| The Prisoners | |
|---|---|
| Origin | Rochester, Kent, England |
| Genres | Garage rock Neo-psychedelia Mod revival Britpop |
| Years active | 1980–1986 |
| Labels | Big Beat Records, Stiff Records |
| Associated acts | The Solarflares, Planet, The Buff Medways, The Prime Movers, Thee Mighty Caesars , The Stabilisers, James Taylor Quartet, Graham Day and the Gaolers |
| Members | |
| Graham Day[1] James Taylor[2] Allan Crockford Johnny Symons |
|
| Notable instruments | |
| Hammond Organ | |
The Prisoners were a band who formed in 1980 in Rochester, Kent[3], England. Their 1960s garage sound made them a regular live fixture in London's underground "psychedelic revival" and "mod revival" scene of the early 1980s. They often toured with The Milkshakes, who included Billy Childish on guitar. The Prisoners' sound combined catchy, retro-flavoured melodies, punky guitar riffs, a Steve Marriott-esque vocal style and a lead instrument of the then-unfashionable Hammond organ. The Prisoners never met with much commercial success during their original lifespan, but have latterly been likened to Paul Weller and The Charlatans. Tim Burgess of the Charlatans has cited the Prisoners as a major influence.
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The band's line-up was: Graham Day (vocals and guitar), James Taylor (hammond organ), Allan Crockford (bass) and Johnny Symons (drums).
After releasing several self-financed records and spending a year with Big Beat Records, in 1985 the Prisoners moved away from the London garage band tag and instead directly into the Mod revival mainstream. They also made a patchy final album, "In From The Cold", for the ailing Stiff Records label on their subsidiary label "Countdown". This deal was unsuccessful and the band split acrimoniously in 1986. They have however reformed for live shows several times since then, and managed to release a final one-off single in 1997.
Since splitting up the members of The Prisoners have featured in a wide range of bands. James Taylor and Allan Crockford formed mainstream jazz funk band the James Taylor Quartet in 1986, although Allan Crockford is no longer part of their line-up. The Solarflares, who released four albums before splitting up in 2004, were Graham Day and Allan Crockford basically reprising The Prisoners sound along with drummer Simon "Wolf" Howard and Mr Parsley on organ. Other bands who have featured former members of The Prisoners are Planet, The Buff Medways, The Prime Movers, Thee Mighty Caesars, The Stabilisers and The Galileo 7. Day fronted Graham Day & the Gaolers, who released their first album, Soundtrack to the Daily Grind, in November 2007.