My mate Gary Steadman was in Eater (guitar) he went on to join Classix Nouveaux, who he is still with. He was in Flock of Seagulls for a bit also. Thanks Jim, brilliant again !
I'm from Portugal; in 77, at 14, I was after all the info available on the press of the time. There was only a good national mag, which provided little account of what was taking place in the UK, but then things changed. We owe it to António Sérgio, a local EMI's A&R , label manager , record producer and radio announcer/show director, who not only began playing early UK76 Punk on Portuguese airwaves, late at night already in late 76, on Rádio Renascença (the official Catholic station!), but also had the nerve to organize a Punk compilation with Brit bands at the end of 77, with most tracks licensed, with a single Pistols track (GSTQ) that would bring major problems. Around 400 lps were issued and then the whole batch was apprehended and destroyed , with a few albums still being sold, now at around 250 euros on Discogs. It became a legendary record here among early Punk devotees. Yes, António Sérgio, was still working for EMI and he wanted to include a Sex Pistols' track on his own ''New Wave / Punk 77'' (official title) compilation album, and that was absolutely VERBOTEN. As a result, he was sacked from ''Valentim de Carvalho/EMI'' (Lisbon), being set ''free'' for better and bigger adventures you should read about online. Look for the ''UIVO'' documentary, here. And why am i commenting about the record? Because it was only on that compilation that i heard EATER for the first time ( 2 tracks - Outside view/ Thinking of the USA), and i was glad to know their drummer was my age, an argumentation used to ''dignify'' my incipient musical punk ''talents'' before my parents...
I think Malcolm Owens death kinda makes The Ruts bullet proof, The Crack is a perfect album, and Staring at the Rude Boys is one of the greatest songs ever written. And the legacy can never be tarnished by diminishing returns. (Though West One (Shine on me) shows they potentially could have hit even bigger heights)
I would say The Ruts actually made it big, they have an incredible amount of success and they are still packing the punters in today. The Ruts are a step above anyone else on this list in what they achieved
@@JimDriver Interesting, considering their debut was NOT released Stateside (at least not at that time)! Even the punk-friendly Sire Records (Ramones, Dead Boys) wouldn't take a chance on it- probably because their name - and album title- was to extreme even for them! (Sire did release Sham 69's debut in the US- it was not successful here!) Their second album "Bite Back" was pressed here, but by then they'd altered their moniker to Slaughter.
Sad to see the omission of The Adverts on this list. TV Smith's lyrics are urban poetry, and the band, as ramshackle as they were, could've been huge considering the leap between Crossing the Red Sea and Cast of Thousands. To me, they represent the definition of classic English punk.
They were the greatest. And even Tim Smith´s solo performances range for me way above a lot of concerts by other "full bands" that I have seen. Lively, toxic and extremely likeable and intelligent. I still remember how once a string on his guitar broke during the gig; he smiled, said "excuse me a second", jumped from the stage in a sudden leap, made his way right through the (packed) audience to the backstage (which is at the other end of the place and up a narrow staircase there) and was back in less than about three minutes with a bundle of strings which he then quickly sorted out, blitzfixed the guitar and ONE TWO THREE go for it again. Sometimes talked a bit with him after his gigs (was at a lot), he´s really a one of a kind nice person.
The Adverts were great and I am a big fan of Tim Smith and the others. But this is just one video. Lots of great bands, (hopefully) lots of videos! Thanks for taking part. Cheers!
My top band from that period that should have been massive was Punishment of Luxury (Punilux). Savage, sweet and hilarious. Like if John Cooper Clarke had joined Motorhead. Did that jellyfish ever get his Blue Peter badge? We will never know.
Any band that takes their name from a Giovanni Segantini painting is fine by me! Great comment: thanks for sharing your views. I'll reacquaint myself with Punishment of Luxury. Thanks!
I ended up as a teacher working alongside Brian who was lead singer of punilux..great bloke..I never got to see them live but I know they still did gigs up until 7 or 8 years ago
The ultimate shoulda-made-it-bigger punk band are surely the Buzzcocks. Within their bubble they were big, but never translated into mass market appeal in spite of some classic pop love songs. Punk was more of an albatross than a dove for Pete Shelley. RIP chuck.
You make a great point. A lot of people don't;t realise that the difference between a "successful" Punk band like Buzzcocks and a successful Rock band, such as Queen is immense. It's thousands of percent different, although they were all on TOTP lots… Cheers!
@@JimDriver The difference is bands who are grateful for a record deal, and bands who can say we'll take our custom elsewhere, ta very much, with no shortage of contracts awaiting their signatures. Buzzcocks are one of those highly influential groups on subsequent eras and bands, who never gained enough traction to call the tune (pun intended). Queen on the other hand.. £££
I am not being nasty! But I was an Hardcore Punk, into Crass, DK, Conflict, Discharge, and we used to call them groups you have mentioned 77rs, but now I am older I do respect them. Thankyou Jim.
Yeah, Crass Confict Flux of Pink Indians DK I still got the albums, and I still listen week in week out aswell as to ALL PUNK, I will never stop listening to Crass seen them twice in Birmingham along with Flux and Confict brilliant !
You should have pointed out that Mark Perry started Sniffing Glue Fanzine in 76 which was also the starting point for Danny Baker into journalism , radio , TV and Daz adverts.
Good point! But you already knew that, as (I would guess) did most of the people who know anything about ATV, and, to be fair, editing a magazine (even as ground-breaking as Sniffing Glue) isn't really relevant in a discussion about musical talent. I don't think so, anyway… Danny Baker? I didn't even point out he was Hilda Baker's bastard son. That's how negligent I am! 😄 Thanks for taking part. You're probably right, and I'm wrong - except for Danny Baker, of course. He used to steal records from the record shop that employed him. Shocking fellow… 😇
I didn't forget them: I was a bit of a fan back then, but they were not British, so I dare not include them (you have no idea how many comments I'd get!)… 😄
Here in Canada, XTC had their official North American fan club in Barrie Ontario of all places--it was called The Little Express and operated officially from '83 to 2000. Before that it was unofficial hehe. XTC got plenty of radio play with "Making Plans for Nigel" in 1980, "Senses Working Overtime" in '82 and "Dear God" in '86/'87. But, true, they never got big where it really counts for the mega money, the USA. Although, I recall a 1987 Andy Partridge interview when he said they made some pretty good coin from the "Skylarking" album. So, hopefully that set them up somewhat nicely. I liked their alter-ego psychedelic band, The Dukes of Stratosphear, too.
Great comment - thanks! There's a lot more to XTC and Andy Partridge than I could share in this video. Maybe they deserve one of their own in the future?! Cheers!
The Punk bands I was in (in 1977) supported XTC, I'm from Swindon too. Jim, regarding their manager, he was without doubt the biggest arsehole i've ever met in the music business, & i've been gigging for 47 years. They were a great band, it's a shame that just as they were about to become big stars, Andy had his breakdown.
I never really got XTC, but I've got friends with impeccable taste who loved them. These friends are way more into jazz/prog than punk and insist that XTC were not a punk band.
@@davidmorgan6896 I kinda think XTC have elements of punk/prog/jazz and even pop and they're all the better for it. I like XTC but people who love them...really really love them.
It doesn't matter. Go into a local bar or deli and ask about XTC: you'll be met with a sea of blank faces, but ask about Prince, or Alice Cooper, or Frank Sinatra, or Jerry Lee Lewis aor even Talking Heads, and most people will know who you're talking about. That's the difference between "having a few hits years ago" and being HUGE. But please keep watching and commenting!
Enjoyed this. Think one of the reasons most punk bands never make it big, especially in the US, is that it’s so hard to stay fresh & sustain the level of rebelliousness, fun, even integrity that “punk 101” requires without “selling out” (whatever that means). So most of it remains underground. After all, as one person said, ‘the apocalypse is only coming once’.
Another great video Jim. Saw the Ruts and Alternative TV back in the day (as well as the UK Subs, the Mekons, Eddie and the Hotrods, The Lurkers, Here and Now etc etc) and XTC a few years later. For a fresh faced 15 year old, too timid to try to get served at the bar, those early punk gigs were terrifying. Terrifying but brilliantly exciting. Like many of my mates, it inspired me to try and do it myself. Still trying to emulate all that excitement this day! Punks not dead...it's just taking a breather!
Thanks for the kind words and for getting involved in the channel. Very much appreciated! It was a terrific time and we were so lucky to be there. Thanks for sharing your wonderful memories. Cheers!
Totally agree on the Wasps! Other great melodic British punk era bands that should have had chart success : The Tights (two great singles!) , Wire (now revered but always ignored), Subway Sect, Penetration (Danger Signs had top 40 written all over it), The Drones (only big in Manchester) , The Flys (Love and a Molotov Cocktail should have been a hit) and The Boys.
I saw XTC at my local Poly touring their 1st album. This was about early 78 and they were very good. Another band around this time at the same venue were The Vibrators. I always thought they should have been bigger than what they were.
The Vibrators were great and Knox and the chaps were a regular attraction when I was running The Cricketers, but I could never see them playing stadiums and earning double-platinum albums, great as they were. Cheers!
I thought you might include Penetration, who were electric live. Saw them at the Marquee in 78, at the height of the disgusting spitting fad. Pauline Murray threatened to walk off stage if it didn't stop. I remember thinking I would walk off anyway. That really was revolting.
The Slits' first Peel session remains the best I've ever heard. When "Cut" finally came out, I couldnt have been more disappointed - good enough, but the edge had vanished in a haze of weed
I kind of agree with you, though Cut had some great moments (such as 'Newtown').I always preferred to catch them live and I think Dennis Bovell was almost making a Dennis Bovell album with Cut. Cheers!
