful

Martin - I know that you were an Eric's club regular before Wah Heat? Did you meet Andy Eastwood and Pete Wylie there? Was Crash Course your first band ?
Rob - Yep, I start pre Eric’s seeing The Runaways in the hot summer of 76 at Roger Eagles Revolution Club in Liverpool.
Until the punk rock revolution I was a long haired Trogg. Andy “Easty” Eastwood and I went to school together, and we formed Crash Course. It was the first band where I played live, the other bands never got out my Mums garage. I would describe the band as a Stones, New York Dolls type of outfit.

Martin - Can you recall any Crash Course gigs?
Rob - Yeah, we once played Southport and CF Mott College in Huyton where Julian Cope went to study, also practicing in the Bear Brand factory in Woolton is now coming back to me.

Martin - Echo and the Bunnymen played their first gig supporting Crash Course at Eric's. Can you describe how the evening felt, was it a packed house? Who organized the gig?
Rob - I think it was one of the talent nights they used to run, 50p to get in, Pete Wylie was mates with Fulwell and Roger Eagle and he got us the gig, it was the usual Eric's crowd, friends and family!! The Bunnymen had a drum machine back then with no drummer, and they played about 3 songs. It was early days for them.

Martin - Describe your Eric’s Club experience?
Rob - Yes, Eric’s was an interesting club, and although the club is profiled as a punk club I was able to see many different bands there, the variety ranged from the Clash, Warsaw, Jamaican dub bands, The Talking Heads and even Dire Straights.

Martin - Things were really starting to flourish with new sounds and bands down at the club as Crash Course was trying to find another direction around the end of 1978. Where did things go with your musical direction from here?
Rob - I met Pete Wylie at Eric’s whilst playing with Crash Course, soon after he joined we split, and then Pete and I went on to form Wah Heat. Pete, Easty and I lived together in a flat in Penny Lane. Wah! Heat was heading for something good and headlined bills in Manchester and Liverpool where U2 and Pink Military actually supported us.

Martin - It was appropriate that Wah! Heat, would perform the last songs on that fateful evening on March 14th 1980. The band members had played an extraordinary role in the Eric’s club recipe. A recipe that would rejuvenate British popular music with a post punk explosion of young energetic bands with the new fresh sound.
Late that evening Pete Wylie prophetically shouts “This is the last song you will ever hear by a Liverpool group in ERICS!” & he was right. He recorded the set & sent a copy to John Peel who later aired these tracks on his BBC radio show as a tribute to this now legendary music club.
Rob - Yes, I was the drummer in Wah Heat on the last night of Eric’s. By midnight the undercover police had infiltrated the club, the house lights went up and the body searches began. Wah! Heats next gig in Liverpool was at Lincolns Inn just round the corner from Eric’s.

Martin - Did you ever get to meet John Peel?
I did once at a music concert that I helped organize at Kirby football stadium [pic below]. I did six Peel session's I think.

above photo credit to Chris hewitt Ozit Records www.tractor-ozit.com

Martin - Can you tell me about the The High Five? I had read that the name was derived from a cult TV show in which alien criminals are sent to Earth, and promptly begin to do battle with the humans.
Rob - Yes, after Wah! Heat I formed The High Five along with Paul Hayes, you can find The High Five on Myspace [link below] but I don’t administer the site. We released singles ''Cold Steel Gang' and a popular song 'Working For The Man'. The band also released an LP named "Down in the No Go" in 1984.

Martin - Are you still in touch with Andy or Pete ?
Rob - Yes, I see them occasionally, but only if I bump into them when I’m out. Pete wants to go for a drink soon, he wants to see a poem that I have written titled 'The Last Night of Eric’s' , it starts off "Guitar twang and negro slang had brought me to the stage once more...." Check out the video featuring my spoken word poem Video [ below]. I also wrote the lyrics to "Hey Disco Joe" the B side of Better Scream and Some Say. And, I am also still friendly with Mike Badger from the La’s.

Above; Rob Jones 2008 Tribute "The Last Night of Eric's"

Web Connections;
Rob Jones Facebook www.facebook.com
The High Five Myspace www.myspace.com/thehighfiveliverpool
Pete Wylie Myspace www.myspace.com/petewylie
Wah Heat The Last Song at Eric's fruitierthanthou.blogspot.com
Francesco Mellina Myspace www.myspace.com/francescomellina
Liverpool Cult Classics; Purchase Hey "Disco" Joe MP3 here on Amazon

Bombsite fanzine 1977; Wire at Eric's Club

2008-10-26T10:27:00.036-04:00

Eric's Club Liverpool August 22nd 1977

above; Wire, Pink Flag Original Sticker from Johna Collection
Wire Formed in London in late 1976, this un-revolutionary punk group was distinctly Art School variety. The band featured Graham Lewis (bass, vocals), Bruce Gilbert (guitar), Colin Newman (vocals, guitar) and Robert Gotobed (drums),
Early in 1977 two energetic punk tracks from Wire appeared on the classic "Live at the Roxy" LP. By late 1977 Wire had fragmented from their bass grunge sound and were now experimenting with some Brian Eno-inspired ambient pop songs. But Wire would go on to prove that they could take risks and reinvent themselves over and over, producing some of the most sophisticated post punk music from the era. But, the band was missing something, a strong statement, a cause, much like XTC they had much talent and all the ingredients to be a great band, but the message was weak. The following 1977 Bombsite Fanzine clips reference the Wire Live at Eric's club in Liverpool gig.

Above; WIRE at Eric's Club Liverpool 1977

Above; Bombsite Fanzine Wire at Eric's 1977
Bombsite caught up with 77 Bradford punk Johna for the following commentary.
I saw Wire a few times in 1977/78 around West Yorks. Although Wire played in the style that many punk bands did. There was an element to their music that was very distinctive to them.
They chose the name Wire because it didn't mean anything which stopped people from reading too much into it.
After the initial nosebleed of the 3 chord avenue that most punk bands chose in 77 and 78, punk started evolving into loads of different diverse sounds. Many bands liked the expressive aspect of what punk was about "I just wanna be me" rather than subscribe to being categorized in a box under a punk banner.
Although Wire were from an arty background, I still think they entered into the spirit of punk like most people, so on that basis I would still call them a punk band.
The thing I remember the most about Wire was when they played the F Club in Leeds during Oct 78, my mate Jon who is a massive Wire fan took some great pics of them. After the gig, me Jon and a couple of ladies sat around talking to the band for ages. Then the cleaner came in & told us to move out of the gig area, so we all went up to the dressing room for a couple of beers & to chat further, god knows what time we left. I thought the 1st album was a classic punk album the fastest ever I think 21 songs in about 23 minutes. Like a lot of bands from the period, their sound evolved into a more musical with more restrained energy, it was still punk but less emphasis on speed".

77 rocker Jock from The Straps comments on WIRE for Bombsite
I only got to see Wire twice in London, because unfortunately they rarely gigged. However, I do own everything they ever recorded. I fell in love with their sound the minute I heard 12xu on the Roxy album. I am the Fly is another classic which I have recorded myself recently in my studio, so I suppose these old classics never leave you.
Pink Flag is my all time favorite punk album, and I find that many punks from way back never got that. It was usually the Clash or the Pistols 1st albums that they played continuously, but not me, Pink Flag was fast furious and very unusually melodic. The production by Mike Thorn was second to none and I wish he had produced some of my work with the Straps. I saw Wire at the Notredame hall 78'ish which was excellent they played many old favs from Chairs Missing. I saw them again at the Elecric Ballroom 80 where they were awful, I was very disappointed with that show, It was around the time when they were becoming a bit strange and over experimental too quickly for the audience to grasp what they were doing I guess. It worked well on vinyl but for me not live.
I actually met Lewis and Gotabed in the pub near the venue, and they seemed like good blokes, though nothing like I expected after first hearing them on the Roxy album, I assumed they would be working class punks, not so. I actually hate categorising classes etc but they were more like middle class university lads. I have always admired their work and find myself still buying anything they do. I also have been getting into Colin and his wife Malka s new outfit Githead who have an excellent new cd called Art pop.

Above; Wire Late 70's footage

Web Connection
WIRE Myspace www.myspace.com/wirehq
WIRE Web Spot www.pinkflag.com
WIRE zine www.wireviews.com
WIRE Wikipedia www.wiki.com

Bombsite Fanzine 2008; Eric's The Musical

2008-10-09T14:14:00.003-04:00

Above; Mark H Bombsite Fanzine Editor 1977
Wednesday October 8th 2008 - Eric's Review - Mark H
I read the flyer and watched the trailer on the web, "Joe's in trouble. It's not his time but the clock is ticking. You've got to be ready; ready to battle, ready to clash, ready to fight." I wasn't sure I would go and see the play, I hoped it would be about Eric's the club as I recalled it, but I was concerned that it would be some arty interpretation of how someone thought it was. I guess I thought it may ruin my memory of 1977. Then I thought, well if I don't see it then I will always
be wondering, and if I had never gone to Eric's that first time out of curiosity, look what I would have missed.
So I phoned up for tickets, the last week, sold out Friday and Saturday, so I got tickets for Wednesday, mid week, probably be half empty, no atmosphere.
We, (my wife and me) got there before 7pm, time for a cains and a wine, not quite the Grapes on a Saturday afternoon between the Eric's matinee and the night session but OK, and the girls behind the bar sorted out more drinks all ready for the short intermission. The bar started to fill up, looking around, can I recognise anyone? Most of us are late 40's early 50's; I guess
everyone else who was an Eric's regular in 1977 is thinking the same. No one I recognised, still it was 31 years ago!

Above; Poster from www.mudkiss.com
Time to sup up and head upstairs to find the seats. So much for half empty, midweek the place is packed, I saw maybe only 3 or 4 empty seats. The set looks interesting, there is band equipment on stage so the music must be live, although no sign of the red and black decor and why is there a
hospital bed centre stage?
Suddenly everyone bursts on to stage; the band breaks in to Deaf School, "What a way to end it all". I get flash backs, Kirkland's Wine bar, Jugs of Sangria, Pips in Manchester, Roxy, Bowie, Iggy Pop, Lou Reed, the first time I heard New Rose by The Damned.
I'm not going to tell you what the play is about, maybe it will get a re-run and that would then spoil it for you.
For me, they got it right. The character I most associated with was Joey. My not so exciting job, the threat of the dole. My first visit to Eric's, like no other club I had been to, the music, the people, the atmosphere, being part of something new, exciting, rebellious. Bleaching my hair round at my sister's house and bleaching her sofa in to the bargain. Trawling local jumble sales on a Saturday to find old suits and shirts, down to the surplus shop for combat pants, painting my DM's, making stenciled slogans to spray on, piecing my ears, London Road for winkle pickers, Kings Road for brothel creepers. Getting in to fights over the way we looked, some we won, others we lost, but we never ran, Joey gets a kicking but he drops the nod in first before he goes down, outnumbered. For me that was 1977, we are doing something different and its great feeling like this, if others don't like it, then tough, each to his own, live and let live, but if you want to make something of it then we don't run even if it means a kicking. The fact that your dad doesn't get it, dyed hair, earrings, is his son a puff? That gut wrenching feeling when the latest girlfriend tells you she's late coming on!
To be honest I never felt any of the Liverpool bands who feature in the play had the raw, hard, dangerous feel of the bands that I most enjoyed, The Damned, The Clash, The Pistols, 999, Stiff Little Fingers. But that was the thing about Eric's, no one bothered if your tastes were different, and the fact people had different tastes made it all the more inspiring. I never saw any trouble inside the club, ever. I remember most of those names featured, I was made up when Pete Wylie came on stage wearing the toilet seat, that I do remember, also a plastic lobster featured somewhere I thought? I don't recall all the characters portrayed, nor did I know many of them personally, I just recall seeing them there on a regular basis in Eric's, but those I do remember certainly look like I think I remember, Pete Burns, Jayne Casey, Ian McCulloch, Pete Wylie. Are they portrayed accurately? I thought so, but then those who know them are best to judge. They are however, portrayed with humour and energy.

Above; Mark H Bombsite Editor 2008
Was I glad I went, YES, definitely? I thought the play captured the feel of those years spot on. It was a slick, professional performance, well researched and the actors brought it all flooding back. I thoroughly enjoyed it and so did that packed mid week audience who stood and applauded for
ages. Bonus, on the ticket desk, I even got to pick up a free copy of our old fanzine Bombsite issue 2 Sept 1977, I never kept any, we wrote that stuff? Happy days!
I hope Eric's gets another rerun for those of you who, like I almost did, gave it a miss.
I'm glad I never missed out on Eric's the first time, I'm glad I never missed it this time.
The day after writing this, I read the programme I bought. It's a true story, damn, well I'm glad it worked out and we got to share it with you, thanks.

Bombsite Fanzine 2008; Hollywood Nasher

2008-09-29T13:30:00.044-04:00

The following review is a Bombsite collaboration with one of the UK's most dedicated "Frankie Goes To Hollywood" researcher and their greatest fan. Graeme or "G Man" has spent years searching for details about the band, and is responsible for the "All Things Frankie" blog spot.

G-Man - Brian Nash's first encounter with music was the Beatles 1966-1970 and Bowies Ziggy Stardust both bought for him by his Father. At around the age of 11 he borrowed his first guitar from his cousin Mark O'Toole who taught him his first chords.
On leaving School Brian took a job as an apprentice electrician with Liverpool council, whilst auditioning for several bands in the Liverpool area. His first real band was Sons of Egypt which also featured Peter Gill & Holly Johnson and they got their big break on the local TV show "Exchange Flags" on which they performed the songs, Shake Shake & Bring on the Violins.

above; Young Guitarist Brian "Nasher" Nash
He later received an opportunity to join Frankie Goes To Hollywood with Holly Johnson, Peter Gill and Mark O'Toole, of course the story of Frankie Goes To Hollywood is well known, three UK number one singles including "Relax" and "Two Tribes" (Two of the UKs biggest selling singles ever) and a number one album in the two disc "Welcome to the Pleasuredome" all released on the ZTT record label and produced by Trevor Horn.
After FGTH Brian continued to make music with Mark and Ped, teaming up with Dee Harris of Fashion fame to record several demos, but was unable to secure a record deal. When Harrris left he was replaced by Grant Boult who had met the lads whilst supporting FGTH during the UK leg of the 1985 "Around the World in Mighty Ways World Tour" with his band "The Promise" and remained friends with the lads from the band, but decided to call it a day after again failing to secure a deal.
After writing his own songs Nasher would again team up with Boult and form "Honey Rider" later renaming themselves "Low". They secured a deal with a small label called Swanyard Records and recorded the album "Enter the Bigger Reality" releasing the single "Tearing my soul Apart". The album was not released as the label folded. Nasher and Boult tried again with the band "Dr Jolly's Salvation Circus" but this again was a short lived project.
After trying unsuccessfully to secure a solo deal, Nasher decided to record and release the album "Ripe" (BP 001) on his own newly formed "Babylon Pink" label in 1999, featuring tracks like "King for a Day" and "The Dark". His second album "La Grande Fromage" (BP 002) followed in 2002 featuring the single "Top of the Pops Again" and a 'tribute' to Jerry Springer (On Jerry).

Several members of FGTH reunited in 2004 for the Trevor Horn tribute concert at Wembley Arena, but Nasher, & former front man Holly Johnson decided not to take part. With Nasher stating 'it's more Frankie with Holly than me' as his reason to pass on the reunion, however Nasher did take his place at Wembley that night among the fans in the audience after performing with his band earlier in the day to a small group of hardcore fans from around Europe at "The Crock of God" just down the road from the Arena itself.

Bombsite Fanzine would like to introduce Brian "Nasher" Nash from Liverpool UK.

Martin - I know that you were an interesting part of Frankie Goes To Hollywood, and before Frankie you were in a band named Sons of Egypt, along with Ped and Holly. I want to try and wind back to a day before then. Maybe a place in time that would put many of the ingredients together and enable Liverpool to produce some of the best post punk bands and UK musicians of the early 80's. Eric's club, now a legendary venue, can you describe your first visit to the club?
Nasher - My first visit to Eric's was to see Magazine. My mate's older brother was a regular at Eric's and would tell us stories of the bands he had seen there and we couldn't wait to go. Luckily, the Saturday afternoon matinees meant that we could also see some of our favourite bands for just a few quid. Going in to the venue made you feel like you belonged to a special scene that nobody else knew about. I saw The Skids, Stiff Little Fingers, Wire supported by a new band called Teardrop Explodes making their live debut, and The Cure who at the time had just released "Killing an Arab" and played to an audience of about 30 people. I probably saw a few more bands but I cannot remember who they were. Unfortunately just as me and a few mates were becoming regulars and looking forward to joining the big boys in the evenings the club was closed down. I went on the march through the city centre to protest against the police closure of the club but the decision had been made and the era was over.

Martin -Smuzz was your first band [I think] can you explain who was in the band and what type of music you would perform? Was there a particular performance or incident that you remember which describes what that early band was about?
Nasher - We were called Smuzz because the singer was a huge fan of The Buzzcocks and we had to have a name with a double Z in it. I think we only played one gig in St Theresa's school canteen. This was to coincide with me being suspended from school for truant. I don't remember too much of what we played but I remember "No More Heroes", "Tommy Gun" and a version of the SLF's "Wasted Life" which saw me performing the vocal duties. The band featured Joe Beardwood on vocals, Martin and Peter Nickson on bass and guitar and the drummers name has been lost in the mists of time.

Martin - Can you describe your early record collection before Sons of Egypt? Was there a Clash, Buzzcocks Sex Pistols part to your collection?
Nasher - I had some punk but I was a Bowie fan from the age of nine and was somewhat obsessed by him. I was also into a bit of prog rock so my album collection went from Simon & Garfunkel to the Sex Pistols via Bowie and Roxy, turn left at Genesis and Rush, straight on through Zeppelin 1-4, first exit at The Bunnymen, Teardrops and Magazine, u-turn to Ella Fitzgerald and Motorhead.

Martin - Did you know Holly from his Big in Japan days? Or was the introduction through Ped?
Nasher - I met Holly through John Crowney who was playing bass in a band with Holly and Steve Lovell. They used to rehearse above the hairdressers in Whitechapel and I met him at a rehearsal and knew him sometime before I met Ped. This was not long after Holly had released Hobo Joe as a single.

Martin - Paul Rutherford was the front man for a blistering Liverpool punk band named The Spitfire Boys that did manage to get some material on vinyl before they split in 1977. Did you manage to see them live during that year? If so do you have any recollection of the event?
Nasher - I never saw the Spitfire Boys and when I met Paul he was the typical gay clone. Checked shirts and 501's and always immaculately turned out so when I saw pictures of him years later from his time in The Spitfire Boys I was shocked to see what he looked like because it was a million miles from the Paul I knew.

