Jet Black - 80 Today!

[spongebob]

Hard to believe it, the engine room of The Stranglers for so many years is now 80 years old! 

Cracking drummer, and the bands' 77-82 works remains peerless in my book. Jet's drumming certainly put them in a different league. 

I'm so pleased I got to see them whilst Jet was still with them. It was his last full. UK tour with them (2011 IIRC) and he was on stunning form all night. 

Happy Birthday Jet! 

[Frank Blank]

A great, inventive and economical (one of the greatest skills a musician, especially a drummer imho) drummer in one of my all time favourite bands.

[silverfoxnik]

Wow ! 

I was lucky enough to do some shows with them in the very early 80s and always loved their sound, of which the drums were a major part.

Happy Birthday Jet ☺ 

[NancyJohnson]

I never really got The Stranglers...being a child of the 60s and mid-teens when punk kicked off, The Stranglers just seemed to have notched up the aggression and been carried along in the wake of the Sex Pistols and The Clash (amongst others), but ultimately they always seemed pub-rocky and a bit old. 

If JB is indeed 80, then he was pushing 40 when he was tub-thumping at the height of punk.

Edited August 27, 2018 by NancyJohnson

[mentalextra]

30 minutes ago, NancyJohnson said:

I never really got The Stranglers...being a child of the 60s and mid-teens when punk kicked off, The Stranglers just seemed to have notched up the aggression and been carried along in the wake of the Sex Pistols and The Clash (amongst others), but ultimately they always seemed pub-rocky and a bit old. 

If JB is indeed 80, then he was pushing 40 when he was tub-thumping at the height of punk.

Interestingly, The Stranglers didn't actually describe themselves as 'punk'. Skip to about 2:30 to Jet explaining

 

Edited August 27, 2018 by mentalextra

[NancyJohnson]

57 minutes ago, mentalextra said:

Interestingly, The Stranglers didn't actually describe themselves as 'punk'. Skip to about 2:30 to Jet explaining

 

Aah, hindsight and reinvention is wonderful thing.

Edited August 27, 2018 by NancyJohnson

[mentalextra]

12 minutes ago, NancyJohnson said:

Aah, hindsight and reinvention is wonderful thing.

Yes, indeed. Personally, I don't think it matters what genre they belong to, it's about whether you like their music. But, 60yr old punks do seem to have claimed ownership of them?

[NancyJohnson]

2 hours ago, mentalextra said:

Yes, indeed. Personally, I don't think it matters what genre they belong to, it's about whether you like their music. But, 60yr old punks do seem to have claimed ownership of them?

But ultimately had it not been for the whole mid-70s punk thing, they would have just faded into obscurity.

Incidentally, on the subject of The Stranglers, a few years back I was at the wedding of one of my mates daughters.  At the reception, I was sat next to Paul Roberts, the guy who took over vocal duties from Hugh Cornwell.  Never having been a fan, I didn't have a clue who he was.  It was a surreal experience.  He kept on saying, 'Don't know whether I'm going to eat, I have a gig in Birmingham tonight.'  Then the food came out.  He nibbled and just said, 'Right, here we go,' then procured a radio microphone from his jacket, got up, walked over to a corner of the room, turned on some big band music and then crooned his way through about a dozen Frank and Dean songs, whilst walking around the reception and inviting people to do the odd line of Fly Me To The Moon.  He was fantastic.

In the evening, he did a medley of Stranglers tunes to about 30 people and a load of kids, then left and drove up north.  I actually joined in on No More Heroes. 

Like I said, surreal.

[Lozz196]

Were The Stranglers punk, weren`t they punk, difficult to tell. They certainly had the aggression in their music associated with punk, but when you look at the first wave of punk bands they all sounded very different so it`s difficult to pinpoint it. I`d say that a lot of punks liked The Stranglers, and that a good few did not. I belong in the former camp.

[spongebob]

27 minutes ago, NancyJohnson said:

But ultimately had it not been for the whole mid-70s punk thing, they would have just faded into obscurity.

Incidentally, on the subject of The Stranglers, a few years back I was at the wedding of one of my mates daughters.  At the reception, I was sat next to Paul Roberts, the guy who took over vocal duties from Hugh Cornwell.  Never having been a fan, I didn't have a clue who he was.  It was a surreal experience.  He kept on saying, 'Don't know whether I'm going to eat, I have a gig in Birmingham tonight.'  Then the food came out.  He nibbled and just said, 'Right, here we go,' then procured a radio microphone from his jacket, got up, walked over to a corner of the room, turned on some big band music and then crooned his way through about a dozen Frank and Dean songs, whilst walking around the reception and inviting people to do the odd line of Fly Me To The Moon.  He was fantastic.

In the evening, he did a medley of Stranglers tunes to about 30 people and a load of kids, then left and drove up north.  I actually joined in on No More Heroes. 

Like I said, surreal.

