The Partisans are a Welsh punk rock band formed in

Bridgend Bridgend (; cy, Pen-y-bont ar Ogwr or just , meaning "the end of the bridge on the Ogmore") is a town in Bridgend County Borough in Wales, west of Cardiff and east of Swansea. The town is named after the Old Bridge, Bridgend, medieval bridge ...

, South Wales, in early 1978, when all four members were in their early teens. They continued until 1984, having several hits on the

UK Indie Chart The UK Independent Singles Chart and UK Independent Albums Chart are charts of the best-selling independent singles and albums, respectively, in the United Kingdom. Originally published in January 1980, and widely known as the indie chart, the rele ...

. The band re-formed in the late 1990s.

History

The band formed in early 1978, with an original line-up of Phil Stanton (vocals), Rob "Spike" Harrington (guitar and vocals), Andy Lealand (guitar), Mark "Shark" Harris (drums), and Mark "Savage" Parsons (bass guitar). Parsons and Stanton left in 1979, with Harrington moving to lead vocals, and Lealand's girlfriend Louise Wright joining on bass. Influenced by

Sex Pistols The Sex Pistols were an English punk rock band formed in London in 1975. Although their initial career lasted just two and a half years, they were one of the most groundbreaking acts in the history of popular music. They were responsible for ...

The Clash The Clash were an English rock band formed in London in 1976 who were key players in the original wave of British punk rock. Billed as "The Only Band That Matters", they also contributed to the and new wave movements that emerged in the wa ...

, and

The Ramones The Ramones were an American punk rock band that formed in the New York City neighborhood of Forest Hills, Queens, in 1974. They are often cited as the first true punk rock group. Despite achieving a limited commercial appeal in the United ...

, the band started off covering punk rock hits and soon started to compose their own material. They were the second band signed to Chris Berry's No Future Records label, and their debut release, the double A-sided "Police Story" / "Killing Machine" was released on 28 September 1981. It reached No. 5 on the

, on the back of a tour with label-mates

Blitz Blitz, German for "lightning", may refer to: Military uses *Blitzkrieg, blitz campaign, or blitz, a type of military campaign *The Blitz, the German aerial campaign against Britain in the Second World War *, an Imperial German Navy light cruiser b ...

, and with strong support from ''

Sounds In physics, sound is a vibration that propagates as an acoustic wave, through a transmission medium such as a gas, liquid or solid. In human physiology and psychology, sound is the ''reception'' of such waves and their ''perception'' by the ...

'' writer

Garry Bushell Garry Bushell (born 13 May 1955) is an English newspaper columnist, rock music journalist, television presenter, author, musician and political activist. Bushell also sings in the Cockney Oi! bands GBX and the Gonads. He managed the New York Ci ...

. Following the success of this single, The Partisans were included on the third volume of Bushell's

Oi! Oi! is a subgenre of punk rock that originated in the United Kingdom in the late 1970s. The music and its associated subculture had the goal of bringing together punks, skinheads, and other disaffected working-class youth. The movement was ...

compilation series ''Carry On Oi!'', which reached No. 60 on the

UK Albums Chart The Official Albums Chart is a list of albums ranked by physical and digital sales and (from March 2015) audio streaming in the United Kingdom. It was published for the first time on 22 July 1956 and is compiled every week by the Official Charts C ...

, and won the band gig slots with Blitz,

Peter and the Test Tube Babies Peter and the Test Tube Babies are an English punk rock band, formed in the small town of Peacehaven, England in 1978, by Derek "Strangefish" Greening and Peter Bywaters. Due to their humorous tongue-in-cheek lyrics, they have been considered ...

and

The Ejected The Ejected were an English punk rock/Oi! band from Dagenham, London, active mainly between 1981 and 1983. History The band was formed by ex-Dawn Patrol members Big Jim Brooks (vocals, guitar), Gary Sandbrook (bass, vocals), and drummer Mick ...

, as well as a 'No Future' night at

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

's Zig Zag Club with Red Alert, The Lombardos, and Peter and the Test Tube Babies. The band released its second single, "17 Years of Hell", on 27 May 1982, peaking at No. 2 on the Indie Chart. This was followed by their self-titled debut LP, released in February 1983. It hit No. 5 in the Indie Chart and No. 1 in the Punk Chart, amid considerable critical acclaim from the national press and the underground fanzine culture. After the departure of Louise Wright, the remaining members relocated to

Bayswater Bayswater is an area within the City of Westminster in West London. It is a built-up district with a population density of 17,500 per square kilometre, and is located between Kensington Gardens to the south, Paddington to the north-east, and ...

in west

, with new bassist Dave Parsons to relaunch the band. Their next release was the three-track ''Blind Ambition'' EP on Cloak & Dagger Records, which peaked at No. 23 on the Indie Chart, and got played on

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, ...