Martin - Joe Strummer and Mick Jones of the The Clash managed to put together a formula that inspired the period. The band has become indigenous to the sound of 77 UK punk rock. Were you a Clash fan? Did you ever meet Joe or Mick? Or perform at an event with them?
Nasher - I was a Clash fan but unfortunately never saw them perform. I got to meet Mick Jones backstage at a BAD gig in Fulham at The Hibernian. I was with my brother in law who was a huge Clash fan and he couldn't believe his luck hanging out with Mick Jones backstage. I got to meet him through Pete Wylie who was with me at the gig. Unfortunately the evening was cut short after I was offered a very strong spliff by some guy and I experienced what is known in the trade as a "whitey" and a rapid exit was required. I managed to get home by taxi but not before depositing a large doner and salad and about 8 pints of piss weak disgusting lager.
Saw Joe Strummer play as support to The Who at Wembley Arena in recent years.

Martin - During the late 70's The Buzzcock's, Tony Wilson, Factory records and some related associates developed Manchester's musical direction for the next few decades. The Eric's club owner Roger Eagle and associates almost pulled of the same thing for Liverpool. Do you believe that Tony Wilson took some ingredients from his Eric's visits to formulate his business model for Manchester? Did you ever get to meet with Tony or Roger?
Nasher - I don't know if Tony was heavily influenced by his visits to Eric's but there are parallels between the two scenes. Unfortunately I never got to meet him or Roger.

Above; King Of Pop Nasher Live Solo 2008
Martin - The post punk period brought along some interesting experimental sounds and bands. Many originated from Liverpool and had been Eric's club regulars. The drum machines, effects and synthesizers became cutting edge stuff for a while. I have worked with FL Studio and Pro Tools and it can be really fun to play with. But, has today's "in-a-can" music approach eliminated something for you?
Nasher - When asked about current music technology I am always reminded of something Bjork said: "The machines do not have soul until a human puts some of their soul into it". In a lot of ways the tech revolution is like punk. Anyone can do it, just get some samples and get your groove on.

Martin - Part of the energy that lit up the UK music industry during the 77 period was the youth passion that supported it. 30 years on we now considered the period a revolution in the way young people approached performing. Do you see areas of today's music where there maybe a new scene or the threads for possibilities of a fresh start?
Nasher - Today's music scene is divided into so many factions I don't think there is a specific scene and even if there was how would an old c**t like me have his finger on the pulse.

G-Man - Nasher has been working hard on his 3rd solo album of late, with several release dates coming and going due to various reasons, however, this set is now almost ready to be released. A Lo Minimo (BP 003) has a different feel than his two previous releases in that each song is recorded in line with the albums title (a lo Minimo meaning 'to the minimum' in Spanish) hence Nasher and his band used minimum technology to record the set. Furthermore, Nasher has announced some information about an E.P that he and the band have been recording in a studio in Wales. Five songs that were regular favorites at live shows which have been recorded 'live in the studio' as they don't plan to play them live again. The E.P is to be entitled 'The Last Rites E.P' and should be released around the same time as the new album.

Web Connection
Nasher's Myspace www.myspace.com/nasher
Nasher's Web Spot www.nasher.co.uk
Nasher's Music For Sale cdbaby.com
FGTH Web Spot www.fgth.org.uk/
G Man's Frankie Site allthingsfrankie.blogspot.com
G Man's Nasher Collection www.freewebs.com/nasherisgod/
G Man's Myspace www.myspace.com/allthingsfrankie

Bombsite Fanzine 2008; Graham Sclater Rides The Waves

2008-09-10T08:28:00.018-04:00

Our Bombsite Fanzine project has allowed me to correspond with some interesting music industry people. With many years of experience in the turbulent music world Graham Sclater is one of those people.
Graham has produced records in varying styles as diverse as punk, folk, country, heavy rock and more in studios as far afield as Trinidad and Jamaica. Many of these productions were released on the Tabitha Record label in the Benelux and Spain and major or independent labels around the World. Graham’s production credits have resulted in a number of hit records by many artists.

Above; Graham Sclater Hamburg Germany 1965

Bombsite Fanzine
Some of the ingredients of Punk Rock came from the late 60's garage movement scene and the early 70's Pub Rock scene. Was there a direct influence or connection for you? Were you involved with that period of the music industry?

Graham Sclater
Having lived and worked in Hamburg as a musician during the 60's I suppose the feelings and trends started back then. When I returned to England in the late 60's I set up a recording studio where I wrote and recorded a lot of music. It really was the beginning of musicians being able to make and record their own music without outside interference. That's how the garage scene started, rough recordings of original music and new sounds and experimentation. I recorded loads of bands who had never recorded before and it was an interesting and fast learning curve. For most it was the first time they actually heard what they sounded like and it highlighted who in a band couldn't play or even knew the correct chords, many didn't like it and spilt during or after the session.

Q
During 75 and 76 there was a mood change on the street. Can you describe what 76 London felt like from a musician's standpoint? Were you part of the trendy Kings Road set?

I wasn't part of the Kings Road set but spent several days every week throughout the seventies in London either producing bands or visiting record labels trying to sell our music or place bands signed to Tabitha. There were loads of pub bands in almost every style at that time.
There was a sudden change in musical direction because one of the bands I managed was "Urchin" a rock band from the east end of London. They were great but when punk suddenly took off no one wanted a rock band, they were signed to DJM records but I had a real problem keeping the deal in place.
Although they had gigs all over the UK and Europe it was getting harder to find venues to book them. Adrian Smith left to join Iron Maiden and was immediately successful as one of the few rock bands to buck the trend. Look where they are now! I believe America set them up and then they came back to England.
London and the music business in general was very confused at that time. As soon as punk took off every producer wanted a punk band. I already had Martin and The Brown Shirts and we recorded their first single "Taxi Driver"
and "Boring." - Their Story Here

Q
As an established 60's musician playing the same clubs in Germany as the Beatles and Jimmy Hendrix. How did you find an interest with Punk Rock? Many of your peers were distancing themselves from the scene. But, somehow you were not afraid of what must have looked like absolute chaos breaking out in 1976.

I had an open mind on music having played with many famous musicians Ritchie Blackmore, Elton John, Fats Domino, Christine Perfect (McVie) James Taylor at Apple and jamming with Jimi Hendrix in Sweden in 1967 as well as loads of recording sessions in London.
I have always liked any style of music providing it is played well and the songs have a quality. I didn't find the Brown Shirts any different. I got to know them very well and like all musicians they had an image to project and they did it very well, sometimes too well which resulted in personal attacks wherever they went. I don't consider the time to have been chaotic but manipulation of the system was very strong at that time.
I have written a novel "Ticket to Ride" set in Hamburg in the 60's and it is now published by Flame Books. It really gives the feel of what it was like then and perhaps why and how punk music developed a decade later.

Interview with Graham Sclater, Author of 'Ticket To Ride'

Q
The Taxi Driver single released by Martin and the Brownshirt's has a classic sound that has tested time. The track still sounds energetic and real. The group members were from the North of England and thrown into the brutal Merseyside economy right from high school. As a producer in London, what drew you toward Norman and the band? Can you describe you first encounter
with the band?

I worked with many different bands and styles of music and can't remember how I came to meet them. I believe it was because a team of songwriters I knew wanted a punk band to record one of their songs. I found the band through the Melody Maker they had an advertisement in there and I picked it up. They came to London and recorded the song "Hey Punk." They recorded it twice but it didn't work. I still have the master tapes. After the session they told me they had original songs, I signed them, booked a studio and recorded them. Once finished I went to a number of labels until Lightning Records licensed the single for release. I then released it on my label in the Benelux - Holland, Belgium and Luxemburg. I really believed the band had talent and could have been incredibly successful and I did start to record an album at Decibel Studios in Stoke Newington and have probably 7 or 8 completed tracks.
We also did a lengthy session at my studio and I'm in the process of remastering and mixing those tapes for possible release one day. As you know Norman and Willie formed the Montellas, I had great interest in them from Japan but they decided to work with someone else. Who knows what might have been?

Q
Bombsite knew Norman, Willie and Addy from the Brownshirt's very well. We all frequented the same record stores, bars and clubs. The name they picked began to wear on them quickly as they attracted an unwanted right wing following. Part of what I tried to do in my Brownshirt's article was to describe the band as they really were; somewhat zany and poking fun at the extremist in a Monty Python fashion. Does this agree with your image of the group?

I liked their image and I remember being with them at an audition in Warrington for a Norwegian promoter. They only played two songs and stormed off. The other bands were absolutely shell shocked but again they knew how to create a stir and get a reaction. So much so that they were the only band he wanted to book.

Q,
Part of my 2008 Bombsite project has been to explore the UK Northern Punk scene, especially the energy that existed from Liverpool through to Manchester during the period. Did you sense a difference between the London scene i.e., the gigs, the sound or the audience verses the northern parts of Britain? And did you notice a lag in the timeline for development of the scene?

I played with a Manchester band, the Manchester Playboys, for a year in the late 60's and some of the time was spent in Europe including Germany and the remainder in the Manchester area as well as London. There was a big difference compared to London and I reckon up to six months behind although there were a number of successful pop bands in the north that were already very successful. For punk London seemed to light the fuse but it soon spread around the UK and into Europe where the fans were even more fanatical picking the best of English fashion, music and trends and taking it much further. As I've said in the next section Tony Wilson contributed greatly to the Manchester scene.

Q
I know that Norman, Addy and Willie were regulars at the now legendary Eric's club. That facility had a tremendous influence toward to the development of the post punk sound and the direction of UK music. Did you ever visit Eric's club in Liverpool, or Manchester's Electric Circus? Did you have any association with Tony Wilson or Factory Records?

I never visited either of these clubs because I was based in London for much of the time but I was very aware of Tony Wilson and his ideas and dreams. I know he made a massive contribution to the music scene in and around Manchester and I wonder if it would have been so successful he hadn't been there.

Q,
Through interviews and research, I see over and over that David Bowie and Roxy Music genre of the mid 70's added something to the UK Punk Rock recipe?
Did you find this music as an influence? Or did you see this when looking around for young inspired musicians during the period?

I think David Bowie was an innovator and responsible for driving much of the new music scene of the mid 70's and perhaps Roxy Music but they were very different people from a very different background to most bands of that era.
The Clash also kicked started what I call "well thought out songs" although at the time people didn't realise it. I met them with their manager, Bernie Rhodes, at CBS when they were getting ready to go across to America for the first time. It was chaos they couldn't find their passports or plane tickets and they appeared not to care. They loved everyone rushing around while they got drunk. A little like the Brown Shirts. The same applied to Siouxie and the Banshees they had no P.A. or transport and relied on CBS to sort everything out for her and the band just to do a gig. It was very different to what we had all been used to but I think the record companies went along with it under sufferance not knowing how big punk was going to be and how much money they would earn.

Q,
Your book "Ticket To Ride" encompasses the music and youth culture surrounding the psychedelic 1960's. The story is told by someone who was in a band and was part of the period fabric. Are there plans to compile a new project that tells the story of your involvement with the Anarchy in the UK part of your career?

I am working on a number of very different projects at the moment including a couple of films but there is certainly a real story to tell from that era and having been there could do it. I'm also thinking of a follow up to "Ticket to Ride" which could easily take my characters into the punk era after all I was there so it would be a natural progression.

"Ticket to Ride" is available from publisher Flame Books at www.flamebooks.com

"All in all, the book exudes the optimism and "damn the torpedoes" attitude of any young rock and roller from any era - definitely recommended!"

"The book itself is a breeze to read, and difficult to put down."

"Ticket to Ride" is a monument to those who might almost have succeeded."

"Ticket to Ride is a fun book to read."

"Ein sehr empfehlenswertes Buch."

"A rollercoaster ride of ambition and heartache, a thoroughly gripping and engrossing read."

Graham also notes ""Ticket to Ride" was published in 2006 by Flame Books. I wrote the novel myself and everything I write includes songs and music that we publish. Tabitha Music is still in business after more than 30 years and going strong. I also have a many records and CD's that we released for sale"

Bombsite Fanzine 2008; TV Smith Speaking

2008-08-31T19:09:00.012-04:00

Above; The Adverts TV Smith & Howard Pickup July 7th 1977
The Adverts were formed in 1976 shortly after the first Sex Pistols show. The formula of TV [Tim] Smith's brilliant lyrics, stunning rocker Gaye Advert on bass, energetic guitarist Howard Pickup and drummer Lorry Driver was a legendary recipe. Early in the scene The Adverts played a regular spot at London's Roxy Club. Their clever lyrical content made them unique for the era, and helped them gain some commercial success.
During 1977 Bombsite reviewed The Advert's raw and enthusiastic performance supporting The Damned at Eric's, and then again headlining Manchester's Electric Circus with 999 a few months later.
Recently Bombsite discovered this 1977 photo of TV Smith and Howard Pickup [above], so I tracked down TV to ask if he could recall some stories from the early punk days. I was especially interested in his recollection of Britain's Northern scene.

Bombsite
Liverpool 2008 has reached a new milestone, and has been recognized by Europe for the honorary "City of Culture" award. Partly because of this, there been more appreciation for Eric's participation in the stimulation of youth culture during a more gloomy period for the country. On Saturday May 28th 1977 The Damned & The Adverts played Eric's club in Liverpool [Original Review Here], is there any memory that you can expand on, or recall from the location or the event?

TV Smith
We played a few times in Eric's, and the memory of them has kind of blurred into one impression of the place - a typical black-walled underground rock'n'roll club. Bigger and better laid out than the Roxy, a wide stage so people could see the bands pretty well from all around the room, a few tables to stand around at the back of the room, a bar off to one side, a small side stage dressing room that you got into through a door opening straight out into the club. One of the great things about Eric's was that they did a series of matinée shows so younger people could also get to see the punk bands everyone was talking about. The matinée kicked off late afternoon, no alcohol was served, the bands played, then everyone left, and then the club opened again in the evening for a normal club night with the same bands playing a second time. The Adverts played at least one of those - I think it was with The Only Ones, but I seem to remember that for some reason they didn't turn up for the afternoon show.

Bombsite
On August 28th 1977 Bombsite fanzine reviewed a gig night at the legendary Electric Circus [Original Review Here]. The Adverts headlined along with 999 and another band named The Slugs. Rumors that night were that the Circus was going to close. It was a Sunday night and the place was overcapacity, the local police department were watching closely for any noise and / or capacity violations. Do you recall any interesting events from that evening? Had you hooked up with 999 for a one off event?

TV Smith
I just recall the place being a crowded sweatbox. It was very claustrophobic, no air, nowhere to go if any trouble had broken out because you couldn't get off the stage. Up there with three concrete walls around you and a heaving crowd in front of you, you felt like you were in a cage. I don't think there was any violence, but I do remember it feeling very edgy, so many people crammed into the room. And Gaye told me when we got off stage that some kid had been masturbating down there in front of her. We'd never had that down in the genteel South! I think it was just a one-off gig with 999 - the bill was probably put together by the local promoter.

Bombsite
During the early years, were the Adverts aware of, or fans of, The Worst, The Drones, The Fall, The Buzzcock's or other bands indigenous to the Manchester scene?

TV Smith
We loved the Buzzcocks, saw them at the 100 Club festival in '76 and bought "Spiral Scratch" as soon as it came out. John Cooper Clark was great too, still is. I didn't like the Fall much then, though I like them a lot more now, and O don't remember coming across The Worst and The Drones at the time. In fact, as soon as we started gigging heavily ourselves most bands passed us by - we really only heard bands who played on the same bill as us.

Bombsite
Early in 1977, Liverpool punk bands included The Spitfire Boys, The Toilets, Radio Blank, The Brownshirts and the Mutants, members of these bands would inspire other local punks to advance the scene toward the post-punk era. It was this later period where Liverpool artists really shined in the global arena for a short period. David Balfe from Radio Blank ran Sony Music as General Manager and Head of A&R of the Columbia label. Mike Peters of The Toilets would later have some success with The Alarm. Norman Graveney from the Brownshirts would tour the US with The Montellas during the 80's. Were the Adverts friends with or tour with any of the Liverpool punk acts during that interesting early period?

TV Smith
We didn't have much connection with the Liverpool scene. Mike Peters told me that he was at that Manchester Electric Circus gig and found it very inspiring, but I only met him for the first time last year when I went on the Dead Men Walking tour. I talked to Pete Wylie in the bar at Erics once when I played there with The Explorers in around 1980 and he told me he came down to those Adverts gigs - I guess a lot of people who were later in bands must have been in the crowd, but if so they've been keeping quiet about it!

Bombsite
Can you describe the different feel or audience reaction playing Manchester or Liverpool verses London at the time?

TV Smith
I can't really say that there was anything particular about the Manchester and Liverpool audiences that set them apart. Geographically, it's generally true that audiences are more excitable the further North you get, so as a London band we certainly noticed that the crowd was less reserved and more willing to enjoy themselves, not just in Manchester and Liverpool, but in all the northern towns - Derby, Sheffield, Blackburn, Leeds - than in London, where the audiences could sometimes be a bit cool and posey. And to use a cliché, Northern gigs were generally "rougher." But punk even broke that stereotype - by mid 77, by the time London punk moved from the Roxy to the Vortex, gigs were just as rough and exciting as the Northern ones.

Above; The Adverts Live at London's Marquee Club 1977

Bombsite
As time passes, one of the facets of the era that is difficult for each new generation to grasp were the political and economic conditions of Britain. Can you describe the regional and national social conditions during the late 70's?

TV Smith
It's actually hard to be objective about that because the overriding feeling that I have from the era was not the outside conditions, but the internal feelings of being a teenager. I wasn't really that politically minded at the time - as far as I was concerned life was less about fighting the system, more about growing up. It's only afterwards you can put together the two and see how the general feeling that the country was in some kind of depression affected your personal outlook on things. There didn't seem a lot in Britain to offer any promise for the future to a young person - one in ten people unemployed, strikes and industrial unrest for those that were in a job.

Bombsite
How much do you believe the social conditions assisted the movement embed itself in the UK ? Do you believe that this period of youth awareness, led to a positive cultural shift for Britain?

TV Smith
Life in Britain seemed kind of hopeless at the time, and that's certainly a lot to do with the "no future" attitude of punk. We weren't boasting about having no future, like a lot of people think, we were protesting about it. Punk was a motivating force for people to protest, comment on and complain about the way things were, and had a dynamic effect on a lot of kids, because by confronting the issue they managed to pull themselves out of it. Unfortunately, on the political side, Margaret Thatcher played on the same feelings of hopelessness and seemed to be offering a way out. But the solution she proposed was "every man for himself and grab what you can" - the result was wholesale destruction of any sense of community that was left in the country.

Bombsite
The US scene obviously was an ingredient that played a part in the punk recipe. It is a passionate debate today on both sides of the Atlantic, everyone has their theory of who influenced who. Can you describe the key events that led to The Adverts forming a blistering punk formula? Was there an obvious influence, or did it feel like the thing to do? Was there an individual in the band that pushed a particular sound?

TV Smith
I certainly liked a lot of other bands, but I think The Adverts had something unique - we actually weren't good enough musicians to copy another band, even if we'd wanted to. Our sound came from the dynamics of the people in it. But like I say, we liked plenty of other bands - long before we started The Adverts, Gaye and I were listening to Iggy, Velvet Underground, Bowie, Roxy Music. Hearing The Ramones album and seeing them live was astonishing. Then later in 1976 we saw the Sex Pistols, Damned, Stranglers but by then we were already starting our own rehearsals.

