The Adicts

Formed: Ipswich, Suffolk, England, UK, as The Pinz

The Adicts

Photo from Punk Lives magazine

Band Bio / Lineup / Discography

The Adicts 1977To call any band "Ipswich’s finest" may not be saying much - and I certainly can't think of any Ipswich bands other than The Adicts - but these long-serving funsters are a generally likeable and amusing outfit who livened up an often overly serious third wave of British pogorama with a jolly brand of guitar noise that was more punk than hardcore. Indeed, they bore virtually no resemblance to the likes of The Exploited or Discharge. A liking for A Clockwork Orange - an endearing affectation in view of the fun nature of their lyrics - and a complete lack of politics or “serious” posturing made the Adicts stand out from their more po-faced peers. In fact, they were one of the most memorable British punk bands of the 80’s, and before losing their way in the middle of that decade had considerable popularity delivering Damned/Ramones-derived pop records. Chaos punks with mohawks, Oisters with skinheads and even some fans of early punk who had grown bored with the "new breed" enjoyed the band in equal measure. However, their attempts at selling out were not successful and by attempting to do so they lost momentum and never really recovered, splitting for the first time in the late '80s. Yet, they returned in 1992 and continue to plug away in their own non-conformist manner.

They came together in 1976 and went through a period of constant name-changing - The Afterbirths, Pinz and The Addicts were all dropped - and sporadic gigging before issuing their first recorded work, the Lunch With The Adicts EP in 1979, on the Norwich-based Dining Out Records. The EP - highlighted by the wonderful yoof anthem 'Straight Jacket' - was a big seller for an unknown band (#21 in the Indies).

The Adicts / Sex Gang Children / Sustained - Live 1982They recorded a Peel session that December and released their debut album Songs Of Praise in small quantities on their own Dwed Records about a year after that. (Dining Out had apparently not been forthcoming with royalties). In mid-1982 they signed to Fall Out Records and, two years after its initial release, the LP was reissued and re-packaged. It sold by the shedful and Fall Out and the Viva La Revolution single (initially heard on the album in a weaker version) ascended the Indie charts in quick time. This great song with an insistent and incredibly catchy refrain was a bit of a zeitgeist effort, tapping into the air of subversion prevalent at the time. Optimistic and playful, it remains their most well-known tune.

Their second LP, Sound Of Music (1982) recorded for Razor, consolidated their presence somewhere near the forefront of the third wave of Brit punk and spawned another hit indie single, the charming Chinese Takeaway. The next couple of years were spent attempting to broaden their fan base by moving away from punk and making rather desperate compromises. They plugged their 1983 single Bad Boy - a weak mid-paced pop tune - on crap kiddies' show Cheggars Plays Pop, but had to bill themselves The Fun Adicts to do so. If The Exploited's appearance on Top Of The Pops had been met with disbelief, this obvious stab at the pop charts was met with absolute scorn, but nonetheless the song only scraped into the Top 75 (at #75). It did better in the indies, peaking at #4, but the band's ambitions soon got the better of them.

An ill-advised attempt to crack the American market via a deal with Sire "coincided" with yet another name change, to the ADX. This backfired dramatically amid more accusations of selling out. All told, the two singles released on Sire weren't totally bad: Tokyo was disarmingly pedestrian but Falling In Love Again was a brave, if bizarre, attempt at a dance crossover hit. Even worse, Sire didn't bother releasing either record in America, and informed them their services were no longer required.

The Adicts - Sounds 1982The Adicts - Bad Boy AdvertThe Adicts Article in Punk Lives 7

So it was back to Razor and back to being The Adicts for the lyrically redundant but musically spot-on Smart Alex (1985), a fair indie hit (reaching #7) which found them in poppier form than ever, and then to Fall Out again for the excellent Bar Room Bop EP (1985).

1986 was pretty miserable, though. Fifth Overture crept out on a tiny German label to scant interest, and it didn't do much when Fall Out reissued it a year later. They split up soon after .Amazingly, a re-activated band - with the original line-up (the Adicts were fairly unique in that their line-up suffered no changes) - landed themselves a US deal with the dodgy Cleopatra label, home of many a piss-poor compilation and Goth combo. 1992's 27 was picked up in the UK by Anagram a year after its US release, but it failed to spawn an Adicts revival and they in fact went into hibernation for another ten years. They returned, though, with Rise And Shine (2002), the first in a line of new albums.

The Adicts PosterThe Adicts - You'll Never Walk AloneThe Adicts Monkey

So where would you start? The first logical step is 'Songs Of Praise' and 'Sound Of Music' - always go for a proper studio album, I say - and then The Complete Adicts Singles Collection, a typically (near-)comprehensive Captain Oi! CD package, with the usual Mark Brennan liner notes and reproductions of sleeves. A round up of their early material, This Is Your Life (1985) comprises their debut EP from 1979, a handful of Peel Session tracks, some demos, and a (crappy) unreleased single from 1980. There are also live albums, many compilations of dubious merit, and a couple of videos (Live At The Manhattan Club, Bradford 1983 and Lets Go).

