The BUSINESS

The BUSINESS

were formed towards the end of the seventies in UK with a line-up consisting of Micky Fitz-Steve Kent-Martin Smith and Nick Cunningham. Their first apperance on vinyl came in 1981 on the VU Records compilation 'Sudden Surge Of Sound' with the track 'Out in the cold'. The album also featured the UK SUBS and Laura Logic, formerly X-RAY SPEX. The Business track did not fare too well with the music press and one critic described it as "an angry bastard version of Status Quo". The group next turned up on the 'Carry On Oi!' LP which featured two songs by them.

A month later they released their debut single 'Harry may' which reached the top ten in Sounds independant chart, and is now quite hard to find. The original line-up split soon after it's telease and the last track they recorded was 'Step Into christmas' for the 'Bollocks to Christmas' EP(Dec.'81). Also released in December was the '1980-81 Official Bootleg' on Syndicate Records. This mixed live and demo recordings from the first incarnation of the band.

Micky Fitz wasted no time in re-forming the band with the help of Steve Whale, Mark Brennan, Graham Ball(ex-Conflict) and John Fisher(later to join Combat 84). The band only survived long enough to play one gig and Ball and Fisher left. Kev Boyce was drafted in to fill the vacant drum-stool and recorded an EP 'Smash The discos' with the band in March '82. The single spent six weeks in the indie chart peaking at number one spot by Pigbag's quarter of a million selling 'Papa's got a brand new Pigbag'. Before the release of the band's delayed first album, they appeared on two compilations in 1982. 'Total Noise' EP featured a studio version of 'Loud proud and punk' and the secret Records 'Oi Oi that's yer lot' LP inclued 'Real Enemy'. The business debut album 'Suburban Rebels' was finally released in May 1983 and reached number 37 in the national charts.

The LP was produced by Micky Geggus of the COCKNEY REJECTS, but was not technically their true first album. The original first album was produced by Ron Rouman(the band's manager) but The Business were not happy with the mix, so they decided to remix themselves. However, when they went to do this they found the tapes had mysteriously disappeared. So they borrowed £2,000 from Secret and re-recorded the album. The tapes finally came to light when Secret licensed the song 'Blind Justice' to Cherry Red for use in the 'UK/DK' video and sound-track LP(released 1983).

Apparently Secret had sent, by mistake the Geggus mixes instead of the Rouman LP. The original Rouman produced album finally surfaced on the 'Back to Back Vol.2' double LP on wonderful World records in 1985. The album was titled 'Smash The discos'(later re-issued on Link) and iclued covers of Crass's 'Do they owe us a living' and Sham 69 'Tell us the truth''. The band was unable to record during most of 1984 due to legal hassles with Secret and trouble with their management. However, in september they returned again with a new LP 'Loud Proud and punk- Live' and a new drummer Micky Fairbairn. The album went down well with the music press and gained a five star review in Sounds.

1985 proved to be a productive year with the new line-up releasing their first 12" 'Get Out Of My House' ; two double LP's 'Back To Back-Vol.1' and the already mentioned volume 2; and the controversial 'Drinking and driving' . The latter was released on 7" and 12", the 12" containing a cover of SHAM 69's 'Harry up Harry'. The single did not impress the public, especially Professor Brian Pritchard of Action on Drinking and driving. He was quoted in the national press as saying: "The record is absolutely criminal, the group should be prosecuted for aiding and abetting manslaughter"(!!)

An album followed in December '85 entitled 'Saturday's heroes' which inclued 'Drinking and Driving' and another 'offensive' song - the title track 'Saturday's heroes'. The song was a tongue-in-cheek tribute to football hooliganism, but again was treated seriously and with contempt. Record wise, apart from songs on various compilations, The business were not heard of again until the release of 'Do a runner' in February '88(a brilliant song reminiscent of COCK SPARRER). Dojo Records kept the band's name alive prior to this by releasing a compilation LP in june '86. 'Singalongabusiness' contained singles A and B-sides, plus various odds and sods. The 12" 'Do a runner' was issued on Link records(which was formed by Business bass player Mark Brennan in '87).

