The Boys are an English punk rock band formed in

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

in 1976. Members of the band had previously played in other groups, including

London SS London SS are a British rock group founded in March 1975 by drummer Geir Waade, bassist John Brown, guitarist Mick Jones, and guitarist Eunan Brady (formerly of the Hollywood Brats). They later became associated with the then new punk rock sc ...

and

Hollywood Brats The Hollywood Brats were a British glam rock and protopunk band in the early 1970s. They found little commercial success at the time, and split up in 1974, but are regarded as influential on the later punk rock scene. History The band was orig ...

. After recording four

studio A studio is a space set aside for creative work of any kind, including art, dance, music and theater. The word ''studio'' is derived from the , from , from ''studere'', meaning to study or zeal. Types Art The studio of any artist, esp ...

album An album is a collection of audio recordings (e.g., music) issued on a medium such as compact disc (CD), Phonograph record, vinyl (record), audio tape (like 8-track cartridge, 8-track or Cassette tape, cassette), or digital distribution, dig ...

s and eight

singles Singles are people not in a committed relationship. Singles may also refer to: Film and television * ''Singles'' (miniseries), a 1984 Australian television series * ''Singles'' (1992 film), written and directed by Cameron Crowe * ''Singles'' ...

, as well as recording Christmas themed music under the name The Yobs, they disbanded in the summer of 1982. The band reformed in 1999, and released a new album in 2014.

History

The Boys came together when singer/guitarist Matt Dangerfield left the punk band London SS in September 1975 to form a new band with ex-

keyboard player Casino Steel. Dangerfield’s art college friend, guitarist Honest John Plain, was recruited and in June 1976, two of Plain'’s co-workers at a T-shirt printing company, bassist Duncan "Kid" Reid and drummer Jack Black, completed the line-up. Steel (ex-Hollywood Brats) and Dangerfield played in the

together. The band's early recordings were made in a home recording studio which Dangerfield had set up in his rented

basement apartment A basement apartment or basement flat is an apartment located below street level, underneath another structure—usually an apartment building, but possibly a house or a business. Cities in North America are beginning to recognize these units as a ...

Maida Vale Maida Vale ( ) is an affluent residential district in North West London, England, north of Paddington, southwest of St John's Wood and south of Kilburn, on Edgware Road. It is part of the City of Westminster and is northwest of Charing C ...

. The band played their first concert at the Hope and Anchor

pub A pub (short for public house) is in several countries a drinking establishment licensed to serve alcoholic drinks for consumption on the premises. The term first appeared in England in the late 17th century, to differentiate private ho ...

Islington, London Islington ( ) is an inner-city area of north London, England, within the wider London Borough of Islington. It is a mainly residential district of Inner London, extending from Islington's #Islington High Street, High Street to Highbury Fields ...

on 15 October 1976. Among the crowd were Mick Jones,

Billy Idol William Michael Albert Broad (born 30 November 1955), known professionally as Billy Idol, is an English singer, songwriter, musician, and actor. Idol achieved fame in the 1970s on the London punk rock scene as the lead singer of Generation X ...

, Tony James and

Gene October Gene October is a British singer and songwriter who was a formative figure in London's punk rock movement in the late 1970s, fronting the band Chelsea (band), Chelsea. Music In 1976, October was involved in the creation of The Roxy (Covent Gar ...

. After a few concerts, The Boys signed to NEMS in January 1977, and at that time the only British punk band to have a record deal -

the Sex Pistols The Sex Pistols are an English punk rock band formed in London in 1975. Although their initial career lasted just two and a half years, they became culturally influential in popular music. The band initiated the punk movement in the United Ki ...

having been sacked by EMI on 6 January 1977 and the Damned having initially signed a one single deal with

Stiff Records Stiff Records is a British independent record label formed in London by Dave Robinson (music executive), Dave Robinson and Jake Riviera. Originally active from 1976 to 1986, the label was reactivated in 2007. Established at the outset of the p ...

for "

New Rose "New Rose" is the first single by British punk rock band the Damned. It was released on 22 October 1976 on Stiff Records, and in 1977 in the Netherlands, Germany and France. It is notable as the first ever single released by a British punk band ...

