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Gene October (born John O'Hara) [1] is a British singer and songwriter who was a formative figure in London's punk rock movement in the late 1970s, fronting the band Chelsea. [2]
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Gene October (born John O'Hara) [1] is a British singer and songwriter who was a formative figure in London's punk rock movement in the late 1970s, fronting the band Chelsea. [2]
Prior to becoming involved in the punk movement, October had modelled clothing for designer Antony Price and appeared as a nude model for Jeffrey Magazine, an early British gay publication. October himself is openly gay. [3] He was employed at Acme Attractions, a clothing store on King's Road, Chelsea, London. [4]
In 1976, October was involved in the creation of The Roxy when he suggested to the management of Chaguaramas, a central London gay nightclub, that they convert it into a centre for the new punk rock scene to coalesce. [5] Later, he briefly managed a club named Revolution No.9 and was employed as an A&R man for Miles Copeland III's IRS Records.
October is the singer/frontman of the original London band Chelsea, which formed in late 1976 after October placed an ad in the Melody Maker . Chelsea also featured Billy Idol on guitar and Tony James on bass. [6] The band made their live debut on 18 October 1976 supporting Throbbing Gristle at London's Institute of Contemporary Arts. [1]
The band's repertoire at this time consisted primarily of cover versions of 1960s songs by the Beatles and Rolling Stones, but they broke up after only a few weeks and a handful of live performances due to a clash of personalities. Idol, James, and drummer John Towe left October onstage during a live gig, eventually forming Generation X. [7] In early 1977, October assembled a new line-up of Chelsea, which released numerous records and sustained many personnel changes.
From the mid-1980s to the 1990s, he was a solo artist, releasing two singles and a 1995 album titled Life and Struggle. [5] Since 1999, he has intermittently recorded and toured with Chelsea, including their 40th anniversary tour in 2016. [8]
October also acted in two films produced and directed by Derek Jarman. In Jubilee , he played the character Happy Days, and in Caravaggio , he appeared as a fruit-eating model.
The Bromley Contingent were a group of followers of the Sex Pistols. The name was coined by Melody Maker journalist Caroline Coon, after the town of Bromley where some of them lived. They helped popularise the fashion of the early UK punk movement.
The Blitz Kids were a group of people who frequented the Tuesday club-night at Blitz in Covent Garden, London in 1979–1980, and are credited with launching the New Romantic subcultural movement.
The Heartbreakers, sometimes referred to as Johnny Thunders and the Heartbreakers, were an American punk rock band formed in New York City in 1975. The band spearheaded the first wave of punk rock.
London SS is a British rock group founded in March 1975 by drummer Geir Wade, bassist John Brown, guitarist Mick Jones, and guitarist Eunan Brady. They later became associated with the then new punk rock scene when the Sex Pistols broke in early 1976. In 2012 Brady put together a new lineup, featuring himself along with Jimi McDonald, Taj Sagoo, Michael Kane, and Andi Emm.
The Roxy was a fashionable nightclub located at 41–43 Neal Street in London's Covent Garden, known for hosting the flowering British punk music scene in its infancy.
Generation X were an English punk rock band, formed in London in 1976. They were the musical starting point of the career of their frontman Billy Idol, and issued six singles that made the UK Singles Chart and two albums that reached the UK Albums Chart.
Anthony Eric James is an English pop musician and record producer, who was the bassist for the 1970s–1980s bands Generation X, Sigue Sigue Sputnik and the Sisters of Mercy.
Generation X is the first studio album by English punk rock band Generation X, produced by Martin Rushent, it was released in the United Kingdom on 17 March 1978.
Valley of the Dolls is the second studio album by the English punk rock band Generation X. It was produced by Ian Hunter.
James Stevenson is an English punk/alternative rock guitarist, at one time a member of the Alarm, Gene Loves Jezebel, Gen X, the Cult, Holy Holy, the International Swingers and Chelsea.
Kiss Me Deadly is the third studio album by the English punk rock and new wave band Gen X. Produced by Keith Forsey it was issued in the United Kingdom on 23 January 1981. It was the final album to be released before their disbandment, though they would briefly reunite in 1993.
Anthology is a three-CD boxed set of recordings from pop punk band Generation X. Released in 2003, it features a selection of tracks from the band's three studio albums, the band's abortive third studio album, entitled Sweet Revenge, and a 1979 live recording from Osaka, Japan. Also featured are several studio rarities, alternate mixes, and an interview recorded with bassist Tony James.
Chelsea are an English punk rock band which formed in 1976. Three of the four original band members went on to found Generation X.
The Cortinas were a Bristol-based punk rock band, originally active between 1976 and 1978. Guitarist Nick Sheppard went on to play with the Clash. In 2001, the band's debut single, "Fascist Dictator", was included in a leading British music magazine's list of the best punk-rock singles of all-time.
The Boys are an English punk rock band formed in London in 1976.
"Dancing with Myself" is a song by the punk rock band Gen X, first commercially released in the United Kingdom in October 1980, where it reached number 62 on the UK Singles Chart. It was remixed and re-released by the band's singer/frontman Billy Idol as a solo artist in the United States in 1981, where the song reached number 27 on the US Billboard Hot Dance Club Play chart. Nouvelle Vague covered the number in 2006 and released it on their album, Bande à Part.
Acme Attractions was a London clothing store on Kings Road, Chelsea, London, that in the early 1970s provided a place for many punk and reggae musicians and scenesters to hang out. Shop assistant and manager Don Letts described Acme Attraction as a place "where the interaction between the different factions became more important than selling merchandise, even though at that age it was a deadly combination."
William Michael Albert Broad, known professionally as Billy Idol, is a British and American singer, songwriter, musician and actor. He first achieved fame in the 1970s emerging from the London punk rock scene as the lead singer of the group Generation X. Subsequently, he embarked on a solo career which led to international recognition and made Idol a lead artist during the MTV-driven "Second British Invasion" in the US. The name "Billy Idol" was inspired by a schoolteacher's description of him as "idle".
Sweet Revenge is the fourth and final studio album of the English 1970's post-punk band Generation X, though it was chronologically their third recorded album.
Paul Thomas Cook is an English drummer and musician. He is best known as the drummer and a founding member of the punk rock band the Sex Pistols. He is nicknamed "Cookie" by friends in the punk music scene.
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