The Lambrettas

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The Lambrettas were a British mod revival band, active in the late 1970s and early 1980s.

Formed near the south coast city of Brighton, their original line-up consisted of Jez Bird (vocalist/guitarist), Doug Sanders (guitarist/vocalist), Mark Ellis (bassist), and Paul Wincer (drummer). Their biggest hit was in 1980, with a cover version of the 1950s Lieber and Stoller song, "Poison Ivy", which reached number 7 in the UK Singles Chart. They also scored a number 12 hit with the follow-up, "Da-a-a-nce".

In the same year they released an album, entitled Beat Boys in the Jet Age which reached number 28 on the UK Albums Chart, and another charting single - "Another Day (Another Girl)".

All these releases were issued on the Rocket record label. The mod revival fad soon faded and subsequent singles and a second album, 1981's Ambience, were commercial flops. The band soon called it quits, playing their final gig in London, on 14 April, 1982.

However, Bird re-grouped the band in the 1990s, playing small venues in England, and recorded several demos for a new album, which was never issued.

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The Lambrettas: a short biography


England in the summer of 1979 meant MOD, and it was then that the Lambrettas were formed near the south coast city of Brighton. The original members were: Jez Bird (vocals/guitar), Doug Sanders (guitar/vocals), Mark Ellis (bass), and Paul Wincer (drums). The band first performed on June 9, 1979, playing at an all-day Mod concert held in the ballroom at the end of Hastings pier.

The band played various venues around England, then in August were spotted by Elton John’s Rocket Records label. A Rocket album -- named "499-2139" -- featured a dozen new and unknown bands and included the Lambrettas' first recording, Go Steady.

In November of 1979, Rocket released the Lambrettas track as a single. By the early part of 1980, Go Steady had sold modestly, but with enough interest to persuade Rocket to sign the band.

The next release was a cover of the 1950s Lieber/Stoller song, Poison Ivy, previously recorded most notably by The Coasters and The Rolling Stones. The Lambrettas version, with brass arrangements, had a decidedly upbeat "ska" feel to it. The record was a huge success, reaching #7 in the British charts, and earning the band a silver disc for sales in excess of 250,000.

The next single, Da-a-ance, was more typical of the band’s pop/rock sound, reaching #12 in the charts. Controversy occurred when they were about to release another cut from their debut album, Beat Boys In The Jet Age. At the last moment, the song Page 3, had to be re-titled for single release as Another Day (Another Girl), after a court injunction by the Sun newspaper. The record was moderately successful, reaching #49 in the charts.

Towards the end of 1980, with Beat Boys doing well (#28 in the British album charts), the band embarked on a European tour, opening for the highly acclaimed band, Madness. 1981 brought a lineup change to the Lambrettas. To record their second album, Ambience, former drummer for Toyah Wilcox, Steve Bray, replaced Paul Wincer. Also, two tracks featured the saxophone playing of Wesley Magoogan of The Beat. Despite the album’s fine production values, and a more solid sound, it was not a success. The Lambrettas had tried to move on from their Mod image to reach a larger audience, but failed to do so.

Throughout 1981, singles taken from the new album continued to be released, but the band were unable to capture the ear of the British public. Another lineup change occurred, this time Pat Freyne replacing Steve Bray on drums.

In early 1982, the Lambrettas decided to record another cover version, the Jefferson Airplane song from the 1960s, Somebody To Love. Despite much radio exposure, the song did not chart.

The band's last concert (their 123rd) was at The Venue, London, on April 14, 1982 . Shortly after this, they parted ways with Rocket Records, and also with each other. The Lambrettas released two albums (Beat Boys and Ambience), and eight singles, from late 1979 to the middle of 1982. A compilation of the singles, called Kick Start, was released in 1985.

The complete recordings of the band are available on CD.

BAND WEBSITE: http://groups.msn.com/TheLambrettas-BeatBoysInTheJetAge -

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