HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Adam and the Ants were an English rock band formed in
London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, 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 dow ...
in 1977. The group existed in two incarnations, both fronted by
Adam Ant Stuart Leslie Goddard, better known as Adam Ant (born 3 November 1954), is an English singer, musician, and actor. He gained popularity as the lead singer of new wave group Adam and the Ants and later as a solo artist, scoring 10 UK top ten ...
, over the period 1977 to 1982. The first, founded in May 1977 and known simply as The Ants until November of that year, transitioned from the punk rock to the
post-punk Post-punk (originally called new musick) is a broad genre of punk music that emerged in the late 1970s as musicians departed from punk's traditional elements and raw simplicity, instead adopting a variety of avant-garde sensibilities and non-r ...
and new wave era and released one album. The final line-up of this incarnation— Dave Barbarossa, Matthew Ashman, and Leigh Gorman—left the band in January 1980 at the suggestion of manager
Malcolm McLaren Malcolm Robert Andrew McLaren (22 January 1946 – 8 April 2010) was an English impresario, visual artist, singer, songwriter, musician, clothes designer and boutique owner, notable for combining these activities in an inventive and provo ...
to form
Bow Wow Wow Bow Wow Wow are an English new wave band, created by manager Malcolm McLaren in 1980. McLaren recruited members of Adam and the Ants to form the band behind 13-year-old Annabella Lwin on vocals. They released their debut EP ''Your Cassette Pe ...
. The second incarnation of Adam and the Ants featured guitarist
Marco Pirroni Marco Francesco Andrea Pirroni (born 27 April 1959, London, England) frequently credited simply as Marco, is a British guitarist, songwriter and record producer. He has worked with Adam Ant, Sinéad O'Connor, Siouxsie and the Banshees and many ...
and drummer/producer Chris Hughes, and was noted for its use of Burundi drums. This group lasted from February 1980 to March 1982, achieving major commercial success in the UK. With their music videos receiving airplay on
MTV MTV (Originally an initialism of Music Television) is an American cable channel that launched on August 1, 1981. Based in New York City, it serves as the flagship property of the MTV Entertainment Group, part of Paramount Media Networks, a di ...
and Ant appearing as a guest VJ on the station, they were associated with the Second British Invasion.