Good stuff Jim ,quite liked XTC though like you said I wouldn't call them Punk but the real contenders in your mix for me was the Ruts ,a cracking band ,it was terrible the way it played out ,it's great Ruts D.C are still strutting their stuff
That's very kind of you to say so. Thanks! I agree with most of what you say. All the bands I mentioned were great and deserved more recognition. Eater was so far ahead of their time, especially when you realise they were barely into their teens, it's frightening. XTC and the Ruts aimed for the stars, but circumstances prevented them from reaching superstardom. I could go on… 🤓
No, well spotted. There are a lot more I didn't mention too. I've got to be selective and with all the best will in the world, I could never see Patrick selling out stadiums and hosting his own BBC-1 prime time poetry show. I'll make other videos about great talents but that was about Punk bands who could have been HUGE> Cheers!
The Boys? I've got two of their albums. Not heard them for 25 years or more so I must dive in to my cellar of vinyl and listen to them again. I do remember there was a beautiful romantic love song called "You kiss like a nun". While I'm at it Motorhead and a few others might get a spin on my gramophone. OK Pop pickers!
Prefer Punishment of luxury and Wire. If you can have Ruts I can have Dept s. Prefered xtcs psychedelic alter ego. The Slits were to music what Albert Tatlock was to heavy metal. Eater were just schoolkids and it showed. My favourite bands were Anti nowhere league and Killing Joke. The Saints should have been massive yes I know they weren't English.
Quite right! We're all different, and I freely admit that my choices are partly dictated by where I was at a particular time and how I was feeling. I do get that. But I love sharing my experiences and tastes on this channel. Thanks for joining in!
@@JimDriver And that´s what was the real great thing about Punk right from the beginning. It´s a mindset, not a style of music (at least for me it always was - my music taste was always extremly diverse). And, your vid says "6 bands..." - - you inevitably have to make SOME choice for 6 bands! You just animated everybody here to think of what their choice would possibly be for that. How could anyone sane really criticise your choice - that´s why it is your choice, isn´t it?
Sorry to contradict you Jim but XTC are huge (in retrospect) Their dear God track propelled them into the stratosphere on the American alt college circuit, people want them back and are obsessive, there is the only if, Mr. Partridge would play on stage again and talk to Mr. Moulding. In my humble opinion Partridge and Moulding are up there with Difford and Tillbrook, Lennon and McCartny Jaggers Richards and the brothers Davies for Englishness. They may not have made it star wise but their shadows are enormous.
Haha! I agree: as far as musical greatness goes, there's hardly any greater star than XTC. But as far as UA-cam goes… 😄 Thanks for a great comment. Much appreciated, and thanks for watching, too. Cheers!
Yup, I was gonna post that XTC were rather big for not being big & they had commercial success with Making plans, senses working etc. Come to think of it they were always touring and always filled those smaller venues back in the day. I tend to think of them closer to pop than punk. I saw Magazine support them, along with pre supports of supports 😂. I still look back as Magazine being a highlight gig of the era. Cheers!
I saw the Slits & The Ruts, never saw Eater (Wish I had). Never heard of The Wasps. Never rated XTC. Too pop for my punky lugholes. Still not sure about ATV, all these years later. I had their first album, but always preferred bands like Slaughter & The Dogs.
My mate is Bri Grantham, the drummer from Slaughter. He's told me some cracking stories...His Morrissey one is piss funny. He auditioned for them once and sat cross legged and barefoot while singing. Bry threw a drum stick at him and said, "Get up you soft cunt"...lol
I know exactly what you are saying and most of my friends would share your views. Personally, I have a weakness for the quirky. Haha! Thanks for sharing that: you should start a video channel and spread the word… 😎
Hi Jim. Interesting roundup. I agree with you about XTC. Great musicians and really original ideas. They could really do the business live and didn't sound like anyone else.
Ruts DC are a superb live act these days and still releasing excellent songs. I caught them supporting The Strangles after covid.. Wasn't expecting much as the Men in Black's support acts have often left me disappointed. On that night they really delivered and had a strong following in the audience. Catch them while you can!
@@JimDriver Just checked on tinternet.. He was and Madness covered a track of theirs for One Step Beyond .. Dragged it out of the back of my memory 😎👍.. Great vids of yours by the way 👏👏👏
@@modsnsods7329 it was Ben Barson I think. And the track you are after is Rockin' in Ab. Also on one of the posters were Potato Five. Their horn section played on some of the post Madness The Madness project. When that finished Lee and Chris from Madness formed The Nutty Boys. Amongst their touring line up was some time Potato 5 vocalist, Spider Johnson, who was back in a reformed Potato 5 in 2023. Spider has also provided backing vocals on the two most recent Madness albums. I sold t shirts at gigs and ran an information service for the Nutty Boys. And if you look at my avatar thingy the poorly drawn (by Davey Jones of Viz Comic fame) picture of me has me wearing a t shirt with The Nutty Boys on it. As if that's not enough Madness links to this video, Segs from The Ruts played guitar on and produced some of Madness' dreadful Dangermen Sessions Volume 1 album. It was a case of great gigs, terribly over produced plastic sounding album. It's the 'Volume 1' bit of that album which fills me with dread. I seriously hope there's never a volume 2.
Hi 👋 im a Kiwi and here in New Zealand we had a small punk scene. Bands such as Suburban Reptiles and the Scavengers were two bands that started up here. It would have been interesting to see how they went down if they went over to the UK to play.
Thanks for that great insight into Kiwi punk! I can remember a New Zealand back in the 1980s telling me similar tales of how exciting things were in Wellington and elsewhere. Happy days! Cheers!
Great band! My "surprising fact" is that Glenn Tilbrook from Squeeze played guitar on their demo, but if you;ve already seen my video, you'll know that already. Thanks for sharing that!
I would agree that The Only Ones weren't really Punk. They had a Punk leaning due to Perrett's voice and vocal delivery but the music covered many styles. They were one of my favourite bands at that time and I do agree that they should have been huge but I believe Perrett'.s drug use probably put pay to that.
Great Vid ,Jim!!! My personal favourite that never made it was ,Red Beat (on Malicious Damage) who had as members two of the Jones brothers, the third brother was ,Howard Jones, who very much did make it.....Well done on the growth of your channel!!! All the best....👍811
Thanks very much for the kind words. I really do appreciate it and thanks for sharing your thoughts to our little "community". Great info, thanks! PS the growth of my channel took me very much by surprise but I'm really enjoying the extra traction and buzz!
Incredible, just pause this at 5:25... that line up for the Roxy... imagine living in London then, night after night going out seeing these bands... and that's just one venue... I was only 2 years old in January 1977... I love the scene now based around the Windmill and associated venues, but this would have been the greatest time to be old enough to go out for me...
Yes, it was a great time to be alive and a music lover. There were over a hundred pub and club venues operating in London at the time, mostly with live music seven nights a week. We didn't realise how lucky we were! Thanks for sharing your thoughts!
Absolutely loved this video. I reckon if Malcolm Owen hadn't died the Ruts would have been as big as the Clash. Such great songs. Also XTC did have a great career but it took them a while. XTC are highly revered these days. Finally, i must check out the Wasps.
You could of picked 999, slf, the vibrators ,generation x, slaughter and the dogs , the adverts and many more but you pick xtc for fucks sake , they were closer to prog rock than punk.
Slaughter is a great shout, I only watched this to see if they got a mention. I was in a band with Bryan Mad Muffet Grantham around 2006. A few years back he asked me if I'd play bass in Slaughter2 fronted up by Ed Banger of The Nosebleeds fame, then Covid came about and it didn't happen. Little fact, Slaughter and the Dogs were Jonathon Ross' favourite band at the time. He said it on a punk doc he did years ago..
I could have but I didn't. That';s the joy of having my own UA-cam channel. You should start one and share your thoughts and tastes to the world: it's easier than you think. (I'm being serious btw!!) We all have different ideas and tastes. Cheers!
@@babywithalaser2409SATD are different to Slaughter, the vocalist Wayne Barratt had split, and it was a more glam sound, that never seems to get the credit for the influence on the Hanoi Rocks, Guns n Roses type bands that followed them Brilliant band, always loved DIDS as one of the all time classic punk albums, and also held a grudge against the Buzzcocks for slagging the off for being too" Bowie influenced"...like that's a bad thing !
Cheers Jim good stuff , I forgot about the ruts , never heard of the wasps will av a listen and didn't know why xtc got off the English roundabout , my request suggestion is could you do a playlist video of the unknown bands you heard and had something interesting please? All the best ❤️💪☮️
Glad you enjoyed it and thanks for the kind words. I'm thinking about the best way to do a playlist video or maybe something on another platform. Please keep watching!
I think Andy's genius was ultimately what stopped them getting great. I saw similar things with other emerging artists: it's funny how the brain reacts when the ultimate goal is just around the corner. Cheers!
The Ruts and Alternative TV both great bands. I think the Ruts could have got very big if Malcolm hadn't died. I tend to agree with you about ATV, Mark Perry mostly just did what he wanted and it was never very commercial , but The Image Has Cracked is a great album that often seems to get overlooked.
Thanks! I agree with just abouyt every word you say. I rememebr seeing an interview with Mark back in the day where he said if he realised he was becoming rich and famous, he'd change course and have a rethink! Haha!
Don't get me wrong, but I still think it's a shame that Skrewdriver didn't bang out some more classic 77 punk like they did on their first album instead of ending up like a farce. Good example of how politics can ruin a band.
My own view is that Ian Stewart had a poisoned mind and I can't really listen to anything that cam out of it with any empathy. That's probably my failing… I get where you're coming fromL thanks for sharing your thoughts.
@@JimDriver Yeah, it's hard to seperate the man from the music but I feel the same about Michael Jackson these days 😃 Anyway, some more underrated punk bands: The Depressions and The Drones.
