On November 3, 1980 The Damned released The Black Album. Goth elements enter the band's punk sound. Originally, fans got two discs. The first is the studio album featuring the UK#51 single "The History of the World (Part1) ", "Wait For the Blackout" and "Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde". The second disc featured a strange 17 minute piece called "Curtain Call" on one side with live versions of fan favorites on the other.
The second disc upset the band. Rat Scabies told the press "Just as we are trying to hammer home a value for money policy, the radio company come up a scalper!If any of our fans have been caught with this turkey, bring it to a gig and we'll autograph it as a gesture of good faith"
In November of 1979 The Damned released Machine Gun Etiquette, a rebound from that most slumpish of sophomore albums, the uninspired Music For Pleasure. With the departure of guitarist Brian James and the addition of Saints bassist Algy Ward, the band reformed ( with original members Captain Sensible, Rat Scabies and Dave Vanian) and sounded excited to be back in the studio.
The result may be their best album of all.
"Love Song" hit #20 on the UK singles chart. Their appearance on Top of the Pops is a classic moment, especially with Captain Sensible's furry suit. "Smash It Up", which would become The Damned's theme song, made the Top 40.
Mojo Magazine has declared "Machine Gun Etiquette is up there with the best, most original, and meanest underground rock from the '70s.."
Mean? I don't know. Despite the band's name and its goth lead singer, The Damned has always struck me as the punk band with the best sense of humor. Note the performance below and how it ends.
"Noise, Noise, Noise" features vocal assistance from Joe Strummer whose bad was recording London Calling next door. There's an MC5 cover ("Looking At You") , the melodic instrumental "Smash It Up (pt 1)" and "Plan 9 Channel 7", dedicated to actress Vampira and her role in Ed Wood's Plan 9 From Outer Space.
Once thought dead, The Damned were just getting going.
On May 20, 1979 New Wave artists finally overtook Art Garfunkel's "Bright Eyes" as Blondie, Roxy Music and M's "Pop Muzik" topped the U.K. charts at 1, 2 and 3. David Bowie, The Police, The Undertones, Sparks, The Dickies and The Damned also made the Top 20.
1 SUNDAY GIRL BLONDIE
2 DANCE AWAY ROXY MUSIC
3 POP MUZIK
M
4 DOES YOUR MOTHER KNOW ABBA
5
REUNITED PEACHES AND HERB
6 BRIGHT EYES
ART GARFUNKEL
7 HOORAY HOORAY, IT'S A HOLI-HOLIDAY BONEY M
8 BOOGIE WONDERLAND EARTH WIND AND FIRE WITH THE EMOTIONS
9 BOYS KEEP SWINGING DAVID BOWIE
10 ONE WAY TICKET ERUPTION
11 KNOCK ON WOOD AMII STEWART
12 PARISIENNE WALKWAYS
GARY MOORE
13 ROXANNE THE POLICE
14 SHINE A LITTLE LOVE ELECTRIC LIGHT ORCHESTRA
15 BANANA SPLITS THE DICKIES
16 JIMMY JIMMY THE UNDERTONES
17 THE LOGICAL SONG SUPERTRAMP
18 THE NUMBER ONE SONG IN HEAVEN SPARKS
19 NICE LEGS SHAME ABOUT HER FACE MONKS
20 LOVE SONG THE DAMNED
1978 would likely be the year that the great 3:00 pop song ( or new wave tune) made its return, but short and succinct could also be found in 1977. Yes, while Joni Mitchell took an entire side of an album for a song called "Paprika Plains" and the Grateful Dead needed more than 16 minutes for its "Terrapin Station" suite, some artists cut straight to the point.
Here are six 1977 songs under a minute:
Wire : Field Day for the Sundays
At 28 seconds, Wire's shortest song on Pink Flag still found time for a false ending and a repeat chorus. My favorite album of the year featured six songs under a minute and NO guitar solos.
Godley and Creme : Cool, Cool, Cool (Reprise)
It's probablycheating to include a reprise in this list but I'd argue these are the best thirty seconds on the bloviated Consequences.
Earth Wind and Fire : In The Marketplace (Interlude)
At 43 seconds, this experimental tune might have been on one of Brian Eno's albums, Instead, it's a small scene setter on Earth Wind and Fire's finest album, All 'n'All.
Kraftwerk : Endless, Endless
Yes, it's another reprise. The final track on Kraftwerk's magnificent Trans Europe Express runs 55 seconds and leaves the perfect after-taste in your mouth.
Desperate Bicycles : Handlebars
From the Do It Yourself English punk rockers, the 58 second "Handlebars" ends with a rallying cry for every would be musician : "It was easy. It was cheap. Go and do it!"
The Damned : Stab Your Back
Drummer Rat Scabies gets sole songwriting credit on this minute long gem from the Damned Damned Damned which repeats the title 24 times.
In November of 1977, The Damned released their second album, Music For Pleasure which was produced by Nick Mason of Pink Floyd. The critics suggested the best thing about the album was the Barney Bubbles cover. There just aren't any very good songs on this album, one of the classic examples of the sophomore slump. With the departure of guitarist Brian James, The Damned would reform learn to write songs, and record some remarkable tunes in the years to come
On the weekend of August 5 and 6, 1977, punk rock fans and the curious one again gathered at Mont de Marsan for what must be called a legendary line-up of bands. The Clash, The Damned, The Jam, The Police, Rich Kids, Eddie and the Hot Rods...well, you can see the poster above so I'll just stop.