History


Formation

Prior to Adam and the Ants,
Adam Ant Stuart Leslie Goddard, better known as Adam Ant (born 3 November 1954), is an English singer, musician, and actor. He gained popularity as the lead singer of new wave group Adam and the Ants and later as a solo artist, scoring 10 UK top ten ...
played bass in
pub rock Pub rock is a rock music genre that was developed in the early to mid-1970s in the United Kingdom. A back-to-basics movement which incorporated roots rock, pub rock was a reaction against the expensively-recorded and produced progressive rock ...
group
Bazooka Joe Bazooka Joe is a comic strip character featured on small comics included in individually wrapped pieces of Bazooka (chewing gum), Bazooka bubble gum. He wears a black eyepatch, lending him a distinctive appearance. He is one of the more recogniza ...
, now primarily known as the band that headlined when the
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 ...
played their first concert on 6 November 1975 at Central Saint Martins College of Art and Design. They disbanded soon afterwards. While looking to form a new band, Ant befriended some influential figures in the burgeoning London punk scene, most notably
Jordan Jordan ( ar, الأردن; tr. ' ), officially the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan,; tr. ' is a country in Western Asia. It is situated at the crossroads of Asia, Africa, and Europe, within the Levant region, on the East Bank of the Jordan Rive ...
, who worked in Malcolm McLaren and Vivienne Westwood's SEX boutique. He eventually formed a new band, named The Ants in early 1977 with a line-up of
Lester Square : ''For the London landmark, see Leicester Square.'' Lester Square (born Thomas Hardy, 17 April 1954, Canada) is the former lead guitarist for The Monochrome Set. He joined the first incarnation of Adam and the Ants as lead guitarist , (and its e ...
(guitar), Andy Warren (bass guitar) and Paul Flannagan (drums). The band play their first show at the Roxy Club in April 1977 together with
Siouxsie and the Banshees Siouxsie and the Banshees were a British rock band formed in London in 1976 by vocalist Siouxsie Sioux and bass guitarist Steven Severin. They have been widely influential, both over their contemporaries and with later acts. ''Q'' magazine ...
. A month later Square left to finish his course at an art school, and he later formed the Monochrome Set. He was replaced by Mark Ryan and this line-up began to play regular gigs and support slots around London. In early June, Flannagan was replaced with Dave 'Barbe' Barbarossa and this line-up recorded the songs "Plastic Surgery" and "Beat My Guest" at Chappell Studios in London. Adam Ant also featured in the film '' Jubilee'' as the character Kid while the band featured with the stand-in drummer Kenny Morris from the Banshees. During a performance of "Plastic Surgery" Ant dislocated his knee. Towards the end of the year, difficulties with management resulted in Ryan to be fired and replaced by Johnny Bivouac, while the name of the band was extended to Adam and the Ants. Touring extensively around the UK, often with
Siouxsie and the Banshees Siouxsie and the Banshees were a British rock band formed in London in 1976 by vocalist Siouxsie Sioux and bass guitarist Steven Severin. They have been widely influential, both over their contemporaries and with later acts. ''Q'' magazine ...
, they proved to be unpopular with much of the British music press who disliked their fetishistic lyrics and imagery. In response, the group formed a strong – at times ideological – rapport with amateur punk fanzines such as ''Ripped And Torn'' which gave them more favourable coverage.''Ripped And Torn 1976-1979'', Tony Drayton, Exctatic Peace Library 2018, ISBN 978-1-76780-151-2, Chapter 14 "Issue 14" contains Adam Ant Interview The band built up a strong cult following, but struggled to find mainstream success or even a record deal (apart from the two ''Jubilee'' soundtrack songs) until 1978, when they were signed to
Decca Decca may refer to: Music * Decca Records or Decca Music Group, a record label * Decca Gold, a classical music record label owned by Universal Music Group * Decca Broadway, a musical theater record label * Decca Studios, a recording facility in We ...
.


