"Grimly Fiendish" is a single by English

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 ...

band the Damned, released on 18 March 1985. The band was offered a deal by a major label, MCA, and moved further in the direction of

goth music Gothic rock (also called goth rock or simply goth) is a style of rock music that emerged from post-punk in the United Kingdom in the late 1970s. The first post-punk bands which shifted toward dark music with gothic overtones include Siouxsie an ...

under the influence of guitarist/keyboardist

Roman Jugg Roman Jugg (born 25 July 1957 in Caerphilly, South Wales) is a keyboard player and guitarist. He began his career in the Welsh punk band Victimize in the late 1970s. An acquaintance of Paul Gray, Jugg was originally hired in late 1981, recordi ...

and vocalist

Dave Vanian David Vanian (born David Lett, 12 October 1956) is an English rock musician, and lead singer of the punk rock band the Damned. Formed in 1976 in London, the Damned were the first British punk band to release a single, release an album, have a ...

. Given a substantial promotional budget, including a video directed by Jonathan Gershfield, two separate 12" releases (each featuring a different remix of "Grimly Fiendish") and several limited edition 7" variants, the song was the band's biggest hit since 1979, reaching No. 21 in the

UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart (currently titled Official Singles Chart, with the upper section more commonly known as the Official UK Top 40) is compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC), on behalf of the British record industry, listing the top-s ...

in April 1985. MCA also issued the single in (Germany), Australia and Italy.

Inspiration

The song takes its title (although misspelled for copyright reasons) from a character - ''

Grimly Feendish Grimly Feendish (alias The Rottenest Crook in the World) is a British comic book character created by Leo Baxendale in 1964, who originated in Baxendale's comic strip ''Eagle-Eye, Junior Spy'', published in the magazine ''Wham!''. He is Eagle-Eye' ...

- The Rottenest Crook in the World'' – in the UK children's ''

Wham! Wham! (briefly known in the US as Wham! U.K.) were an English pop duo formed in Bushey in 1981. The duo consisted of George Michael and Andrew Ridgeley. They became one of the most commercially successful pop acts of the 1980s, selling more ...

'', ''Pow!'' and ''Smash!'' comics from the 1960s, as well as ''Cor!'', ''Shiver & Shake'', ''Monster Fun'' and ''Buster'' in the 1970s and 1980s. Created by

Leo Baxendale Joseph Leo Baxendale (27 October 1930 – 23 April 2017) was an English cartoonist and publisher. Baxendale wrote and drew several titles. Among his best-known creations are the ''The Beano, Beano'' comic strip, strips ''Little Plum'', ''Minnie ...

, Grimly is an over-ambitious and generally incompetent, childlike criminal mastermind, who is often shown wearing a long, black coat, starting initially as the villainous foil to Eagle-Eye, Junior Spy. Although popular enough to merit his own strip, the regular restructuring or shelving of his strip due to the comics he appeared in being merged with others meant that he never achieved longevity in any single publication, though he was a staple in many IPC/Fleetway comic annuals until the 1980s. The inspiration behind the song is a throwaway remark by a BBC Radio One DJ, who wondered whether anyone still remembered the character. The lyrics depict Grimly on trial for being a bad influence on children, but protesting that he was never given much of a chance (an allegory to his fate in the comic world).

Track listing

# "Grimly Fiendish" (Jugg, Scabies, Vanian, Merrick, Doctor) – 3:49 # "Edward the Bear" (Scabies, Vanian, Jugg, Merrick) – 3:37 Bonus track on 12" single, version 1: – # "Grimly Fiendish (Spic 'n' Span Mix)" (Jugg, Scabies, Vanian, Merrick, Doctor) – 5:23 Bonus track on 12" single, version 2: – # "Grimly Fiendish (The Bad Trip Mix)" (Jugg, Scabies, Vanian, Merrick, Doctor) – 5:09

Production credits

* Producers: **

Bob Sargeant Robert Sargeant (20 November 1947 – 13 July 2021) was a British musician and record producer. Life and career Born in North Shields, Sargeant played keyboards in various local bands before joining regional R&B band the Junco Partners in 1966 ...

** The Damned * Musicians: **

− vocals **

Rat Scabies Christopher John Millar (born 30 July 1955), known by his stage name Rat Scabies, is a musician best known as the drummer for English punk rock band the Damned. Career Millar was born in Kingston upon Thames, Surrey. He played drums with Tor ...

− drums **

− guitar, vocals on "Edward the Bear", keyboards **

Bryn Merrick Bryn Merrick (12 October 1958 – 12 September 2015) was a bassist who was a member of Cardiff-based punk band Victimize. He later joined the Damned between 1983 and 1989, replacing Paul Gray, who had left for UFO. Merrick's first release wit ...

− bass ** Willy Algar - Trumpet * Additional Songwriters: ** Doctor - lyrics (Doctor is the Reverend Doctor Clive Jackson of

Doctor and the Medics Doctor and the Medics is a British glam rock band formed in London in 1981. The group was most successful during the 1980s and is best known for their cover of Norman Greenbaum's "Spirit in the Sky" which reached No. 1 in the UK Singles Chart. The ...

)

References

External links

* {{authority control 1985 songs 1985 singles The Damned (band) songs Songs written by Rat Scabies Songs written by Roman Jugg Songs written by David Vanian Songs written by Bryn Merrick Song recordings produced by Bob Sargeant Songs about fictional male characters