Bombsite
You have toured the world and performed with some interesting artists. Your portfolio of music includes some great songs, a variety of song writing, from protest punk to complex studio work. For 2008 you have released a new album titled "In The Arms Of My Enemy" and performed at Rebellion Fest. I read that fans describe you as the Bob Dylan of punk rock. Joe Strummer, when asked this question answered "Punk WarLord, with WarLord as one word" How do you wish to be remembered ?

TV Smith
I'm not ready to be remembered, there's too many people out there who haven't even found out about me yet.

And finally,

Hi TV
Thanks, I will forever be a fan. I always loved the Adverts, they left an excellent image with me from that summer. But, I will dig further into your backlog of music to see what I can find, there has to be something great, as we both graduated from the same exploding University. If you travel through Detroit or Cleveland I will be sure to find your gig.

Hi Mart,
I'd love to get to Detroit or Cleveland, but it's unlikely that I'll be able to put together any US dates in the near future. Didn't get a lot of interest last time I looked around. But if you liked the Adverts, and got what they were about, you really should check out some of the stuff I've recorded since then.
Cheers,
TV

Web Connection

TV Smith MySpace www.myspace.com/tvsmith
TV Smith Web Spot www.tvsmith.com/
The Adverts MySpace www.myspace.com/theadverts
Gay Advert MySpace www.myspace.com/gayeblack
Philippe Carly Photos www.newwavephotos.com/Adverts.htm

Bombsite Fanzine 2008; London Discuss 1977

2008-08-13T17:21:00.018-04:00

Above; London Flyer included in Bombsite Fanzine issue #1 from July 1977
British punk band 'London' originally formed in 1976, their line up included Riff Regan (vocals), Steve Voice (bass/vocals), Jon Moss (drums) and Dave Wight (guitar).
London is a great story, and should never be overlooked when researching or commenting on the 1977 UK punk phenomena. True to punk rocks anarchistic style the band formed in 1976 went on a wild ride, and then split up during December 1977. They were together long enough to make an impact, and to plant the seeds for this beautiful period of creativity, so that others would benefit from the energy going forward.
The Bombsite writers reproduced copies the ad [above] retrieved from Probe records in Liverpool, and then used them to add content and more pictures to the first fanzine.

In late 1976, Riff Regan placed an advert in the back pages of Melody Maker looking for a drummer to join a newly formed punk band. Soon after with Jon Moss on board, the group started rehearsals in a small room joined to a lock-up garage just off the Kilburn High Road in London. By April 1977 they were playing live gigs regularly, and by May they had fostered a loyal fan base and launched a nationwide UK tour supporting The Stranglers. Later that summer they teamed up with 999 and played regular dates at the Nashville in Kensington and the Hope 'n' Anchor in Islington. Then during September 1977 they would perform their own national tour. Their final gig was at the Marquee Club in Wardour Street on the 8th December 1977.
Recently, I managed to catch up with Riff who had just returned from the notorious Rebellion Fest 2008 where the reformed "London" had performed a great live show.

Bombsite,
London the early days, where would you be when the Ramone's played the Roundhouse on July 4th 1976?
Riff,
I don’t honestly know except that I wasn’t at the Roundhouse watching the Ramone's, which is strange because I used to go there all the time. I remember seeing The Damned there supporting Graham Parker and the Rumour, and of course when Jon took over from Rat Scabies I saw the Damned there again. We played the Roundhouse ourselves for two shows at the end of the Stranglers tour. That was good, playing on the stage where we had watched so many of our favourite bands perform.

Bombsite
Did the Ramone's or any of the US scene play into your influences at the beginning?
Riff,
No not really. The only similar thing between the Ramone's and London was the incredible speed we delivered our songs. We were much more into the UK music scene.

above; Clip from Soulkiss diary London & Stranglers at Wigan casino
Bombsite
The media and press back in the day tried to suppress the whole punk rock movement, and would try to characterize bands as something other than part of the movement, do you think that they influenced the outcome?
Riff,
On a global level perhaps but not in Britain. Many UK punk bands that eventually broke around the world were accepted as mainstream rock overseas. But in the UK the whole movement was tightly tied into the music papers like the NME and Sounds, and for one glorious year in 1977, those bands went around the country spreading the word. Every night there were great gigs in every town and city. It was a very exciting period.

Bombsite
London toured with the Stranglers, that must have been just an energetic part of London's early career, can you describe the feeling? was the whole country alive? or was this youth movement contained in isolated pockets?
Riff,
It was amazing; we had only just started gigging when Hugh and Jean-Jacques of the Stranglers offered us the support slot on their lengthy Rattus Norvegicus tour in 1977. Suddenly we were traveling the country and playing to these huge audiences. For many people we were the first punk band they had ever seen. I think real punk fans were in isolated pockets around the country just as it had been in central London during 1976/77. It didn’t matter though; you just felt you were part of an exclusive club.

Bombsite
Is there something you can remember from the Stranglers tour that sums up the 77 period?
Riff,
The thing that sticks out in my mind was how friendly and receptive (with one or two exceptions) the audiences were. Even though the tabloid backlash against punk rock rolled out in June/July, people still came along to support their favourite bands. The other thing that stands out was that although the Stranglers were high in the charts with ‘Peaches’, they rarely played it live. We found that most odd.

Bombsite
I know that John Moss, London's drummer turned down the Clash open position. Were the Pistols or Clash an influence, or was there enough uniqueness to the scene where everyone was an individual, and therefore interestingly at the same level?
Riff,
The Pistols and the Clash were a huge influence on all the bands at the time. We particularly liked the Clash’s first album. It was packed with great songs simply produced. We use to play it a lot in the car. When we formed London, Jon was being tried out as the drummer for the Clash. It has always amazed me that he walked out on them and joined us! I think there was some sort of chemistry clash between him and Joe. I personally feel that there was a lot of difference between the bands’ sounds at the time. The Stranglers were very different to the Pistols, XTC were very different to the Buzzcocks.

Bombsite,
Did you know the Clash on a social level? And were you able to work together?
Riff,
Didn’t really know them. Met Joe once or twice but that was about it.

Bombsite,
London were right on the cusp and played an important part in the early Punk scene. I remember watching you guys over at Eric's on more than one occasion. We bought the single as soon as it hit our local underground record store, most likely Probe in Liverpool or Brook Street records in Chester. Do you have any memories from Eric's that could describe the gigs there? How many times did you play, and do you have the dates recorded?
Riff,
Definitely remember playing Erics on the Stranglers tour. We did two gigs but I can’t remember whether they were on consecutive nights or both on the same day. Might have been both on the same day as we did quite a few dates like that on that tour in 1977. We liked Eric's a lot and found the audiences very enthusiastic and friendly. One thing that stands out in my mind was how hot it was down there though. I remember Jet Black sweating like anything when The Stranglers were on, and that was despite a huge film studio size electric fan being bought in on the side of the stage. We didn’t record any of the gigs at Erics which was a shame.

above; London 2008 Photo credit Juliet Hanlon
Bombsite,
Your manager was Simon Napier-Bell who had previously managed the Yardbirds and Marc Bolan. Later he went on to manage Wham and George Michael. How did you first meet him? Or how did a bunch of young guns go about finding a manager with those credentials in 1977 punk London?
Riff,
It was pure luck, we were playing our very first gig supporting ‘Advertising’ at the Rochester Castle pub in Stoke Newington and we were approached by someone called Danny Morgan after our set. He was Simon Napier-Bell’s talent scout and he persuaded Simon to check us out at our next gig the Roxy in Covent Garden. Simon liked what he heard and signed us a few days later. Then a few weeks later he got us a record deal with MCA records. It all happened so fast but that was the norm for that time. Simon was one of the old school rock managers and some of his ideas didn’t quite fit in with the times. He did produce a blistering album out of us though. People still come to our gigs today and say that ‘Animal Games’ is one of their favourite records.

Bombsite,
I know that John Moss left the band in 78 to join the Damned, was the explosive scene over at that point, or had London grown tired of the exhausting pace? How did Punk rock look at this point?
Riff,
We never grew tired of touring to be honest. Jon actually left ‘London’ in November 1977 but agreed to play a last gig with us at the Marquee in early December (that gig was filmed by an Italian TV company but we’ve never seen the footage). Jon had just come out of hospital following a car crash with punk comedian Johnny Rubbish when the Damned asked him to replace Rat Scabies. There was never any bad feeling between us about it. We just thought that we would carry on with a new drummer. We rehearsed a bit with John Towe, ex-Chelsea and Generation X drummer but things didn’t work out and we disbanded in February 1978 just as our album ‘Animal Games’ was released. MCA weren’t too happy about that but that’s what punk was all about. Short lived and on the edge. Although Steve and I are back on the road now with ‘London’, people forget that the original band was only together for about a year. But what a year!

The 2008 "London" line-up is Riff Regan (vocals), Steve Voice (bass/vocals), Hugh O'Donnell (guitar/vocals) and Colin Watterston (drums).

Internet Links
www.myspace.com/londontheband
www.milestredinnick.com/

To Purchase London's Classic CD
Link to London's CD Amazon UK
Link to London's CD Amazon US

Bombsite Fanzine 1977; The Damned Live at Eric's

2008-07-28T11:25:00.017-04:00

Saturday May 28th 1977 – The Damned & The Adverts Eric's, Liverpool.

above; The Damned
The Adverts first nationwide tour was with Stiff label-mates The Damned. The tour posters pasted on billboards up and down Mathew Street read, "The Adverts know one chord, the Damned know three, see all four at Eric's". The Adverts single One Chord Wonder was released during April of 1977 a few days after their BBC Radio 1 John Peel session. The release was followed by positive street feedback from UK punks.

In December 1975 Chris Millar (Rat Scabies), showed up for an audition with the London SS. At this point the London SS consisted of Mick Jones [Later The Clash], Tony James [later Chelsea and Generation X] and Brian James [Later The Damned] . Chris had been playing drums & had gained some live experience with his band, Tor. He notes that Brian James was interested, but Mick Jones and Tony James, who both looked like they should have been in Mott The Hoople, treated him with disdain. At this point The London SS was loosely “managed” by entrepreneur Bernie Rhodes. Rhodes, & his business partner Malcolm McLaren, were searching for another group to join a movement alongside the Sex Pistols. Apparently, Bernie Rhodes would always say that 3 bands were a movement, and Malcolm & Bernie were very keen on movements.
On 14th February 1976 Brian James attended a party where the Sex Pistols were performing. The show ended in chaos with a member of the Pistols entourage, Jordan, dancing on stage naked from the waist up. Brian talked to the Pistols after the show & was immediately impressed with their attitude, especially Johnny Rotten's. By mid-January 1976 Brian James & Rat Scabies had left London SS to form their own band. James & Scabies had hooked up with Ray Burns [Captain Sensible] and they went in search of a vocalist, that considered among others Chrissie Hynde and Sid Vicious, Sid simply missed the audition.

above; Interesting early video of the Damned playing The Pistols, Pretty Vacant.
When Dave Lett [Dave Vanian]tried out, the chemistry was right. Dave was a grave digger during 1976, he was born in Newcastle and grew up Hemel Hempstead. His musical influences included 60s US Garage Punk, Rock & Roll, The Velvet Underground & Iggy Pop.
Brian James named the band in homage to the 1969 movie “Village Of The Damned” the screen version of John Wyndham’s book, “The Midwich Cuckoos”.
They would comment later, that the The Ramones playing live at The Roundhouse on 4th July 1976 just 2 days before their debut was a huge motivator, and that the event had energized them. Their first gig on July 6th 1976 was supporting the Sex Pistols at the 100 Club in London. They played the Nag’s Head in High Wycombe the following week.
The Damned were not concerned with political posturing as many were during the early period.
To The Damned, Punk Rock was all about the music they played & the attitude required to play it. The musical landscape of the mid 70s had an overblown sense of its own importance. There was an old order to overturn. Punk Rock said, Look at me, my ideas & performance are as valid as yours – so fuck you.
It was time to tear it all down & start over. Is it time to do it again?

Bombsite Fanzine 2008; The Automatix

2008-07-22T13:15:00.029-04:00

The Automatix

above; The Automatix 07-77 Tour
Some maintain that the punk scene has lost some explosive creativity, rebellion, anger, and individualism. Yet, on all the continents we see the fires burning as beacons of light, ready to break out at a time when the ingredients are just right. Young disillusioned teenagers looking for an escape from the boredom, and the constraints of society, unemployment, underpayment, political tensions and social upheaval, are all providing fuel for their fires. One such band from Canada, resonates the energy, the anxiety and teenage frustration. The 77 inspired songs on their Myspace player left me looking for more. So, I tracked down the lead singer and songwriter J Rocker, from the Montreal based punk band the Automatix.

Bombsite Fanzine
Your sound is very UK77. What brings you all together to play this type of stuff? Was there an early experience that got you interested?

Well, for us in The Automatix I'm pretty sure it's about the same. Punk rock has been our way of life ever since the first time we heard bands like The Sex Pistols and the Damned , Stiff Little Fingers , The Vibrators, you know, the basics ! It was probably one of the best moments of our lives being young brats, careless and all, not giving two' shit's ! It was so exciting to have a feeling of something to look forward to in the future, that did not have to do with the 9 to 5 way of life. I'm pretty sure we all met up for a reason. Two members of the band Smart Attack (Bass) and Franky Bones (Rhythm Guitar) are actually brothers, that grew up together and went through a hell of a lot. There's Johnny Damage (Drummer) who has been drumming since the age of 10, I think he was in some sorta marching band.. They warped his mind but he mastered the art of the snare drum, and last but not least, me, J Rocker, lead singer and lead guitarist. I got my first vinyls from a cool art teacher when I was really young. He was a great electric guitarist and he thought I would like to have "Never Mind the Bollocks".
I grew up on 77' whether it be from London or New York, I don't care, but I definitely take huge influence from UK 77. Cause to me, that's what my life is about ! I wrote "Sounds of 77" for these reasons, I talk about the Vibe of 77' and the bands that inspired a lot of other bands from then, and in the chorus I say " All across London town, there's a chronic generation going round ,Safety Pins n' Razor Blades , Black Leather Jackets and Cool New Shades" I think that about sums up the question.

Above; J Rocker ready to rock Austin Texas

Bombsite Fanzine
I see that you toured alongside the Vibrators during 2007 was there a high point during the gig dates?

Yup we sure did ! In the Summer 2007 we toured on the "77 07 Tour" for about a month across Canada with The Vibrators. We were all packed in the same van, it was a great experience for us! It really taught us fast about being on the road as a band and everything. We had been together not even 3 months and wouldn't ya know it? We were in the van with the Vibs!
The best memories from that journey would probably be when we played the last show of the tour (here in Montreal ) by that time, and after all the shows we had done along side the Vibs, we had really gotten tight and gained a lot of presence. The show was sold out that night!
Another thing that happened, we almost hit a moose somewhere in Northern Ontario's Forest! It was a fright, then a few minutes after we dodged one, a drunk driver with his kids in the back seat hit a moose, and it flew threw his windshield. We stopped to see if they were ok, luckily they were, but shocked, the man was clearly drunk, so we called the police on him. He was an idiot for taking his kids on a drunken death ride !

Bombsite Fanzine
Have you toured with other classic punks? Or is there something lined up?

No, we have not gotten to tour with other classic punks yet, mostly because there haven't been many around Montreal. Also, Canada is a big country to tour, and the price of gas is highway robbery!
We are really stoked, as we received confirmation that we will be playing with " THE KIDS " from Belgium sometime around Halloween ! Spooky !

Bombsite Fanzine
When are you releasing your new material? You guys are pretty young now, how do you see your sound developing on your new material?

We are trying to raise the funds to get into the studio ASAP, the material should be released sometime around fall! That would be our debut album really, seeing as our "77 in 07" album was a demo. I am really pumped, this will be the first full length album from us! The sound of the new material doesn't really develop, but the riffs and the lyrics will. For the sound we are gunna keep it old, and keep it vintage. We are planning to put close to 15 songs on this first Automatix LP. So, it will be something to look forward to! I'm confident that this album will be the one that puts us on the map and in the books!

above; The Automatics slamming jail guitars

Bombsite Fanzine
Are there any US dates in your forecast? Have the increased border restrictions become more difficult for artists and musicians visiting from overseas?

For US Dates, we could possibly get to Texas in 2009 for the Airwalk Unsigned Band Competition, but the brothers in the band (Attack and Bones) well they have violent criminal history, and are not allowed to cross the border, so until they get a pardon we cannot make it. But that is a problem for a lot of bands, even the big ones!
In Montreal a few years back, The Exploited were not allowed into Canada from the USA. The show was canceled at the last minute. It turned into a riot with over a million dollars of damage around the city.
So yeah, the border is a problem both ways you look at it ! If it weren't for Bush pushing the bar higher and making the laws tougher, we could probably ask some Indian's to borrow a canoe and cross the river to N.Y. hahah !

Bombsite Fanzine

As you mentioned, the Vibrator tour must have been fabulous experience for your young band. Are there offers on the table from record companies, or artist and promotion managers? Or are you DIY all the way?

The tour with the Vibrators was great for us, it gave us some experience and we learn't a lot about professionalism. I even learned some cool guitar tricks from Knox (the front man of the Vibrators).. As for us getting any kind of offers from record companies and promotion managers, we haven't gotten any of that, nor did we go for it. But I don't expect that to happen until we put out our first full length album. The demo we made " 77 in 07" was our way of celebrating 30 years of punk mayhem and we did it all DIY , To answer your question " are the Automatix 100% DIY ?" Fucking right we are !

Above; Franky Bones, Smart Attack, J Rocker, Johnny Damage

Bombsite Fanzine

Do you see raw classic punk as a growth market, where the kids are again inspired? Or has manufactured music finally killed off youth inspiration?

I think 77 made a come back around 2007 when it celebrated it's 30 years , luckily we caught that whole thing before it even happened and I was on it ! I knew it was gunna be a good year for Punk! But, to answer your question, it's really hard to say.. I don't think it was like it used to be and I don't think it will ever be like it used to be.
It was PUNK fever in the late 70's. Today, kids would just rather do other stuff. Either that or they dress "punk" and they don't know anything about where punk came from or the history of punk. I don't think people pay enough respect to the classics.. It's always a new breed of punks every year and often they only know about bands that came way later on, or they are confused and think bands like Limp Bizkit are Punk. Today is the age of MTV and shit like that, it's sad really.
But we play our music for the people who know and love real punk , not for the new. We have an older following , not so much the young people.

Bombsite Fanzine

The social networking areas on the web are changing the scene, do you see a future of how things in the music industry develop?

I suppose with the tools and technology we have today, it could possibly help some bands and labels connect. Also, it can be very beneficial for a band to be on the internet, but not for everybody. The music industry is going to hell.. It's an on-going battle, you have labels trying to make money from the sale of music, and bands trying to get some money off labels so they can tour, eat, sleep and shit. But the problem is, people today download most music for free and also the sale of "hard-copy" albums is going down down down. There are still some people who love vinyls and cd's like us, but in this day & age everybody has I-pods and stuff, so it would be a lie if they say that they pay for every song they have on those things.
With the rising price of gas it's getting harder to tour. When your on the road trying to sell your album and everybody has already downloaded it off Soulseek or something, nobody wants to pay for the real deal , and that is gunna kill many independent artist and punk bands. But not us!