Early recordings

The band made their radio debut on the
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 ...
show with a session recorded on 23 January 1978, which included the songs "Deutscher Girls, "It Doesn't Matter", "Puerto Rican" and "Lou". The latter featured the group's manager
Jordan Jordan ( ar, الأردن; tr. ' ), officially the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan,; tr. ' is a country in Western Asia. It is situated at the crossroads of Asia, Africa, and Europe, within the Levant region, on the East Bank of the Jordan Rive ...
on lead vocals, as she did regularly during live performances until 14 May 1978 when she stepped away from the band after a concert at the Roundhouse. The day after the Peel Session, they re-recorded "Deutscher Girls" and overdubbed a new guitar break on the Chapels Studio version of "Plastic Surgery" at AIR studios for the ''Jubilee'' soundtrack album that was released later that year. The un-dubbed version can be heard in the film itself. On 15 May 1978, the afternoon after Jordan's final gig with the Ants, Bivouac also left the band and was replaced soon after by Matthew Ashman. This line-up continued to demo new material and on 10 July 1978 recorded a second Peel session that featured the songs "Zerox", "Physical", "Friends" and "Cleopatra". At the end of the month, the band signed for two singles with
Decca Decca may refer to: Music * Decca Records or Decca Music Group, a record label * Decca Gold, a classical music record label owned by Universal Music Group * Decca Broadway, a musical theater record label * Decca Studios, a recording facility in We ...
Records. The line up of Adam Ant (vocals and guitar), Matthew Ashman (guitar), Andy Warren (bass guitar) and Dave Barbe (drums) embarked on the first tour of continental Europe. Upon their return in November 1978, the band did a session of "Zerox" and "Kick" at RAK Studios in London produced by Stephen 'Snips' Parsons. In October 1978 Decca released their first single " Young Parisians" to little success and leaving the company to abandon plans for a second release. In January 1979, the band did embark on the Young Parians tour across Great Britain throughout January and February. Additional material was recorded at Decca's own studio in
West Hampstead West Hampstead is an area in the London Borough of Camden in north-west London. Mainly defined by the railway stations of the same name, it is situated between Childs Hill to the north, Frognal and Hampstead to the north-east, Swiss Cottage ...
The band recorded a third Peel Session on 26 March 1979 that included "Ligotage", "Tabletalk", "Animals & Men" and "Never Trust A Man (With Egg On His Face)". After the Decca single, the band signed with the independent label
Do It Records Do It Records was a British independent record label based in London, England. It was an early label of Adam and the Ants, releasing their debut album ''Dirk Wears White Sox'' in November 1979 (which in January 1980 was the first ever number on ...
and re-recorded the second single "Zerox" backed with "Whip In My Valise" at the Roundhouse Studios. Released in July 1979, the band did a 17-date Zerox tour around Britain, in support, culminating a sell-out show at the London Lyceum on 5 August. Al Spicer described this first incarnation of the band as 'a fairly standard black-leather, sour-puss punk image, with songs that had a habit of building slowly towards a full-volume 'sturm-und-drang' climax'. At the end of August, the band started recording their debut album at the Sound Development Studios in London. Written and produced by Adam Ant, the sessions were completed within weeks, as the band had rehearsed most of the material on stage. After two sell-out shows at the Electric Ballroom, Ant sacked Ashman and Warren, the latter of whom joined The Monochrome Set in early October. He was replaced by Lee Gorman and Ashman soon returned while the album was slated for a November release. The album, '' Dirk Wears White Sox'' (1979, Do It Records) reached the top of the UK Independent Albums Chart, launched in early January 1980. Ant decided to change managers and asked Malcolm McLaren to take over for a flat fee, while they played a sell-out New Years Day gig at the Electric Ballroom. At the end of January 1980, McLaren convinced guitarist Matthew Ashman, bassist Leigh Gorman and drummer Dave Barbe to leave Adam and the Ants and form
Bow Wow Wow Bow Wow Wow are an English new wave band, created by manager Malcolm McLaren in 1980. McLaren recruited members of Adam and the Ants to form the band behind 13-year-old Annabella Lwin on vocals. They released their debut EP ''Your Cassette Pe ...
, fronted by Annabella Lwin.


