Thee Headcoats was a band formed in

Chatham, Kent Chatham ( ) is a town located within the Medway unitary authority in the ceremonial county of Kent, England. The town forms a conurbation with neighbouring towns Gillingham, Rochester, Strood and Rainham. The town developed around Chatham ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe ...

in 1989, that was well known for its

garage rock Garage rock (sometimes called garage punk or 60s punk) is a raw and energetic style of rock and roll that flourished in the mid-1960s, most notably in the United States and Canada, and has experienced a series of subsequent revivals. The sty ...

sound, explicitly sticking to this style on almost all of their albums. The band's signature sound as well as their prolific writing has been attributed to

Billy Childish Billy Childish (born Steven John Hamper, 1 December 1959) is an English painter, author, poet, photographer, film maker, singer and guitarist. Since the late 1970s, Childish has been prolific in creating music, writing and visual art. He has le ...

's love of simple, direct recording. The band has been on multiple labels including Billy's own

Hangman Records Hangman may refer to: * Executioner who carries out a death sentence by hanging * Hangman (game), a game of guessing a word or phrase one letter at a time Arts and entertainment Comics * Hangman (DC Comics), an enemy of Batman * Hangman (Marvel ...

, Damaged Goods and

Sub Pop Sub Pop is a record label founded in 1986 by Bruce Pavitt and Jonathan Poneman. Sub Pop achieved fame in the early 1990s for signing Seattle bands such as Nirvana, Soundgarden, and Mudhoney, central players in the grunge movement. They are oft ...

. The band played their final concert on 12 May 2000 at the Dirty Water Club. Childish went on to play with other bands including The Buff Medways (1999 to 2006) and The Musicians of The British Empire (2007 to 2011).

Lineup

The band was composed of Billy Childish (guitar and vocals), Bruce Brand (drums and backing vocals), and Johnny Johnson (bass). The band is the most prolific of Childish's many musical projects so far, releasing fourteen full-length albums. The group originally featured Allan Crockford (ex- The Prisoners) (credited as Crojack on the first LP, ''Headcoats Down''), followed by John Agnew (ex-

Thee Mighty Caesars Thee Mighty Caesars were a Medway scene garage/punk group, formed by Billy Childish (vocals/guitar) in 1985 after the demise of The Milkshakes, alongside John Agnew (bass) and Graham Day (drums), who initially was still also in fellow Medway ...

) then Ollie Dolat (co-founder of The Squares and founder of Mr Zero) on bass before Johnson joined. Thee Headcoatees, an all-female vocal group consisting of Holly Golightly, Kyra LaRubia, Ludella Black, and (until leaving in 1999) Bongo Debbie, would often perform live with Thee Headcoats, and recorded several LPs with them as backing band. The band also recorded two albums as Thee Headcoats Sect, with members of

The Downliners Sect Downliners Sect are an English R&B and blues-based rock band, formed in the 1960s beat boom era. Stylistically, they were similar to blues-based bands such as The Yardbirds, The Pretty Things and the Rolling Stones, playing basic R&B on thei ...

Repertoire and influence

Described in the New York Times as 'the king of garage rock', Thee Headcoats had their roots in the British

punk Punk or punks may refer to: Genres, subculture, and related aspects * Punk rock, a music genre originating in the 1970s associated with various subgenres * Punk subculture, a subculture associated with punk rock, or aspects of the subculture s ...

scene of the 1970s (both Billy and Bruce playing in The Pop Rivets and The Milkshakes). The band recorded songs by

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 w ...

under the pseudonym Thee Stash. The band also recorded tribute albums to

Bo Diddley Ellas McDaniel (born Ellas Otha Bates; December 30, 1928 – June 2, 2008), known professionally as Bo Diddley, was an American guitarist who played a key role in the transition from the blues to rock and roll. He influenced many artists, inc ...

and

Jimmy Reed Mathis James Reed (September 6, 1925 – August 29, 1976) was an American blues musician and songwriter. His particular style of electric blues was popular with blues as well as non-blues audiences. Reed's songs such as "Honest I Do" (1957), " ...

. Their debut album featured new versions of songs recorded by

Son House Edward James "Son" House Jr. (March 21, 1902His date of birth is a matter of some debate. House alleged that he was middle-aged during World War I and that he was 79 in 1965, which would make his date of birth around 1886. However, all legal re ...

including " John the Revelator" and "Child's

Death Letter "Death Letter", also known as "Death Letter Blues", is the signature song of the Delta blues musician Son House. It is structured upon House's earlier recording "My Black Mama, Part 2" from 1930. House's 1965 performance was on a metal-bodied Na ...

", both of which were later covered by

The White Stripes The White Stripes were an American rock duo from Detroit formed in 1997. The group consisted of Jack White (songwriter, vocals, guitar, piano, and mandolin) and Meg White (drums and vocals). After releasing several singles and three albums wit ...

upon whom Billy and Thee Headcoats were a great influence. These influences give a good indication of the band's sound;

mixed with pure rhythmic

rock 'n' roll Rock and roll (often written as rock & roll, rock 'n' roll, or rock 'n roll) is a genre of popular music that evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s. It originated from African-American music such as jazz, rhythm an ...

and

blues Blues is a music genre and musical form which originated in the Deep South of the United States around the 1860s. Blues incorporated spirituals, work songs, field hollers, shouts, chants, and rhymed simple narrative ballads from the ...

Discography

Studio albums

*''Headcoats Down!'' (1989) ini LP*''The Earls of Suavedom'' (1990) *''The Kids Are All Square- This Is Hip!'' (1990) *''Beach Bums Must Die'' (1990) *''Heavens to Murgatroyd, Even! It’s Thee Headcoats! (Already)'' (1990) *''W.O.AH! Bo in Thee Garage'' (1991) o Diddley tribute album*''Headcoatitude'' (1991) *''The Good Times Are Killing Me'' (1993) *''Thee Headcoats Conundrum'' (1994) *''In Tweed We Trust'' (1996) *''Deerstalking Men'' (1996) s Thee Headcoats Sect*''Knights of the Baskervilles'' (1996) *''The Jimmy Reed Experience'' (1997) 0" mini LP; Jimmy Reed tribute*''The Messerschmitt Pilot's Severed Hand'' (1998) *''Brother is Dead… But Fly is Gone!'' (1998) *''17% - Hendrix Was Not the Only Musician'' (1998) *''Ready Sect Go!'' (1999) s Thee Headcoats Sect*''I Am the Object of Your Desire'' (2000)

Compilations and live

*''The Wurst is Yet to Come'' (1993) ive*''Live at the Wild Western Room'' (1994) eaturing Thee Headcoatees*''The Sounds of the Baskervilles'' (1995) eaturing Thee Headcoatees*''Thee Headcoats Best: Sherlock Holmes Meets the Punkenstein Monster'' (1998) apanese Compilation*''Thee English Gentlemen of Rock & Roll: Thee Headcoats Best Vol. II'' (1999) apanese Compilation*''Elementary Headcoats – Thee Singles 1990-1999'' (2001) *''Live at the Dirty Water Club'' (2001)

References

External links

Official Billy Childish websiteHeadcoats discography - DiscogsHeadcoats singles discography - 45cat
{{DEFAULTSORT:Thee Headcoats English punk rock groups Punk blues musical groups Garage punk groups Musical groups established in 1989 Musical groups disestablished in 2000 British garage rock groups Musical groups from Kent