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.
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UK SUBS TICKETS
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Career
The U.K. Subs were part of the original
punk 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".
[1] 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
.
Band members
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Lead vocals
- Charlie Harper (1976 - present)
Guitars
- Richard Anderson (1976-77)
- Darrell Barth (1986 - 87 , 1989 - 91,1999)
- Greg Brown (Autumn 1977)
- Alan Campbell (1992 - 2004)
- Lars Frederiksen (1991)
- Nicky Garratt (1977 - 1983, 1988,1996, 1999 - 2002, 2004 - present)
- Bobby harper [1977]
- Jet (2005 - ?)
- Knox (1987)
- Alan Lee (1987 - 89)
- Simon Rankin (2001)
- Andy McCoy (1988)
- Jim Moncur (1984 - 1986)
- Karl Morris (1991, 1994)
- Phil Pain (1996)
- Tez Roberts (1984 - 85 ,1995, 2002)
- Captain Scarlet(David Lloyd) (1983 - 1984)
- Scott Snowden (1992)
- Henry "Vulture" Soto 2006-2008
- Tim Britta (1984)
Bass guitar
- John Armitage (1984 - 1985)
- Brian Barnes (1992 - 1994, 1996 - 2001, 2002 - 2004, 2008)
- Mark Barratt (1986 - 1987)
- Clara (2002)
- Bones (2002)
- Derek Forbes (1977)
- Flea (1987 - 91)
- Andy Frantic (1997 - 99)
- Alvin Gibbs (1980 - 1983, 1988, 1999 - 2002, 2003 - present)
- Ricky McGuire (1985 - 1986)
- Ozzie (1996)
- Simon Rankin (2001 - 2002)
- Tez Roberts (1984)
- Paul Slack (1977 - 1981, 2008)
- Steve Slack (1976, 1983 - 1984)
- Chema Zurita (2007 - 2009)
- Gregor Kramer (1994)
- Jacek Ostoya (1995)
- Carly (1997)
- Peter Revesz[2008]
- Tony Barber [2008]
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Drums
- Robbie Harper [Rob Milne](1977)
- Dave Ayer (1995 - 1996)
- Rob Baldock [1978]
- Rab Fae Beith (1984 - 1986)
- Benjie Bollox (1996)
- Bruno (1979
- Tommy Couch (1999 - 2000)
- Criss Damage (2002)
- Pete Davies (1978 - 1980, 1984, 1991 - 1996, 2007 ,2008)
- Steve J Jones (1977, 1983 - 1984)
- Belvy K (1988)
- Rory Lyons (1976 - 1977)
- Matt McCoy (1988 -92 ,1993, 1995)
- Jamie Oliver (2005 - present)
- Gary Ostell (1997 -99)
- Pumpy (1999 - 2000)
- Steve Roberts (1980 - 1982, 1987 ,1988, 2002)
- Geoff Sewell (1986)
- Dave Wilkinson (1987)
- Jason Willer (2001 - 2006)
- Kim Wylie (1982)
- Tez Roberts (1988,1999)
- Matthew " Turkey" Best (1984)
- Duncan Smith (1987 -88)
- Leo Mortimer (1989)
- Gizz Laszlo (1999)
- Darrah (2002)
- Jay (2002)
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Discography
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)
Miscellaneous albums
- Live Kicks
(1979) (Recorded Live at the Roxy 1977)
- Countdown
(2001)
- Original Punks Original Hits
(2006)
- Complete Riot
(2006)
Compilation albums
- The British Punk Invasion Vol 2
(1996)
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
[2]
12" singles
- "Another Typical City" (1983) (EP)
- "The Magic" (1984) (EP)
- "Hey Santa" (1987) (EP)
- "Motivator" (1988) (EP)
- "Sabre Dance" (1989) (EP)
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)
- "Warhead" (2008) (CD EP)
Tributes/References
- "I Lost My Love (to a UK Sub)" track by The Gonads (1982)
- "(Give Me) Charlie Harper (Any Day)" track by The Bus Station Loonies (1996)
References
- UK Subs Return To New Zealand & Australia - scoop.co.nz
- British Hit Singles & Albums