Gaye Advert (born 25 August 1956), also Gaye Black, is an English punk rock musician, who played

bass guitar The bass guitar, electric bass or simply bass (), is the lowest-pitched member of the string family. It is a plucked string instrument similar in appearance and construction to an electric or an acoustic guitar, but with a longer neck and ...

in the band

The Adverts The Adverts were an English punk band who formed in 1976 and broke up in late 1979. They were one of the first punk bands to enjoy chart success in the United Kingdom, UK; their 1977 single "Gary Gilmore's Eyes" reached No. 18 in the UK Single ...

in the late 1970s. She was one of the first female

rock Rock most often refers to: * Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids * Rock music, a genre of popular music Rock or Rocks may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wales ...

stars A star is an astronomical object comprising a luminous spheroid of plasma held together by its gravity. The nearest star to Earth is the Sun. Many other stars are visible to the naked eye at night, but their immense distances from Earth ma ...

of the punk rock movement, whom ''The Virgin Encyclopedia of 70s Music'' called the "first female punk star". She was "one of punk’s first female icons". Dave Thompson wrote that her "photogenic" looks, "panda-eye make-up and omnipresent leather jacket defined the face of female punkdom until well into the next decade".;

Biography

Black - along with fellow Adverts founding member T. V. Smith - was from

Bideford Bideford ( ) is a historic port town on the estuary of the River Torridge in north Devon, south-west England. It is the main town of the Torridge local government district. Toponymy In ancient records Bideford is recorded as ''Bedeford'', ''By ...

, a small coastal town in

Devon Devon ( , historically known as Devonshire , ) is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in South West England. The most populous settlement in Devon is the city of Plymouth, followed by Devon's county town, the city of Exeter. Devon is ...

. She started playing bass in her room to pass the time, chosen as it was her favourite instrument. After she finished college, qualifying in graphic design, the pair moved to London due to a lack of jobs and other opportunities in Devon. They formed the band there in 1976.; They were later married. After the demise of the Adverts in 1979, Advert stopped playing bass and disappeared from the British punk scene. She has said that she was "a bit disillusioned and worn out," and felt picked on by the press. She then took up a career as a manager in

social services Social services are a range of public services intended to provide support and assistance towards particular groups, which commonly include the disadvantaged. They may be provided by individuals, private and independent organisations, or administe ...

. She recounted her experiences of being in the band in an interview for Zillah Minx's 2010 film ''She's a Punk Rocker UK''. She continues to create art, often in the medium of stained glass, and began to exhibit her work in 2008.

References

Living people English punk rock bass guitarists People from Bideford Musicians from Devon Women bass guitarists 1956 births The Adverts members Women in punk {{UK-bass-guitarist-stub