Keep in touch man ! If we come your way, i'll be mailing you !
cheers again !
j

Automatix Links

http://www.myspace.com/automatix
http://www.punkmaniarecords.com/

Bombsite Fanzine 2008; The Pork Dukes

2008-07-17T21:00:00.031-04:00

The long awaited book "The Rhythm Method" by author Nicky "Bonk" Forbes of The Pork Dukes, and later known as the legendary "Rocky Rhythm" of the Revillos was released on June 16th 2008. In this limited edition new book, Revillos' sticksman Nicky Forbes (Rocky Rhythm) draws on his musical escapades in the 1970s punk scene and beyond into the 1980s. Follow this link and click here to buy the book direct, or use link at the bottom of this page.

Above; Book Artwork Performed by the renowned artist Vince Ray

Formed in 1976, the Pork Dukes were ruder than the Sex Pistols, but didn’t achieve the Pistols’ notoriety. Playing incognito, there were rumors the Pork Dukes featured Keith Moon on vocals, members of Led Zeppelin, The Rezillos, Tenpole Tudor, Steeleye Span and even Dudley Moore.

The Pork Dukes released their first single ‘Bend & Flush’ in the summer of 1977, and the rude content and cover of the single helped it sell over 20,000 copies. Although the notorious Pork Dukes had three UK indie hit singles and two album releases, they received no radio airplay. That’s not surprising, because the band offended listeners with provocative song titles, like: Throbbing Gristle; Making Bacon, My Mother Gave Me A Gun For Xmas, I Like Your Big Tits, Let’s See If It Fits; and Telephone Masturbater.

The late, legendary UK DJ John Peel, on his BBC Radio One show, remarked that “the Pork Dukes would have hits with their infuriating catchy singles, were they not so manifestly unbroadcastable!”

But even a nod of approval from Elton John at the time didn’t help: the curiosity surrounding the Pork Dukes afforded them cult status but after releasing two albums the band split in 1979.
So, I decided to track down Nicky and asked him about the early years. I had one rule - Nicky please no one word answers to my questions.
Nicky
Sounds good, mate. You'll be pleased to hear I am crap at one word answers! Fire away....

Bombsite fanzine
OK, It's 1977, The Jam, The Buzzcocks and the Clash kick off the White Riot tour, where are you guys at this point? What is it that gets your band rolling?

Nicky
Actually, to explain my 1977, we need to stretch back as far as 1971, to an event held in a field near Clacton, Essex: the Weeley Pop Festival. Bands that played there included Mott The Hoople, Rory Gallagher, the Faces and Marc Bolan’s Tyrannosaurus Rex, in their hippy pre-T-Rex incarnation. Further down the bill was a band called Gnidrolog. The singer and the guitarist were twins, and I ended up playing with them in 1976, in a pub band. I was 19 and impressed. Although their band had been a ‘progressive’ band (read: not my cup of tea) they nevertheless had had major record deals and also had a ‘punk’ attitude. We were doing covers and our own material now and called ourselves the Street Kings. Someone at Caroline Exports put a fake cover of an imaginary single in their record catalogue - ‘Bend and Flush’ b/w ‘Throbbing Gristle’ - and surprisingly received 2,000 advance orders. The Street Kings were invited to record, indeed write, the non-existent songs as the Pork Dukes and so we changed our name to that.
The single was released in the spring of 1977 on a deliberately obscure label. The lyrics were very rude and this schoolboy naughtiness was to become the Pork Dukes’ constant. Our thing. Our one and only gimmick.
The single was included on a punk compilation album called ‘Streets’ on the Beggar’s Banquet label. An erratic tour was hastily organised, and one of our few official London gigs as the Pork Dukes was as part of that ‘Streets’ tour in 1977. Indeed, apart from going to Manchester to play the club Rafters for £150 (good money back then), it was the only other date of the tour we did.
We were supporting the Lurkers - Howard Wall was on vocals at the time. They were the headliners at the 100 Club, the famous jazz club at 100 Oxford Street. That identi-punk thing of Mohican hairdo, regulation studded jacket with obligatory bondage trousers and requisite bum flap fortunately hadn’t happened yet. It was still young kids inventing and discovering their own imagery within the confines of their limited style knowledge and ability. The school tie and shirt were a popular pioneer punk look, simply because it was so uncool to wear your school tie. Hardly radical, though. Some were into leather-jacketed rebelry whilst others delved into sub-military or S&M rubber imagery for shock value.
With the plethora of fashion available now it’s easy to forget just how hard it was back then to find anything different to wear. If you wanted jeans you bought flares or Oxford Bags. That was it.
The first punks really wanted to be something totally different from all those disco people wearing fetching brown with skinny-rib cream-coloured shirts and platform shoes and their music. It’s difficult to believe now but, at that time, finding clothes in black was almost impossible. And if you did wear black, it was for a funeral, or there was something odd about you. Often I had to dye my trousers, shirt, even my boots. Thirty years after World War Two had finished, bombsites with rubble were still visible in London and all around the country: Liverpool, Birmingham. The pre-Thatcher politics of the country had resulted in strikes, with rubbish piling up in the streets, power cuts and the three-day week, and punk grew partially out of those social conditions, say most commentators. But punk was also a reaction to a dire, stagnant music scene – shit like ‘Ms Grace’ by the Tymes or ‘Sad Sweet Dreamer’ by Sweet Sensation.

above; 1977 100 Club Nicky "Bonk" Forbes
It was still early in the evening, but there was some degree of interest in us when we strode onto the bare boards of the low stage at the 100 Club. A swarm of pogo-ing punks were there simply due to our curiosity value and we blasted them with our Rickenbackered set. The press had gone along with the whispering hype about us from the record label and there was a small, bee-sized buzz of conjecture as to who the mysterious Pork Dukes really were. After all, they’d come from nowhere and hadn’t played any gigs. Rumors abounded that it was members of Thin Lizzy and Led Zeppelin having a joke, or that the twins were in fact the bastard brothers of Dudley Moore, to whom they bore a remarkable resemblance. All blatant lies.
This and our other gigs at that time featured a festering dead pig’s head on stage. The bass player stole this concept after reading about the group Eater doing the same, but topped the idea neatly with a safety pin right through the pig’s eye. I kept the head in my bass drum but forgot about it for a few weeks. Opening the case at the next gig a sea of maggots fell out. That bass drum still stinks of rotting pig’s head to this day, probably. The bassist wore a white Clockwork Orange outfit with shades. The bulging-eyed singer, Vilos Styles, donned tights, lipstick and stubble. Incorrect rumours at the time said that some singers contracted hepatitis from swallowing other people’s spit. Either way, it wasn’t nice. Hiding behind the others in the ‘firing line’, I would set the kit up as far to the back of the stage as possible so only my cymbals rusted from all the gobbing. It was fast, sweaty, boisterous fun.
Half way through our foul-mouthed, raucous set I looked across the bobbing heads to the back of the small venue and was surprised, to say the least, to see Omar Sharif in the audience. That looks like Omar Sharif, I thought. Nah, can’t be. What would he be doing down this ropey hole? Indubitably, he’s bound to be in some playboy’s paradise - Monte Carlo probably - dressed elegantly in a white suit with gold braid and playing blackjack at some Ambassador’s residence whilst supping on vintage port out of a fine Baccarat glass yet never getting his moustache wet and being served Ferrero Rocher chocolates on a silver platter by a smiling sophisticated lady in a black evening gown as harpsichord music plays in the background, surely? But, no! Here he was standing by the stairs at the back of the club. Apparently, he’d come down thinking it was a jazz night but instead stepped into a morass of pogo-ing punks. I don’t suppose he was a Pork Dukes fan. He didn’t hang around for our autographs.
So the Pork Dukes were doing relatively well with their first single out, more planned plus an album to follow - the most happening band I had been in thus far. In Carnaby Street a fan wearing a carnal Pork Dukes T-shirt was arrested and charged with ‘wearing a licentious and lewd garment likely to cause a breach of the peace’. I took that as a positive. Trendy DJ John Peel said he would play our ‘infuriatingly catchy’ records on his Radio One show ‘were they not so manifestly unbroadcastable’. We even had a nod of approval from Elton John in a Sounds interview.

As the record producer had played drums on the Pork Dukes’ ‘Bend and Flush’, it wasn’t until the follow-up single that I finally got to play drums on a record for the first time. That was our second single of 1977: 12” of putrid yellow vinyl entitled ‘Making Bacon’ b/w ‘Tight Pussy’.
We taped the single in the voice-over and dubbing room at Bray Film Studios. After recording the drums, I was at a loose end while the others did their overdubs. To pass the time, I went rooting around the sound stages and film lots. At the time there was a very popular science fiction series on the television, filmed at Bray, called Space 1999. It was produced by the legendary puppeteer Gerry Anderson - the same chap who’d made Stingray, Thunderbirds, Supercar, Joe 90, etc. The series was filmed with actors but, just the same as the puppet programmes, Space 1999 utilised small models of things like space stations and spacecraft for filming those essential outer-space shots. They were painstakingly constructed and painted. The models were works of art. The attention to detail showed they had been assiduously hand-created by a talented, patient craftsman. Unfortunately, I found the miniature sets by jumping off the back of a stage and landing on them accidentally, crushing some irreparably. Oops. How accidentally punk: Destroy! I want to be anarchy...

above; The Pork Dukes 2007 100 Club
Bombsite Fanzine
Wow, Nicky was not kidding. No one word answers here.

More about the band and to buy Nicky's book, follow the links
www.revillos.co.uk/rhythm
www.myspace.com/the_rhythm_method_book

Bombsite Fanzine 2008; Eddie & The Hot Rods

2008-07-07T16:57:00.014-04:00

Above;The Rods, Richard Holgarth, Dipster, Barrie Masters, Chris Taylor, Simon Bowley
Sometime during 1976 Bombsite caught up with Eddie & The Hot Rods when they played Liverpool. The gig was greatly anticipated as the The Hot Rods were fresh out of London, where they were an integral part of the early punk rock scene.
History records Eddie & the Hot Rods as the missing link between pub rock and punk rock, and their debut album, released at the end of 1976, proves that to be true. Fresh, loud, and incredibly fast, this is fuel-injected youth energy rock and roll. Their debut LP "Teenage Depression" & single "Do Anything you Wanna Do" would further amplify the linkage between early 70's pub rock and later punk phenomena. But far more importantly, the records give at least a hint of why concert attendees still describe Eddie & the Hot Rods live shows among the greatest gigs they ever attended.
During 2008 the US gets another opportunity to see these rockers as they start their tour in California on July 31st. Bombsite Fanzine managed to catch up with Simon Bowley long time drummer with the Hot Rods to ask a few questions about the bands early days.

Bombsite
Can you describe the early Eddie & the Hot Rod days? I know that the band played with the Sex Pistols and the Clash before the scene broke out. That period around London was just electric.
Simon
Yeah, the early days were totally mad the band had got a big fan base very quickly mainly due to fact that the band was so young ,every other band on the scene were in their mid 20's but the rods were all 17/18 and the energy was amazing people just hadn't seen this for so long, soon Joe Strummer's 101'ers were supporting and suddenly the music press were talking about these young 'punks' from Essex, who could play fast and loud. Malcolm McLaren then got his band The Sex Pistols, a support show at the Marquee followed, he told them to smash up the equipment which they did, of course the music press loved this, and so the Pistols were on their way, but yeah bloody good times!

Bombsite
The Bombsite team caught up with the Hot Rods in Liverpool sometime in 76. I looked around but cannot confirm the gig date. Do you have any recollection or record of the dates during the early days?

Above Simon Bowley
Simon,
To be honest the band was so busy in 1976,the debut album "Teenage Depression" had been released and the press were hailing it as the album that would save music etc,. Island records just kept adding dates to the tour it seemed like the band were on tour all year, then in 1977 is when it really went crazy with tours of the USA alongside the Ramones, party's with Aerosmith, and back in the UK the tour with Squeeze and the Radio Stars, people still say that's one of the best tours in the last 30 years

Bombsite
"Do anything you wanna do" was played alongside all the Punk and reggae classics in the clubs and gigs throughout the early part of the punk movement. We have documented in Bombsite issue one where the DJ played some Hot Rod songs at the Jam concert in Birkenhead during 77.
Simon
It is amazing that over the last 2 years that song has had a bit of a revival. In the UK it is getting played a lot on radio and in rock clubs.

Bombsite
It is interesting to hear about the Hot Rods increased airplay in the UK .
There is much discussion about the Pub Rock effect on the development of Punk Rock. Do you see the pub rock as a part of the reason punk fired up or got rolling in or around 76? Can you discuss your theory?
Simon
Yeah, the pub rock scene had a massive effect on Punk, much more than most people realise, the bands that became punk, all went to watch pub rock bands in 75/76, Eddie and the Hot Rods definitely played a big part in the birth of punk in the UK, maybe the world.
To be honest I think the punk scene would have happened anyway, the young people of Britain needed something to latch onto around that time, and music managers had been watching bands like the New York dolls, Mc5's etc and influencing bands like the Hot Rods to go in that direction. Pub rock was just about the music, punk rock was the whole deal music, fashion and a way for people to express themselves, so yeah I think it was a good part and it certainly paved the way for the future.

The Hot Rods Live in France 2006
Bombsite
Do you think we are seeing a push away from manufactured music on any larger scale going forward? Do you see the live band support increasing, regionally or overall?
Simon
Not sure we are moving away from manufactured bands, but on the whole thanks to the internet and MySpace bands like the Hot Rods have found themselves open to a new younger generation who really appreciate the music, online and digital radio stations can play these older bands and Eddie and the Hot Rods have certainly seen a rise in popularity again and it is still growing.

Bombsite
Joe Strummer has left such a great legacy, he almost feels like our mentoring brother telling us what happened even after his death. Did the guy leave any feeling with you ? Was there something he said that you think of today?
Simon,
Personally I never met the guy, but I know Barrie Masters new him quite well from the early days, and he says that Joe was just a genuine nice guy who just wanted to play music. He did once quote that the first time he heard the phrase punk was in a review of a Eddie & the Hot Rods gig in 1976, I think that's quite cool.

Bombsite
The Hot Rods are about ready to start a US tour, I see you are going to play Chicago and then you are driving over to Cleveland. Bombsite gets loads of readers in this area, and I have already seen web discussion about the band skipping Detroit on the tour. British bands often do that, is there a problem logistically? or does Detroit miss the radar for a particular reason that you can see?

Simon
No not at all, we would love to play everywhere but the truth is that we are having to build on our touring again ,we haven't played the east coast for over 20 yrs and couldn't be sure if anyone would remember us so we thought start off small, and just do 5 or 6 dates on each coast and if its a success then we can do a bigger tour next year. If our MySpace is anything to go by, then you will certainly see us next year and our USA booker can look further afield.

Bombsite
You mentioned MySpace and the new way to find an audience. I know there is a divide, some like the ease and ability to broadcast out, but along with that comes the almost inherent need to give away something. In many cases the record companies, the bands, the promoters, the marketers and the venues are complaining. Does the change offer a better outcome for musicians? And if so how does it all look in the future?
Simon
We recorded our first album for some 15 years in 2001 and managed to get a independent record company to take it, along with the album they said they would also release a live DVD which we recorded live in London, the outcome of this was that the record company did very little and no-one even knew the products were released ,since then we have recorded another album and decided to put some of the tracks onto MySpace which has resulted in people coming to the shows and singing along with the new songs as well as the older ones, the way the record market is today means that the artist receives so little in royalties that it makes sense for the band to give away a few tracks ,more people come to the shows where you are selling the full album and the band receive the full price. Of course, the record companies don't like it but more and more bands are only releasing their stuff online so it works.

Bombsite
Eddie and the Hot Rods were the energy that lit up my youth, and were an influence and part of my record collection. Did you all see yourself 30 years later maturing along with your audience and still rocking the venues?
And the youth today, are they aware that you were part of the punk scene from the beginning?
Simon,
That's great to hear Martin, no I don't think anybody even dreamed that 30 yrs on that the name Eddie and the Hotrods would even be remembered, let alone still touring all over the world. Yes, I think that the majority of youngsters do know that the Rods were part of the punk scene especially in the USA and Japan, unfortunately the majority in the UK think it started and
stopped with the Sex Pistols.

Bombsite
The Ramones have made an impact on almost every US garage / punk / alternative band since the late 70's. As you look around MySpace a large number of kids reference them as an influence. Touring with the Ramones, as you did during the early years, is there a story or a gig that say it all about the that period?
Simon
The Ramones were a really nice bunch of guys and we got on well with them ,I think they were surprised when we came over cos we were younger than them and partied after every show , they were always pretty mad parties and they thought we were crazy, Joey Ramone once asked Barrie how he got rid of a stuffy head before going on stage, Barrie told him to put a towel over his head and breath in steam ,Joey then goes to his dressing room, and a couple of minutes later screaming is heard, he's only boiled a kettle and put his face over it, the show had to be canceled so Joey could be treated for burns ...whooops

Bombsite
Thanks Simon,
Eddie and the Hot Rods have a great spot in the history of rock. There will be a bunch of road trips heading out to Cleveland from Toledo, Columbus and Detroit. From the activity we see here in the Mid-west US, I am sure you will have a great tour.
Simon
Thanks Martin we hope to see you at one of the shows, the band are really looking forward to coming over, the shows will be great, I can guarantee that, and we hope to see lots of people having a good time.

All photos used with permission from Eddie & The Hotrods

More about Eddie and the HotRods at www.eddieandthehotrods.com

Bombsite Fanzine 2008; Treatment Bound

2008-07-03T14:21:00.017-04:00

A diverse music scene has quietly been developing between the Ambassador Bridge and Michigan's route 23. And why not, as Detroit is ground zero for the lousy US economy, and people feel the need to express themselves. In the clubs, pubs and dives, Chevy Rebel Rock integrates into the emotional fabric of the underground music scene. A cry from a middle aged city where beer is cheaper than gasoline.
Scratch beneath the wallpaper, and you will find musicians with the same anxiety, frustrations and energy that produced our punk rock heroes from the 70's. Bombsite fanzine invites you to take a listen to the music of "Treatment Bound", fronted by Detroit's telecaster master, Brian "Homeless" Milne. Listen to the tracks a couple of times, and you find an interesting texture of cigarettes, vodka, hard work and live music.

Bombsite
Your music, rockabilly punk? How long have you been playing?

Homeless
Ha.. I guess I think of it as Midwestern Punk.. Some people call it cow-punk.. I tend not to fit into any genre, and to be honest I kinda like it that way...
What do you think it sounds like?

Bombsite
I like it. It has more grit than most. Some of the phsychobilly or Cow punk stuff I have heard is a little zany for me. The Stray Cats and Brian Setzer dropped in right as the punk thing was simmering down in the UK around 80.
That sound was new to me, back then I enjoyed it. Managed to catch them play a few places around Michigan and Ohio, even once in Bowling Green. Do you get into any of the early punk stuff?