I used to play with a sax player down in East Sussex. She was taking singing lessons at the time (about 10 years ago) from Paul Roberts. I was ever-so-slightly impressed. Ended badly...me and her, not her and Paul! 

[mentalextra]

1 hour ago, Lozz196 said:

Were The Stranglers punk, weren`t they punk, difficult to tell. They certainly had the aggression in their music associated with punk, but when you look at the first wave of punk bands they all sounded very different so it`s difficult to pinpoint it. I`d say that a lot of punks liked The Stranglers, and that a good few did not. I belong in the former camp.

Their songwriting was helped by being hugely competent musicians, and highly intelligent men. Punk for the middle class? (I remember the Rezillos bass player opting for his medical degree over a music career). Their aggression and reputation was a necessary part of the show. Having a keyboard player in a punk band also slipped under the radar?

It's interesting to observe how their interviews are always very considered and 'managed'. It's also interesting to watch JJ subtly nudging Jet in my video above a few times.

I should point out that I am a fan, probably more so now than back then. I am not criticising.

 

Edited August 27, 2018 by mentalextra

[rogerstodge]

Also “Happy birthday Hugh Cornwell” 69 today.

[MacDaddy]

On 27/08/2018 at 14:58, mentalextra said:

 Having a keyboard player in a punk band also slipped under the radar?

 

The Damned have had keys since their 3rd LP

[jazzmanb]

On 27/08/2018 at 13:35, NancyJohnson said:

But ultimately had it not been for the whole mid-70s punk thing, they would have just faded into obscurity.

Incidentally, on the subject of The Stranglers, a few years back I was at the wedding of one of my mates daughters.  At the reception, I was sat next to Paul Roberts, the guy who took over vocal duties from Hugh Cornwell.  Never having been a fan, I didn't have a clue who he was.  It was a surreal experience.  He kept on saying, 'Don't know whether I'm going to eat, I have a gig in Birmingham tonight.'  Then the food came out.  He nibbled and just said, 'Right, here we go,' then procured a radio microphone from his jacket, got up, walked over to a corner of the room, turned on some big band music and then crooned his way through about a dozen Frank and Dean songs, whilst walking around the reception and inviting people to do the odd line of Fly Me To The Moon.  He was fantastic.

In the evening, he did a medley of Stranglers tunes to about 30 people and a load of kids, then left and drove up north.  I actually joined in on No More Heroes. 

Like I said, surreal.

Good way of looking at it if you didn't like them i suppose .Being a fan i think otherwise,its not like they were banging 3 chord tunes out .

The sexy punk rockers were supporting them at their well attended regular gigs.Given how their music  developed in a few short years they would have made it regardless of fads.Black and white went to number1 with no title or band name on its cover.A first iirc .That and The Raven were their peak for me ,never really heard a band sound like those albums before or since .Some of Jets drumming on them was way out there .Opinions like Aholes,we've all got one

[rogerstodge]

5 hours ago, jazzmanb said:

 

But ultimately had it not been for the whole mid-70s punk thing, they would have just faded into obscurity.

Not a chance !!

[jazzmanb]

13 hours ago, rogerstodge said:

Not a chance !!

agree

[PaulWarning]

almost any rock band that had a hit in 1977 were labelled punk, I always think 2 4 6 8 motorway is just a normal rock record, a bit ploddy, a long way from the Pistols Ramones and Clash.

Were the Stranglers punk? they certainly had the attitude but they were just around at the right time,  but I don't care when I here the bass kick in on Hanging Around

Edited September 1, 2018 by PaulWarning

[Shaggy]

I think Hugh Cornwell said that the Stranglers had their roots in late '60's English psychedelia.  Like Dr Feelgood and The Jam they'd started before Punk with inspiration directly from the '60's, but got fuelled by the energy and musical freedom of Punk like so many other bands at the time.

I've a particular soft spot for the Stranglers, as it was a gig at Cambridge Corn Exchange in 1977 that switched this particular spotty 16-year old from violin to bass guitar - I was gigging within a month.

And "Rattus...." has to be one of the best debut albums of all time; "Hanging around" still makes the hairs stand up..... (No longer dyed green, alas) 

[Shaggy]

8 minutes ago, PaulWarning said:

almost any rock band that had a hit in 1977 were labelled punk, I always think 2 4 6 8 motorway is just a normal rock record, a bit ploddy, a long way from the Pistols Ramones and Clash.

Ramones were always '60's American bubblegum pop with distorted guitar, but instrumental in making Punk happen

[kusee pee]

I'm a big fan of the first four albums and Jet's drumming was always lovely and tight. Check out Peasant In The Big Shi*ty for a lovely example.

 

 

Edited September 2, 2018 by kusee pee

[MoonBassAlpha]

That sounds like a punk/prog crossover, Pronk, anyone?

[rogerstodge]

19 hours ago, MoonBassAlpha said:

That sounds like a punk/prog crossover, Pronk, anyone?

Na, you’ve got that wrong it’s more Prunk.