. The LP, ''Time Was Right'', followed in 1984, described as "

The Professionals A professional is someone who is skilled in a profession. Professional or professionals may also refer to: * Professional sports Music *The Professionals (band), a British punk rock band formed in 1979 * ''The Professionals'' (The Professionals ...

meets

," and reaching No. 20 in the Indie Chart. The album featured live recordings from a gig at the Brixton Ace, at which The Partisans supported

Anthrax Anthrax is an infection caused by the bacterium ''Bacillus anthracis''. It can occur in four forms: skin, lungs, intestinal, and injection. Symptom onset occurs between one day and more than two months after the infection is contracted. The sk ...

Lost Cherrees Lost Cherrees is an anarcho-punk band from London, UK, originally active from 1979 to 1986 and reformed in 2003. History Lost Cherrees were formed in Sutton in 1979 by drummer Steve Battershill, guitarist Dave Greaves, and singer Siân Jeffre ...

Conflict Conflict may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Films * ''Conflict'' (1921 film), an American silent film directed by Stuart Paton * ''Conflict'' (1936 film), an American boxing film starring John Wayne * ''Conflict'' (1937 film) ...

and others. The band split up in 1984.

Dave Parsons David Guy Parsons (born 1964) is a British rock musician who is best known as the original bassist for English grunge band Bush. Life and career Before joining the grunge band Bush, was a member of punk band The Partisans, and alternative rock ...

later found chart success with

Transvision Vamp Transvision Vamp were an English pop rock band. Formed in 1986 by Nick Christian Sayer and Wendy James, the band enjoyed chart success in the late 1980s, particularly in 1989. James, the lead singer and focal-point of the group, attracted medi ...

and, even later, having global success with

Bush Bush commonly refers to: * Shrub, a small or medium woody plant Bush, Bushes, or the bush may also refer to: People * Bush (surname), including any of several people with that name **Bush family, a prominent American family that includes: *** ...

. Lealand moved to

Scandinavia Scandinavia; Sámi languages: /. ( ) is a subregion#Europe, subregion in Northern Europe, with strong historical, cultural, and linguistic ties between its constituent peoples. In English usage, ''Scandinavia'' most commonly refers to Denmark, ...

. He and Harrington recorded one more session in late 1989 for Link Records under the name Agent Orange including Lealand's then partner Iggi. In the late 1990s, Lealand and Harrington reformed the band along with two of Lealand's Swedish friends, Magnus Neundorff and Mikael "Gustav" Gustavsson. The band signed to

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

label TKO who issued the "So Neat" single in 2001, followed by a new album in 2004, ''Idiot Nation'' on Dr. Strange. In 2006, the band toured the UK with fellow Welsh hardcore punk band

Picture Frame Seduction Picture Frame Seduction (PFS) is a hardcore punk band originally from Haverfordwest, Wales, but later jointly based in Cadiz and Málaga in Spain and London and Bristol in the UK. In their formative years in Wales the band was considered too aggr ...

and played the Berlin festival Punk n' Disorderly in 2007. No further plans are being made to play live, although on 27 November 2015 they opened for Italian glam rock band, Giuda, at Orion, a rock venue in

Ciampino Ciampino () is a city and ''comune'' in the Metropolitan City of Rome, Lazio, Italy. It was a ''frazione'' of Marino until 1974, when it became a ''comune''; it obtained the city ( it, città) status (being therefore officially known as Citt� ...

, a small town near

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus (legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

Discography

Chart placings shown are from the

Singles

*"Police Story" (1981) No Future (No. 5) *"17 Years of Hell" (1982) No Future (No. 2) *"Blind Ambition" (1983) Link Records/Cloak and Dagger (No. 23) *"So Neat" (2001) TKO

Albums

*''The Partisans'' (1983) No Future (No. 5); ( UK No. 94) *''Time Was Right'' (1984) Link/Cloak and Dagger (No. 20) *''The Best of The Partisans'' (1999)

Captain Oi! Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police department, election precinct, e ...

*''Idiot Nation'' (2004) Dr. Strange

References

External links

*
The Partisans biography
by Mark Brennan {{DEFAULTSORT:Partisans, The Welsh punk rock groups British hardcore punk groups Street punk groups Underground punk scene in the United Kingdom Musical groups established in 1978 People from Bridgend