The Vibrators

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The Vibrators
The Vibrators playing at Augustibuller 2007.
The Vibrators playing at Augustibuller 2007.
Background information
Origin London, England
Genre(s) Punk rock
Years active 1976-present
Label(s) Rak
Columbia
Epic
Anagram
Rat Race
Ram Records
Carrere
FM/Revolver
Dojo
Track
Associated acts Chris Spedding, Bazooka Joe, The Stranglers, Roxy Music, Eater, The Members, UK Subs, Peter Gabriel, Peter Hammill
Website http://www.thevibrators.com/
Members
Ian Carnochan (Knox)
Pete
John ‘Eddie’ Edwards
Former members
Pat Collier

John Ellis
Gary Tibbs
Dave Birch
Added Don Snow
Ben Brierly
Greg van Cook
Kip
Ian Woodcock
Phil Ram
Adrian Wyatt
Noel Thompson
Mickie Owen
Mark Duncan
Nigel Bennett
Darrell Bath
Nick Peckham
Robbie Tart

The Vibrators are an original and long-lived British punk rock band that formed in 1976.

Contents

[edit] History

The band was founded by Ian 'Knox' Carnochan, bassist Pat Collier, guitarist John Ellis, and drummer John 'Eddie' Edwards. They first came to public notice at the 100 Club when they backed Chris Spedding in 1976. On Spedding's recommendation, Mickie Most signed them to his record label RAK. Most produced their first single, "We Vibrate". The band also backed Spedding on his single, "Pogo Dancing".

The Vibrators recorded sessions at for John Peel at BBC Radio 1 in October 1976, June 1977, and February 1978.[1] They were one of the pioneering punk bands that played live in the first few months of London's Roxy Club. They headlined in January 1977, supported by The Drones, and in February they played twice at the venue. [2] In March 1977 the band supported Iggy Pop on his British tour. Later that year they backed ex-Mott the Hoople frontman Ian Hunter.

The picture cover of the Vibrators' May 1977 single "Baby Baby"
The picture cover of the Vibrators' May 1977 single "Baby Baby"

The band signed to Epic Records in early 1977. Their debut album, Pure Mania, reached the Top 50 of the UK Albums Chart. The album is well regarded by some music critics, and 17 years after its release, The Guinness Encyclopedia of Popular Music named Pure Mania one of the best 50 punk albums of all-time.[3][4][5]

The follow-up album, V2, narrowly missed the UK Top 30. The only single to be taken from that album, "Automatic Lover", was also the only Vibrators’ single to reach the UK Top 40. It earned the band a TV appearance on the prime-time music show Top of the Pops. The Vibrators’ final single on Epic, "Judy Says (Knock You In The Head)", was released in June 1978. Years later it was included in Mojo magazine’s list of the best punk rock singles of all time.[6]

The band's song "Troops Of Tomorrow", also covered by The Exploited, has become a punk anthem.[citation needed]

During the 1980s, John Ellis recorded and toured frequently with Peter Hammill, and subsequently The Stranglers, eventually joining the latter full-time during the 1990s. Pat Collier went on to work closely with Robyn Hitchcock, producing and/or mixing a number of his albums (to which Knox also sometimes contributed). Despite numerous line-up changes, The Vibrators are still touring to this date as a three-piece; Carnochan and "Eddie" being the only original members.

The band's discography is notable for many live albums, outtakes, round-ups and best-ofs. One of the more recent is Live Near The Seedy Mill Golf Course, released in the UK by Invisible Hands Music in 2003.

The Belfast punk group Stiff Little Fingers took its name from a Vibrators song.

[edit] Discography

[edit] Singles released before 1980

  • "We Vibrate" / "Whips And Furs" (RAK, November 1976)
  • "Pogo Dancing" / "The Pose" (RAK, November 1976)
  • "Bad Times" / "No Heart" (RAK, March 1977)
  • "Baby Baby" / "Into The Future" (Epic Records, May 1977)
  • "London Girls" (Live) / "Stiff Little Fingers" (Live) (Epic Records, August 1977)
  • "Automatic Lover" / "Destroy" (Epic Records, March 1978) # 35 UK Singles Chart
  • "Judy Says (Knock You In The Head)" / "Pure Mania" (Epic Records, June 1978) # 70

[7]

[edit] Studio albums

  • Pure Mania (Epic/Columbia, June 1977) # 49 UK Albums Chart
  • V2 (Epic, April 1978) # 33
  • Guilty (Anagram, 1982)
  • Alaska 127 - 1984
  • Fifth Amendment - 1985
  • Recharged - 1988
  • Meltdown - 1988
  • Vicious Circle - 1989
  • Volume 10 - 1990
  • Hunting For You - 1994
  • Unpunked - 1996
  • French Lessons With Correction - 1997
  • Buzzin' - 1999
  • Noise Boys - 2000
  • Energize - 2002
  • Punk: The Early Years - 2006

[7]

[edit] External links

[edit] References

  1. ^ BBC - Radio 1 - Keeping It Peel - The Vibrators:. Retrieved on 2007-12-03.
  2. ^ Thompson, Dave (2000). 20th Century Rock & Roll-PUNK. Collector’s Guide Publication, Ontario, Canada, p.61-62. ISBN 978-1896522272. 
  3. ^ Thompson, Dave (2000). Alternative Rock. San Francisco: Miller Freeman Books, p.710. ISBN 0-87930-607-6. “Flashes of sheer brilliance (‘Whips & Furs’), weirdness (the many Ramones go down the pub songs), and endearing gaucheness (the perfect pop of ‘Baby Baby’ pummelled by the Stones-whipped lead guitar).” 
  4. ^ Deming, Mark. Review of ‘Pure Mania’ on All Music Guide. “Both Knox and Pat Collier had a genius for writing short, punchy songs with sneering melody lines and gutsy guitar breaks. If the Vibrators were into punk as a musical rather than a sociopolitical movement, it's obvious that they liked the music very much, and on that level their debut album stands the test of time quite well.”
  5. ^ Larkin, Colin. All Time Top 1000 Albums. Guinness Publishing, Enfield, Chapter 9. ISBN 978-0753502587. 
  6. ^ "100 Punk Scorchers", Mojo, October 2001, pp. Issue 95. 
  7. ^ a b Roberts, David (2006). British Hit Singles & Albums, 19th, London: Guinness World Records Limited, p. 585. ISBN 1-904994-10-5. 

[edit] See also