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Lineup:

Monkey RN Keith Warren - vocals
Pete Davison - guitar
Mel Ellis - bass
Kid Dee RN Michael Davison - drums

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DISCOGRAPHY

Singles & Albums / Extraneous Releases / Promos / Bootlegs / Various Artists

Subsequent studio albums: Twenty-Seven (1992), Rise And Shine (2002), Rollercoaster (2004), Songs Of Praise: 25th Anniversary Limited Edition (2008), Life Goes On (2009), All The Young Droogs (2012), And It Was So! (2017)

The Adicts - Lunch With The AdictsLunch With The Adicts (7", 1979)

The Adicts - Songs Of PraiseSongs Of Praise (LP, 1980)

The Adicts - Viva La RevolutionViva La Revolution (7", 1982)

CoverChinese Takeaway (7", 1982)

The Adicts - Sound Of MusicSound Of Music (LP/CD, 1982)

The Adicts - Bad BoyBad Boy (7", 1983)

ADX - TokyoTokyo (7"/12", 1984)

ADX - Falling In Love AgainFalling In Love Again (7"/12", 1985)

The Adicts - Smart AlexSmart Alex (LP, 1985)

The Adicts - Bar Room BopBar Room Bop (12", 1985)

The Adicts - Fifth Overture Fifth Overture (LP, 1986)

Extraneous Releases

The Adicts - Live At The Moonlight Club 28.2.82 Live At The Moonlight Club 28.2.82 (Tape, 1982)

The Adicts - This Is Your LifeThis Is Your Life (LP/CD, 1985)

The Adicts - Live And Loud!!Live And Loud!! (LP/CD, 1987)

The Adictys - She's A RockerShe's A Rocker (CD, reissue of Fifth Overture, 1991)

The Adicts - Totally AdictedTotally Adicted (CD, 1992)

The Adicts - The Complete Adicts Singles Collection The Complete Adicts Singles Collection (LP/CD, 1994)

The Adicts / Vice Squad - Live And Loud!!Live And Loud!! (CD, split with Vice Squad, 1996)

The Adicts - Ultimate Adiction - The Best OfUltimate Adiction (CD, 1997)

Sound Of Music & Smart Alex (CD, twoferSound Of Music & Smart Alex (CD, twofer, 1998)

The Adicts - The Very Best Of The AdictsThe Very Best Of The Adicts (CD, 1998)

The Adicts - Joker In The PackJoker In The Pack (CD, 1999)

The Adicts - The CollectionThe Collection (CD, 2002)

The Adicts - Joker In The Pack AnagramJoker In The Pack (CD, 2004)

The Adicts - Made In EnglandMade In England (CD, 2005)

Clockwork Punks: The CollectionClockwork Punks: The Collection (CD, 2005)

The Adicts - Clockwork Punks Vol 1 The CollectionClockwork Punks Vol 1 The Collection (LP, 2005)

The Adicts - Live And Loud '81Live And Loud '81 (LP, 2007)

The Adicts - Viva La Revolution 2014Viva La Revolution (7", 2014)

The Adicts - The Albums 1982-87The Albums 1982-87 (5xCD, box set, 2018)


Promos

The Adicts - How Sad "Que Triste"How Sad "Que Triste" (7", 1983)

Bootlegs

The Adicts - The Ace, Brixton LondonThe Ace, Brixton London 27/04/83 (LP, 1983)

Various Artists

Punk And Disorderly UK LP 1982 (Abstract): Straight Jacket

Punk And Disorderly III - The Final Solution UK LP (Anagram): Viva La Revolution

UK/DK - The Original Video Soundtrack UK LP 1983 (Anagram): Joker In The Pack / Viva La Revolution

Viva La Revolution! UK 2xLP 1985 (Cambra): Viva La Revolution! / Chinese Takeaway

Radio Active UK LP 1986 (Fall Out Records): Viva La Revolution / Steamroller

Beat Of The Street (A Link Records Sampler) UK LP 1988 (Link): Steam Roller (live)

Punk On The Road UK LP 1990 (Skunx Recordings): Viva La Revolution

Fall Out Records - The Punk Singles Collection UK CD 1994 (Anagram): Viva La Revolution / Champs Elysees

Razor Records Punk Collection UK CD 1995 (Anagram): Chinese Takeaway / Bad Boy / Troubadour

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Links

Official website

Wikipedia page

Adicts page on Punk 77

 

 

 

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