Breakthrough

In the following months, a new version of Adam and the Ants was formed with
Marco Pirroni Marco Francesco Andrea Pirroni (born 27 April 1959, London, England) frequently credited simply as Marco, is a British guitarist, songwriter and record producer. He has worked with Adam Ant, Sinéad O'Connor, Siouxsie and the Banshees and many ...
(guitar), Kevin Mooney (bass guitar), and two drummers, Terry Lee Miall and Chris 'Merrick' Hughes. Pirroni became an influential member of the group, co-writing regularly with Adam Ant throughout much of his career. Falcon Stuart was enlisted to manage the new band after McLaren had dropped Ant. It signalled a style change by adapting Burundi-style African drumming and an image that mixed Native American make-up with pirate style colourful costumes. While reforming the band, Ant and Pirroni re-recorded the ''Dirk Wears White Sox'' track "Cartrouble Pt.2" as a contract-fulfilling single for Do It, together with future
Culture Club Culture Club are an English pop band formed in London in 1981. The band comprises Boy George (lead vocals), Roy Hay (guitar and keyboards), Mikey Craig (bass guitar) and formerly included Jon Moss (drums and percussion). Emerging in the New ...
drummer
Jon Moss Jonathan Aubrey Moss (born 11 September 1957) is an English drummer, best known as a member of the 1980s new wave group Culture Club. He has also played with other bands, including London, the Nips, the Damned and Adam and the Ants. Early ...
. The label hired Hughes to produce the duo at the
Rockfield Studios Rockfield Studios is a residential recording studio located in the Wye Valley just outside the village of Rockfield, Monmouthshire, Wales. It was originally founded in 1963 by brothers Kingsley and Charles Ward. Facilities Rockfield is a two- ...
in Wales, after which they asked him to join. The label released the single under the shorter title " Cartrouble" in March 1980, with Moss credited as "Terry 1+2". Ant and Pirroni signed a publishing deal with EMI and worked with Hughes and the rest of the band on new material at the Matrix Studios in London. Stuart took these to prospective record companies while the band embarked on a 14-day Ant-Invasion tour of the UK, culminating in a show at the Empire Ballroom. In July 1980, the band signed a deal with CBS Records and released the " Kings of the Wild Frontier" single, which initially reached No. 48 in the UK Singles Chart. Hughes continued to produce the band and they completed the recording at Rockfield by the end of August. A second single, " Dog Eat Dog" appeared in October and fared better by reaching the top 10 and resulted in their first appearance on ''
Top of the Pops ''Top of the Pops'' (''TOTP'') is a British Record chart, music chart television programme, made by the BBC and originally broadcast weekly between 1January 1964 and 30 July 2006. The programme was the world's longest-running weekly music show ...
''. In November 1980 the '' Kings of the Wild Frontier'' album was released and became a hit in the United Kingdom. It put the band at the forefront of the
New Romantic The New Romantic movement was an underground subculture movement that originated in the United Kingdom in the late 1970s. The movement emerged from the nightclub scene in London and Birmingham at venues such as Billy's and The Blitz. The New ...
movement as they did a 32-day tour around the UK. The album reached No. 1 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 ...
on 24 January 1981. A third single, "
Antmusic "Antmusic" is a song by English rock band Adam and the Ants, released as the third single in the UK from the album ''Kings of the Wild Frontier''. "Antmusic" (often stylised as 'Antmusic') peaked at No. 2 in the UK in January 1981, being held ...
" was released later in November and reached No. 2 in January 1981 and No. 1 in Australia for five weeks. Decca and Do It Records both re-released the band's previous output meaning that "Young Parisians" reached No. 9 in December 1980 (giving the Ants a posthumous UK Top 10 hit single) while ''Dirk Wears White Sox'' made it to No. 16 in the UK Albums Chart in February 1981. "Cartrouble" and "Zerox" also charted that month, making it to No. 33 and No. 45, respectively, in the UK Singles Chart. In February 1981, the band played the Royal Variety Show where an onstage incident with bassist Kevin Mooney occurred. He was subsequently sacked and replaced with Gary Tibbs. CBS re-released the "Kings of the Wild Frontier" single and it reached No. 2 in March.


Major success

While the second album and re-released singles brought growing chart success, Hughes together with Ant, Miall and Pirroni recorded the single "
Stand and Deliver ''Stand and Deliver'' is a 1988 American drama film directed by Ramón Menéndez, written by Menéndez and Tom Musca, based on the true story of a high school mathematics teacher, Jaime Escalante. For portraying Escalante, Edward James Olmos ...
" to bridge the gap between albums. The band, now with Tibbs on board, filmed a video for the song at Hatfield House that featured the dandy highwayman storyline.In support, the band did a six date theatre tour around Great Britain in March and ventured over to the US for a club tour in April. The single became the first No. 1 record for the band in the UK for 5 weeks in May 1981. The band spent much of the summer touring around continental Europe before going into the AIR Studios in London to complete the third album. The first single and title track " Prince Charming", also reached the top of the UK Singles Chart for four weeks in September 1981. In the same month the band embarked on the Prince Charming Revue tour that saw them travel to Austria and Japan. In November 1981, Adam and the Ants released the parent album '' Prince Charming'' which spent three weeks at number 2. A third single from the album, "
Ant Rap "Ant Rap" is a song by the British new wave band Adam and the Ants. Written by Adam Ant and Marco Pirroni, the song was remixed from the version on the group's 1981 album ''Prince Charming''. It entered the UK Singles Chart in December 1981 at ...
" reached No. 3 in January 1982. The band was one of the most successful single acts in the UK in 1981. All three singles from the album as well as the previous single " Kings of the Wild Frontier" is listed on the official top 50 best-selling singles of 1981, "Stand and Deliver" and "Prince Charming" as the third and fourth best-selling single respectively. By the end of January 1982 the band had completed their touring obligations. There was a further round of reissues of early material in the first half of 1982. The two ''Jubilee'' soundtrack songs were reissued by Polydor in February as a 7-inch single with "Deutscher Girls" as the A-side, reaching No. 13 on the UK Singles Chart and giving the original Ants band a second posthumous Top 15 hit. Do It! records released the ''Antmusic EP'', a 12" EP of three unused tracks from the ''Dirk'' sessions plus a remix of "Cartrouble (Parts 1 & 2)"), that reached No. 46. In early 1982, the band received a BRIT Award for Best Album (''Kings of the Wild Frontier'') and a
Grammy Award The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pr ...
nomination for Best New Artist. Ant and Pirroni also received the Songwriter of the Year Award for "Stand and Deliver" at the 27th Ivor Novello Awards in April 1982.


