I made the decision one day to purchase every 80's album from Adam (and the) Ant(s), and while this was one made based on me liking a few tracks here and there, my overall listening experience with 1981's Prince Charming, wasn't what I hoped it would be. Since then, Ant-Man's been sitting on the shelf untouched, with me not really looking forward to the day that would come when I decided I needed to get through the rest of them. You know, today...
Stuart Leslie Goddard, or Adam Ant, as he is more commonly known as, formed The Ants in 1977. This occurred after meeting with Lester Square (guitaris), Andy Warren (bassist), and Paul Flanagan (drummer) at the Roxy Club, coincidentally on a night where Siouxsie and the Banshees were performing a gig. A month later, Square would depart, and be replaced by Mark Ryan.
It would be this iteration of The Ants that would perform gigs, typically taking up support slots around London. Later that year, Dave "Barbe" Barbarossa replaced Flanagan, and this new line-up recorded the tracks, Plastic Surgery, and Beat My Guest. However, difficulties with management towards the end of the year would result in Ryan being fired, and replaced by Johnny Bivouac.
The band would often tour with Siouxsie and the Banshees, but remained disliked by much of the British music press for their fetishistic lyrics and imagery. While this didn't work for the squares, The Ants garnered much love from punk fanzines, which gave them more favorable coverage. This helped them to build up a strong cult following, but didn't aid them well in finding a label until signed in 1978 by Decca Records.
After a series of Peel Session demos and gigs early in the year, Manager Joran (AKA Pamela Rooke) left The Ants in the summer of 1978, and the day after, Bivouac also departed. He was replaced by Matthew Ashman. This was followed by further Peel Sessions, and the band departing for a tour of continental Europe.
Decca released their first single, Young Parisians, in November 1978. However, when it failed to garner any attention, they scrapped plans to release an additional single. Undeterred, The Ants embarked on their Young Parisians Tour of the UK in January of 1979. In between all of this, they continued recording sessions with Decca, as well as a third series of Peel Sessions.
The band would then sign with independent label Do It Records, and re-record their prior single, Zerox, then embarked on the Zerox Tour around Britain in support, culminating in a sell-out show at London Lyceum on August 5th. The led to them setting to work on the recordings which would become their official debut, Dirk Wears White Sox. However, shortly after its recording, Ashman and Warren were fired by Adam. Though Ashman would rejoin, Warren would be replaced by Leigh Gorman.
Dirk Wears White Sox was released in November of 1979, peaking at number one on the UK Independent Albums Chart. With new manager Malcolm McLaren, and a sell out show at Electric Ballroom, all seemed to be falling in place for the now titled band, Adam And The Ants. This, though, would not last. In a sleezy move, McLaren persuaded Ashman, Gorman, and Barbarossa to leave Adam and the Ants and form Bow Wow Wow, which was fronted by Annabella Lwin. McLaren then dropped Ant as a client.
Slapped in the face, betrayed, but not down and out, Adam would recruit Marco Pirroni (guitar), Kevin Mooney (bass guitar), and drummers Terry Lee Miall and Chris "Merrick" Hughes. Pirroni would become a significant member, contributing to the writing with Ant. Further, these new members would bring to the band a new style of music, and an adoption of make-up, and an overall revised look. This was all overseen by new manager, Falcon Stuart. The end result was signing to CBS Records, re-releasing their debut album, and 1980's Kings Of The Wild Frontier, where we now pause to actually get into this day's Retro Spins (whew...long intro).
Knowing what I now know about Adam And The Ants from previously listening to Prince Charming, it was a little easier on my brain. I was prepared for the synonymous sound, and prepared for all the chanting and quirkiness. This came in spades.
While at first I dreaded hearing thirteen songs, the end result was a somewhat decent album. No, Adam Ant isn't my favorite artist of all time. However, I did dig Dog Eat Dog, Antmusic, Ant Invasion, and the over the top, Jolly Roger. Only Adam Ant could get away with the latter. But, it just only goes to show how anything was fair game in the 80's.
Ironically, for as long as the intro was, that's pretty much all I have to say about the album itself. It was okay, with a couple hidden gems. Not a bad re-start for Adam And The Ants.
If you recall yesterday's post, I posed a question to myself of how many albums I had left to actually make my way through. Well, because I'm nuts like that, I went ahead and crunched the numbers. Pending my spreadsheet of albums I own is actually up to date / correct, it would be the following:
780 out of 1,305 studio albums (which may include multiple format duplicates)
193 out of 252 soundtrack albums (which may include multiple format duplicates)
25 out of 25 live albums
4 out of 9 EP albums
2 out of 2 remix albums
101 out of 101 compilation albums (maybe - some may be compilations of prior eras)
6 out of 9 singles
6 out of 8 comedy albums
12 out of 12 Christmas albums (maybe - some may be compilations of prior eras)
5 out of 5 Broadway albums
5 out of 5 audio books
Now, with all that said, there are albums mixed in those numbers that I have already heard, but not necessarily done a Retro Spins on. As such, those counts will come down. Still, that's a lot. Just based on those, it's 1,139 (okay 1,138, as those numbers didn't account for today's Retro Spin - George Lucas reference for the win!). Even if I did one album a day, it would take over three years to complete.
Now keep in mind that "new" albums keep coming into my collection more than they should, and that these totals also don't include anything prior to, or after, the 80's albums I own. Yeesh. I guess there may very well be such a thing as owning more music than you can listen to in a lifetime.
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Disclaimer: They Toy Box does not endorse or contribute to piracy. Retro Spins posts are intended for educational and entertainment purposes only. None of the music discussed here is available for sale, downloading or distribution.
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| THIS WEEK ON THE CHARTS August 20, 1983 |
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| THIS WEEK ON THE CHARTS August 20, 1988 |
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