Homeless
Oh yea! I dig a lot of the early stuff!!
I was around then!! Graduated in 83, hit college as the Midwestern punk stuff was breakin in the early 80's dig a lot of it. Saw a lot of shows back then as well.

Bombsite
Yes, I understand the Stray Cats were playing around New Jersey and headed off to the UK to see if they could catch a lift from the UK scene. I remember Dave Edmond's was in the mix somewhere too. Chris Spedding did some of the production work for the Pistol's Anarchy album, and he was a bit of a rockabilly guy.. Are you into the Anarchy album?

Homeless
I really felt like I cut my teeth on that album.
I had it on cassette and wore it out. I really liked Steve's guitar playing.
I figured it out back then, the music wasn't all that new, but the ATTITUDE was everything!! And the Live show was above all the key...
Which suited me just fine, cuz my playing wasn't great, and I was using so I was in the right frame of mind... So yea, it was a big part of what I am, as a musician, you?

Bombsite
Oh yes, great record. It's interesting because when the Pistols thing hit, they were into the anti-hero branding, so Steve and the PR downplayed the skill sets, almost misinformed. I watched Steve the other day during the Guitar Hero Anarchy / Pretty vacant introduction. During the interviewed he admitted that he played guitar and bass on the album. As things were at odds with Glen Matlock, and Sid Vicious was in the hospital with hepatitis. If you have not seen the clips they are on YouTube. Part of this press commentary was to point out that the record company had misplaced the original master recordings, apparently they are either lost or were stolen. How about Strummer and the Ramones do they fit into your collection?

Homeless
I think the nature of Steve's playing made the Pistols accessible to young wannabes like myself.
Strummer, I didn't appreciate until later. I was more raw in the early days. Now The Ramones hell yea.. GREAT song writing, above all else especially the early stuff.. Clean it up, slow it down, and add harmonies, and you had classic 60's pop.. And again just so accessible, I mean the music is/was there for someone with 3 months guitar playing under their belt to just hash it out... BRILLIANT STUFF!!

How about you and my main squeezes..? How about Husker DU, Social D and my #1 The Replacements?

Bombsite
Yes, when Joe Strummer joined up with Mick Jones he had good guitar cover. Husker Du were never really understood until later, not sure why. But yes, all my style.
Did you start playing right out of high school? What style back then? Iggy's, "lust for life", I play to wake me up some mornings..

Homeless
Right on!
I started in high school and played regular rock back then... Listened to some punk, and was attracted to the energy and rawness..
But, when I went away to college and lived in a college town I was floored!!!
I heard a bootleg of The Replacements Hootenanny and was hooked.. Got a band going that first year! and the rest is "Homeless" history...(well more of a side bar...lol)
Always found "Don't want to know if you're lonely" was my favorite Du song...

Bombsite
How about old style punk bands from UK or US, did you ever gig with any?

Homeless,
Not really...
No-one famous... I did meet Mike Ness from Social Distortion, early on, maybe fresh outta rehab.. But, I was using and thought he was full of shit, so I didn't talk to him much..
He was a power house though.. I thought he wouldn't go anywhere..
What do I know!

Also I was VERY anti-establishment very anti label... If you were known or had a name for yourself, I would be rude to prove I really didn't give a shit..
Not the smartest career move ever I suppose.
I still fight that urge...

I did open for a lot of local stuff. There was a college circuit back then hitting colleges from Minn to Chicago lots of cool dives..We were too wasted to do much and had trouble holding a
line up together, given the amount of consumables.
I may not been able to stand up some nights but I always played!!!

you??

Bombsite
Well, I know what you mean about the anti-everything, label, suits, management, record industry for principle. We did the same thing, as our buddies were all getting snapped up by labels during 77-78 we were the rebel rockers that were a bit too cool for all that. Moreover, most of the bands around us we felt were all a bit nerdy. Over time that proved to be the
wrong way to go, and the guys having good management, a focus, and some industry guidance got the deals. Even when I read Joe Strummers biography and watched the movie "The Future is Unwritten" I was a bit let down by the way McLaren and Rhodes appeared to construct the bands. Most of that is kept away from the buying public, as the game must be concealed.
I was thinking about your sound, do you have a Dr. Feelgood part to your music? I feel a little of that grit in your music.

Homeless
You know, I dig what Dr. Feelgood did, and I hadn't thought of the connection until you mentioned it. I think there is a stronger connection to what I'm doing here in Treatment Bound than I realized. The gruff voice, and raw delivery of music are similar but the connection to roots music was something I missed. But also, I think it was honest. If you gave them any song to play, when they played it you would know it was Dr. Feelgood. I think that nails Treatment Bound.

This started as something very personal. I've never sung before. But I was listening to a lot of American roots and alt. country stuff for a while. and when I played this stuff back for a friend, It came out of me differently. It came out as what you hear in the Treatment Bound sound. Its just how things come out of me. He gave me brilliant advice...He told me to play what I play when I'm alone and when no-one is listening. He also convinced me share songs that I've thought too personal. Really, I've done my best to heed that advice, and that what Treatment Bound is. If its anything, its as honest as I can be musically. It is what comes out of me even if no-one else listens. I think thats why it doesn't sound like much else. Its a mix of all my experiences and influences, they just come out of me kinda fucked up.....and I'm OK with that.

Treatment Bound are Brian "Homeless" Milne vocals and guitar
Dan Allen(drums) and Jeff Navarre)bass) who really makes this easy for me and their contributions are priceless. I can be a train wreck some nights.. It is who I am.. But they keep it together and are a great source of support for me personally and musically. I don't think I could ever thank them enough for all they do.

It has been a treat Martin! Gotta run, but It was been an absolute BLAST getting to know you better... I'm stoked !!
Listen to Treatment Bound at the following link -
http://www.myspace.com/betreatmentbound
Catch them Live at the Double OO in Redford MI September 19th
photos used with permission of Treatment Bound

Bombsite Fanzine 2008; Detroit's Choking Susan

2008-06-22T22:11:00.023-04:00

Above; Choking Susan, Detroit Punk Rockers.

Following in the footsteps of other rockers such as Siouxsie Sioux, Chrissie Hynde, Poly Styrene, Debbie Harry, The Slits and even Patti Smith, she’s a Punk Rocker.
Maybe it's the inherent ambiguity of rock music, but it still stands out when a woman takes the front spot on stage. Especially when the vocalist is as unique as Colleen Caffeine, in this raw energy punk band from Detroit. No disrespect to the other band members who have passionately pushed forward and are now seeing some payback for there hard work. The band, Choking Susan have toured Europe and North America and have a well rounded balance of experience, branding and an energetic sound that should get them a win.
Before the band heads off to play their European dates, including the UK's Rebellion Punk Festival . I caught up with Colleen who gave me her views on the 1977 punk scene.

Bombsite Fanzine
Part of the reason that the UK was a launch pad for Punk rock in 76 - 77 is because the British economy through that period was suffering. Do you guys see that as a similarity or a scene where the kids need an outlet in Detroit and Cleveland in the 2008 lousy economy?
Colleen
With technology as it is, I don't think it can be too similar.. The world is at anyone's finger tips freely through a library.. People feel that there's hope and a future, but want everyone to change it for them.. The punks of the 70's wanted to change it themselves..
Theres no true, real punk scene in Detroit..!

Bombsite Fanzine
I know that Choking Susan is off to the annual punk festival in the UK very soon. There are a few 77 bands playing that gig, the Vibrators, The Lurkers, UK Subs and Anti Nowhere are a few, is there an allegiance with Choking Susan and any particular classic punks at the show?
Colleen
No , other than we've been fans of theirs forever... 77 punk ,particularly from the UK, is what we grew up on.. We're thrilled to be playing the fest for the second year in a row...

Above; The Energetic Colleen Caffeine Rocking Detroit

Bombsite Fanzine
If you had participated in the Joe Strummer "camp-fire story" movie, The Future is Unwritten, is there something about Strummer that you would discuss?
Colleen
Well i didn't see it, actually .... My opinion would be, we need more cowbell..

Bombsite Fanzine
In 1968, the Detroit rock scene witnessed a transformation into something that was purely raw, rough, and messy. This sound was rock & roll but was also equal parts anger, determination and attitude spawning a unique high-energy rock scene in antithesis to Motown and the more mellow bands popular on the east and west coasts. This new found high-energy rock was no truer than with the MC5 (Motor City Five) and the protopunk Iggy & the Stooges. These two bands laid the groundwork for the future punk and hard rock movements in the late 1970s.
The foregoing commentary is from Wiki, and is a refreshing contrast to the usual CBGB's Ramone's version of the genre history. Does this theory contrast with your views of the movement?
Colleen
That is the most often talked about theory.. New York says they started punk, Detroit says they started it, England says they did too.
I"m sure it all happen simultaneously.. It couldn't be stopped.. Everywhere we were feeling the pains of the economy and shitty politics... The only outlet, Rock n Roll.

Bombsite Fanzine
Asia is a big market now for punk rockers. From the Philippines to China and over to Japan we see rockers that do a great job emulating the 70's energy. Do you see a tour in the future to that part of the world? Or do you have an Asian fan base?
Colleen
we were offered a tour of Japan but it fell thru.. We'd love to play that market..I think they've always loved American punk ..I know the Ramones did very well there..
If I had a connection to help us to play there, I'd be there tomorrow! if you know anyone send them my way! :)

Bombsite Fanzine
You have a good Detroit / New York punk sound with loads of energy that resonates out of your music. As I look around the web, I see people comparing the band to the Stooges with some Pretenders along with a blend of The Ramone's. Is there a style that you try to get across ?
Colleen
Maybe being born in Detroits turmoil has given us a stooges edge?
being the biggest fan of the Ramones, its very flattering to be compared to them :)

Bombsite Fanzine
You have toured North America and Europe extensively. Have you worked or toured with any of the 77 classic punks here in the US?
I see that "The Duel" hooked up with Knox from the Vibrators for some collaboration tunes, will we see anything like that from you guys anytime soon?
Colleen
Yes! we played here with Blitz, The Vibrators and Abrasive Wheels! Great bands!
We'd love to Collaborate like that! If it happens, that would be great! A dream come true! :)

Read more about Choking Susan and their 2008 European Tour at my UK associate website MUDKISS;

Band Sites
www.myspace.com/chokingsusan
www.chokingsusan.com

Bombsite Fanzine 1977; The Jam in Birkenhead

2008-06-12T16:43:00.023-04:00

Rick Buckler, Paul Weller and Bruce Foxton - The Jam....

above; Click to enlarge. Bombsite issue #1 review The Mutant's and The Jam; Birkenhead, Mr Digby's, July 7th 1977.

Between the warm British summer of 1976 to the end of 1977, the UK punk phenomena re-evolved multiple times and expanded in different directions. Bands that had been struck by the origins of the movement, tried to express their interpretation of political anti establishment rock in different ways. One of these bands was the Jam.

The Jam got together in 1972 at Sheerwater Secondary School in Woking, England. Through the mid 1970's they gained a following around London playing pub-club gigs. Their style and music was seen as a revivalist mod band. In 1972-73 they were into The Who's Quadrophenia album. The release of this record helped fire up a UK Mod and scooter revival years after the original movement. By 1976, the band were inspired again after watching a Sex Pistols performance in London. Paul Weller recalled later, "The Pistol's noisy garage band racket and Rotten's youthful arrogance. I loved it! It was so young and exciting, and of course, there were no flares".

During the spring of 1977, The Jam joined punk rockers the Clash, on the White Riot tour alongside the Buzzcocks. This, after paying "the Clash" management some undisclosed amount of money. About 15 days into the tour they abandoned the tour to venture off and do their own thing.

Their live performance projected teenage anxiety, short hair, crushing volume and lightning-fast tempos, with a 1960's Brit rock influence. Moreover, the band wore Mod style clothing and tailored suits. They used good equipment and played more professionally than most other punk bands during 77.

Above; Mid 70's British Mod revival spurred on by The Jam

The following fanzine articles were from 1977. The first article from Bombsite #1 describes a spectacular performance by the band in July 1977 playing alongside The Mutant's who were a Liverpool punk band. By November 1977 Bombsite issue #5 there are references where the band starts to distance themselves from punk. The Punk and Mod lifestyles were closely aligned in the UK during this period. Ska reggae and dub music was part of the Punk and mod club culture. Bombsite writer and "Why Control" bass player Grom, owned a scooter and lived the Mod lifestyle. Every Punk in 1977 owned the Quadrophenia album. On a London trip in 77 a couple of local Mod's gave us the run down on what was going on in town that weekend. City streets were not so friendly for punks, but, Mod's and punks would hang out.

Using their unique style The Jam would change the future of UK music. Music historians believe that the Great British Music Festival, with the Jam, at Wembly in December 1978 was the peak of the Mod revival. During 1979, "The Who's" movie Quadrophenia, which romanticized the 1960s mod lifestyle was released. By 1979, punk rock had virtually imploded on itself in the UK, with only bands that had sold out, and a few stragglers left. As synthesizer and drum machine technology improved, Liverpool and Manchester would see the beginning of the New Romantic era.

The Jam were focused politically, condemning England's police brutality with their single "In the City" and expansionist development on "Bricks And Mortar". However, one of their most openly political songs, "Time For Truth", bemoaned the decline of the British Empire and expressed disparaging sentiments about "Uncle Jimmy" the Labour Party Prime Minister James Callaghan in no uncertain terms "Whatever happened to the Great Empire?". These pro-Empire sentiments and displays of the British Flag earned the group a right wing conservationism tag. Paul Weller's announcement that The Jam intended to vote for the Conservative Party in the 1979 general election served to confirm their association. The bands right wing allegiance would dog them throughout their career.

The line-up of Weller, Foxton, and Buckler would existed until the end of The Jam's career. They were managed by Weller's father, John Weller, who still manages Paul's career.

UK Scooter Boys still rocking

Above; Clash Jam tour article

Above; Cool Brit Mod Scooter
Below; The Jam Vid at Manchester's legendary Electric Circus; on "So it Goes" 1977

Bombsite Fanzine 2008; Anti Social Degenerates

2008-06-07T14:01:00.017-04:00

The online success of the Bombsite fanzine, has allowed the Myspace and Blog site to become a gathering place for punk enthusiasts from all over the world. The stories have led me into some great conversations with some interesting individuals. So, in a move away from my conventional blogging, I have decided to mix things up a little, and add the following commentary as a different viewpoint of the 77 punk story. Originating from Americas tough city of Detroit, Punk Rocker and vocalist for ASD, Vern Obnoxious or Vox, discusses his ideas about 1977, US v's UK historical punk development or migration. These guys have been around since 1987, and have something of a UK punk sound, with a harsher edge. Check them out here

Above; Vox; Voice of the Detroit DIY underground

Hey Vern,
Yes, our hangout in 77 was a place called Eric's in Liverpool. We were amongst the first 100 members. Last Saturday the BBC did a I hour special about the legendary club. The link to the broadcast is on the site [top right]. For me it was a special show, as many of the bands interviewed were friends and people that I hung out with. It is an interesting show if you are into the roots of Punk rock. Later, I watched "The Future is Unwritten" Joe Strummer bio.
So Saturday night was a bit of a mid-life-ish night.

Hi Mart
Kick ass thanx. When we map out our next tour with Social Schism from Essex. I 'll let them know. They know of some good venues around that area. They book everything in England. I book Ireland and Scotland, actually Oi Polloi helped us out last time and will book for us in Edinburgh.
As far as what I am into, my favorite music to listen to is classic punk, 80's UK anarcho movement (Crass, Conflict, Subhumanz etc), 80 's American hardcore which influenced us to start a band when I was 14 but anyone who listens to us and all the reviews always identifies our strong early UK anarcho influence. And I love crust. I love music and I am a history buff. I am actually going back to school to teach history. But, I retraced and defined exactly how punk rock came to be and it's indisputable, even though the Brits will never agree. The fact is the 60's garage bands on the Nuggets comps inspired bands like the numero uno first punk to actually lived a nihilistic lifestyle was Iggy Pop. I am confident to say, that the early 70's Stooges albums and MC5 from Detroit influenced the Ramones, who I credit as the true first punk band. Malcolm Mclaren was in the States hanging out trying to sign bands like Television. He got to see the amazing high energy shows from CBGB's with the Ramones. After being denied to manage Television, the Ramones put out there first record then went to London and killed them. There was probably 50 bands that formed after their UK appearances. Ramones put out there first record in 75. So, to say the Damned put out the first album and the Buzzcocks put out the first single is true only in England. After the Ramones got back from London, the Clash recorded "White Riot". Listen to that song close, and tell me it ain't a direct rip off from the Ramones. Don't get me wrong I love the song, plus all the bands. But, it was the Ramones who kick started the punk rock bands in England. I do give credit for the official punk rock "Movement " that was started by the urban youth of England. Then Malcolm manufactured the Sex Pistol's which is a combo of Television and the Ramones in my eyes. I loved the "Anarchy" album, who don't. But, they were cash cows for Malcolm. The Sex Pistols get credit for the first punk rock album but the Buzzcocks and Damned album came out before them. "Anarchy" wasn't put out till late 77 nearly 78.

V

Hi Vern,
You will be surprised with my feedback. Personally, I did not know the Ramones and many of the US bands, but we could feel something was ready to happen, the pub rock thing was our street rock and roll. The 101'ers, The Stranglers, Dr. Feelgood, Eddie and the Hot Rods. Not quite there, but something was brewing, revolution was in the air, as the unemployment lines grew longer.
But, I actually agree with your time-line. I was part of it, wandering up and down the Kings road in 76, drinking at the Man-in-the-Moon, and the Hope and Anchor. I actually wrote a blog on my site that dove tails into this social history. The social political part of punk in the UK is the tough piece to untangle or explain today. Because both countries have moved so far away from that time. Furthermore, 17 year old teenagers today [UK and US] don't seem to care much about unemployment lines and balance of payments, or state control or even freedom and civil rights. We honestly did, we would have debates about it. If you watch the Clash's "Rude Boys" you will see that teens were arrested for no reason as they walked the UK streets. Cops would get you inside and beat the shit out of you. Keep you overnight and boot you out in the morning. That does not happen now [so much]
Most of America was happy and prosperous in 1977, and the UK was a frikin social political disaster zone. I find it interesting that the manufacturing downturn here today, and how it os effecting the overall economy is much how things were in Liverpool/Manchester/Glasgow during 75-82. Check out Strummer's squat years in "The Future is Unwritten" movie. The prosperity here was part of the reason that the Ramones, Iggy, MC5's, the Heartbreakers, Dead Boys, Pere Ubu and others failed to take off with a bigger audience in the US. As their sound mixed with the other ingredients in London, it exploded throughout the UK. Rock and Roll thrives in poverty..! And that is the part that many of these debates often overlooked and is the missing link .. Here is my 77 UK punk economy blog
http://whycontrol1977. blogspot.com/2007/12/why-control-1977-englands-glory. html

There is a 5 min documentary link at the bottom about 1980 Liverpool. The profile looks like Detroit/Cleveland today.
Liverpool in 2008 is the European City of Culture, said another way it is a boring tourist trap and a Disney version of the former city, now littered with coffee shops and smoke free zones. The slums, street gangs and tear gas are now all gone. The real story today is Detroit/Toledo/Cleveland with broken economies and urban slums.
The good news is that maybe there will be a rock explosion out of the mid-west U.S now, today... If so, it will be similar to what we have seen before but with a twist.. As the culture will always change slightly.

