Formed: York, England, UK, Europe
Band Bio (partly written by Chris Blenkin - thanks!) / Lineup / Discography
Chris Dean, Artificial Life #9, 1984: What's [our] ambition? To sing like The Surpremes and walk like The Clash. Diana Ross with a machine gun! If the Four Tops had been steelworkers in the 1917 Russian Revolution then they would have sounded like us!
Leftie skinhead band formed by Chris Dean, who wrote for the NME as Chris X. He and guitarist Martin Hewes were members of the Socialist Workers Party. They formed as "No Swastikas", a straight-forward guitar/drums/bass three piece, playing in a more standard-issue punk/post-punk type style. They were certainly not an Oi! band! Three tracks from this period can be heard on Epilogue.
Rebranding themselves as the Redskins in 1982, they pursued a unique sound through the utilisation of brass including trumpet, sax and trombone, incorporating soul and rockabilly influences. After two indie singles for CNT Productions (home of the like minded The Mekons, The Three Johns and Newtown Neurotics) they toured with Billy Bragg and signed to a major label, Decca, where they remained until they split in 1986. The marketing power of Decca propelled them into the UK singles charts, although major success eluded them.
They famously appeared on The Tube in 1984, where they invited a striking miner to appear with them on stage. The miner's microphone was switched off, provoking accusations that Channel 4 censored them.
Following the Redskins split in 1986 Hewes played for a brief time in The Jesus & Mary Chain.
Vocalist Chris Dean (Chris Moore) has been a recluse since the late eighties.
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Lineup:
Chris Dean - vocals, guitar
Martin Hewes (aka Martin Bottomley aka Martin Leon) - bass, vocals
Nick King - drums, 1982–1985
Paul Hookham - drums, 1985–1986 (Style Council drummer Steve White played with them for a short time as a stop gap between King and Hookham)
Horn Section:
Lloyd Dwyer - sax, 1982-1985
Steve Nicol - trumpet, 1982-1985
Kevin Robinson - trumpet, 1986
Trevor Edwards - trombone, 1986
Ray Carless - tenor sax, 1986
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DISCOGRAPHY
Singles & Albums
Lev Bronstein (7", 1982)
Lean On Me! (7"/12", 1983)
Keep On Keepin On! (7"/12", 1984)
Insane Thing) (7"/2x7"/12", 1985)
Kick Over The Statues! (7", 1985)
The Power Is Yours... (7"/10"/12", 1986)
Neither Washington Nor Moscow (LP, 1986)
It Can Be Done (7"/10"/12", 1986)
Extraneous Releases
The Peel Sessions (12", 1987)
Live (CD, 1994)
Epilogue (CD, 2010)
Bootlegs
Rarities (LP)
Various Artists
A New Optimism UK LP 1984 (Situation Two): It Can Be Done
They Shall Not Pass UK LP 1985 (Abstract Sounds): Lean On Me / Unionize!
Winters Of Discontent - The Peel Sessions 77-83 UK 2xLP/CD 1991 (Strange Fruit): Kick Over The Statues
Abstract Records Punk Collection UK CD 1994 (Anagram): Lean On Me / Unionize
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Links
The Redskins (Band) Are Awesome! Facebook Page (this is where I grabbed the colour group photo from)