When i was 17 I ended up in strangeways and the guy in the next pad had Screwdriver tattooed on his forehead, i used to wonder why anyone would have that for a tattoo ⚡ I eventually found out it was a band 🍺🍻😜
@@JimDriverI knew him, and used to bump into him till the mid 80s, after Hail the new dawn came out, he was actually a really good bloke, and you could have a political discussion with him, disagree with him, and still have a good relationship with him. Last time I saw him was when he (and a bunch of his mates) were working at Glastonbury ... No, really...
@@JimDriver It's not a failing at all. Look at the cunt Morrissey has become and that's before you get into Paul Gadd and Ian Watkins. It is still ok to listen to Steps (if that's your thing), but the Lostprophets and Gary Glitter' music will forever be tainted.
It was like an explosion of talent. I think the Punk and DIY movements (subtly different but with roughly the same goals) gave ordinary kids the inspiration to try and form a band and make music for themselves. A great time! Thanks for taking part.
The Slits never got ‘big’, if that was the aim, because frankly the weren’t very good and they or their record company placed too much import on the fact that they were an all female band. Even in the misogynistic late 1970s that could only carry them so far before the ‘novelty’ wore off. I saw them, as a 15 year old in 1978, supporting The Clash……and they were shit!
Agree with you. I saw them play The Roxy in 1977. Even by punk standards they were dreadful. Ari Up just screamed rather than sang and the drummer was awful.
@@gaycha6589 Seeing Siouxsie & The Banshees around the same time. It was obvious to me who would have a future. Not a bunch slumming it art-school types The Slits and that include X-Ray Spex.
It's interesting to hear your perspective, though I'm not sure they were aiming their music quite at your demographic! 😄 Thanks for sharing your experience! and for getting a debate going. Cheers!
Adam and the Ants are a bit of an anomaly. The punk Ants vastly underrated, almost a complete lack of commercial success but a massive underground band that is still spoken of very highly among punk circles these days. #2 of the band a huge worldwide commercially successful phenomenon, the first big star of the 80s, but in my opinion downhill musically from Prince Charming onwards.
@@jamespohl-md2eq Anyone who asks questions about crap fronted by protected types/groups/tribes is incel/racist/fascist etc. The morons who bully pop culture and real culture with such fascist-like cliches, I found to my horror, usually believe their mindless crap.
I was lucky enough to see s few punk bands from the 70s , the pistols , the banshees , vortex , the vibrators , boom town rats , the ruts and the stranglers. For me bar far the best was the stranglers. I first seen them in BIRMINGHAM 1979 and they were totally awesome. The last time I seen the stranglers was 2022......and they are still awsome . I was 14 when the punk bands broke through......what a great time.
Still got my 45 of "Babylon's Burning" and thought they were a great band. I often wondered what happened to them but losing their lead singer must have been a hard blow.
Yes, I think it put the brakes on their rise to stardom to be honest. They were never the same (great but it wasn't the same) after that happened. Cheers!
I used to hang out with The Lurkers back in the day and they drank in the pub I used to promote in (The Cock, North End Road, Fulham) and I booked them for several gigs, but I'm pretty sure even they didn't expect to be HUGE, up there with the Stones and Elton John (God forbid!!). Thanks for taking part. Cheers!
I LOVE the Lurkers and one of my fav UK punk acts..... but if we're being honest, there's nothing about them that should've been huge. lol. They were destined to be an obscure punk act from the beginning.
So many great bands to pick from. My personal favourites were Stiff Little Fingers, so good. Much better than the other bands that came out of Ireland and made it big
XTC weren't punk and had a fair measure of success. Otherwise, punk was just meant to be fun, more about the movement or image than the music. Some great bands emerged from the era, but they were the ones who could actually play, eg The Stranglers etc
'Skylarking' still sounds great; though it's definitely not punk; more English new-wave, folk-pop. I believe the band thought that producer, Todd Rundgren had a bit too much control over the end result.
I think that their first LP "The Image Has Cracked" ,1978, is one of the most significant albums of the first UK Punk wave...full of ideas! Like Wire and The Fall , ATV really started with a burst of surprising and unconventional creativity.
Eater were just kids and rode their luck as a novelty cos of their age. The later songs Andy Blade did after leaving Eater is well worth a listen and so much better. How he's been overlooked for so long is a mystery to me, still churning out decent songs to this day.
A tosser though live these days, i saw him in matlock north uk . He spent the gig slagging off northerners etc saying wheres our whippets and flat caps
The Damned could have been epic had they taken one of the big money offers that were on the table, instead they wanted to go with an independent so they had more control, and they chose Stiff Records and were the first of the so called punk bands to release a single and an album and tour the states, they would have been better off with a major label, instead they went from one skint independent to another, they released great singles and albums but the promotion was lack lustre, despite this they charted quite high.
Thanks for sharing those thoughts. Not sure I agree with everything you say. My perception was that Stiff were superb marketers, whereas the big labels only had ideas that involved lots of music press advertising and I remember their acts being very critical of the way they were promoted. I think the direction the Damned took was just about right.: theyw= were making money and having fun. But your perception could well be right! Cheers!
Indeed. I'm assuming you meant "Rock history", otherwise I'll start brushing up on Rick Stein (British chef and restaurant-owner for those who don't know!) Thanks for sharing!
I have seen Ruts DC a lot of times. But only the Ruts once. Wolvo Civic Oct 1979. If nobody had died, the Ruts would have headlined big festivals like Rebellion, Academy In The UK, North East Calling and Brixton Academy Fuck Reading.
You could go on all day, naming different bands. Swell Maps, The Shapes, Slaughter & the Dogs, The Raincoats, Punishment of Luxury, SLF, Pseudo Existors, Dangerous Girls, and you could just keep going and going, remembering it's still all subjective...and to be fair, quite a lot of these bands, including the ones you mention, did make it quite big, albeit not mainstream, but that was the point, wasn't it?. Out of the ones you mention, I love ATV, very creative and Mark Perry very much underrated. I love their singles and 'Life' is a punk classic. Still got it, thank goodness. ..and, RUTS, well they really were in a different league to the 3-chord brigade (no disrespect, cause I love them too). No, RUTS were fantastic musicians, head and shoulders above and they wrote very powerful songs, that have stood the test of time. I count myself lucky at having seen Ruts four times back in the day and they were amazing live and their records were really good too. Always well produced and very powerful. TBH, I think Ruts probably were the best punk band, and it would have been interesting to see where things would have gone, if Malcolm hadn't tragically died. I was 20 at that time. You could hear a shift in things on the West One (Shine On Me) single and I try and imagine where they would have taken things from there. They were a class act.
XTC were never punk and how can you say they didn’t make it, formed 1972 finished 2006 and big in the US, multi award winning, 14 studio albums. And EXTC are touring now. Wish I could be such a failure.
We're all entitled to an opinion, even me. I'd recommend you should start up a UA-cam channel and share your opinions and experiences with the world. I think you'll enjoy it. In the meantime, please keep watching mine. Cheers!
Ruts4Eva! … XTC had a pretty solid following on college radio in the States … I remember cueing up Nigel followed by the first REM EP back in the day … ‘course nothing really beats the Subs “I Live in a Car” as under-rated punk noise …
Thank you for sharing your thoughts! It is always gratifying to connect with fellow Punk enthusiasts who appreciate the Ruts and Malcolm Owen's incredible talent. Thanks again!
Great choices! Eater were great and were better then bands with members half their ages. Whats your opinion on the Maniacs? Alan Lee Shaw was a magnificent guitar player and is criminally underrated as a frontman. His other band The Rings were pretty good too. Always felt The Depressions were a solid band and Im surprised they never made it big. They had a decent sound and a few decent tunes.
I'd liked to have seen one of the most underrated punk bands of the day get a mention, and that's London. Brilliant live band and the one lp and three singles they made were fantastic.
Great video! Love all these groups. From a Canadian point of view: one band though that I think legit should've and could've been huge: The Boys. They had the looks, talent, sound and hooks to have been as big as Generation X. First two albums are bangers and even the 3rd and 4th records have their moments. We had some great bands in the late 70s too and among the best included Brit expats: The Demics (lead singer was from Manchester) and the Bureaucrats (vocalist was a brit). That said, I believe Menace had a Canadian vocalist, so we gave back! lol. cheers!
@@JimDriver love your channel! Oh yeah man, so good. and Casino Steele (the keyboardist) played in the Hollywood Brats in '72-73, who were like the UK New York Dolls (and interestingly, had a Canadian singer living in England at the time! lol). The Ramones loved the Boys too. They had them on tour over 1980 and members joined them on stage for a few songs. The Boys rule! Uk punk rules. WIRE! Stranglers!
@JimDriver over the years I saw many bands who didn't make it, and as you rightly say some of them were great. I think sometimes it's a matter of being in the right place at the right time.
You make a great point! XTC had a unique sound that set them apart from the Punk scene, but back then, they chose to be associated with what was happening and the movement in general. Andy's stage fright definitely added an absorbing layer to their story.
Bit of a random list, XTC were massively acclaimed critically, they still are. And, having had more hits than most, they are not unappreciated. The Ruts are hugely respected and still going strong, making great new records. The Slits are credited as the pioneers they were, and extensively written about. History has treated these bands well, some have extensive documentaries about them etc. Sure they could have had more success in their day but trends were overtaking them so quickly. 1980/81 guitars were out, synths were in. But they endure. Fair enough Eater and The Wasps, but they weren't quite of the standard of the other three, despite having a great song maybe two. I have a record store, young folks are always looking for OG punk records by the best bands.
Not sure any of those bands were HUGE in the same way U2 or Prince or Madonna or The Rolling Stones are, but you're entitled to your opinion. Thanks for commenting and I think you should consider making your own videos. I'd certainly love to see them (genuinely)! PS It definitely wasn't a "random list", I spent a week deliberating and crossing off other names. Cheers!
