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U.K. Subs

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The UK Subs are a British punk band, the mainstay of which is vocalist Charlie Harper (born David Charles Perez, on 25 April, 1944), a singer in Britain's R & B scene.

File:UK Subs - Keep On Running (Till You Burn) single picture cover.jpg
The picture cover of the U.K. Subs' 1981 single: Keep On Running (Til You Burn)

Career

The UK Subs were part of the original punk rock movement in England that formed in 1976, with the intial name of the Subversives. The band's founder, Charlie Harper selected guitarist Nicky Garratt, bassist Steve Slack, and various drummers (eventually Pete Davis became fairly stable) under the initial name "UK Subversives." The London-based band's earlyline-up of the band 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 "Warhead", "I Live in a Car", and "Tomorrow's Girls", with several of their songs managing to enter the United Kingdom's Top Forty.

The band recorded a set at the Roxy (a punk club), which was issued in 1980 as Live Kicks. Their biggest selling album came with 1980's Crash Course.The band played several John Peel sessions in 1977 and 1978 for BBC radio, and then signed a recording contract with GEM. Under GEM, the UK Subs recorded an album in 1979 called Another Kind of Blues. The group had several hit singles ("Stranglehold," "Tomorrow's Girls") and played a few opening gigs for the Police. In the early 1980s, the group's sound took on a hard rock and heavy metal flavour. In the 1990s, the band released various singles collections.

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 UK 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 UK Subs has continued to perform.

Trivia

Albums

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

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

References

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