Break-up and aftermath

In early 1982, the band received a BRIT Award for Best Album (''Kings of the Wild Frontier'') and a
Grammy Award The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pr ...
nomination for Best New Artist. In March 1982 Adam Ant disbanded the group. Newspaper articles at the time offered various explanations for the motivations behind the split. Initially Adam was quoted as saying that the split was amicable, but later he was to say that "the interest just wasn't there any more. It might have been Adam and the Ants on the billboards but not on stage". In addition, it was said that Pirroni quit performing live as he was tired of touring. Ant launched a solo career a few months after the split, retaining Marco Pirroni as co-writer. They enjoyed success with a third UK No. 1 hit single " Goody Two Shoes" and further albums during the 1980s. Hughes continued to work as a record producer. To date, Ant has released six solo studio albums. Songs by both versions of the Ants have remained staples of his solo live concerts and tours up to the present day. His partnership with Pirroni continued until the pair fell out in March 2010. During the late 2000s and early 2010s, Pirroni was a member of The Wolfmen with Ant's 1982-1985 bassist Chris Constantinou; together they released two albums. Hughes and Tibbs formed the short-lived duo Merrick and Tibbs, which released the single "Call of the Wild" in 1983. It peaked at number 95 in the UK Singles Chart in February 1983. Mooney later formed Wide Boy Awake with Jordan, and Max with Ashman.''Defying Gravity - Jordan's story'' - Pamela Rooke with Cathi Undsworth, Omnibus Press, 2019 Barbe, Ashman and Gorman's post Ants band Bow Wow Wow eventually scored two UK Top 10 hits. The trio later formed Chiefs of Relief and released an album on Sire Records by which point only Ashman remained. The Monochrome Set, featuring Warren and Square, have released fourteen albums to date. Bivouac achieved TV comedy success as Strings in a BBC police sitcom, '' Operation Good Guys''.