@@JimDriver I apologise if I came across a bit arsey. Enjoyed your vid, you saw these acts first hand so I can't appreciate that. I do think they'd all have to make some serious compromises for world domination tho. I'm happy with what they left behind is what I was getting at.
@@chriscoulthard7282 No problem! To be honest, after you've answered a few dozen comments it's easy to get arsey myself! Thansk fir the words of encouragement and please keep watching. Cheers!
Indeed! Thanks for sharing that. As a veggie, I was a bit non-plussed by the dead pig's head they bought from a butcher's shop for every gig but I realise that was them trying to shock. But hey-ho, they were the business!
I have to admit to having forgotten the Wasps but liked all of the others. The Slits were one of the best live bands I ever saw. The Ruts early Peel session was stupendous.
Thanks.: I totally agree with all you say! I am with you 100% on The Slits and I was very disappointed that none of the live clips I could find reflected just how amazing they were on stage. Cheers!
I always thought XTC did make it pretty big? They were certainly too musical to have been considered punk. More New wave? And I agree about the Ruts (although now that I have swapped out old England for New England DC means ‘District of Columbia’ to me these days). Great band!
In Australia, and I thought they were big. Generals and Majors and Senses Working Overtime got plenty of airtime. Certainly not punk on those tracks. I wouldn’t have called their earlier hit Making Plans For Nigel a punk track.
It's all about degrees, isn't it? Just about everybody you mix with will know who Elton John is, or The Rolling Stones, or Queen, or Abba, but ask about any of these bands (including XTC) on this video and you'll be lucky if one in ten or one in 20 will have heard of them.
All great bands. My favorite by far is XTC. I love all of their albums. They covered so many different styles/genres and yet made them all their own. They were an incredibly consistent band. Yeah, they should've been as big as the Police or at least REM, but Andy's mental health issues coupled with bad management kept that from happening.
XTC truly was a remarkable band with a unique sound and incredible range. It's a shame circumstances prevented them from receiving the recognition they deserved! Thanks for sharing your views. Cheers!
@@JimDriver whoops I meant Terry Chambers. I'll correct my original comment now. Martin Chamber, is of course, the drummer with The Pretenders. I couldn't somehow see The Pretenders doing a set of XTC songs 🤣🤣🤣
The new band go under the name EXTC (apparently the name was suggested by Andy). Yes, Terry's the only member of XTC in the new band. They're good, i've seen them a few times, the same as XTC, bad luck struck (in the form of Covid), just as they were going out gigging after months of rehearsals.
Ive just commented on another video of yours, a friend of mine was in a one hit wonder punk band, his name is Anthony ( Tony ) Dent, from the Epping forest area.
Discharge were never really in my orbit and I always thought they were the Punk equivalent of a metal band and pretty "aurally challenging". It was probably my loss as I hear people rave about them. Cheers!
@@JimDriver You never to old to start! I did it last year with Crass, and after some tough listening, I think they are great (bearing in mind my favourite punk was the initial wave).Even went to see Steve Ignorant's band who were excellent.
X-Ray Spex were cracking. Just listened to Germ Free Adolescents recently and its a really good album.
They really were great, weren't they? Have no fear they will be appearing on a a future video fairly soonish. Cheers!
My mate Gary Steadman was in Eater (guitar) he went on to join Classix Nouveaux, who he is still with. He was in Flock of Seagulls for a bit also. Thanks Jim, brilliant again !
That's very kind of you to say so and thanks for the great information. Cheers!
I met him. I went to school with Andy Blade.
I'm from Portugal; in 77, at 14, I was after all the info available on the press of the time. There was only a good national mag, which provided little account of what was taking place in the UK, but then things changed. We owe it to António Sérgio, a local EMI's A&R , label manager , record producer and radio announcer/show director, who not only began playing early UK76 Punk on Portuguese airwaves, late at night already in late 76, on Rádio Renascença (the official Catholic station!), but also had the nerve to organize a Punk compilation with Brit bands at the end of 77, with most tracks licensed, with a single Pistols track (GSTQ) that would bring major problems. Around 400 lps were issued and then the whole batch was apprehended and destroyed , with a few albums still being sold, now at around 250 euros on Discogs. It became a legendary record here among early Punk devotees. Yes, António Sérgio, was still working for EMI and he wanted to include a Sex Pistols' track on his own ''New Wave / Punk 77'' (official title) compilation album, and that was absolutely VERBOTEN. As a result, he was sacked from ''Valentim de Carvalho/EMI'' (Lisbon), being set ''free'' for better and bigger adventures you should read about online. Look for the ''UIVO'' documentary, here. And why am i commenting about the record? Because it was only on that compilation that i heard EATER for the first time ( 2 tracks - Outside view/ Thinking of the USA), and i was glad to know their drummer was my age, an argumentation used to ''dignify'' my incipient musical punk ''talents'' before my parents...
Where is he from, I’m a Steadman from Newbury Park, Essex and it’s not a very common name !
@@paulsteadman5618 North London, we both met at Music College in 97, both as 'mature' students !
I think Malcolm Owens death kinda makes The Ruts bullet proof, The Crack is a perfect album, and Staring at the Rude Boys is one of the greatest songs ever written. And the legacy can never be tarnished by diminishing returns. (Though West One (Shine on me) shows they potentially could have hit even bigger heights)
Thank you for sharing your thoughts on Malcom and The Ruts. I agree with you overall. Cheers!
I would say The Ruts actually made it big, they have an incredible amount of success and they are still packing the punters in today. The Ruts are a step above anyone else on this list in what they achieved
In a Rut … Powerful beyond belief
"Something that I said " is a masterpiece.
Wow.. that’s almost verbatim to what I was going to put..Sir, I salute you.
This is USA calling...
Slaughter & the Dogs deserve their own section. Their debut "Do It Doggy Style" is my favorite UK LP of '78...!!
Where have all the boot boys gone ✊
who are you? Bruce Forsyth
@@Timmeh551 Some got married and settled down. Others left for a foreign town.
It's funny, Slaughter and the Dogs never made much impact on me. I think they were bigger in the USA than they were on the British circuit. Cheers!
@@JimDriver Interesting, considering their debut was NOT released Stateside (at least not at that time)! Even the punk-friendly Sire Records (Ramones, Dead Boys) wouldn't take a chance on it- probably because their name - and album title- was to extreme even for them! (Sire did release Sham 69's debut in the US- it was not successful here!)
Their second album "Bite Back" was pressed here, but by then they'd altered their moniker to Slaughter.
Sad to see the omission of The Adverts on this list. TV Smith's lyrics are urban poetry, and the band, as ramshackle as they were, could've been huge considering the leap between Crossing the Red Sea and Cast of Thousands. To me, they represent the definition of classic English punk.
They gave me a few years of fame and free drinks
They were the greatest. And even Tim Smith´s solo performances range for me way above a lot of concerts by other "full bands" that I have seen. Lively, toxic and extremely likeable and intelligent. I still remember how once a string on his guitar broke during the gig; he smiled, said "excuse me a second", jumped from the stage in a sudden leap, made his way right through the (packed) audience to the backstage (which is at the other end of the place and up a narrow staircase there) and was back in less than about three minutes with a bundle of strings which he then quickly sorted out, blitzfixed the guitar and ONE TWO THREE go for it again. Sometimes talked a bit with him after his gigs (was at a lot), he´s really a one of a kind nice person.
p.s.: and his "It´s expensive being poor" is still one of my favourite songs of all times.
The Adverts were great and I am a big fan of Tim Smith and the others. But this is just one video. Lots of great bands, (hopefully) lots of videos!
Thanks for taking part. Cheers!
The Outsiders never mentioned that's Adrian Borlands band before the Sound ua-cam.com/video/DMAi_IsR_dw/v-deo.htmlsi=vplju3VbldSwhGd1
My top band from that period that should have been massive was Punishment of Luxury (Punilux).
Savage, sweet and hilarious. Like if John Cooper Clarke had joined Motorhead.
Did that jellyfish ever get his Blue Peter badge? We will never know.
Any band that takes their name from a Giovanni Segantini painting is fine by me! Great comment: thanks for sharing your views. I'll reacquaint myself with Punishment of Luxury. Thanks!
I ended up as a teacher working alongside Brian who was lead singer of punilux..great bloke..I never got to see them live but I know they still did gigs up until 7 or 8 years ago
Saw them live, Reading Rock '78, an unforgettable experience !
That is a great shout!
The ultimate shoulda-made-it-bigger punk band are surely the Buzzcocks. Within their bubble they were big, but never translated into mass market appeal in spite of some classic pop love songs. Punk was more of an albatross than a dove for Pete Shelley. RIP chuck.
They failed because of his monotonous tinny childish voice.
I don’t know they seemed to be on TOTPs a lot. More than Crass, that would have been interesting or maybe not.
Indeed. Great point. Cheers!
You make a great point. A lot of people don't;t realise that the difference between a "successful" Punk band like Buzzcocks and a successful Rock band, such as Queen is immense. It's thousands of percent different, although they were all on TOTP lots…
Cheers!
@@JimDriver The difference is bands who are grateful for a record deal, and bands who can say we'll take our custom elsewhere, ta very much, with no shortage of contracts awaiting their signatures. Buzzcocks are one of those highly influential groups on subsequent eras and bands, who never gained enough traction to call the tune (pun intended). Queen on the other hand.. £££
I am not being nasty! But I was an Hardcore Punk, into Crass, DK, Conflict, Discharge, and we used to call them groups you have mentioned 77rs, but now I am older I do respect them. Thankyou Jim.
Thank you for saying that and for putting your thoughts forward. Much appreciated.
We all change with age, and some of us for the better! 😄
Cheers!