Sorry for going on, we should have just done this over a beer. ;-)

Anyhow you are a cool band, and are obviously very passionate about your music. I love it all too. Kids getting out and doing something anywhere in the world, making a difference.
Thanks

Hi Mart
I absolutely agree, all those bands you mentioned are my go-to records when I wanna jam, Eater, The Stranglers, X Ray Spex, Vice Squad, UK Subs , The Vibrators, Damned , Buzzcocks and of course the Ruts are all time favs. I agree socially, and politically back home it was this junkie cheque scene with the Ramones at the top of the New York scene . But they didn't sing about politics. It was shit like, "Now I wanna sniff some glue", or "Beat on the brat". The punk rock movement or methodology definitely was spawned on the streets of London as well as the fashion. I don't care what any punk says, Anti fashion. Bullshit. I seen a postcard from London of a buncha punx with Mohawks, and still wear the same gear today. It most certainly a fashion. To me it's just my own personal way of flying my colors. In 77 America we had Jimmy Carter I believe in office , everyone was wearing khaki's cardigan sweaters and dipping into fondue bowls. They new nothing of repression of youth on a economical level. I never been more convicted in my politics as a anarchist who is leaning more and more to a constitutional-ist. They were the true working class rebels that said fuck you, were not living under a thrown, were gonna sail away to a unknown land and set up shop. Gotta have a lot of respect for that. I am a historian though. I would much rather live in Amsterdam than here in the US. From the Netherlands down to Italy we have a large fan base that will pay us 350 earos which is like 600 dollars. In the UK they do not pay out of town bands shit. Ireland, Scotland and England. We were just thinking, why go to Europe when we can take this money and put out 5 7"s and a few LP's. We are looking forward to coming over hopefully in fall and it will go Dublin/Liverpool/Manchester, Edinburgh, Glasgow, London, Essex, Netherlands/Rotterdam/ Amsterdam then Belgium all the way down to Italy. We need to hustle a shitload of music!......Good talking to you. I like the conversations.

V

Vern,
Yes great stuff..
Would you see a problem if I put this discussion in blog form on my blog space? Its a shame to waste it, as I think it would make a good read for lots of 77 enthusiasts. I don't think their is anything incriminating ;-)
I will catch up with you for another blogview sometime..

Cheers
Mart

My life is a open book, i would revel in posting a column in that blog. I am not worried about incrimination of anything. I am always willing to stick my neck on the chopping block.

V

Bombsite Fanzine 1977; Slaughter & The Dogs

2008-05-22T16:01:00.022-04:00

Eric's Club August 22nd 1977
Slaughter and the Dogs band members were young teen guitar heroes from the legendary skinhead suburb of Manchester, Wythenshawe. Just a few miles away were many of the venues, nightclubs and halls where other Manchester bands first inspired legions of like minded young British Northerners amidst the vibrant punk scene.
The review starts in the Grapes pub next door to Eric's club.

In 1977 the UK inner city club world was ruled increasingly by cynical intolerance for everything power rock and heavy metal. Slaughter and the Dogs rousing Ronson, Glitter, sound, interested the casual punk observer, and over the years it has been lost and found, again and again.
The stage theatrics and lack of idealism, guarded interest from the core street punks, and yet the propulsive guitars and fast charging beat sounded worthy to punk's on vinyl. And while many bands from the era started out with an energetic output, and long ago sold out and morphed into some form of stylistic pop music for the masses. The Dogs charged forward with a real intensity and have stayed true to their origin. Over the years they have widely been accepted as a veteran Manchester punk band. While many of the bands original songs were aggressive chants, and, whether they realized it or not, they we're laying a path toward the punk Oi spin off with their original sound.

Above; Roxy Tour Poster is part of Bombsite collection; Original artwork by Steve McGarry -Factory Records

Watching the band rip through a live set in front of a few hundred fans produced a feedback of sheer power and that was unquestionable. The kids throwing themselves around fists raised, singing each lyric as if it meant the world to them. The entire affair was like some riotous soccer match, but free thought, dissent and anarchy was missing. Many of the original fans were sought of angry nerds, not punks, not skinheads, not mods, but copying the Sunday newspaper pullout stories and trying to be rebellious. Although, In the end, it worked, the band was original, and teenagers were inspired, and the music was their passage into a scene that gave them a purpose, and the punk philosophy, to get out and do something in the terrible Northern economy.

Above; Credit to Melanie at www.soulkiss.co.uk for Slaughter photo at Wigan Casino June 25th 1977
Melanie and Vanessa watched Slaughter and the Dogs at the Wigan Casino show. The Bombsite writers were also at the show. We were with Mike Peters from the Alarm, I bought a Slaughter and the Dogs single at the show. There was a bunch of trouble outside as the locals were waiting to roll some punks. We were always OK with a bundle, so I stuffed the single down my pants. As we scrapped our way out, the damn single got busted. That is about all I remember of the night.

Mel says, "The Spitfire Boys played support as the Damned had canceled the show. I also bought the Dogs single at the show, seems so long ago now - The crowd went wild and the singer wore a headmasters outfit and doused himself with talcum powder from head to toe it went everywhere when he came on stage, really good band. After the gig Wayne came over to us and asked us had we enjoyed the gig. I had first heard them play on 'The live Roxy' album. Wigan casino got burnt down and there is a huge car park in its place now and shopping centre".

Furthermore, "I met Mick Rossi many years later around 1983/4 at a night club called Legends in Manchester (new romantic era) . We chatted quite a bit and he told us he had or was living with Glenn Matlock and name dropped a few others. I still have the diary entry somewhere and I am quite surprised I didn't snap a photo or two but then it was very misty they had smoke machines going all the time and couldn't see in front of you. He was trying to get a bed for the night and preferably my mates ;-) it didn't happen!!"

Bombsite Fanzine 1977 ; The Prefects Live at Eric's

2008-05-14T14:40:00.009-04:00

Saturday August 20th 1977 ; The Slits, The Prefects and the Spitfire Boys

Above; Viv Albertine of The Slits, Paul and Alan Apperley The Prefect's - Reading Bombsite Fanzine issue #1 at Eric's club in Liverpool.

After receiving a copy of this photo Paul Apperley notes, "the other Prefect is my brother Alan [right], who is still playing guitar with the reformed Nightingales, although he was never a Nightingale originally. In my not very extensive diary notes, it says that we did an encore with Ari from the Slits playing drums on "Freedom Fighters" whilst I sat it out and watched".
Paul also recalls "at the end of the gig after we had played , me and Viv were sitting on an amp on the stage talking , and someone threw a bottle at us! ( fortunately they missed) I've always wanted a photo of me & Viv , we got on well, so cheers for that".
"The night before Eric's we had gone to the Pistols first secret gig , at Wolverhampton, we were supposed to support them but for some reason did not, Ari`s mother was there, I told Ari at Eric's that we had bumped into her, obviously without realizing her connection with John Lydon at the time". A few years later John married Ari's mother Nora Forster.

The Prefects were invited to open the London show of The Clash's 'White Riot Tour'. It was the group's fifth ever gig and the first 'big' punk concert, at the Rainbow Theatre in May '77 alongside The Jam, Buzzcocks, Subway Sect and, of course, The Clash. This was the night that DJ John Peel and his producer John Walters saw the group and it was this pair who responsible, later on, for the band's only visits to a recording studio.

The Prefect's were particularly 'popular' in Manchester and were the one non Manc act at the last night of the legendary Electric Circus in that city. Playing on a bill with Warsaw (later Joy Division), The Negatives, The Worst, The Fall, Magazine, John Cooper Clarke, Buzzcocks and, of course, John The Postman, this show was recorded by Virgin Records but The Prefects refused to be on the record.

However, in 2001 a line up did reform for a couple of low key reunion gigs and, in 2004 Acute Records in NYC released a CD of all the group's studio recordings, plus a song from the Electric Circus tapes and a ten second blast the never-officially recorded track 'VD'.

Bombsite Fanzine 1977; John Cooper Clarke

2008-05-05T11:42:00.023-04:00

"One thing leads to another" ..... JCC

Liverpool Polytech October 19th 1977, John Cooper Clarke the "Punk Poet" performed alongside the Buzzcock's, The New Hearts and The Skunks.

During 1977, John would perform with label associates from Manchester's Rabid label, including Ed Banger and Jilted John. Other support slots included The Buzzcocks, Sex Pistols, Elvis Costello and Warsaw. He inspired his audience on the U.K punk circuit with his good-humored high-speed poetry.
Leaving school at 15, he had a succession of jobs. An apprentice car mechanic, window cleaning, a fire-watcher at the docks, and a lab technician handing out tools to students at Salford Tech. As his popularity grew during 1977 he resigned from this position.

John Cooper Clarke illuminated the punk scene during 1977 with his witty, but opinionated tongue-in-cheek lyrics, and intelligent verse. He always, performed superbly wearing his tight drainpipe trousers and Oxfam jacket, winkle-picker shoes, dark shades and looking like a punk version of Bob Dylan. He soon caught the attention of CBS who quickly signed him up and released his single, "Post war Glamour Girl", which was included on the 1978 debut album, "Disguise in Love". A picture sleeve released in 1978 included Glamour Girl along with, the Kung Fu International track that was recorded live at Eric's club.
The Invisible girls provided backing music for some of the studio recordings, the line up included Pete Shelley from the Buzzcock's and Bill Nelson from Be Bop Delux, with Joy Division's producer Martin Hannett bringing it all together. The band also played on former Penetration, Pauline Murray's solo album.
During the late 80's Johnny Clark went into semi retirement forming a domestic partnership with ex-Velvet Underground singer Nico.

In recent years, his poem "Out of Control Fairground" was printed inside Arctic Monkeys single "Fluorescent Adolescent" CD, which was released on 9 July 2007. The poem is also the inspiration behind the songs video. Another poem was printed inside the 10" release of the same single. Alex Turner of Arctic Monkeys has said he is very fond of Cooper-Clarke's work and takes inspiration for lyrics from his poems. Acts such as the Streets, the Arctic Monkeys and Lilly Allen have continued the tradition of street poetry, by firing off street rhymes with the latest pop sounds.
Take Beasley Street, perhaps one of his finest pieces of work. This anti-celebration of working class Manchester was inherently powerful because it was essentially true and could be applied to any urban context in the late 1970s and 1980s. The lyrics made a direct connection to life for the British working class. But this wasn’t a sentimental journey caught in fading photographs of cheery Northern folk, but a hard-headed analysis of lives wasted, ambitions rotted and the effects of low level but endemic violence, boredom and despair.
The BBC just broadcast this interesting radio documentary about the Manch punk poet http://www. bbc. co. uk/radio4/arts/pip/242oq/

NME quoted the following in 1997 - Clarke is still the role model for any young performance poet not suffering from premature brain death. His Beasley Street remains the greatest piece of writing in the English language.

Below; The Bard of Salford, Manchester's amazing poet John Cooper Clarke

Bombsite Fanzine 1977; Martin & The Brownshirts

2008-05-01T16:49:00.023-04:00

Classic Chester punk band, and Eric's club regulars during 1977. The band consisted of Norman Graveney, Paul Adams, Willie Williams and Paul Urmston.
Around Merseyside, "The Brownshirts" received wide acceptance with the local punks. They chose an antagonistic band name to complete their transformation and symbolize the embodiment of their punk ethic. Which, flatly rejected anything that represented popular culture such as peace, love, disco, psychedelic music, flared jeans, loose-fitting caftans, and 70's hair styles. In their own way, the group were socially ethical and would always put on a fun live performance. On occasion they would play the "rock against racism" gigs in the region. In fact, they had no association with any neo fascist groups, or the ultra right wing national front skinhead movement of the time. Furthermore, they were not promoting a neo-political agenda, even to the degree that "The Clash" or "The Jam" may have. Far from being nihilistic and anarchic or actually believing they could change the country. They saw themselves as entertainers poking fun at the establishment, in the tradition of satirical British writers and music-hall comedians that goes back centuries. Despite lasting only about 12 months, they did get some of their material recorded. "Taxi Driver" and "Boring" managed to move quickly to the top of the alternative charts during 1977. Today, the single is recognized by enthusiasts as a classic early punk record that encompasses the style for the era. Click here for a Tee shirt
We had much in common with Martin & the Brownshirts, we went to the same high school. Drank at the same pubs, including the Golden Eagle in Chester, The Grapes and Eric's club in Liverpool. They supported our fanzine efforts. We were on the same line up at a "Rock against Racism" gig in Chester, along with Mike Peters band The Toilets. And, Addie [Paul] joined "Why Control" for rehearsal on a couple of occasions in late 77 or early 78.

Graham Sclater, Producer and Music publisher - Comments on the recording of Taxi Driver b/w Boring by Martin and the Brown Shirts to Bombsite 2008.
The tracks for the Martin and The Brown Shirts single were recorded at Gooseberry Studios in Gerard Street, China Town in central London. During a break from recording we all left the studio for a late breakfast in the café next door. We were ordering our food when Johnny Rotten came in wearing a full length green leather coat. Despite repeated requests from all of us to join us on the session he declined and left empty handed. The session went well and the results can be heard on the Lightning Records 7” single. We also released the single on our own Tabitha label in the Benelux a few months later. Following the success of the single I booked Decibel Studios in Stoke Newington to record an album but it was never released. The band had decided to change their name to “The Co-Starz” along with their music and wouldn’t promote it. “It is a great single and I believe one of the best of that era!”

Graham has a copy of the Brownshirts Taxi Driver / Boring single on the Lightning label - if a collector or enthusiast is interested in purchasing the record please email Graham Sclater graham@tabithamusic.com

Above; For Sale Taxi Driver classic single
As the pop punk or new wave movement developed toward a more radio friendly commercialized sound, The Brownshirts reinvented themselves as "The Co-Starz". Later, vocalist Norman and drummer Willie would see some commercial success during the post punk era with "The Montellas". Touring extensively along with "Was not Was" on their US tour.

Below; The Montellas; A long way from Martin & the Brownshirts

Bombsite Fanzine 1977; The Worst

2008-04-28T15:46:00.011-04:00

Eric's September 3rd 1977 The Buzzcock's, The Rage and The Worst ;
The greatest thing about the Worst was, they represented perfectly the lives of thousands of unemployed British kids. They embodied the spirit of youthful rebellion and served as a symbol of resolve to break away from generations of traditional bureaucracy. As their authentic performances inspired others to get out and do something. During that Summer, hundreds of bands formed in different parts of the country that looked and sounded just like the Worst. Collectively, we only needed a few to represent the punk legacy. These lad's were part of the answer, designed and developed from punk generation street DNA. They appeared ambivalent about their image on and off the stage. The projected message was not to tell us all to support the downtrodden, [ref Billy Brag and Paul Weller]. The message was let's create a new future of entrepreneurs and self starters. This was a band playing live with Woolworth's equipment, ad libbing their set whilst supporting The Buzzcock's. Imagine that today. The Worst also presented a serious value for the cause. This discipline and obedience worked to mature their punk image of morality and freedom ....... The Worst released no records, and that is how it needed to be. They represent the legacy of many, the punks that served in the trenches. Bands that did not go vinyl but stayed true to their core. The fanzine writers that did not write a book and sell out to a publisher. The designers that made their own clothing and did not compromise their styles. To take away the spontaneity would dilute the do-it-yourself vision of 1977.
Below; Early Buzzcock's Manchester Classic

Bombsite Fanzine 1977; The Drones

2008-04-22T16:13:00.017-04:00

Above; Drones sticker part of Johna collection click here
Formed in Manchester in 1975, the band started out as a pub rock outfit called Roller Coaster. When their only single did not have an impact, they found a new direction, and reinvented themselves as a punk rock band. The band developed a local rivalry with the emerging band the Buzzcock's, but failed to match the success of their rivals outside of their home town. For a period of time, the band were produced and managed by Paul Morley.

On Monday, October 1, 1977 The Drones, released their second single, "Bone Idle". It was backed by "Just Want To Be Myself". That year The Manchester, England punk band released three singles and their album "Further Temptations".

On 14 October 1977 The Stranglers and the Drones played Liverpool University: The Stranglers part of the evening was recorded and released on various bootlegs : The recording includes unique live rendition of English Towns. Considered a great gig, with good quality taping. The gig commentary was included in Bombsite issue 5 and written by a friend of ours. The Skunks were playing over at Eric's on this night, Franco Cornelli from the Skunks notes that the Stranglers head over to the club and catch the end of their set, he also described Jean Jacques Burnels fist injury from the earlier fight.

click to enlarge

On Thursday November 24th The Drones released their album on independent Valer Records. It's called "Further Temptations," the follow up to their EP "Temptations Of A White Collar Worker." It has two tracks re-recorded from the EP, as well as both sides of the band's single. Besides the twelve original songs, there is an odd remake of the Ronette's "Be My Baby." Also the girl on front cover as legend has it, was a hooker the record label booked to celebrate the bands signing earlier in the year. She promptly sent her bill to the label after her appointment!

Above; Drones poster part of Johna from Bradford collection

On December 3rd 1977, Paul Morley working for the New Musical Express gives a rather slamming review of their album "Further Temptations";
There's A dull ache in my head - The Drones. An album already? A few months ago they were moaning how everyone and everything was against them. They'd released an EP, "The Temptations Of A White Collar Worker" . . .You can sell anything as long as "it" lasts, their manager states - "it" being the punk, boom (chaos by any other name). Meanwhile the EP sells fairly well. They meet The Stranglers, who take a fancy to them. They play a few 'Prestige' dates with the nice chappies and make solid contacts........ .. And so it goes.
The Drones were slammed for their pub rock roots that so many other punk bands had migrated from. There is no disguising the shampooed, cut and blown punk pop style here. Paul Morley as a Manchester local had recognized the bands talent. But, Morley had acrimoniously extracted himself from the group just in time to review the record. Much of his shared venom had to do with his support of the local competition. Manchester punk rivals the Buzzcocks / Worst camp that would give The Drone's a good kicking any chance they had. The Bombsite and Liverpool locals liked this band, maybe more than some of the other Manchester pub rockers. For example, the ever-so theatric Slaughter and the Dogs were hippies turned punks and they had somehow supported the Sex Pistols at Manchester's legendary Free Trade Hall gig. Another 1977 Punk with some good commentary about the period is Johna from Bradford myspace . He watched the Stranglers and Drones on the same tour, and a few other occasions during 1977 1978. As a fan he considered their live work energetic and useful for the punk movement. There were many studio created punk rock bandwagoneers. Some of them did a better job disguising there roots with record label PR formulated to disguise the truth. The irony was that unemployed punks with no previous experience would go off and buy a guitar from Woolworths, learn 3 chords, form a band and were unable to follow the spirit of 77.

classic Stranglers Hope and Anchor London UK 1977

From Wiki
Most bands in the thriving Manchester punk scene stayed in the city, but The Drones relocated to London. They became one of the pioneering punk bands that performed in the first few months of the now-legendary Roxy Club. They supported The Vibrators in January 1977, headlined in February, and supported X-Ray Spex and Chelsea in March. Later that year they supported The Stranglers on tour. The band appeared on two influential early punk compilation albums Streets and Short Circuit and Live at the Electric Circus.