Re-releases

In 1990, a ten track selection of the early radio sessions was released as the ''Peel Sessions''. All three appeared in integral format on ''The Complete Radio 1 Sessions'' in 2001 with a later session by Ant added. ''Antbox'', a retrospective box set spanning Ant's career from the late 1970s through the 1990s, was released in 2000. The box set included 66 tracks on three CDs, and quickly sold the initial 10,000 units. In 2003, the Antbox set was re-released in a different form (with the same tracks) and sold once again with success. 2004 saw the digitally remastered re-release of the albums ''Dirk Wears White Sox'', ''Kings of the Wild Frontier'', and ''Prince Charming'', with bonus material in the form of previously unreleased demo songs. These were overseen by Marco Pirroni, and ''Kings of the Wild Frontier'' and ''Prince Charming'' were remastered by Chris Hughes. In 2014, Ant, Barbe and Gorman, the surviving three-quarters of the December 1979 - January 1980 lineup, reunited to perform, along with selected members of Ant's current band, the ''Dirk Wears White Sox'' album in its entirety and in sequence at the
Hammersmith Apollo The Hammersmith Apollo, currently called the Eventim Apollo for sponsorship reasons, and formerly known as the Hammersmith Odeon, is a live entertainment performance venue, originally built as a cinema called the Gaumont Palace. Located in Ha ...
, (preceded by five warm-up shows) to promote the album's reissue on Ant's own Blueblack Hussar label. Ant and his regular band subsequently performed the album for four nights at the Islington Assembly Hall in November 2014 and on a full UK tour in Spring 2015. The Dirk performance section (plus selected other portions) of the Hammersmith concert was released on DVD in 2015 as ''Dirk Live At The Apollo''. In 2016, this exercise was repeated with the '' Kings of the Wild Frontier'' album performed live on tour in the UK and US, to promote a deluxe gold vinyl reissue by
Sony Records Sony Records was a record label founded by R&B duo Ike & Tina Turner in 1963. It was not affiliated with Sony Group Corporation. Ike Turner produced singles by members of the Kings of Rhythm and the Ikettes on Sony Records. Records on the ...
which charted in the UK Albums Chart at number 69.


Legacy

The visual aspect formed a large part of the impact that band had, especially at the height of their success between 1980 and early 1982. As Al Spicer noted, "Adam's career is better defined by his changing image than his music". Together with their music videos and flamboyant stage presence, Adam and the Ants had significant mainstream success that was dubbed 'Antmania' in the British press. Simon Reynolds summed it up as combination of 'heroic imagery, sexmusic and tribalism' while highlighting the early influence of Malcom McLaren, and Paul Evans in the
Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first known for its ...
album guide described the band as 'leering, self-mythologising (..) loopy faux-teen fun' and Ant as a 'the campiest figurehead of the New Romantic moment'. Commentators also noted the links between 'Antmania' and the glam-rock of Marc Bolan and
David Bowie David Robert Jones (8 January 194710 January 2016), known professionally as David Bowie ( ), was an English singer-songwriter and actor. A leading figure in the music industry, he is regarded as one of the most influential musicians of the ...
in the 1970s. The band seized the opportunities provided by music videos on the new
MTV MTV (Originally an initialism of Music Television) is an American cable channel that launched on August 1, 1981. Based in New York City, it serves as the flagship property of the MTV Entertainment Group, part of Paramount Media Networks, a di ...
channel to develop a theatrical, charismatic and heroic persona. With romantic costumes and heavy make-up, the band was often seen as an early example of the New Romantic movement (though Adam Ant himself has always denied any connection with that movement). Lavish videos were produced for "Stand and Deliver", "Prince Charming", and "Ant Rap". All Adam and the Ants music videos were produced and storyboarded by Adam Ant. These videos helped to establish the band in the United States when MTV began airing them in 1981. The "Prince Charming" video features a guest appearance by British film actress
Diana Dors Diana Dors (born Diana Mary Fluck; 23 October 19314 May 1984) was an English actress and singer. Dors came to public notice as a blonde bombshell, much in the style of Americans Marilyn Monroe, Jayne Mansfield and Mamie Van Doren. Dors was p ...
as the fairy Godmother, and "Ant Rap" features Scottish pop singer Lulu as the "damsel in distress". In early 1995, Ant and Pirroni joined Nine Inch Nails on stage to perform "Physical (You're So)", "Red Scab" and "Beat My Guest", three songs from Adam and the Ants' early catalogue. Nine Inch Nails also covered "Physical (You're So)" on their 1992 EP '' Broken''. On 8 May 2006,
Hyper Hyper may refer to: Arts and entertainment * ''Hyper'' (2016 film), 2016 Indian Telugu film * ''Hyper'' (2018 film), 2018 Indian Kannada film * ''Hyper'' (magazine), an Australian video game magazine *Hyper (TV channel), a Filipino sports channe ...
released their debut album, '' We Control'', that featured a cover of "Antmusic", with Leeroy Thornhill of
the Prodigy The Prodigy are an English electronic dance music band formed in Braintree, Essex, in 1990 by producer, keyboard player and songwriter Liam Howlett. The original line-up also featured dancer and singer Keith Flint and dancer and occasional ...
on lead vocals. In April 2009,
No Doubt No Doubt is an American rock band from Anaheim, California, formed in 1986. For most of their career, the band has consisted of vocalist Gwen Stefani, guitarist Tom Dumont, bassist Tony Kanal, and drummer Adrian Young. Since the mid-1990s, ...
performed a cover of "Stand and Deliver" on an episode of the American TV show '' Gossip Girl'', and performed it at the Bamboozle music festival,
New Jersey New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delawa ...
, in May 2009. In 2011, CBBC programme Horrible Histories featured the song "Dick Turpin" that was a pastiche on Adam and the Ants "Stand and Deliver". An affectionate short film, featuring Nick Moran as Adam and Mackenzie Crook as Gary Tibbs, called ''Ant Muzak'', featuring Adam and the Ants visiting a supermarket late at night at the same time as
Sigue Sigue Sputnik Sigue Sigue Sputnik were a British new wave band formed in 1982 by former Generation X bassist Tony James. The band have had three UK top-40 hit singles, including " Love Missile F1-11" and " 21st Century Boy". The band's music, image and in ...
, was made in 2002. Gary Tibbs appeared in the film as Dirk, the supermarket manager, and wore white socks. The film is available on DVD with two similar parodies.


