www.theboys.co.uk
ALBUMS LP/CD - SINGLES
- VIDEOS
& BOOKS
Matt Dangerfield
– Guitar/Vocals
Kid Reid – Bass/Vocals
Casino Steel – Organ/Piano/Vocals
Honest John Plain – Guitar/Vocals
Jack Black – Drums
In the summer of 1976, a new band rose from the ashes of two now legendary mid-70s British punk bands. The Boys were originally put together by ex-London SS guitarist Matt Dangerfield and ex- Hollywood Brats pianist Casino Steel. Recruiting “Honest” John Plain (guitar), Kid Reid (bass) and Jack Black (drums), The Boys brash brand of power-pop punk was unveiled at London’s Hope & Anchor in October 1976 as the original wave of UK punk bands was beginning to emerge.
Just a handful of gigs later, The Boys had signed to NEMS Records in January 1977 and their first single “I Don’t Care” was released in April to coincide with a UK tour supporting ex-Velvet Underground legend John Cale. The “First Time” single followed in July as the band began to build on their growing UK fan base and a substantial following in Europe where their Beatles-influenced power punk songs and energetic live shows were going down a storm.
Their self-titled and self-produced debut LP was released in September and entered the charts at No.50. Unfortunately, the album’s release coincided with the death of Elvis Presley and RCA, their pressing and distribution company, turned all their factories over to the production of Presley records to cash in on the previously unexpected demand. This meant that after the first week of sales, copies of The Boys album were unavailable in the shops and the album promptly dropped out of the charts. That No.50 spot marks the band's one and only UK chart placing.
Nevertheless, prolific songwriters, they followed their first album with their second just seven months later! “Alternative Chartbusters”, again produced by the band, appeared in March 1978 swiftly followed by the “Brickfield Nights” single. A legal battle with their record company NEMS then saw the band refusing to release any new material for the company in nearly 18 months.
When the dust had settled, The Boys had signed to Safari Records and released the “Kamikaze” single followed by the “To Hell With The Boys” LP – which came with a 16-page songbook and is now something of a collector’s item.
Too tongue-in-cheek for the hard-core punks, too punk for the power-poppers and dogged by record company problems, The Boys would appear to have been in the wrong place at the wrong time. Or were they simply ahead of their time? The Boys released their fourth and final LP “Boys Only” in 1981 and promptly called it a day.
But the story doesn’t end there. Renewed interest in The Boys musical legacy has meant that everything the band ever released has since been re-issued and even material they recorded but never released in their four years of existence has now been committed to disc. In addition, many of their songs have been covered by new bands all over the world.