The Prats were an

Edinburgh Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian ...

-based punk rock group, active from 1977 to 1981. More recently, their track "General Davis" was featured in the opening credits of

Jonathan Demme Robert Jonathan Demme ( ; February 22, 1944 – April 26, 2017) was an American filmmaker. Beginning his career under B-movie producer Roger Corman, Demme made his directorial debut with the 1974 women-in-prison film ''Caged Heat'', before ...

's 2004 film, ''

The Manchurian Candidate ''The Manchurian Candidate'' is a novel by Richard Condon, first published in 1959. It is a political thriller about the son of a prominent U.S. political family who is brainwashed into being an unwitting assassin for a Communist conspiracy. The ...

''.

History

The group was founded in 1977 at St. Augustine's Roman Catholic Comprehensive by Paul McLaughlin, David Maguire, Greg Maguire, and Tom Robinson, whose ages at the time ranged from 12 to 15.Ogg, Alex (2006) ''No More Heroes: a Complete History of UK Punk from 1976 to 1980'', Cherry Red Books, , p. 430-1 While their instruments were basic - including a cardboard drum kit - they were able to quickly produce a

demo tape A demo (shortened from "demonstration") is a song or group of songs typically recorded for limited circulation or for reference use, rather than for general public release. A demo is a way for a musician to approximate their ideas in a fixed for ...

which they sent to a local indie label Fast Product, who also produced

the Human League The Human League are an English synth-pop band formed in Sheffield in 1977. Initially an experimental electronic outfit, the group signed to Virgin Records in 1979 and later attained widespread commercial success with their third album ''Dare' ...

. Inspired by

The Slits The Slits were a punk and post-punk band based in London, formed there in 1976 by members of the groups the Flowers of Romance and the Castrators. The group's early line-up consisted of Ari Up (Ariane Forster) and Palmolive (a.k.a. Paloma R ...

and

Mekons The Mekons are a British band formed in the late 1970s as an art collective. They are one of the longest-running and most prolific of the first-wave British punk rock bands. The band's style has evolved over time to incorporate aspects of ...

, the Prats debuted with three tracks on the Fast EP ''Earcom 1''. In 1979, the band recorded a session for

John Peel John Robert Parker Ravenscroft (30 August 1939 – 25 October 2004), known professionally as John Peel, was an English disc jockey (DJ) and radio presenter. He was the longest-serving of the original BBC Radio 1 DJs, broadcasting regularly fr ...

BBC Radio 1 BBC Radio 1 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC. It specialises in modern popular music and current chart hits throughout the day. The station provides alternative genres at night, including electronica, dance, ...

show. Peel also offered his fee from a DJing appearance in Edinburgh to finance a single release by the band. A series of singles then followed, including "General Davis" and "Die Todten Reyten Schnell," which was released on a German indie label. A number of line-up changes saw Elspeth McLeod joining to provide additional guitar (including on the single "General Davis") and Jeff Maguire taking over bass duties from Tom Robinson. In 1980, the EP "The 1990s Pop" was released on Rough Trade Music. This record contained four tracks: "Disco Pope", "Nothing", "TV Set", and "Noboty Noticed". "Disco Pope" received significant airplay under

and was re-released in 2003 on Rough Trade Shops' compilation CD ''Post Punk Volume 1''. The end of school in 1981 meant the end of the Prats. Paul McLaughlin was quoted as saying “Bands are like marriages between four people. You just stop getting on with each other.” McLaughlin, now living in Chelmsford, has released one solo single, "Party Girl". He has since then given up on music and is currently an employment law executive with

Acas The Advisory, Conciliation and Arbitration Service (Acas) is a Crown non-departmental public body of the Government of the United Kingdom. Its purpose is to improve organisations and working life through the promotion and facilitation of strong ...

; Dave, Greg, Tom and Elspeth all live in the Edinburgh area. Bass Guitarist, Jeff Maguire died from

stage 4 cancer Cancer staging is the process of determining the extent to which a cancer has developed by growing and spreading. Contemporary practice is to assign a number from I to IV to a cancer, with I being an isolated cancer and IV being a cancer that ha ...

in July 2020. One of his last days was spent with his friends singing ‘Disco Pope’.

''The Manchurian Candidate'' soundtrack

With the appearance of the song "General Davis" on the soundtrack of Jonathan Demme's 2004 remake of ''The Manchurian Candidate'', starring

Denzel Washington Denzel Hayes Washington Jr. (born December 28, 1954) is an American actor and filmmaker. He has been described as an actor who reconfigured "the concept of classic movie stardom". Throughout his career spanning over four decades, Washington ha ...

and

Meryl Streep Mary Louise Meryl Streep (born June 22, 1949) is an American actress. Often described as "the best actress of her generation", Streep is particularly known for her versatility and accent adaptability. She has received numerous accolades throu ...

, there has been a resurgence of interest in the Prats, resulting in the release of a compilation CD, ''Now That's What I Call Prats Music'' released by

One Little Indian One Little Independent Records (formerly One Little Indian Records) is an English independent record label. It was set up in 1985 by members of various anarcho-punk bands, and managed by former Flux of Pink Indians bassist Derek Birkett. In th ...

in 2005.

Discography

Singles and EPs

*''1990s Pop EP'' (1980), Rough Trade - UK Indie No. 31Lazell, Barry (1998) ''Indie Hits 1980-1989'', Cherry Red Books, , p. 177 *"Die Todten Reyten Schnell" (1980), DADA *"General Davis" (1981), Rough Trade

Albums

*''Now That's What I Call Prats Music'' (2005),

Compilation appearances

*''Earcom 1'' (1979), Fast Product: "Bored", "Prats 2", "Inverness"

References

External links

Official web site
{{DEFAULTSORT:Prats Scottish punk rock groups