Charged GBH
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- This page is about the UK punk rock band. For information on the British legal phrase, see Grievous bodily harm.
Charged GBH is a Birmingham-based UK82 band formed in 1978, considered by many to be pioneers in British punk rock hardcore punk along with Discharge, Broken Bones, The Exploited, The Varukers, and Shock Frot.
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[edit] Biography
Originally known simply as GBH (inspired by then-bassist Sean McCarthy's trial for grievous bodily harm), their name was changed to Charged GBH in order to differentiate themselves from another band of the same name, the 'charged' being a reference to their mohawk hairstyles. Founder members were Colin 'Col' Abrahall (vocals), Colin 'Jock' Blyth (guitar), Sean McCarthy (bass) and Andrew Williams (drums).
Charged GBH embarked on several English and mainland US tours during the early 1980s, including several gigs at the prestigious 100 Club.
1982 saw GBH's first LP, City Baby Attacked By Rats. Lyrically, the album dealt with criticism of British and European culture, violence, morbidity (especially in reference to the song "Passenger On The Menu", which describes in graphic detail the experiences of the passengers on the Uruguayan Air Force Flight 571), atheism, nihilism and general absurdity. Musically, the album was loud and fast, with few songs exceeding three minutes.
In 1983 the band announced during a gig with ex-Hawkwind sax player Nik Turner's 'Inner City Unit' in the now defunct 'Golden Eagle' public house that they were changing their name to simply GBH, ostensibly because that was how their fans referred to them.
Unlike many early punk bands who evolved towards a more post-punk sound, GBH have stayed fairly faithful to their original UK82 sound in subsequent releases. However, the band have experimented to some degree with a more metal-inflected sound, notably with their 1992 release Church of the Truly Warped, although they have since returned to a more purist punk sound.
The band is still active and touring and maintain a strong cult following both in England and the rest of Europe, as well as in America and Japan.
[edit] Discography
- "1980 Demo" (Tape 1980)
- "Partice 1980" (Tape 1980)
- "Leather, Bristles, Studs, And Acne" (EP, 1981)
- "No Survivors" (EP, 1982)
- "Give Me Fire" / "Man Trap" (EP, 1982)
- "Leather, Bristles, No Survivors & Sick Boys" (Comp, 1982)
- City Baby Attacked By Rats (LP, 1982)
- "Catch 23" / "Hellhole" (EP, 1983)
- "Do What You Do" (EP, 1984)
- City Baby's Revenge (LP, 1984)
- "Oh No, It's GBH Again" (EP, 1986)
- Midnight Madness And Beyond (LP, 1986)
- Clay Years 1981-1984 (LP, 1986)
- No Need To Panic (LP, 1987)
- "Wot A Bargain" (EP, 1988)
- A Fridge Too Far (LP, 1989)
- No Survivors (Live, 1989)
- From Here To Reality (LP, 1990)
- The Clay Years - 1981-84 (Compilation, 1990)
- Diplomatic Immunity (Compilation, 1990)
- Church of the Truly Warped (LP, 1992)
- The Clay Recordings (Compilation, 1992)
- Live In Japan (Live, 1993)
- The Clay Punk Singles Collection (Compilation, 1995)
- Celebrity Live Style (Live, 1996)
- Punk Junkies (LP, 1997)
- "Punk As Fuck" (Single, 1998)
- Punk Rock Hits (Compilation, 1999)
- Live In Los Angeles (Compilation, 1999)
- Punk Rock Ambulance (LP, 2001)
- The Punk Singles 1981-1984 (Compilation, 2002)
- Ha Ha (LP, 2002)
- Cruel and Unusual (LP, 2004)
- Dead on Arrival: A Punk Rock Anthology (Compilation, 2005)
[edit] DVDs & Videos
- "Kawasaki Live" (1995)
- "Live in L.A. 1988" (1996)
- "Live at the Ace, Brixton" (2003)
- "Kawasaki Live/Brit Boys Attacked by Brats" (2004)
- "G.B.H. Live in LA/Live at Victoria" (2005)
- "Charged: On Stage" (2006)
[edit] Personnel
[edit] Present
- Colin (Col) Abrahall - Vocals - born 5 December 1961, in Birmingham.
- Ross Lomas - Bass.
- Colin (Jock) Blyth - Guitars.
- Scott Preece - Drums.
[edit] Past bass players
- Sean McCarthy
[edit] Past drummers
- Andrew Williams
- Joseph Montero
- Kai Reder
- Sonny Sini