Bombsite Fanzine 1977; Big In Japan

2008-04-15T14:32:00.021-04:00

Eric's Liverpool, Saturday August 27th 1977.
The "Big in Japan", Generation X gig night resulted in a negative write up in Bombsite issue 2 that possibly led to a "Big in Japan" split. Prior to this event the Clash, The Buzzcocks and the Damned had energized Eric's regulars and they wanted to see more three chord energetic punk bands.
In the US art band Devo had released their first EP on Stiff Records and included songs later to be released on their debut LP.
Big in Japan were the Eric's house band made up of eclectic regulars from Liverpool art school, left overs from the Deaf School Tangerene Dream era. Jane Casey donned a lampshade and her voice shrilled like a broken violin. Later the band members would experiment with sounds, style, imagery and progress to other local groups.

Big in Japan Members included the following
* Budgie - The Spitfire Boys, The Slits and then Siouxsie & the Banshees
* Ian Broudie - The Original Mirrors, Care, The Lightning Seeds and producer
* Bill Drummond - Lori & the Chameleons, the Zoo record label, and The KLF
* David Balfe - Lori & the Chameleons, and The Teardrop Explodes and Food records
* Jayne Casey - Pink Military and Pink Industry and the Liverpool club and art scenes
* Holly Johnson - later of Frankie Goes to Hollywood and solo artist
* Kev Ward and Phil Allen - no further musical activity

There was no social political angst with this band talent would move through it became a rest stop. The fanzine write up describes how disinterested the audience were. The band existed because Roger Eagle liked the members and would give them great support slots like this one with Generation X. Johna remembers a Big in Japan gig at the Royal Standard in Bradford where the band were thrown out and chased down the street.

Check out this 1977 classic video of Generation X

After the fanzine review Jayne shrilled at us about the negative write up. But local support was failing and members pulled out of the band. talented member of Big in Japan was Holly Johnson, he would see popularity along with Paul Rutherford from the Spitfire Boys, in Frankie Goes to Hollywood.

Below; Interesting Holly Johnson video

Julian Cope started a petition at local Probe Records that would gather more momentum as many more Eric's regulars signed up to encourage the band to split. Big in Japan tried to laugh it off by signing the petition themselves, but the band model was broke and they needed to move on.

Bombsite Fanzine 1977; 999 live at Eric's

2008-04-01T15:17:00.021-04:00

Photo 999 Eric's Liverpool

Saturday September 17th Eric's Liverpool;

In 1976 Nick Cash, Guy Days, Jon Watson and Pablo LaBritain started to play together. The first gig together was January 1st 1977 and their band was called The Dials. Soon they changed their name to 48 Hours, after that The Fanatics, and then in May 1977 they became 999. By July they were in the studio recording their first single "I'm Alive". The single was released in August and all 10000 copies were sold within a few weeks. The Bombsite also references the United Artist signing that occurred on Wednesday October 26th, and then the release of their brilliant punk classic "Nasty Nasty" that also occurred during October .

Above clip from Bombsite issue 5 - click to enlarge
During 1977 we watched 999 play on a few different occasions. They were always colorful energetic and full of action. Nick Cash entered into the punk movement through a a similar routing as Joe Strummer, whom had been a London squatter and played with the pub rock band the 101'ers. Kieth Lucas [later Nick Cash] had worked the pub circuit along with Ian Drury in "Kilburn and the High Roads" and were regulars at the Hope and Anchor in Islington. The London pub rock scene predated the punk movement and was an early signal of a rebellious change ready to kick the powerful progressive rock bands in the bollocks. Other pub rockers from the mid 70's included Dr Feelgood, Elvis Costello, Eddie and the Hot Rods, Wreckless Eric, The Stranglers and others. The economy was grinding to a halt and then someone lit the bomb and punk rock blew out of the city like a guitar crunching freight train.
Below; Kieth Lucas and Ian Dury in pub rock band "Kilburn and the High Road"

We shared a table in the Grapes before the show with Nick and Guy and spent the time talking about the UK music scene over a pint. After the show, we rode in a cab and Nick dropped us off in a derelict part of town. A lot of Liverpool was like that back then, vast areas where terraced homes or tower blocks once stood now a pile of rubble. We made our way across the wasteland toward a record store in Birkenhead where we planned to sell or give away some more fanzines. During the cab ride we gave Nick Cash a copy of Bombsite issue 2. The copy would reappear 30 years later as part of Dizzy's collection at Detour Records.
This performance at Eric's is interesting because there is little record of the event and few people attended the show.

The following are release dates of 999's early work

I'm Alive / Quite Disappointing (Labritain LAB-999) 9/1977
Nasty Nasty / No Pity (United Artists UP-36299) 10/1977
Emergency / My Street Stinks (Untied Artists UP-36399) 1/1978
Below; Nick Cash and 999 Emergency

Bombsite Fanzine 1977; The Toilets

2008-03-18T20:21:00.027-04:00

Above clip from Bombsite fanzine issue 5
Few bands left a more distinct mark on the Welsh rock experience than Mike Peters band The Alarm, but few will remember Mike's punk band The Toilets. Prompted to form a band after watching the Sex Pistols play at Quantways in Chester during October 1976. The band formed in Rhyl during 1977 with Mike Peters, Glyn Crossley, O'Malley and Nigel Twist.
Some of the group members worked as bank clerks in Chester. Even here Mike Peters was a nice bloke, and would always greet people with optimism's and a smile. But the group members all embraced the revolutionary, equal-opportunity and controversial punk image at the weekend. Mike's determination and vision was passionate, as he would discuss the day when his band would be recognized as a Welsh rock band. Interestingly, they were followed around from gig to gig by the most loyal, hardest punks in the area, "The Buckley Contingent". Merchant seamen, dockers and miners. These guys were not to be messed with.
We first met Mike Peters in late Spring 1977. Mark, Smasher Dean, my girlfriend and myself were in a bar on the promenade in Rhyl. Mike Peters sitting at the bar talking with some locals. Soon after arriving the whole place exploded in an old western style bar fight after someone mouthed off. The owner tried to break it up and tried to lock the door. We pushed our way out and legged it. On the way back I asked Alg "what did the guy say", he said "I don't know I saw his lips move so I whaled on him". About a week later, we met Mike at Eric's, unaware that it was him in the bar. He explained that the group of guys we had worked over, continually cause trouble with the local punks. And the word around town was they had now got what they had asked for.
No known recordings of the Toilets exist today, although Mike Peters did have a 1977 recording from the Buzzcock's Eric's gig. Regrettably, the recording was stolen from his car in 1980.
Singer, lyricist and guitarist Mike Peters, is now a globally recognized figure of tremendous musical influence, with different variations of the Alarm. But his original band The Toilets were a short lived punk marvel, featuring energetic Clash inspired punk anthems. As Eric's regulars the band performed support for the Clash on October 22nd 1977 and The Buzzcock's and The Fall on November 18th 1977. Sex Pistols, Paul Cook and Steve Jones were present for the November 18th gig.

Our band "Why Control " supported "The Toilets" for a few different gigs. For one gig they let us use their equipment. This was unheard of with bands back then, since everyone was getting robbed.
Mike's talent, honesty and passion resonates with me today. The Toilets disbanded after playing their last gig at the 1520 Club in Rhyl on Friday January 27th 1978.
A few months later we watched Mike with his new band Seventeen in a pub on Station Rd as newly formed mod band Seventeen. The place was packed with punks, mods and skins. The sound was tight and very refreshing. We were at the bar when Mike came over and started telling us about the new band the sound and the line up.
click video to review early Alarm live performance

In December 2005 Mike was diagnosed with Lymphocyte Leukemia and is fighting this battle with the assistance of his family and many fans.
Steve Pond described The Alarm in his Rolling Stone review as "simple, forceful music, rambling strings of earnestly poetic images and the conviction that speaking out just might change a few things." What Steve Pond did not understand is that as the black clouds of recession tried to kill a generation. Eric's creative fire exploded with a spirit of do it yourself, do it your way and don't back off.
Hats off to Mike Peters and the Alarm, initially a hardcore punk band, stopped by the mod scene with a band named Seventeen for a while. Matured throughout the '80s before emerging as a successful alternative rock act during the '90s. Mike Peters has achieved the quintessence when it comes to the necessary elements of great rock bands and has continued the 77 spirit with tours into 2008. All the best mate..!

Above; City Road Chester Venue for Seventeen 1978

Bombsite Fanzine 1977; Alternative TV

2008-03-17T21:02:00.011-04:00

Eric's Liverpool, October 1st 1977; Former Bank clerk and "Sniffin Glue" fanzine writer Mark Perry played a revolutionary show along with his band Alternative TV. Their cutting edge sound was a hybrid of Brixton reggae, and droning punk music.

Mark P's fanzine introduced in July 1976, was originally an outlet to show support for the Ramones, as they toured the UK. Considered the first UK punk fanzine, "Sniffin Glue" reached a distribution volume of around 15000 by February 1977. The fanzines main distribution outlet was Rough Trade records, along with a few other London contacts. A lousy review of a Sex Pistols gig appeared in issue number 3.
In early 1977 Mark P formed a partnership with Miles Copeland and formed Step Forward Records. During March 1977, he formed Alternative TV along with guitarist Alex Fergusson, they performed their first gig together at the Nottingham Punk festival in May 1977.
During August 1977, the fanzine released their last issue #12, with Sham 69 on the front cover. Included in this issue was a flexi-disc EP with the Alternative TV track "Love Lies Limp".

Bombsite Fanzine 1977; Wayne County & The Electric Chairs

2008-03-13T22:20:00.026-04:00

Wed November 23rd 1977: U.S band "Wayne County and the Electric Chairs" arrived for their second appearance at Eric's club in Liverpool. Wayne County along with The Dead Boys, The Stooges, The New York Dolls, The Heartbreakers and a few other bands were part of the CBGB's punk extravaganza, who interestingly could relate to the eclectic Eric's club regulars.
London based "Sniffin Glue" zine writer Mark Perry and his band Alternative TV, supported Wayne County for this gig.
The following clips are from Bombsite issue #5 with additional commentary about the Alternative TV performance elsewhere on this site.

Earlier during August 1977 Wayne County and the Electric Chairs were offered a spot at the UK Reading Music Festival. They were considered the first punk band to play that event. Their performance was hampered with a mud slinging exchange between the band and the audience, commonplace today, but in 1977 this demonstrated the audience resistance toward an alternative style and punk rock.
Issue #5 included some guest writer contributions, Chris Harrap, had performed some Eric's DJ dates wrote the following review. Chris had got to know Eric's manager Roger Eagle from some earlier DJ work in Wigan during the Northern Soul period.

Chris lived in North Wales and was friendly with Mike Peter's who was also an Eric's regular. Chris convinced Mike that he could help promote his band "The Toilets". Chris organized an ill fated tour of London venues during 1978. The band traveled to London and played no shows and attracted no interest from record companies. Although they were not alone, London venues were only interested in promoting local punks, and the record companies were more interested in U.S punk bands or Kings Road clothing boutique employees with spikey haircuts and guitars.

Bombsite Fanzine 1977; XTC & The Table Eric's

2008-03-11T12:31:00.005-04:00

Eric's August 13th 1977 ; First up tonight were The Table from Cardiff, Wales, best known for their 1977 single "Do The Standing Still". They consisted of Russell Young (vocals, guitar, keyboards, bass), Tony Barnes (guitars, bass), Len Lewis (drums) and Mickey O'Connor (guitars). Russell Young and Tony Barnes had been performing together since 1971 in the band John Stabber, and formed "Do You Want This Table" in 1972. However, they did not own any instruments, refused to tour, and stated that they weren't a "real" band and had no future in music. Despite this, they were signed to Virgin Records and released the single "Do The Standing Still, first recorded as a demo in 1975. The record became an NME Single Of The Week, and became a cult favorite, and subsequently appeared on several punk compilations. Record company pressure saw them reluctantly become a live act. However, their uncompromising stance led to disagreements with Virgin, and they left,signing to Chiswick Records in 1978 and releasing a second single, "Sex Cells". The band ceased to exist after several line-up changes and a policyof playing increasingly distasteful material. Russell Young's later band, Flying Colours, released a single, "Abstract Art", on "No Records" in 1981.

As we left The Grape's we noted an equipment trailer outside the club. XTC's recording unit was set up on Matthew Street. This was interesting stuff for us. Expensive equipment sitting in a back ally in Liverpool during the late 70's was rare. And usually would not last long.

Virgin had beat out Island and EMI to sign XTC, and the band wanted to be recorded live via their mobile truck. Eric's would be the first live taping of this unknown band. Formed back in 1971 or 1972 they could not shake off the hippy branding with the Liverpool punks. We never really understood XTC, they kind of sledded in on the Punk rock wave, and then sailed off into a jingly jangly poppy future.

Early XTC Video it is a pity that the energy did not make it onto the vinyl ...

Recently, I was walking around a discount store in Toledo. They were playing The Boomtown Rats and XTC on a loop through the store. It was like some cheap TV commercial music. XTC were pretty good live, but very ordinary and forgettable and did not fight for their spot in music.

The live recording from this night at Eric's is still available on the "A Coat of Many Cupboards" box set. The keyboard broke down during the performance and started to emit a gargling sound. The roadies gave it a hammering but no good, so they switched to a piano for the duration of the performance. Later XTC commented "Every time we played Eric's two individuals would turn
up, one would shout 'John The Postman' in the gaps between the songs and the other, even more mystifyingly, would bellow 'bromide, get into bromide'. You can hear this on the recording. It was most likely the best part of the album.

Bombsite Fanzine 1977; The Mutants

2008-03-06T16:09:00.004-05:00

The Mutant's ! A funny thing happened that summer, Mark was walking down City Road past the Black Abbot's recording studio in Chester, and Paul Codman drummer for the Mutant's, was standing in the doorway and stopped him.
The shakedown was like "Hey Punk did you hear of the Mutant's? Well we are recording our record right here". Mark and I spent the next couple of days hanging out with them in the studio as they recorded their EP. Paul was pushing the band to capture a Pistols sound on the tracks. But they were a mixed bag of musical backgrounds, and the sound came out that way.

The Mutants originated from Birkenhead and featured ; Paul Codman on drums. Later Paul moved on to join Egypt For Now. On guitar was Keith Wilson who was born in Kensington, Liverpool, and whose family background include actors, theater managers and entertainers. He later worked extensively throughout the UK and Europe as an actor, director, stand-up poet and musician.

On stage they were energetic, similar to Slaughter and the Dogs, but the art crowd was not letting them in at Eric's.
The Bombsite writers watched them play on a few occasions at the Havana in Liverpool, and in Bombsite #1 there is a write-up of a concert where they supported the Jam playing at Mr. Digby's in Birkenhead. The Bombsite writers spent most of the time with Paul. We remember how he expressed his frustration to be accepted as a Liverpool punk band.

The Mutants evolved from a space rock band that would practice above Skeleton records shop. Roddie Gilliard later with the Muffin Men, joined and brought his love of the MC5 and Pink Fairies into the picture. They released two singles in 1977 on the local ROX label, the first was Bossman and hit the Sounds indie chart. Their London debut was at the Roxy in Covent Garden
supporting The Police.

Bombsite Fanzine 1977; Electric Circus

2008-02-21T11:02:00.019-05:00

The Sex Pistols' Anarchy tour played the Electric Circus twice during December 1976, when most towns would not allow the group to play even once. The Electric Circus, was a heavy metal venue in Collyhurst, soon hijacked by the punks who needed a venue to listen to the new music. And they invaded and outraged this dull, drab region of Manchester. On Sunday August 28th Bombsite fanzine review the big 1977 punk gig at the Electric Circus.

Interesting to note that even as late as August 1977, punk rock shows were still considered less popular Sunday night gigs. Northern Punks from the era will remember being considered outrageous and even eccentric by most of the public. If you were a punk in 1977 you knew how to fight.

On September 1st 1977 at Rafter's Nightclub, in Manchester. The Buzzcocks headline, supported by The Prefects and the Distractions open the set. Paul Morley was at the show.

The Distractions added Alec Sidebottom to drums later in 1977. After some punk performances where they supported most of Manchester's contemporary bands, they secured a contract with Tony Wilson of Factory Records in 1979, and released the double A side single "Time Goes By So Slow"/ "Pillow Fight", which failed to make commercial success. A move to Island Records and several releases still failed to achieve success, and the group split up in 1981.

Joy Division/ The Distractions:
Electric Ballroom - 26th October 1979

The venue that the locals had taken over lasted only 10 frantic months before being shut down by the authorities. Ian Curtis's band Warsaw played the clubs closing farewell show on 2 October 1977. But, there was no time to be sentimental, the movement was now getting bigger and starting to move faster.

Bombsite Fanzine 1977; Fast Breeder Eric's

2008-02-11T08:55:00.019-05:00

Above; Zip Bates Slaughter & the Dogs, Terry Lean Fast Breeder The Grapes Liverpool
Mathew Street, the Grapes, the Cavern, Probe records and Eric's, this area of Liverpool has a tremendous musical history. There is a booth in The Grapes pub where the Beatles used to sit and drink in the 60's. The original fabric and wallpaper is still intact. Ten years later, Wayne County, 999, Mike Peters, Slaughter and the Dogs, Pete Wylie, Ian McCulloch and other musicians would ponder their future from this location. Like Bourbon St. is for Jazz, some locals believe that Mathew St, should be recognized as a spiritual location for British Rock. Others, think there is some mystical energy in the center of the street that inspires musical talent.
It is August 22nd 1977, and the commentary in Bombsite issue 2, [clip below] describes an encounter with the writers and Manchester punk bands Slaughter+TD's and Fast Breeder, at the Grapes before their show.

The Bombsite writers did some of their best interviews in that pub. Drinking a beer together with the Eric's locals and visiting bands, the place resonated fabulous energy. Mike Peters would stop by. Pete Wylie would join us, we liked him, he liked us, no one was famous here, not even the bands, we were all kids, and believed that egos were for old men. That is why it all worked, it was a laugh. There was us, and there was the rest of the world, and if it did not work, then, we would try something different.
Fast Breeder's young manager Alan Erasmus walked into the bar looking for Terry the guitarist. He was missing at the sound check and the band warm up. Later that night at the club we spoke with Alan about the whole Manchester verses Liverpool music scene. The North was becoming a hotbed of new talent, but record companies and the media had not realized any potential. They were slow to accommodate Northern bands.
Alan, was unemployed and looking for something to do. He had started his career as an actor, appearing in Coronation Street, and a TV Movie named Hard Labour. Within a few months of this encounter, Alan Erasmus would develop Fast Breeder into the Durratti Column, and start a life long friendship, and business partnership with Tony Wilson.