Yeah, Crass Confict Flux of Pink Indians DK I still got the albums, and I still listen week in week out aswell as to ALL PUNK, I will never stop listening to Crass seen them twice in Birmingham along with Flux and Confict brilliant !
You should have pointed out that Mark Perry started Sniffing Glue Fanzine in 76 which was also the starting point for Danny Baker into journalism , radio , TV and Daz adverts.
Good point! But you already knew that, as (I would guess) did most of the people who know anything about ATV, and, to be fair, editing a magazine (even as ground-breaking as Sniffing Glue) isn't really relevant in a discussion about musical talent. I don't think so, anyway…
Danny Baker? I didn't even point out he was Hilda Baker's bastard son. That's how negligent I am! 😄
Thanks for taking part. You're probably right, and I'm wrong - except for Danny Baker, of course. He used to steal records from the record shop that employed him. Shocking fellow… 😇
You forgot The Saints!!! 🇦🇺🎸🎸💯😎🤬
They were from Australia. Lots of great punk bands from that era in the land down under.
I didn't forget them: I was a bit of a fan back then, but they were not British, so I dare not include them (you have no idea how many comments I'd get!)… 😄
@@JimDriver No worries bud, I forgot you were just doing UK bands 🎸😎🇦🇺
They're from Australia
I never rated them, just a pub rock band with Stooges influence
Here in Canada, XTC had their official North American fan club in Barrie Ontario of all places--it was called The Little Express and operated officially from '83 to 2000. Before that it was unofficial hehe.
XTC got plenty of radio play with "Making Plans for Nigel" in 1980, "Senses Working Overtime" in '82 and "Dear God" in '86/'87. But, true, they never got big where it really counts for the mega money, the USA. Although, I recall a 1987 Andy Partridge interview when he said they made some pretty good coin from the "Skylarking" album. So, hopefully that set them up somewhat nicely.
I liked their alter-ego psychedelic band, The Dukes of Stratosphear, too.
Great comment - thanks! There's a lot more to XTC and Andy Partridge than I could share in this video. Maybe they deserve one of their own in the future?! Cheers!
The Punk bands I was in (in 1977) supported XTC, I'm from Swindon too. Jim, regarding their manager, he was without doubt the biggest arsehole i've ever met in the music business, & i've been gigging for 47 years. They were a great band, it's a shame that just as they were about to become big stars, Andy had his breakdown.
XTC never a punk band a successful art project band with some great hits
@@FatpunkSnr XTC is Brilliant pop, I say
You're joking about XTC right? They had hits even in the U.S.. up until the 1990s.
I never really got XTC, but I've got friends with impeccable taste who loved them. These friends are way more into jazz/prog than punk and insist that XTC were not a punk band.
@@davidmorgan6896 Oranges And Lemons which was from '89 (I think) is still a personal favourite.
@@davidmorgan6896 I kinda think XTC have elements of punk/prog/jazz and even pop and they're all the better for it. I like XTC but people who love them...really really love them.
@@evad520 XTC like the Police, Magazine and Paul Weller, were journeymen who surged the punk new wave whilst having better things in mind.
It doesn't matter. Go into a local bar or deli and ask about XTC: you'll be met with a sea of blank faces, but ask about Prince, or Alice Cooper, or Frank Sinatra, or Jerry Lee Lewis aor even Talking Heads, and most people will know who you're talking about. That's the difference between "having a few hits years ago" and being HUGE.
But please keep watching and commenting!
Enjoyed this. Think one of the reasons most punk bands never make it big, especially in the US, is that it’s so hard to stay fresh & sustain the level of rebelliousness, fun, even integrity that “punk 101” requires without “selling out” (whatever that means). So most of it remains underground. After all, as one person said, ‘the apocalypse is only coming once’.
Great story! Thanks for sharing it and thanks for the kind words. I really do appreciate it! Cheers!
999
Yes indeed, a great band. Thanks!
@@JimDriver seen 999 last year in sheffield punk weekender and they are still really good live, gonna see them in my hometown Swansea on 0ct 18
Another great video Jim. Saw the Ruts and Alternative TV back in the day (as well as the UK Subs, the Mekons, Eddie and the Hotrods, The Lurkers, Here and Now etc etc) and XTC a few years later. For a fresh faced 15 year old, too timid to try to get served at the bar, those early punk gigs were terrifying. Terrifying but brilliantly exciting. Like many of my mates, it inspired me to try and do it myself. Still trying to emulate all that excitement this day! Punks not dead...it's just taking a breather!
Thanks for the kind words and for getting involved in the channel. Very much appreciated!
It was a terrific time and we were so lucky to be there. Thanks for sharing your wonderful memories. Cheers!
Totally agree on the Wasps! Other great melodic British punk era bands that should have had chart success : The Tights (two great singles!) , Wire (now revered but always ignored), Subway Sect, Penetration (Danger Signs had top 40 written all over it), The Drones (only big in Manchester) , The Flys (Love and a Molotov Cocktail should have been a hit) and The Boys.
Some great calls there, thanks!
Am sure I once read a quote from Andy Partridge along ghe lines of, 'We're the band that wanted to be punks but our mums would n'g let us.'
Haha! Great quite: thanks for sharing it!
Thank you for talking about the Wasps. I have the Vortex Sampler ("Cant wait till 78!") and forgot them.
My pleasure! Thanks for watching and for commenting. Cheers!
The Ruts have been playing these days...for a while actually they've been at it.... brilliant band.
Everybody has forgotten Can't Stand The Rezillos, fuckn stunning album.
I saw XTC at my local Poly touring their 1st album. This was about early 78 and they were very good.
Another band around this time at the same venue were The Vibrators. I always thought they should have been bigger than what they were.
The Vibrators were great and Knox and the chaps were a regular attraction when I was running The Cricketers, but I could never see them playing stadiums and earning double-platinum albums, great as they were. Cheers!
I thought you might include Penetration, who were electric live. Saw them at the Marquee in 78, at the height of the disgusting spitting fad. Pauline Murray threatened to walk off stage if it didn't stop. I remember thinking I would walk off anyway. That really was revolting.
Penetration were definitely on my long-list and I totally agree with her (and you!) about the spitting. Yuk!
I saw them with The Fall, Punishment of Luxury and Ed Banger at the Lyceum in Aug 78. I remember The Fall and Penetration being excellent -
They were indeed.
The Slits' first Peel session remains the best I've ever heard. When "Cut" finally came out, I couldnt have been more disappointed - good enough, but the edge had vanished in a haze of weed
Absolutely. Same for me. The Peel version of "Vindictive" was breathtaking.
I kind of agree with you, though Cut had some great moments (such as 'Newtown').I always preferred to catch them live and I think Dennis Bovell was almost making a Dennis Bovell album with Cut. Cheers!
Yeah, they never really translated well to vinyl. Waaaay over produced.
Good stuff Jim ,quite liked XTC though like you said I wouldn't call them Punk but the real contenders in your mix for me was the Ruts ,a cracking band ,it was terrible the way it played out ,it's great Ruts D.C are still strutting their stuff
That's very kind of you to say so. Thanks!
I agree with most of what you say. All the bands I mentioned were great and deserved more recognition. Eater was so far ahead of their time, especially when you realise they were barely into their teens, it's frightening.
XTC and the Ruts aimed for the stars, but circumstances prevented them from reaching superstardom.
I could go on… 🤓
@@JimDriver Eater are legends in my neck of the woods...
No mention of X ray spex, the Boys, Patrick Fitzgerald,
I saw Patrick Fitzgerald in early 1979 . Dire .
Safety pin stuck in my heart.
No, well spotted. There are a lot more I didn't mention too. I've got to be selective and with all the best will in the world, I could never see Patrick selling out stadiums and hosting his own BBC-1 prime time poetry show. I'll make other videos about great talents but that was about Punk bands who could have been HUGE> Cheers!
The Boys? I've got two of their albums. Not heard them for 25 years or more so I must dive in to my cellar of vinyl and listen to them again. I do remember there was a beautiful romantic love song called "You kiss like a nun".
While I'm at it Motorhead and a few others might get a spin on my gramophone. OK Pop pickers!
Found you by accident! Amazing...always loved the Ruts
Welcome! Glad you found the channel and I hope you’re going to stick with me. Onward and onward! Cheers!
Prefer Punishment of luxury and Wire. If you can have Ruts I can have Dept s. Prefered xtcs psychedelic alter ego. The Slits were to music what Albert Tatlock was to heavy metal. Eater were just schoolkids and it showed. My favourite bands were Anti nowhere league and Killing Joke. The Saints should have been massive yes I know they weren't English.
True. Dukes of Stratosphere still get quite often onto my platter today. 25 o´ clock!
Quite right! We're all different, and I freely admit that my choices are partly dictated by where I was at a particular time and how I was feeling. I do get that. But I love sharing my experiences and tastes on this channel.
Thanks for joining in!
@@JimDriver And that´s what was the real great thing about Punk right from the beginning. It´s a mindset, not a style of music (at least for me it always was - my music taste was always extremly diverse). And, your vid says "6 bands..." - - you inevitably have to make SOME choice for 6 bands! You just animated everybody here to think of what their choice would possibly be for that. How could anyone sane really criticise your choice - that´s why it is your choice, isn´t it?
Sorry to contradict you Jim but XTC are huge (in retrospect) Their dear God track propelled them into the stratosphere on the American alt college circuit, people want them back and are obsessive, there is the only if, Mr. Partridge would play on stage again and talk to Mr. Moulding. In my humble opinion Partridge and Moulding are up there with Difford and Tillbrook, Lennon and McCartny Jaggers Richards and the brothers Davies for Englishness. They may not have made it star wise but their shadows are enormous.
Agree with you Partridge and Moulding, the Lennon and McCartney of Swindon!
