| The League of Gentlemen | |
|---|---|
| Origin | Dorset, England |
| Genres | Post-punk, New Wave |
| Years active | 1980 |
| Labels | EG/Polydor |
| Associated acts | Robert Fripp, King Crimson, XTC, Shriekback, Gang of Four |
| Past members | |
| Robert Fripp, Barry Andrews, Sara Lee, Kevin Wilkinson | |
The League of Gentlemen was a band active during March–December 1980 that featured guitarist Robert Fripp of King Crimson fame. Other members included bass guitarist Sara Lee (who later joined Gang of Four, The B-52's, and Indigo Girls), keyboardist Barry Andrews (formerly of XTC; later of Shriekback) and percussionist Johnny Toobad, replaced late in the band's tenure by Kevin Wilkinson (later of China Crisis and Squeeze).[1] The group's name had previously been used by Fripp's first semi-professional band in the 1960s.[2]
The Trouser Press Record Guide described the League of Gentlemen's music as typically taking "a simple medium-to-fast backbeat over which Fripp and Andrews locked horns, with melodic development emerging slowly, surely, subtly."[3] Trouser Press also suggests that the League's foray into dance oriented rock was a precursor to Fripp's reformed King Crimson in the early 1980s.[4]
The band toured extensively in Europe and North America throughout 1980.[5]
There are 77 specific tour dates detailed in the sleevenotes on the The League of Gentlemen album. Missing from this list are four (possibly warm-up) gigs at the 14th Century Hunting Lodge (now Lodge Farm House),[6] outside the grounds of Kingston Lacy near Wimborne Minster, Dorset, England. These gigs are dated 24 to 27 February and pre-dated the first 'official' gig on 10 April at Moles, Bath.
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