Above; Phil Fast Breeder Eric's Liverpool 1977
During 1977 Fast Breeder played alongside Warsaw [later Joy Division] at Manchester bar Rafters, the event was unorganized and Fast Breeder decided perform first, they finish their set until after midnight. Warsaw had to take to the stage before a near-empty bar at 1:30am. This sent Warsaw vocalist Ian Curtis into a frenzy. He dived off the stage, smashed bottles, and threatened to slice up the remaining clientele. Promoter Rob Gretton was fascinated by Ian's energy and his reaction and worked to become Warsaw's manager.
On May 19th 1978 Tony Wilson and Alan Erasmus opened the Factory. The Factory would run on Friday nights at Russel's night club in Hulme, to promote local talent. Soon, the two were joined by others, including graphic artist Peter Saville and Joy Division manager Rob Gretton. By the end of 1978 the collective enterprise had formed Factory Records in Didsbury. By 1982 the entourage had opened the Hacienda nightclub. One of the most famous dance clubs in the world to assist them with their continuous search for musical talent.
The movie 24 hour Party People tells the "Factory Hacienda" story, and details the complexities of allowing bands greater artistic freedom. The 2007 Joy Division movie "Control" expands on Factory records colorful adventures.
These men were punks in suits, and they understood how to break down bureaucratic walls. Although plagued with resistance and legal problems, their relentless spirit forged a model that would benefit the advancement of modern British music.

Bombsite Fanzine 1977; Eric's Handbills

2008-02-03T18:29:00.007-05:00

The [1st] Eric's handbill below has recently been discovered as part of the Bombsite Fanzine stuff, stashed in Mark's spare room for the past 30 years. The other copies can be found in a few different locations on the internet. Nothing from 1977 so far...

Eric's Gig list September 1978
Eric's Gig List 1978 Robbo Johnson's Collection

Eric's Gig list November 1979
Eric's Gig list May 1978
Eric's Gig list March 1979
Eric's Gig list December 1978
Eric's gig List 1979 Part Of Robbo Johnson's collection

Eric's Gig list November 1979 [b]
Eric's Gig list May 1978 [b]
Eric's Gig list August 1978

Interesting Eric's promotion badge March 10th 1977

The Following from Mel's Soulkiss collection

Bombsite Fanzine 1977; Punk77 and Bored Teenager

2008-01-29T19:05:00.002-05:00

BETWEEN 1976 and 1978, the UK was host to some of the most exciting new bands and youth energy seen only a few times in popular music and culture. Two web sites that have worked hard to compile an accurate record of this period, Punk77 and Bored Teenager add interesting commentary, rare photos and previously unheard stories.

Compiled with passion and many years of research, both Punk77 and Bored Teenager have documented punk music with a marked difference. Take a tour for yourself, and as you journey from page to page, some band names will jump out, and require no introduction – the Adverts or Generation X, for instance. But, in between, you will see interesting profiles of lesser known but influential punk bands such as the Skunks, The Brownshirts, The Spitfire Boys and Seventeen. Whose musicians continue to inspire the punk, and post-punk revolution that continues to reshape popular music today. No matter what your opinion about the era, there have been some influential UK bands and social ideology that has changed popular culture all over the world. 1977 punk bands took multiple influences and merged them into their own attitude, to be loud, be obnoxious and make your own rules.

Detour records site Bored Teenager, is managed by Dizzy, a mod, that everyone from the era knows. I have had the pleasure of working with him on some band research projects. He seems like a real genuine guy, a very nice man with solid ethical value, and I really like him. I worked with Paul at Punk77 on the Why Control / Bombsite profile, he was a more behind the scenes type of guy. Paul's useful research, and recent book about the Roxy punk venue [video below], is a credit to the punk scene.
OK we all have our heroes from the period, but it was the movement as a whole that left behind a residue. It was this influence that came from regional bands originating from "brash and showy" Liverpool, "angry and introvert" Manchester," punk and reggae" Birmingham, or "saint and sinner" Glasgow that gave the overall movement enough historical horse power and continue to pulsate.
Many people have benefited from Paul and Dizzy's service. Both guys have contributed to the awareness of UK social expression and talent. For stimulating the momentum, I want to say "thanks to both of you". To everyone else I want to say "are we ready to have another go"?

Bombsite Fanzine 1977; The Buzzcocks, The Skunks

2008-01-26T13:16:00.015-05:00

Punk Gig at Liverpool Polytechnic October 7th 1977, The Buzzcocks, The Skunks the New Hearts and John Cooper Clark were on the schedule that night.

As punk concerts around the North of England grew more popular through late 1977, gig performances improved as bands played tighter and the more locals were starting to participate in the movement. This night was a good one, the Chester, Rhyl and Buckley contingents gathered outside the entrance with the Eric's regulars before the show. Jamaican rhythm migrated through the walls and there was lots of beer spilling by the bar.

Loads has been written about the Buzzcock, they were, and still are the originals. Influenced by Velvet Underground and The Stooges by late 1975 Pete Shelley and Howard Devoto were practicing together and developed a sound. In February 1976 the two traveled to London to watch the Sex Pistols. It was that encounter where Shelley and Devoto arranged for the Sex Pistols to perform at the Lesser Free Trade Hall in Manchester in June 1976. The Buzzcocks intended to play at this concert but were unable to recruit other musicians in time for the gig.
42 locals attended and it is referred to as the gig that changed the world in Tony Wilson's movie "24 hour Party People". Soon after they recruited bass guitarist Steve Diggle and drummer John Maher and made their debut opening for the Sex Pistols' second Manchester gig in July 1976.

Below; A great clip of DeVoto-era Buzzcocks performing

By the end of 1976, The Buzzcocks had released the Spiral Scratch four-track EP, on New Hormone label, making them the first punk group to establish an independent record label. A few months later, Devoto left the group. Diggle switched from bass to guitar, and Garth Smith joined on bass; due to Smith's alcoholism, he was replaced with Steve Garvey. This new line-up signed with United Artists Records.

The Bombsite writers were directed upstairs and along a hallway to a classroom. We looked in a bunch of the rooms and eventually found one filled with smoke with about eight people inside including the Buzzcocks and John Cooper Clark. The room was set up with school desks and chairs and a blackboard.

There was a bunch of sound equipment laying around. Pete Shelly had his guitar plugged in to a small amp, and the guy close to the stage curtain in the above photo was hammering out Buzzcock riffs to the amusement of everyone in the room. He played pretty well, no doubt he went on to have his own band and music career. We spent most of our time with Garth sitting on and around one of the school desk with the other band members close by.

click to enlarge
Our experience with Garth that night was good, we found him a likable guy, polite and he was happy to assist with our review, he was not drunk or even tipsy and we have been around some wombats. The interview was recorded in Bombsite issue #5, possibly the last interview with the Buzzcocks. He mentioned nothing about leaving the band and most likely did not know his destiny. The following night's Coventry gig would be his last performance with the band.

The support band that stood out that night were the The Skunks, the crowd were ready for the big line up and it included a mixture of students, pogoing punks, mods and the Eric's art crowd plus loads of flying lager cans. The Skunks fired back with tons of youth energy. The band had worked with the Buzzcocks during 1977/78 supporting them at the Roxy and Free Trade in Manchester. Along with many other punk rock bands in and around London including, XTC at the 100 Club, The Police at the Vortex, and were spotted and signed

Click to Enlarge

by Pete Townshend and Keith Moon after supporting Generation X at a Vortex gig. The first single Good from the Bad / Back Street Fighting released on Eel Pie records in 1978 sold 2000 copies. Guitarist Gerry Lambe contacted Bombsite to thank us for digging out the photo after 30 years.
The Skunks were: Gerry Lambe - Guitar, Franco Cornelli - Guitar, Hugh Ashton - Bass and Pete Sturgeon - Drums.

The New Hearts played The Roxy and The Vortex and were signed to CBS sometime around the time of this gig. The sounded much better live than on vinyl and were positioned well at the end of 1977 to take advantage the popular mod interest. Supported the Jam on a UK tour and a few dates with 999.
On November 21st 1977, the New Hearts released their debut single, "Just Another Teenage Anthem". It was backed by "Blood On The Knife". They were from Essex, U.K. and released two singles before disbanding. Two of the members, Ian Page and Dave Cairns formed mod revivalist band named Secret Affair.

The Buzzcocks poster included in Bombsite issue 5 - we actually received a check from UA

Why Control 1977; Kings Road, Chelsea

2008-01-22T13:29:00.003-05:00

Above; Early Clash Punk Bikers
At eighteen, Mark and Martin, were familiar with Chelsea's Kings Road and would regularly pay homage to the popular pubs, clubs and boutiques and then return North charged by their experiences.
The King's Road begins in some splendor; Belgravia, Sloane Square, the Duke of York's barracks but it finishes with a council estate in a district called World's End. For the punks who colonized it in 1976, there was revolution in the air, and the hot weather that year helped, too.
The King's Road was always an interesting adventure of clothing boutiques, record stores, antique and art dealers; Small shop's that provided a modern trendy style for shoppers. Young fashion graduates and enthusiasts sensed the spirit and plunged in. Taking advantage of the cheap rent, they opened their own boutiques among the fish shops, pubs and greengrocers, attracting customers with their outlandish names and window displays. A visit to the King's Road was a journey towards self-expression.
On a Saturday afternoon the rock and pop celebrities would mix with the crowds, and shoppers would emerge transformed, in outlandish fashionable clothing. In central Chelsea, at 430 King's Road, was a clothing store that during the 1970's was the location of a music club called Sex. This was where flamboyant Malcolm McLaren would spot his band's members amongst the local riff-raff that visited as Saturday regulars. Malcolm ran the store with his partner Vivienne Westwood. Their lives, along with John Lydon, Steve Jones, Glen Matlock and Paul Cook would be transformed as the King's Road was ready to explode that hot summer of 1976. Within 12 months the Roxy Bowie more feminine look of narrow Levis and plastic sandals and eye liner, would transform into leather jackets, brothel creepers and 3 chord rock. The punk clothing stall Acme Attractions, located in the basement of the Antiquarius Antiques Market. Would, in 1977 move upstairs, becoming the Boy shop. Sex, could boast Chrissie Hynde as an assistant, and Adam Ant as a patron, but Boy had its own scene too, launching the career of Billy Idol. Queues of blue haired drama majors flocked in fishnets and PVC to see The Rocky Horror Show.

Poly Styrene was sitting in her boutique in Beaufort Market, King's Road, when the manager of the Man in the Moon came in and picked up a day-glo tie. His focus, however, was on the girl with braces on her teeth: Poly. Having read in the local Chelsea newspaper that Poly also had a band, this entrepreneur offered a residency at the Man in the Moon, the now infamous World's End pub and theater space in Chelsea between Vivienne Westwood's Seditionaries store and Beaufort Market. We were from Britain's North and had a punk attitude, and no money to buy a mohair jumper or a ripped T shirt from Boy or Sex. We couldn't afford anything. But we would go back North and make our own clothing using stencils, paint and razor blades. Ollie Wisdom was another punk that ran a clothing store on the Kings Road, and this is where he met student Mark Curzon. Mark read Ollie's guitarist requirement from a note pinned on his T shirt. By June 1977 they were headlining as The Unwanted and played regular spots at London venues, including the Man in the Moon. This is where we met them, on the Queen's Jubilee weekend. The stage was downstairs at a basement level and the place was alive. Joe Strummer and Mick Jones stopped in on Motorcycles that night. It was the buzz around the bar, but the locals seemed used to it, nobody was rushing out for autographs, as the Clash were simply part of the local crowd. The Unwanted were good, Ollie, the singer had a question mark shaved in his head. We spent some time talking with him about the local scene. Bass player Dave Postman was also friends with Sid Vicious, and played with him in The Flowers of Romance. After ripping an Unwanted poster from the wall. We left the place ready to get the last train and had to leg to Sloan Square. It was an exciting time.

Bombsite Fanzine; Reconstruction Project

2008-01-09T11:24:00.002-05:00

Along with a couple of other projects, I have been working to include a reconstruction of our 1977 Bombsite fanzines in episode format. These episodes coincide with each Bombsite issue with the original commentary expanded by the original writers to bring them up to date.
The whole thing started when Mark turned 50, as this event energized me to do something to try and capture the adventures we had during our teenage punk years.
Nothing too serious, and most likely not for resale, maybe for my daughter to read when she gets older, or for us, so that we don't forget our crazy energetic youth.
Mark, saved lots of items from the period, and found stories, photos and other stuff that has worked for the project. My sister had kept copies of Bombsite #1 and #2, and Dizzy from Bored Teenager found a copy of issue #5 with a fanzine collector in Greece. But issue three is still missing. We believe that issue #4 was skipped and not released.
Furthermore, I have been working alongside Dizzy at Detour records, and Paul over at Punk77. Both these guys run great punk reference sites on the internet, and have helped me find dates and threads of information for this project.

For 2008 completion, the overall project will recreate the four issues, as a limited redesigned book-set. This production includes original Bombsite interviews, Why Control adventures and memories from the era. Through the lives of three nineteen year old local punk rockers we aim to highlight the social value of experimental music, fashion and unleashed youth energy, as a mechanism to enhance urban change for Britain's north.

Why Control 1977 ; Saturday Night Fever

2008-01-01T13:55:00.002-05:00

The UK disco boom started in the mid 70's, and continued through the early 80's. The London UK premier for Saturday Night Fever was on January 1st 1978. The US release was in December 1977. The dress style was particularly annoying as mainstream UK nightclubs were scattered with twits wearing powder blue suits, dodgy shirt collars, gold medallions and leather dancing shoes. I was attending Chester college at the time and guys in my class were getting their hair permed. Disco fever peaked at the end of 1977, with the release of the movie soundtrack. As Brits started to hear stories of the wild nights at Studio 54 in New York City they took the bait, hook line and sinker. Ten of the 17 songs from the soundtrack would become hits, with seven #1 hits.
In contrast the punk rockers were rock and rollers wearing leather jackets, tee shirts [often ripped or with written slogans] narrow pants or jeans, with DM's or creepers and sometimes bleached or died black hair. The London designers did their best to cash in with different ideas but we had no money, and thrift stores and jumble sales were cheap. The whole piercing, mohawk and Ronald McDonald hair coloring thing, did not occur until later, toward 1980.

Why Control's punk protest was to take all of our sound equipment out onto the Street. The street ran adjacent to the cinema. Hundreds of people were queued up to watch Saturday Night Fever that evening. The line was four people deep, and around the block as they were standing in the drizzle close to our practice room. We plugged everything in, and the sound blew down the street like a tornado. Cookie was thrashing about with power and fury, creating the most intense high energy rock & snarl monster these poor disco ducks had ever seen.

Above "Why Control's" practice room Bath Street Chester
An Indian waiter and a cab driver stopped to see what was going on. They were both laughing and stayed to listen, but everyone in the queue looked shit scared. After a while a cop arrived. Surprisingly he was polite and simply asked us to stop and take the equipment back inside. This was an interesting time for the UK, the SUS rule was still used extensively, and to spend a night in-side would almost guarantee getting rolled by the scuffers.
Maybe we made a difference that day. I think that Joe Strummer would have approved....

Why Control 1977; Top 40 Singles Chart

2007-12-30T13:44:00.003-05:00

The Sex Pistols played their last UK date on Christmas Day 1977, and below is a listing of the crap that 99.9999% of the UK population was listening to at the time. Later, 50% would deny tuning it to all of this rubbish and would swear they were following the Clash on tour.
As you can see even Bob Geldof wanted to be mainstream, he denied his roots to sell lousy songs. "Mary of the 4th form", What the f@#$ was that..! The same guy that asked for all the "Live Aid" tapes to be destroyed, and then 20 years later would use his own company to repackage and sell the event. Brilliant just brilliant ...

Week Ending 31st December 1977

1 Wings; Mull Of Kintyre / Girl's School
2 Brighouse And Rastrick Brass Band; The Floral Dance
3 Bee Gees; How Deep Is Your Love
4 Ruby Winters; I Will
5 Bing Crosby ; White Christmas
6 Donna Summer; Love's Unkind
7 Bonnie Tyler ; It's A Heartache
8 Darts ; Daddy Cool
9 Jonathan Richman; Egyptian Reggae
10 Hot Chocolate ; Put Your Love In Me
11 Boney M ; Belfast
12 Showaddywaddy; Dancin' Party
13 Dooleys ; Love Of My Life
14 Elvis Presley; My Way
15 Elvis Costello ; Watching The Detectives

Amazing footage from Eric's Liverpool October 1977

16 Boomtown Rats; Mary Of The Fourth Form
17 David Soul ; Let's Have A Quiet Night In
18 Crystal Gayle; Don't It Make My Brown Eyes Blue
19 Chic ; Dance Dance Dance
20 E.L.O.; Turn To Stone
21 Yannis Markopoulos; Who Pays The Ferryman
22 Queen ; We Are The Champions / We Will Rock You
23 Dooley Wilson; As Time Goes By
24 Julie Covington; Only Women Bleed
25 Status Quo ; Rockin' All Over The World
26 Donna Summer; I Love You
27 Muppets ; Don't Dilly Dally / Waiting At The Church
28 Bob Marley; Jamming / Punky Reggae Party
29 John Otway & Wild Willy Barrett; Really Free
30 Diana Ross ; Gettin' Ready For Love
31 Carl Douglas; Run Back
32 Barron Knights; Live In Trouble
33 Boz Scaggs ; Hollywood
34 Althia And Donna; Uptown Top Ranking
35 Abba ; Name Of The Game
36 Banned; Little Girl
37 Santana; She's Not There
38 Baccara ; Yes Sir I Can Boogie
39 Neil Diamond; Desiree
40 Emotions ; I Don't Want To Lose Your

Why Control 1977; Eric's Friday November 18th 1977

2007-12-27T14:30:00.005-05:00

After searching the internet for days, I have confirmed the date that Paul Cook and Steve Jones arrived at Eric's. I had a couple of facts, I remembered that the Buzzcocks were performing at the club on the same night, and the Pistols were in Liverpool promoting their Album at Virgin records.

28th October 1977
The Sex Pistols' debut album, 'Never Mind The Bollocks' is released. It follows hot on the heels of 'Spunk' the bootleg album that features the band's original demos that Malcolm took round all the companies.

Friday, 18 November 1977
The Pistol's first visit today is to Virgin records in Manchester, then it's on to Piccadilly Radio followed by BBC Radio Manchester. On to Liverpool and the Virgin record shop. After this they visit Radio City and BBC Radio Merseyside. During the evening Paul and Steve head over to Eric's 9 Mathew Street, Liverpool to watch The Toilets, The Fall, and The Buzzcocks. Alg and Mart talk to Steve Jones at the bar, Paul spends most of the evening sitting off to one side with a couple of girls. Later Steve throws a beer glass at Pete Shelly as he is performing, but he misses and nobody is hurt.

25th December 1977
The Sex Pistols play an afternoon Christmas Party at Huddersfield's Ivanhoes Club for children of local firemen, laid-off workers and single-parents. 1,000 bottles of pop and a huge cake are supplied by Virgin who also lay on free busses. In the evening the Pistols play the same venue. This would be the last UK performance of the Pistols before their US tour and split.