Haha! I agree: as far as musical greatness goes, there's hardly any greater star than XTC. But as far as UA-cam goes… 😄
Thanks for a great comment. Much appreciated, and thanks for watching, too.
Cheers!
Yup, I was gonna post that XTC were rather big for not being big & they had commercial success with Making plans, senses working etc. Come to think of it they were always touring and always filled those smaller venues back in the day.
I tend to think of them closer to pop than punk.
I saw Magazine support them, along with pre supports of supports 😂. I still look back as Magazine being a highlight gig of the era.
Cheers!
Good to see you included The Wasps ,I never saw them but their two tracks on Live At The Vortex are very good.
Thanks! I don't think the live track I included showed how good they were and they really were good. Cheers!
I saw the Slits & The Ruts, never saw Eater (Wish I had). Never heard of The Wasps. Never rated XTC. Too pop for my punky lugholes. Still not sure about ATV, all these years later. I had their first album, but always preferred bands like Slaughter & The Dogs.
My mate is Bri Grantham, the drummer from Slaughter. He's told me some cracking stories...His Morrissey one is piss funny. He auditioned for them once and sat cross legged and barefoot while singing. Bry threw a drum stick at him and said, "Get up you soft cunt"...lol
I know exactly what you are saying and most of my friends would share your views. Personally, I have a weakness for the quirky. Haha! Thanks for sharing that: you should start a video channel and spread the word… 😎
Hi Jim. Interesting roundup. I agree with you about XTC. Great musicians and really original ideas. They could really do the business live and didn't sound like anyone else.
Yes, indeed. A great band. Cheers!
Memories of skiing holidays in the Wiltshire Alps. ❤
Haha! They make great cooker clocks in Swindon! Thanks for joining in! Cheers!
Great share. Had forgotten about the Wasps
Thanks for watching and for taking the time to comment.
Much appreciated!
Ruts DC are a superb live act these days and still releasing excellent songs. I caught them supporting The Strangles after covid.. Wasn't expecting much as the Men in Black's support acts have often left me disappointed. On that night they really delivered and had a strong following in the audience. Catch them while you can!
Thanks for sharing that information. I must admit, I've not seen any of these bands for years and years. I often wonder what I'd think now. Cheers!
@@JimDriver Ruts DC are super, I think Eater played Northampton recently
How about Sham 69?
Don't worry, baby, I'm coming back for you!
Jimmy was a bit of a tosser, that dancing vid of him is excruciatingly bad
Have you been let out of Borstal early due to overcrowding?
Yeah, good call but I'm not sure they would have been able to appeal to a wider audience in order to become HUGE. Cheers!
@@andrewharding9011I met him a couple of times, absolutely nothing like the person he came across as. He was a Guardian reading intellectual.
I notice Bazooka Joe on a poster.. I may be wrong but off the top of my head I think Mike "Madness" Barsons brother and Adam Ant were members
Yes, Stuart Goddard was definitely in Bazooka Joe, not sure about the brother. Cheers!
@@JimDriver Just checked on tinternet.. He was and Madness covered a track of theirs for One Step Beyond .. Dragged it out of the back of my memory 😎👍.. Great vids of yours by the way 👏👏👏
@@modsnsods7329 it was Ben Barson I think. And the track you are after is Rockin' in Ab. Also on one of the posters were Potato Five. Their horn section played on some of the post Madness The Madness project. When that finished Lee and Chris from Madness formed The Nutty Boys. Amongst their touring line up was some time Potato 5 vocalist, Spider Johnson, who was back in a reformed Potato 5 in 2023. Spider has also provided backing vocals on the two most recent Madness albums.
I sold t shirts at gigs and ran an information service for the Nutty Boys. And if you look at my avatar thingy the poorly drawn (by Davey Jones of Viz Comic fame) picture of me has me wearing a t shirt with The Nutty Boys on it.
As if that's not enough Madness links to this video, Segs from The Ruts played guitar on and produced some of Madness' dreadful Dangermen Sessions Volume 1 album. It was a case of great gigs, terribly over produced plastic sounding album. It's the 'Volume 1' bit of that album which fills me with dread. I seriously hope there's never a volume 2.
XTC I love em every album your so rite Jim 🎉
Thank you and thank you for saying so.
Cheers!
Jim did you see the stranglers back in the day @@JimDriver
Hi 👋 im a Kiwi and here in New Zealand we had a small punk scene. Bands such as Suburban Reptiles and the Scavengers were two bands that started up here. It would have been interesting to see how they went down if they went over to the UK to play.
Thanks for that great insight into Kiwi punk! I can remember a New Zealand back in the 1980s telling me similar tales of how exciting things were in Wellington and elsewhere. Happy days!
Cheers!
Ruts - definitely
My favourite at the time by miles were The Only Ones
Great band! My "surprising fact" is that Glenn Tilbrook from Squeeze played guitar on their demo, but if you;ve already seen my video, you'll know that already. Thanks for sharing that!
I'd argue not really punk? For decades I thought that Peter Perret died of an overdose in the late 80's.. I must have dreamt it!
I would agree that The Only Ones weren't really Punk. They had a Punk leaning due to Perrett's voice and vocal delivery but the music covered many styles. They were one of my favourite bands at that time and I do agree that they should have been huge but I believe Perrett'.s drug use probably put pay to that.
@@stevejennings899 All very true. Another Girl is a timeless masterpiece.
Great Vid ,Jim!!! My personal favourite that never made it was ,Red Beat (on Malicious Damage) who had as members two of the Jones brothers, the third brother was ,Howard Jones, who very much did make it.....Well done on the growth of your channel!!! All the best....👍811
Thanks very much for the kind words. I really do appreciate it and thanks for sharing your thoughts to our little "community". Great info, thanks!
PS the growth of my channel took me very much by surprise but I'm really enjoying the extra traction and buzz!
Incredible, just pause this at 5:25... that line up for the Roxy... imagine living in London then, night after night going out seeing these bands... and that's just one venue... I was only 2 years old in January 1977... I love the scene now based around the Windmill and associated venues, but this would have been the greatest time to be old enough to go out for me...
Yes, it was a great time to be alive and a music lover. There were over a hundred pub and club venues operating in London at the time, mostly with live music seven nights a week. We didn't realise how lucky we were!
Thanks for sharing your thoughts!
I often went to gigs at the Roxy. Great Times
Absolutely loved this video. I reckon if Malcolm Owen hadn't died the Ruts would have been as big as the Clash. Such great songs. Also XTC did have a great career but it took them a while. XTC are highly revered these days. Finally, i must check out the Wasps.
Yes, you definitely should check out the Wasps. Thanks for the kind words, which are very much appreciated. Cheers!
You could of picked 999, slf, the vibrators ,generation x, slaughter and the dogs , the adverts and many more but you pick xtc for fucks sake , they were closer to prog rock than punk.
Slaughter is a great shout, I only watched this to see if they got a mention. I was in a band with Bryan Mad Muffet Grantham around 2006. A few years back he asked me if I'd play bass in Slaughter2 fronted up by Ed Banger of The Nosebleeds fame, then Covid came about and it didn't happen. Little fact, Slaughter and the Dogs were Jonathon Ross' favourite band at the time. He said it on a punk doc he did years ago..
Great stories. Thanks for sharing!
I could have but I didn't. That';s the joy of having my own UA-cam channel. You should start one and share your thoughts and tastes to the world: it's easier than you think. (I'm being serious btw!!)
We all have different ideas and tastes. Cheers!
@@babywithalaser2409SATD are different to Slaughter, the vocalist Wayne Barratt had split, and it was a more glam sound, that never seems to get the credit for the influence on the Hanoi Rocks, Guns n Roses type bands that followed them
Brilliant band, always loved DIDS as one of the all time classic punk albums, and also held a grudge against the Buzzcocks for slagging the off for being too" Bowie influenced"...like that's a bad thing !
Cheers Jim good stuff , I forgot about the ruts , never heard of the wasps will av a listen and didn't know why xtc got off the English roundabout , my request suggestion is could you do a playlist video of the unknown bands you heard and had something interesting please? All the best ❤️💪☮️
Glad you enjoyed it and thanks for the kind words. I'm thinking about the best way to do a playlist video or maybe something on another platform. Please keep watching!
XTC were great. Always wondered why they didn't get more recognition.
I think Andy's genius was ultimately what stopped them getting great. I saw similar things with other emerging artists: it's funny how the brain reacts when the ultimate goal is just around the corner. Cheers!
The Ruts and Alternative TV both great bands. I think the Ruts could have got very big if Malcolm hadn't died. I tend to agree with you about ATV, Mark Perry mostly just did what he wanted and it was never very commercial , but The Image Has Cracked is a great album that often seems to get overlooked.
Thanks! I agree with just abouyt every word you say. I rememebr seeing an interview with Mark back in the day where he said if he realised he was becoming rich and famous, he'd change course and have a rethink! Haha!
Don't get me wrong, but I still think it's a shame that Skrewdriver didn't bang out some more classic 77 punk like they did on their first album instead of ending up like a farce. Good example of how politics can ruin a band.
My own view is that Ian Stewart had a poisoned mind and I can't really listen to anything that cam out of it with any empathy. That's probably my failing…
I get where you're coming fromL thanks for sharing your thoughts.
@@JimDriver Yeah, it's hard to seperate the man from the music but I feel the same about Michael Jackson these days 😃 Anyway, some more underrated punk bands: The Depressions and The Drones.
When i was 17 I ended up in strangeways and the guy in the next pad had Screwdriver tattooed on his forehead, i used to wonder why anyone would have that for a tattoo ⚡ I eventually found out it was a band 🍺🍻😜
@@JimDriverI knew him, and used to bump into him till the mid 80s, after Hail the new dawn came out, he was actually a really good bloke, and you could have a political discussion with him, disagree with him, and still have a good relationship with him.