Members

*
Adam Ant Stuart Leslie Goddard, better known as Adam Ant (born 3 November 1954), is an English singer, musician, and actor. He gained popularity as the lead singer of new wave group Adam and the Ants and later as a solo artist, scoring 10 UK top ten ...
– vocals, guitar, bass, piano, harmonica (1977–1982) * Andy Warren – bass (1977–1979) *Paul Flannagan – drums (1977) *
Lester Square : ''For the London landmark, see Leicester Square.'' Lester Square (born Thomas Hardy, 17 April 1954, Canada) is the former lead guitarist for The Monochrome Set. He joined the first incarnation of Adam and the Ants as lead guitarist , (and its e ...
– guitar (1977) * Mark Ryan – guitar (1977) (died 2011) * Dave Barbarossa – drums (1977–1980) *
Jordan Jordan ( ar, الأردن; tr. ' ), officially the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan,; tr. ' is a country in Western Asia. It is situated at the crossroads of Asia, Africa, and Europe, within the Levant region, on the East Bank of the Jordan Rive ...
- vocals (1977–1978) (died 2022) *Johnny Bivouac – guitar (1977–1978) * Matthew Ashman – guitar (1978–1979, 1979–1980) piano (1979) (died 1995) * Leigh Gorman – bass (1979–1980) * Chris 'Merrick' Hughes – drums, acoustic guitar, piano (1980–1982) *Terry Lee Miall – drums (1980–1982) *
Marco Pirroni Marco Francesco Andrea Pirroni (born 27 April 1959, London, England) frequently credited simply as Marco, is a British guitarist, songwriter and record producer. He has worked with Adam Ant, Sinéad O'Connor, Siouxsie and the Banshees and many ...
– guitar, piano, bass (1980–1982) * Kevin Mooney – bass (1980–1981) * Gary Tibbs – bass (1981–1982)


Lineups


Timeline


Discography

*'' Dirk Wears White Sox'' (1979) *'' Kings of the Wild Frontier'' (1980) *'' Prince Charming'' (1981)


Awards


References


External links


The Official Adam Ant website

Miceinfreefall.com




by James Maw 1981 (PDF) {{DEFAULTSORT:Adam and the Ants English punk rock groups English new wave musical groups English post-punk music groups English alternative rock groups Musical groups from London Brit Award winners Musical groups established in 1977 Musical groups disestablished in 1982 CBS Records artists Second British Invasion artists