French bands opened each day. The Damned came out with their newest member, a second guitarist named Robert "Lu" Edmonds. His purpose was to fatten the sound, but that was the kind of thing the former pub rockers were supposed to be doing, not punk bands. In a month The Damned would record a second album. It wouldn't sell. By January they would be the fifrt major punk band to break up
The Clash came out with fury, opening with "London's Burning" before trying out a cover of Toots and the Maytals' "Pressure Drop". Damned bassist Captain Sensible interrupted the performance by tossing smoke bombs on the stage and unplugging amps. He was roughed up by security.
The Police were still a four piece band. Original guitarist Henry Padovani was far more punk than the ten year older Andy Summers, late of Kevin Ayers. But it looked as though Henry saw what direction the Police were heading, as he stood still on a corner of the stage watching the others.
Recorded by the legendary producer Shel Talmy, who had recorded both The Who and The Kinks, The Damned's new single "Stretcher Case Baby" was released in July of 1977 by Stiff Records as a thank you to the fans. The song had been part of the regular set since March when Rat Scabies wrote the lyrics over a Brian James riff. "I tried to get it to sound like the early records by The Who - a band I liked a lot. I don't know a stretcher case baby is. You'd have to ask Rat," said James.
On June 18, 1977, the day The Sex Pistols began recording the rest of the tracks that would make up their classic Never Mind The Bollocks debut album, Johnny Rotten was attacked by a gang of nine men wielding razors and at least one machete outside the Pegasus pub in Islington, London. The attack left him with a slashed arm and tendon damage.
Six days earlier, after the Pistols sabotaged the Queen's jubilee, The Sunday Mirror ran story with the headline "Punish the Punks!"
Apparently some readers took it to heart.
Johnny Rotten:
Chris Thomas and I were in the Pegasus, just around the corner from Wessex Studios,’[Rotten] says, ‘and as we left, we were attacked in the car park by a gang of knife-wielding yobs, who were chanting, ‘We love our Queen, you bastard!’ Normally I’d say they were National Front, but a third of them were black. They were just lads out for violence. I got some bad cuts from that. It severed two tendons, so my left hand is fucked forever, and as I’m left-handed, I can’t close the fist properly. I’ll never play guitar: there’s no power to it. I jumped into the car and someone jumped after me with a machete and cut me from there [he points to his thigh about a foot down] . . . to there [his knee]. I had on extremely thick leather trousers at the time, thank fucking God, because it would have ripped the muscle out and now I’d be a one-legged hoppity.'”
There were other attacks in June of 1977. Pistols drummer Paul Cook was attacked the next day by six men who struck him with a crowbar. Gaye Advert and TV Smith of The Adverts were beaten up on June 21. At the hospital they were asked what did they expect, dressing up like that? Rotten again was brutalized two days later. On the last day of the month , The Damned's front man Dave Vanian was attacked in his dressing room, sustaining a dislocated shoulder.
On May 10, 1977 The Damned recorded their second Peel session, performing " Sick Of Being Sick" "Stretcher Case Baby" ( both to be released as a new single in July but with only 5,000 copies issued), plus two numbers from their debut LP, "Fan Club " and "Feel the Pain". Is that Dave Vanian who responds to Peel's band introduction with "Thank you very much John, you old sod. And I'd like to say to each and everyone that bought our last LP and made us stinking rich so we can earn 12 pounds a week instead of 11"?
On February 19, 1977 The Damned released the first "punk" album, Damned Damned Damned. Produced by Nick Lowe, it might actually sound too good to those expecting caustic punk from ne'er do wells. The musicianship is spot on as well, especially the guitar work of Brian James which was likened to Pete Townshend by NME. To promote the album ( which features the classic singles "New Rose" and "Neat Neat Neat") The Damned went on tour with Marc Bolan of T. Rex who proudly claimed to be the godfather of punk.
On October 22, 1976 The Damned released what has often been cited as the first punk single ever. That they beat the Sex Pistols to the punch was always galling to Johnny Rotten. The Pistols--still five weeks from releasing "Anarchy in the UK-- were recording demos for EMI. the Dutch country trio Pussycat was on top of the charts with "Mississippi".
Recorded in one day, and produced by Nick Lowe, "New Rose" is a teenage love song, which may not actually be the appropriate subject for a punk song. Let the Sex Pistols and The Clash sing about the issues. The Damned's Dave Vanian is singing about love. About the inner storm that rocks your insides when you've got a "new rose" in town.
The B side was a sped up version of The Beatles' "Help". The Sex Pistols' "Anarchy in the UK" would be released just weeks later.
On September 20th and 21st, 1976, the 100 Club hosted a two day international punk rock festival, an event which included The Sex Pistols, The Clash, The Damned, The Buzzcocks, The Vibrators and a brand new band called Siouxsie and the Banshees.
Subway Sect opened the first night. They were followed by a completely improvised set by the Banshees. Siouxsie sang The Lord's Prayer over noisy instrumentation. The Clash followed. And then came the Sex Pistols.
Simon Wright was there:
"The first night, like all the early punk gigs I went to, was noisy and physical, but good-humoured. The spitting and the gobbing and the pogo-ing came later."
The second night was rougher. French punks Stinky Toys opened and were followed by Chris Spedding and his under-rehearsed band, The Vibrators. The Damned came on next with The Buzzcocks closing the festival.
Among those in the audience were The Jam's Paul Weller, future Pogue Shane McGowan (seen above with his fanzine Bondage), Chrissie Hynde, future Slit Viv Albertine and, on the second night, a drunken Sid Vicious. Vicious threw a bottle which shattered against a pillar during The Damned set. A young woman was blinded by a shard of glass.