Last time I saw him was when he (and a bunch of his mates) were working at Glastonbury ... No, really...
@@JimDriver It's not a failing at all. Look at the cunt Morrissey has become and that's before you get into Paul Gadd and Ian Watkins. It is still ok to listen to Steps (if that's your thing), but the Lostprophets and Gary Glitter' music will forever be tainted.
Wasps reformed play a lot of gigs in Spain. Met Jesse Lynn Dean ( singer ) earlier this year.
Thanks for the extra information. I noticed on the website they’d reformed, but I thought it best not to go there.😗 cheers!
Really liking your channel btw 😊
The early Punk bands !
It's simply incredible just how many of the first wave of British Punk bands there actually was !
It was like an explosion of talent. I think the Punk and DIY movements (subtly different but with roughly the same goals) gave ordinary kids the inspiration to try and form a band and make music for themselves. A great time!
Thanks for taking part.
Fantastic band The Ruts..still my favourites..The Crack is a brilliant album 👍
The Ruts were great, weren't they? Thanks for sharing your thoughts!
I still listen to The Slits now. Their music is as fresh, different and remarkable as ever.
I quite agree. Some of their stuff is great. Thanks for sharing!
@@JimDriver I wrote that before watching to the end of the vid, because the other band I bracket with them in those terms is Alternative TV!
The Slits never got ‘big’, if that was the aim, because frankly the weren’t very good and they or their record company placed too much import on the fact that they were an all female band. Even in the misogynistic late 1970s that could only carry them so far before the ‘novelty’ wore off.
I saw them, as a 15 year old in 1978, supporting The Clash……and they were shit!
Agree with you. I saw them play The Roxy in 1977. Even by punk standards they were dreadful. Ari Up just screamed rather than sang and the drummer was awful.
Me too. Over hyped drivel.
@@gaycha6589 Seeing Siouxsie & The Banshees around the same time. It was obvious to me who would have a future. Not a bunch slumming it art-school types The Slits and that include X-Ray Spex.
@@saintgeorge6706 yup. Although their version of heard it thru the grapevine has some merit.
It's interesting to hear your perspective, though I'm not sure they were aiming their music quite at your demographic! 😄
Thanks for sharing your experience! and for getting a debate going. Cheers!
Nice. Eater were the real deal. Andy Blade's solo stuff is pretty amazing too.
Thanks! I’ll check it out. Please keep watching and commenting. Cheers!
Great videos !! It is hearing from people like you that makes UA-cam valuable.... Do you remember a band called Menace
Thanks for the kind words and for taking the time to comment. Yes, I do remember Menace though not well, I'm afraid. It was a while ago!
Cheers!
Oh shit I forgot about them 😜 I thank you ♠️
Prompted by one of your posters, I would have put The Rezillos in instead of XTC, as, despite the latter's problems, they arguably still made it big.
XTC may have been fairly big but not HUGE, I'd say. Anyway, I'm saving the Rezillos for another video because I have stories about them. Cheers!
Adam ant is very unrated he never gets a mention on hardly anything his a great man with the ant's too
Yes, he's not been put up there with Elvis and The Beatles, that's for sure. Unjust? Not for me to say.
But you just did, so thanks. It needed saying!
Adam and the Ants are a bit of an anomaly. The punk Ants vastly underrated, almost a complete lack of commercial success but a massive underground band that is still spoken of very highly among punk circles these days. #2 of the band a huge worldwide commercially successful phenomenon, the first big star of the 80s, but in my opinion downhill musically from Prince Charming onwards.
Thinking about The Flys now. Only7 minutes in so maybd they're on the list.
I hope you weren't too disappointed but thanks for commenting. Cheers!
@@JimDriver Not at all disappointed! Really glad UA-cam decided to recommend the channel.
Why are The Slits on here? Diversity hire?
Incel vibes
They're here because of the reasons I mentioned in the video. Thanks for asking!
@@jamespohl-md2eq Anyone who asks questions about crap fronted by protected types/groups/tribes is incel/racist/fascist etc. The morons who bully pop culture and real culture with such fascist-like cliches, I found to my horror, usually believe their mindless crap.
@@JimDriver You didn't give a many/any reasons why they should be taken seriously.
🎯
What about X-RAY SPECS?
X-Ray Spex were great but not really suitable for this video. Watch this space, as they say! Cheers!
Always thought Spizz (esp. in Spizzenergi and Athletico Spizz guises) deserved to be much much bigger than they were at the time.
Space was always worth a watch in his various incarnations. Thanks for sharing that!
I was lucky enough to see s few punk bands from the 70s , the pistols , the banshees , vortex , the vibrators , boom town rats , the ruts and the stranglers. For me bar far the best was the stranglers. I first seen them in BIRMINGHAM 1979 and they were totally awesome. The last time I seen the stranglers was 2022......and they are still awsome .
I was 14 when the punk bands broke through......what a great time.
Thanks for sharing your fantastic punk exploits with us. And thanks for watching!
Still got my 45 of "Babylon's Burning" and thought they were a great band. I often wondered what happened to them but losing their lead singer must have been a hard blow.
Yes, I think it put the brakes on their rise to stardom to be honest. They were never the same (great but it wasn't the same) after that happened. Cheers!
I believe Eater were Lou Reed's faves
Or do you mean lurid? 😄
Thanks!
@@JimDriver the fact they covered Sweet Jane probably helped endear them to him; flattery etc!
What about The Lurkers?
Pub rock, did well to be as big as they were. Fulham Fallout was good back in the day but never ground breaking if we're honest.
Great band, underated.
I used to hang out with The Lurkers back in the day and they drank in the pub I used to promote in (The Cock, North End Road, Fulham) and I booked them for several gigs, but I'm pretty sure even they didn't expect to be HUGE, up there with the Stones and Elton John (God forbid!!). Thanks for taking part.
Cheers!
Yep … Shadow ..Live High Wycombe in the day 👌
I LOVE the Lurkers and one of my fav UK punk acts..... but if we're being honest, there's nothing about them that should've been huge. lol. They were destined to be an obscure punk act from the beginning.
So many great bands to pick from. My personal favourites were Stiff Little Fingers, so good. Much better than the other bands that came out of Ireland and made it big
Great choice. SLF were (and are) great! Cheers!
Swell Maps ?!? Dancing Did ???
Thanks for commenting. Great calls but HUGE?! Personally, I don't think so but your opinion is as valid as mine! Cheers!
Yes! The Swell Maps, my second favorite brit punk band besides the Fall. So glad you mentioned them!
XTC weren't punk and had a fair measure of success. Otherwise, punk was just meant to be fun, more about the movement or image than the music. Some great bands emerged from the era, but they were the ones who could actually play, eg The Stranglers etc
The Ruts could play, I would say.
You make valid points! XTC carved out their unique sound, showcasing the diversity within the punk movement and beyond. Cheers!
'Skylarking' still sounds great; though it's definitely not punk; more English new-wave, folk-pop. I believe the band thought that producer, Todd Rundgren had a bit too much control over the end result.
Alternative TV had a track called "Splitting in two". Which was covered by cult legends The Chameleons at the end of their live shows.
Great info! Thanks for sharing it. Cheers!
I think that their first LP "The Image Has Cracked" ,1978, is one of the most significant albums of the first UK Punk wave...full of ideas! Like Wire and The Fall , ATV really started with a burst of surprising and unconventional creativity.
Eater were just kids and rode their luck as a novelty cos of their age. The later songs Andy Blade did after leaving Eater is well worth a listen and so much better. How he's been overlooked for so long is a mystery to me, still churning out decent songs to this day.
A tosser though live these days, i saw him in matlock north uk . He spent the gig slagging off northerners etc saying wheres our whippets and flat caps
The Damned could have been epic had they taken one of the big money offers that were on the table, instead they wanted to go with an independent so they had more control, and they chose Stiff Records and were the first of the so called punk bands to release a single and an album and tour the states, they would have been better off with a major label, instead they went from one skint independent to another, they released great singles and albums but the promotion was lack lustre, despite this they charted quite high.
Thanks for sharing those thoughts. Not sure I agree with everything you say. My perception was that Stiff were superb marketers, whereas the big labels only had ideas that involved lots of music press advertising and I remember their acts being very critical of the way they were promoted. I think the direction the Damned took was just about right.: theyw= were making money and having fun.
But your perception could well be right!
Cheers!
The Damned were , are and will be epic!!!
There was never another Stooges amongst these bands but they all have their fleeting moments in Rick history.
Indeed. I'm assuming you meant "Rock history", otherwise I'll start brushing up on Rick Stein (British chef and restaurant-owner for those who don't know!)
Thanks for sharing!
@@JimDriver ha ha. Yes rock.
I have seen Ruts DC a lot of times. But only the Ruts once. Wolvo Civic Oct 1979. If nobody had died, the Ruts would have headlined big festivals like Rebellion, Academy In The UK, North East Calling and Brixton Academy Fuck Reading.
I quite agree and that's what I mean. Thanks for being part. of this little community of music nerds! Cheers!
Love ya take with humour - Thanks for all yer info 🙂 From Portugal, yours truly 🙂
Thank you for those kind words. I love almost everything about Portugal (I'm a veggie, so the pork stuff is out!). Cheers!
What about Essential Logic I really liked them.
Essential Logic were great but never really emblazoned themselves onto my soul like many of the others did. Thanks!
XTC were pretty huge . The Boys should've
been in there too.😊..Wire...The Boys...The Vibrators
Good Calls. Thanks for taking part!
*Best u.k punkrock - the Barracudas, Skrewdriver, Buzzcocks. Period.*
You could go on all day, naming different bands. Swell Maps, The Shapes, Slaughter & the Dogs, The Raincoats, Punishment of Luxury, SLF, Pseudo Existors, Dangerous Girls, and you could just keep going and going, remembering it's still all subjective...and to be fair, quite a lot of these bands, including the ones you mention, did make it quite big, albeit not mainstream, but that was the point, wasn't it?.
