U.K. Subs

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UK Subs
The picture cover of the U.K. Subs' 1981 single: "Keep On Running (Til You Burn)".
The picture cover of the U.K. Subs' 1981 single: "Keep On Running (Til You Burn)".
Background information
Origin London, United Kingdom
Genre(s) Punk rock
Years active 1976 – present
Website UK Subs Official Website
Members
Charlie Harper
Nicky Garratt
Brian Barnes
Jamie Oliver
Jet

The U.K. Subs are an English punk band, the mainstay of which is vocalist Charlie Harper, originally a singer in Britain's R & B scene.

Contents

[edit] Career

The U.K. Subs were part of the original punk rock movement in England that formed in 1976, with the initial name of the Subversives. The band's founder, Charlie Harper selected guitarist Nicky Garratt, bassist Paul Slack, and various drummers (eventually Pete Davis became fairly stable) under the initial name "U.K. Subversives". The London based band's early line-up changed frequently.

Their style combined the energy of punk and the rock and roll edge of the then thriving pub rock scene. The band had some hit singles such as "Stranglehold", "Warhead", "Teenage", and "Tomorrow's Girls", with several of their songs managing to enter the United Kingdom's Top Forty.

The band played several John Peel sessions in 1977 and 1978 for BBC Radio 1, and then signed a recording contract with GEM Records. Under GEM, the U.K. Subs recorded an album in 1979 called Another Kind of Blues. The group also played a few opening gigs for The Police, as well as recording a set at The Roxy (a punk club), which was issued in 1980 as Live Kicks. Their biggest selling album came with 1980s Crash Course.

With the arrival of new bassist Alvin Gibbs and drummer Steve Roberts in the early 1980s, the songs took on a more heavy metal-influenced edge. In 1991, the U.K. Subs also had Lars Frederiksen (now of Rancid) on guitar for a 30 date UK tour. Decades after the disbanding of other late-1970s punk groups such as the Sex Pistols and The Clash, the U.K. Subs continue to perform.

It is noted that successive U.K. Subs album titles, start with consecutive letters of the alphabet. The U.K. Subs song "Down on the Farm" was covered by Guns N' Roses on their 1993 covers album "The Spaghetti Incident?". The U.K. Subs joined the bill for the 2006 Fiend Fest. The band have toured with The Misfits, The Adicts, Osaka Popstar, Juicehead, and Orange. The U.K. Subs song "Warhead" is played in the movie, This Is England.

[edit] Band members

  • Charlie Harper - lead vocals (1976-present)
  • Nicky Garratt - lead guitars (1977-1983, 1988, 1999, 1999-2002, 2004-present)

[edit] Discography

[edit] Albums

  • Another Kind of Blues (1979) (UK #21)
  • Brand New Age (1980) (UK #18)
  • Crash Course (1980) (UK #8)
  • Diminished Responsibility (1981) (UK #18)
  • Endangered Species (1982)
  • Flood of Lies (1983)
  • Gross Out USA (1984)
  • Huntington Beach (1985)
  • In Action (1986)
  • Japan Today (1987)
  • Killing Time (1988)
  • Live in Paris (1989)
  • Mad Cow Fever (1991)
  • Normal Service Resumed (1993)
  • Occupied (1996)
  • Peel Sessions 1978-79 (1997)
  • Quintessentials (1997)
  • Riot (1997)
  • Submission (1999)
  • Time Warp (2000)
  • Universal (2002)
  • Violent State (2005)

[1]

[edit] Miscellaneous albums

  • Live Kicks (1979) (Recorded Live at the Roxy 1977)
  • Original Punks Original Hits (2006)

[edit] Compilation albums

  • The British Punk Invasion Vol 2 (1996)

[edit] UK chart singles

  • "Stranglehold" - 1979 - No. 26
  • "Tomorrow's Girls" - 1979 - No. 28
  • "She's Not There" / "Kicks" (EP) - 1979 - No. 36
  • "Warhead" - 1980 - No. 30
  • "Teenage" - 1980 - No. 32
  • "Party In Paris" - 1980 - No. 37
  • "Keep On Runnin' (Till You Burn)" - 1981 - No. 41

[1]

[edit] 12" singles

  • "Another Typical City" (1983) (EP)
  • "The Magic" (1984) (EP)
  • "Hey Santa" (1987) (EP)
  • "Motivator" (1988) (EP)
  • "Sabre Dance" (1989) (EP)

[edit] Singles / EPs

  • "C.I.D." (1978) (EP)
  • "Stranglehold" (1979) (EP)
  • "Tomorrows Girls" (1979) (EP)
  • "She's Not There" (1979) (EP)
  • "Warhead" (1980) (EP)
  • "Teenage" (1980) (EP)
  • "Party in Paris" (1980)
  • "Keep on Running" (1981) (EP)
  • "Countdown" (1981)
  • "Shake Up The City" (1982) (EP)
  • "Another Typical City" (1983)
  • "This Gun Says" (1985) (EP)
  • "Live in Holland" (1986) (EP)
  • "The Road is Long, The Road is Hard" (1993) (EP)
  • "Postcard from L.A." (Split single) (1994) (U.S. only)
  • "Betrayal" (1995) (U.S. only)
  • "War on the Pentagon" (1997) (EP) (U.S. only)
  • "Day of the Dead" (1997) (EP) (U.S. only)
  • "Cyberjunk" (1997) (EP) (U.S. only)
  • "Riot" (1998) (EP)
  • "The Revolution's Here" (2000) (EP)
  • "Drunken Sailor" (2002)
  • "666 Yeah" (2006)

[edit] References

  1. ^ a b Roberts, David (2006). British Hit Singles & Albums, 19th, London: Guinness World Records Limited, p. 574. ISBN 1-904994-10-5. 

[edit] External links