An LP 'Welcome to the real world' followed quickly in May '88. As well as containing original Business songs it also contained versions of songs originally written for Prole and The Blackout(bands which Business members had been previously involved in). In October '88 a four-track EP was given away with the first issue of 'Beat Of The Street' magazine. The inclued song was a live version of 'Do a runner' recorded at the Lisieux Festival in Normandy-France and which was to be the band's last ever gig.

On Saturday April 2nd 1988, The Business played their final English gig at the Astoria in london. A crowd of 1500 attented and the event was recorded by Link and issued as the 'Live and Loud' LP. The band split up shortly after the aforementioned French Festival...

COCK SPARRER

It started off like any other show ("Argy Bargy")…you see, the thing about Sparrer is that they're not just a band. The four original members (Steve Bruce - drums, Mick Beaufoy - guitar, Steve Burgess - bass and Colin Mcfaull - vocals) together with their tour manager, Will Murray, have known each other since the age of eleven. They were born and raised in London's East End, growing up in an atmosphere of football and rock music. For most of their lives, they've been mates.

They all attended the same school and, in 1972, swapped homework for rehearsals in order to form a group, playing Small Faces songs and not much else. They were later joined by Garrie Lammin, the first of several rhythm guitarists. Garrie had a lot going for him: he owned a Marshall stack, had a spikey haircut and was Burge's cousin. Thanks to Terry Murphy, who ran the Bridgehouse pub in Canning Town (East London's coolest rock venue), the boys were never short of somewhere to play, even if it was only a wet Monday night with an audience of just Terry and his bar staff.

Sparrer began to write their own songs. They were based on the life they led and the characters they met while supporting West Ham Football Club every Saturday afternoon. The sound that evolved was more raw than the prevailing heavy rock favoured by their contemporaries and soon attracted a regular following. The gigs at the Bridgehouse were now being supplemented by support slots at The Marquee in London's West End (thanks to Archie, The Marquee's dodgy jock doorman).

Malcolm McLaren came to see the band rehearse in a room over The Roding pub in East Ham with a view to taking them under his wing and turning them into the 'next big thing' (sound familiar ?). Bondage trousers and safety pins met Doctor Martins and jungle greens. It was not to be. Malcolm invited the boys to play with the newly formed Sex Pistols at a strip club in Soho but his inability to buy them a beer did not go down well and the association ended there (if only…Oh well, who gives a shit ?)

Shortly afterwards the music scene was changed forever with the release of 'Anarchy In The UK'. Suddenly record companies were rushing to find anyone who didn't sound like the 'dinosaur' rockers that had now become so 'un-trendy' and Cock Sparrer signed their lives away to Decca Records (along with 'Slaughter And The Dogs' from Manchester). Fame and fortune were just around the corner.

Decca sent the boys to their West Hampstead studio to record a single (the same studio once used by the Stones). They were assigned the company's best producer, Nick Tauber (whose other clients included Thin Lizzy) and, while everybody from the head of A&R to the studio engineer were trying to work out what to do with a 'punk' group who refused to dye their hair green or stick safety pins through their ears, Sparrer kept themselves busy trying to work out how many microphones they could nick and sell without them being missed.

A support slot on the Small Faces UK tour was negotiated and the first single, 'Runnin' Riot', was released in July 1977. It reached the lower end of the British chart but did nothing to dampen the band's growing mistrust of record companies, managers and P.R. companies ('Take 'em All'). By the time the second single was released ('We Love You'/'Chip On My Shoulder' - 12 inch and 7 inch - November 1977), the boys were rejecting every promotional idea they were asked to consider (which was why the 'We Love You' picture sleeve was blank) and were booking their own tour from Decca's offices.