Out of the ones you mention, I love ATV, very creative and Mark Perry very much underrated. I love their singles and 'Life' is a punk classic. Still got it, thank goodness.
..and, RUTS, well they really were in a different league to the 3-chord brigade (no disrespect, cause I love them too).
No, RUTS were fantastic musicians, head and shoulders above and they wrote very powerful songs, that have stood the test of time. I count myself lucky at having seen Ruts four times back in the day and they were amazing live and their records were really good too. Always well produced and very powerful. TBH, I think Ruts probably were the best punk band, and it would have been interesting to see where things would have gone, if Malcolm hadn't tragically died. I was 20 at that time. You could hear a shift in things on the West One (Shine On Me) single and I try and imagine where they would have taken things from there. They were a class act.
It's fantastic to hear your thoughts on ATV and RUTS! and some great suggestions. Thanks!
Chelsea
Gloria Mundi
The Kids
The Adverts
Good calls. I made my choices and I'll stick with them but I'm not ruling out another video along the same lines. Cheers!
the slits didnt really have any decent songs its as simple as that
OK, let's agree to differ on that one. I hope you've subscribed btw. Cheers!
XTC were never punk and how can you say they didn’t make it, formed 1972 finished 2006 and big in the US, multi award winning, 14 studio albums. And EXTC are touring now. Wish I could be such a failure.
We're all entitled to an opinion, even me. I'd recommend you should start up a UA-cam channel and share your opinions and experiences with the world. I think you'll enjoy it.
In the meantime, please keep watching mine. Cheers!
Ruts4Eva! … XTC had a pretty solid following on college radio in the States … I remember cueing up Nigel followed by the first REM EP back in the day … ‘course nothing really beats the Subs “I Live in a Car” as under-rated punk noise …
Good point: the Subs were a one-off!
Thanks for sharing your memories. Please keep watching and adding your stories. I appreciate it. Thanks again!
The live "Crash Course" version of ILIAC is particularly good.
@ProdHanley I have heard tale that when REM were starting out they were covering XTC songs whilst they honed their sound.
Absolutely loved the Ruts...sad what happened to Malcolm Owen, I truly think they would of been big...
Thank you for sharing your thoughts! It is always gratifying to connect with fellow Punk enthusiasts who appreciate the Ruts and Malcolm Owen's incredible talent. Thanks again!
Great choices! Eater were great and were better then bands with members half their ages.
Whats your opinion on the
Maniacs? Alan Lee Shaw was a magnificent guitar player and is criminally underrated as a frontman. His other band The Rings were pretty good too.
Always felt The Depressions were a solid band and Im surprised they never made it big. They had a decent sound and a few decent tunes.
Thanks for sharing your thoughts! I agree with just about every word. Keep watching. Cheers!
Why not Subway Sect?
This is just one video. So many bands, so little time… 😄
I'm communicating with Vic…
Thanks for commenting. Cheers!
Cocksparrer, Slaughter and the Dogs, they should have been bigger than the Pistols.
Yes, great bands but it's not all about the music unfortunately. Thanks for sharing!
haha
I'd liked to have seen one of the most underrated punk bands of the day get a mention, and that's London. Brilliant live band and the one lp and three singles they made were fantastic.
One of the best 77 bands by far, the Everyones A Winner single is a classic. How about the Killjoys, Rickie and the Last Days on Earth, plus many more
London were great and I saw them and put them on back in the day. Thanks for adding that. Cheers!
Great video! Love all these groups. From a Canadian point of view: one band though that I think legit should've and could've been huge: The Boys. They had the looks, talent, sound and hooks to have been as big as Generation X. First two albums are bangers and even the 3rd and 4th records have their moments.
We had some great bands in the late 70s too and among the best included Brit expats: The Demics (lead singer was from Manchester) and the Bureaucrats (vocalist was a brit). That said, I believe Menace had a Canadian vocalist, so we gave back! lol. cheers!
Thanks very much for the kind words: much appreciated, I assure you. The Boys sound like the Lost Boys of Punk! Thanks for the recommendation. Cheers!
@@JimDriver love your channel!
Oh yeah man, so good. and Casino Steele (the keyboardist) played in the Hollywood Brats in '72-73, who were like the UK New York Dolls (and interestingly, had a Canadian singer living in England at the time! lol). The Ramones loved the Boys too. They had them on tour over 1980 and members joined them on stage for a few songs. The Boys rule! Uk punk rules. WIRE! Stranglers!
I just caught my old band name on that Vortex ad for the Wasps! We were the eternal also-rans and support band...
Ha ha ha! Quite a lot of bands were but I didn’t make them any worse than the ones who made it! Thanks for taking part. Cheers!
@JimDriver over the years I saw many bands who didn't make it, and as you rightly say some of them were great. I think sometimes it's a matter of being in the right place at the right time.
XTC were never punk - way too left field. Brilliant band though. And the biggest problem they had was Andy Partridge's stage fright (as you said).
Spot on
You make a great point! XTC had a unique sound that set them apart from the Punk scene, but back then, they chose to be associated with what was happening and the movement in general. Andy's stage fright definitely added an absorbing layer to their story.
Bit of a random list, XTC were massively acclaimed critically, they still are. And, having had more hits than most, they are not unappreciated. The Ruts are hugely respected and still going strong, making great new records. The Slits are credited as the pioneers they were, and extensively written about. History has treated these bands well, some have extensive documentaries about them etc. Sure they could have had more success in their day but trends were overtaking them so quickly. 1980/81 guitars were out, synths were in. But they endure. Fair enough Eater and The Wasps, but they weren't quite of the standard of the other three, despite having a great song maybe two. I have a record store, young folks are always looking for OG punk records by the best bands.
Not sure any of those bands were HUGE in the same way U2 or Prince or Madonna or The Rolling Stones are, but you're entitled to your opinion. Thanks for commenting and I think you should consider making your own videos. I'd certainly love to see them (genuinely)!
PS It definitely wasn't a "random list", I spent a week deliberating and crossing off other names. Cheers!
@@JimDriver I apologise if I came across a bit arsey. Enjoyed your vid, you saw these acts first hand so I can't appreciate that. I do think they'd all have to make some serious compromises for world domination tho. I'm happy with what they left behind is what I was getting at.
@@chriscoulthard7282 No problem! To be honest, after you've answered a few dozen comments it's easy to get arsey myself! Thansk fir the words of encouragement and please keep watching. Cheers!
What did the slits pioneer??
Eater were promising, I had their 'Get your Yo Yo's out EP, white vinyl too!
Indeed! Thanks for sharing that. As a veggie, I was a bit non-plussed by the dead pig's head they bought from a butcher's shop for every gig but I realise that was them trying to shock. But hey-ho, they were the business!
@@JimDriver Just one gig actually, the drummers dad was a butcher you see.
I have to admit to having forgotten the Wasps but liked all of the others. The Slits were one of the best live bands I ever saw. The Ruts early Peel session was stupendous.
Thanks.: I totally agree with all you say! I am with you 100% on The Slits and I was very disappointed that none of the live clips I could find reflected just how amazing they were on stage. Cheers!
I always thought XTC did make it pretty big? They were certainly too musical to have been considered punk. More New wave? And I agree about the Ruts (although now that I have swapped out old England for New England DC means ‘District of Columbia’ to me these days). Great band!
I agree, xtc were very big, not compared to the Rolling Stones I suppose
In Australia, and I thought they were big. Generals and Majors and Senses Working Overtime got plenty of airtime. Certainly not punk on those tracks. I wouldn’t have called their earlier hit Making Plans For Nigel a punk track.
It's all about degrees, isn't it? Just about everybody you mix with will know who Elton John is, or The Rolling Stones, or Queen, or Abba, but ask about any of these bands (including XTC) on this video and you'll be lucky if one in ten or one in 20 will have heard of them.
All great bands. My favorite by far is XTC. I love all of their albums. They covered so many different styles/genres and yet made them all their own. They were an incredibly consistent band. Yeah, they should've been as big as the Police or at least REM, but Andy's mental health issues coupled with bad management kept that from happening.
XTC truly was a remarkable band with a unique sound and incredible range. It's a shame circumstances prevented them from receiving the recognition they deserved! Thanks for sharing your views.
Cheers!
@@JimDriver I see them as one of those bands that will stand the test of time. Looking forward to more of your videos!
@@Ted_James Thanks! I appreciate the support.
XTC are touring this autumn. I think they have only one ex member left in the band, Terry Chambers.
Thanks for that information, I didn't know. Do you mean Terry Chambers? Either way, he's not Andy Partridge. Cheers!
@@JimDriver whoops I meant Terry Chambers. I'll correct my original comment now. Martin Chamber, is of course, the drummer with The Pretenders. I couldn't somehow see The Pretenders doing a set of XTC songs 🤣🤣🤣
The new band go under the name EXTC (apparently the name was suggested by Andy). Yes, Terry's the only member of XTC in the new band. They're good, i've seen them a few times, the same as XTC, bad luck struck (in the form of Covid), just as they were going out gigging after months of rehearsals.
Subway Sect? They morphed pretty quickly though from punk to something more interesting.
Ive just commented on another video of yours, a friend of mine was in a one hit wonder punk band, his name is Anthony ( Tony ) Dent, from the Epping forest area.
Thoughts on Discharge?
Discharge were never really in my orbit and I always thought they were the Punk equivalent of a metal band and pretty "aurally challenging". It was probably my loss as I hear people rave about them. Cheers!
@@JimDriver You never to old to start! I did it last year with Crass, and after some tough listening, I think they are great (bearing in mind my favourite punk was the initial wave).Even went to see Steve Ignorant's band who were excellent.