They all lived in a house in Dagenham, Essex. When not gigging, they spent the time in the kitchen playing football, drinking in the local pub or praying for Will to win enough money on the horses to pay the rent. They had 'acquired' boxes and boxes of both their singles which they used for rifle practice in the back garden (they're sick when they now see them being offered for huge amounts of money in record collector magazines).

This period was the inspiration for many songs ('Working', 'Last Train To Dagenham') often written as they travelled to gigs in the back of a red ex-Post Office van driven by their trusty roadie, 'The Head' (another old school friend). The band's most loyal supporters were a bunch of East End lads known as 'The Poplar Boys', who turned up at every gig.

With the emergence of punk, Sparrer naively believed their music had found a natural home. Not so. Their aggressive anthems born out of a dangerous mixture of East End life and football matches were not welcomed by the West London art school dropouts who dominated the British music press. These critics were desperately trying to turn punk into 'new wave' in order to give it a respectability that would justify their interest. 'Serious' punk musicians quickly emerged. The Pistols disintegrated and so, with somewhat less fuss, did Sparrer. Garrie left to become an actor and the others booked themselves on a Freddie Laker flight to America, paid for by selling off their P.A. (which wasn't actually theirs to sell).

They didn't split up. They just didn't play for a while.

The next couple of years saw the boys with no great desire to get back on the road. The only real highlight was Trevor Brooking's magnificent diving header which secured West Ham's defeat of Arsenal in the 1980 F.A. Cup Final.

But the need for some good, honest street rock would not go away. Writer and T.V. personality Garry Bushell realised this and decided to compile an album of what had become known as 'OI' music. It included Sparrer's 'Sunday Stripper'. Suddenly, the group was back in demand.

During a chance phone call by one of the boys to an old friend, now a top record company executive, a new song, 'England Belongs To Me', was mentioned. The lads were offered a deal on the strength of the title alone. In fact, the original title was 'London Belongs To Me' but it "didn't seem to scan right" and actually it wasn't even completely written at the time of the phone call. The album 'Shock Troops' followed, recorded at The White House studio in Chelsea.

Sparrer finally had the freedom to record the sort of things they really wanted to. They vented their frustration with the punk scene ('Where Are They Now ?'), their distrust of most things political ('Watch Your Back'), their hatred of terrorism ('Secret Army'), their disillusionment with the police ('Riot Squad') and their disregard for conventionality ('Out On An Island'), a song which proved they were more than just another punk band.

After the album was completed, Mickey decided he'd had enough for a while. He never lost touch with the band and still turned up for an occasional special gig, such as Bushell's Birthday Bash, the 'Live and Loud' recording and two dates at the 'Gibus Club' in Paris, France. A new rhythm guitarist, Brazilian Chris Skepis was recruited. As with Garrie Lammin, Chris had a lot going for him: he owned a copy of the complete music to the Clash's first album and his dad was a millionaire. Shug O'Neill was chosen as temporary lead guitarist because a drink was arranged in a Soho pub and he actually turned up. Although Micky played most of the rhythm and all of the lead guitars on the album, both the new boys somehow managed to get their pictures on the 'Shock Troops' cover.

Cock Sparrer played several gigs around this time, including a sell out at the 100 Club in Oxford Street, with Chris and Shug. The new recruits also featured on another album, 'Runnin' Riot In '84'. Numerous live and compilation discs were subsequently released but no more live work was undertaken. Chris returned to Brazil and Shug left to form his own band.

The boys, as ever, remained close mates. Steve Bruce was running a music pub in Bethnal Green ('The Stick Of Rock') and was often asked if Sparrer would ever play again. Mickey was up for it and, after a great deal of money changed hands, they agreed to play 'The Astoria' in Charing Cross Road with new rhythm guitarist Daryl Smith. The lads' fondest memory of the day is rehearsing in 'The Stick Of Rock' on the afternoon of the gig to around 100 people. They were not prepared, however, for the size of the crowd that turned up that night. These people had travelled from all over Europe and they knew the words to every song. The group had constantly been told that they had played a crucial part in the whole 'OI' thing. Here was the proof.

With the albums 'Guilty As Charged' and 'Two Monkeys', Cock Sparrer returned to what they do best: writing anthems for everyday life (courtesy of Burge) and playing live. Whenever they perform, it's a party, from the mass singalongs accompanying almost every song to the tradition of a member of the audience disrobing during 'Sunday Stripper'. That's how they like it.

Cock Sparrer were, are and always will be:

Colin McFaull - vocals, Steve Burgess - bass guitar, Steve Bruce - drums, Mickey Beaufoy - guitars, Will Murray - road manager

Five blokes in a pub, five mates having a laugh, … more than just a band.

Plus new boy Daryl Smith (he's only been with the band since 1992)

the CASSUALTIES

the CASSUALTIES



Fall 1990. The streets of NYC are a bleak and barren wasteland for the few punx left to roam the streets in search of a scene that has long since disappeared. Long after it’s glory days in the early 1980s, the global punk scene by 1990 had all but died. In it’s place had sprung the benign sounds of grunge, east bay pop and metal crossover played by long haired college poets, crusty squatters and other hippie miscreants. While the rest of the world seemed content enough to rot in the mire of stale post-metal and college puke, a small scene of spiky haired drunk punx in NYC set out on a mission to return punk rock to it’s glorious roots. The Casualties were born!

Casualties Time Line:

1990: Jorge-vocals, Colin-vocals, Mark-bass, Yureesh-drums, Hank-guitar
First demo is recorded. Rachel from the Rivits fills in on second vocals for a few months while Colin is away at school.

1991: Jorge-vocals, Colin-vocals, Mark-bass, Yureesh-drums, Fred-guitar
Hank leaves the band, replaced by Fred on guitar. Their first studio recording "Political Sin" is recorded for the "Benefit for Beer" compilation. Fred goes away to school and is replaced temporarily by Scott from C Squat. Scott leaves when Fred returns from school and joins the band full time. Hank comes back to join the band for a few shows then leaves the band for good. The debut "40 Ounce Casualty" ep is recorded in the Fall of '91. Steve distraught fills in on second guitar for a short time.

1992: Jorge-vocals, Colin-vocals, Mark-bass, Yureesh-drums, Fred-guitar
Constant local gigging begins to earn the Casualties a huge local following in NYC and a reputation around the world...

1993: Jorge-vocals, Colin-vocals, Mike-bass, Yureesh-drums, Jake-guitar
Fred and Mark leave the band and within a week are replaced by Jake and Mike.

1994: Jorge-vocals, Mike-bass, Shawn-drums, Jake-guitar
"For the Punx" and "10 years too late" are recorded for the "Pogo Attack" compilation. The four-song "Drinking is our Way of Life" ep is recorded but not released until it appears on the Casualties "early years 1990-1995" CD in 1999. Colin and Yureesh leave the band, Shawn joins on drums.

1995: Jorge-vocals, Mike-bass, Meggers-drums, Jake-guitar
The "Fuckin' Way of Life" ep is recorded. Shawn leaves the band, replaced by Meggers from the Rivits on drums

1996: Jorge-vocals, Mike-bass, Meggers-drums, Jake-guitar
The Casualties are the first American band to appear at the legendary "Holidays in the Sun" Festival in London.

1997: Jorge-vocals, Mike-bass, Meggers-drums, Jake-guitar
The Casualties reach a new level of popularity with their new line-up, the release of their debut "For the Punx" album and their first American tour with the Varukers.

1998: Jorge-vocals, Jon-bass, Meggers-drums, Jake-guitar
Mike leaves the band, replaced by Jon from the Krays on bass. Their 2nd album "Underground Army" is released. Jon leaves the band during the "Underground Army" European tour. Dave Punk Core fills in on bass from late '98 to Spring '99.

1999: Jorge-vocals, Rick-bass, Meggers-drums, Jake-guitar
Dave leaves the band, Rick from the Manix is recruited on bass. The Casualties embark on their third successful world tour. The "Early Years 1990-1995" album, a compilation of rare early recordings is released.

2000: Jorge-vocals, Rick-bass, Meggers-drums, Jake-guitar
The Casualties reach yet another peak in popularity with their fourth World tour beginning in March in Europe and ending in August in the USA and with the release of their "Who's in Control?" ep and their third album "Stay Out of Order".

2001: Jorge-vocals, Rick-bass, Meggers-drums, Jake-guitar
11 years on and stronger than ever, the Casualties release their fourth studio album "Die Hards" to rave reviews. Another full US tour, including two weeks on the Vans Warped Tour and ending up the Summer tour at the first American Holidays in the Sun tour amongst legends such as the Exploited, GBH, Cockney Rejects, Slaughter & the Dogs & more. The story continues.......!

Discography:

1991: "Political Sin" appears on "A Benefit for Beer" compilation 7" on Swill Records (Public Nuisance's label)
Other bands who appear on the record are Public Nuisance, the Deviators and Jesus Chrust. Two different covers (approximately 1000 of each) exist.

1992: The four track "40 Ounce Casualty" ep is self released by the band. Two different full color covers are made (approximately 100 of each), one by Jorge and Colin, the other by Mark and Yureesh. For the other 800 copies, black and white covers featuring the now-infamous artwork by Yureesh are made by Jake upon joining the band. Approximately 100 copies were pressed on pink vinyl.

1994: "For the Punx" and "25 years too late" appear on the "Pogo Attack" compilation LP on Pogo Stick Records.
Other bands who appear on the record are Blanks '77, the Pist, Distraught, Banner of Hope, Mankind, Wretched Ones, Dysfunctional Youth, the Bristles and the Vomit Punx. Later re-issued on CD by Nasty Vinyl in Germany.

1995: "A Fuckin' Way of Life" ep is released on Eyeball Records. Approximately 2000 copies pressed.

1997: "For the Punx" the debut LP/CD is released on Tribal War Records. Appoximately 200 test pressing "record release party" LP's are made for the record release party show. Appoximately 2000 copies were pressed on red vinyl and approximately 2000 on blue vinyl.

1998: "Underground Army" the 2nd full length LP/CD is released on Tribal War Records.

1999: "Underground Army" is re-issued on Punk Core Records. 2000 copies were pressed on blue splatter vinyl and included a full color record jacket, full color inner sleeve and free poster. "The Early Years 1990-1995" LP/CD is released on Punk Core. 2000 copies are pressed, 500 on green splatter vinyl with full color record jacket, full color inner sleeve and free poster.

"The Early Years 1990-1995" is released, which includes all tracks recorded within the first five years of the band's existence, with several unreleased tracks including the previously unreleased "Drinking is our Way of Life" ep and original 1990 demo.

2000: "Who's in Control?", the bands first new ep in five years is released on Punk Core. 1000 copies were pressed on black vinyl, 1000 on purple splatter. CD version included four bonus tracks recorded live at the Gas Station in NYC in 1995 including one previously unreleased song "ammunition". "Stay Out of Order", the Casualties third full length LP/CD is released on Punk Core.

"Stay Out of Order", the band's third full-length studio album is released on Punk Core. CD contains live video tracks from the band's performance at the Whisky A Go Go show from 1999, as well as a hidden bonus track, a cover of the Exploited's "dead cities". 2000 LP's were pressed, the first two hundred on red vinyl, 800 on yellow vinyl and 1000 on black vinyl.
"For The Punx", the band's debut album is re-pressed on Punk Core

2001: "Die Hards" is released on Side 1 Dummy records. Thought by many to be their best album in years, the band's fourth studio album is released to rave reviews. Limited green vinyl and red vinyl are pressed.