", which had been released in October 1976. Their first release was the single "I Don't Care", and in support of that release, they toured with

John Cale John Davies Cale (born 9 March 1942) is a Welsh musician, composer, and record producer who was a founding member of the American rock band the Velvet Underground. Over his six-decade career, Cale has worked in various styles across rock, dr ...

Velvet Underground The Velvet Underground were an American rock band formed in New York City in 1964. Its classic lineup consisted of singer and guitarist Lou Reed, Welsh multi-instrumentalist John Cale, guitarist Sterling Morrison, and percussionist Moe Tuc ...

. Their 16-track debut album, ''The Boys'', was recorded in early May 1977, but commercial release was delayed until 9 September 1977. The album reached No. 50 in the

UK Albums Chart The Official Albums Chart is the United Kingdom's industry-recognised national record chart for album, albums. Entries are ranked by sales and audio streaming. It was published for the first time on 22 July 1956 and is compiled every week by the O ...

. A second single, "First Time" — with a theme of losing

virginity Virginity is a social construct that denotes the state of a person who has never engaged in sexual intercourse. As it is not an objective term with an operational definition, social definitions of what constitutes virginity, or the lack thereo ...

— was released on 27 July 1977. As a result,

John Peel John Robert Parker Ravenscroft (30 August 1939 – 25 October 2004), better known as John Peel, was an English radio presenter and journalist. He was the longest-serving of the original disc jockeys on BBC Radio 1, broadcasting regularly from ...

invited The Boys to record a live session for his show, which became 'Single Of The Week' in '' Sounds''

magazine A magazine is a periodical literature, periodical publication, print or digital, produced on a regular schedule, that contains any of a variety of subject-oriented textual and visual content (media), content forms. Magazines are generally fin ...

. The single was steadily climbing the chart, until August 1977. The Boys released a second album on NEMS, titled ''Alternative Chartbusters'', and toured in support of it with the

Ramones The Ramones were an American punk rock band formed in the New York City neighborhood Forest Hills, Queens in 1974. Known for helping establish the punk movement in the United States and elsewhere, the Ramones are often recognized as one of th ...

. The Boys then signed with

Safari A safari (; originally ) is an overland journey to observe wildlife, wild animals, especially in East Africa. The so-called big five game, "Big Five" game animals of Africa – lion, African leopard, leopard, rhinoceros, African elephant, elep ...

in 1979, and two albums and five singles followed before the band broke up in the summer of 1981. Each Christmas, the group rearranged the "B" and the "Y" in their name and became The Yobs, releasing four singles and one album; 1980s ''Christmas Album''. In this incarnation, the band members used the pseudonyms Noddy Oldfield, Ebenezer Polak, Kid Vicious and H. J. Bedwetter. On 31 July and 1 August 1999, four out of five original members, along with Steve "Vom" Ritchie (replacing Jack Black on drums, who was busy with his own band) played concerts in Japan. In September 2000, this new lineup played at the 'Holidays in the Sun Festival' in

Bilbao Bilbao is a city in northern Spain, the largest city in the Provinces of Spain, province of Biscay and in the Basque Country (greater region), Basque Country as a whole. It is also the largest city proper in northern Spain. Bilbao is the List o ...

, Spain. Original drummer Jack Black made a guest appearance and filmed the concert. It was the first time in 18 years that the five original band members had been reunited on stage. In 2006, the band again performed concerts, including their first shows in London in 25 years. Following their reunion tour in London, one of the Boys' early songs, "Jimmy Brown", was released as a single in December 2008. In June 2014, The Boys released their first new studio album since 1981, ''Punk Rock Menopause'', on Wolverine Records. The album featured founding members Matt Dangerfield, Casino Steel and Honest John Plain, and included 13 new songs bearing the band’s trademark style. The Boys arrived in Shanghai, China, on 13 January 2015 to embark on a nine-date national tour to promote their new album ''Punk Rock Menopause'', but found that the tour had been cancelled by the Chinese Ministry of Culture due to "crowd control and security issues". The ban came in the aftermath of the Shanghai stampede at a New Year celebration in which 36 people were killed a few weeks earlier. The band set off on a cultural tour of China hosted by Shanghai-based punk band Round Eye. Along the way they played three underground gigs promoted by word of mouth, gave a number of interviews, were the subject of a one-hour documentary on top TV channel in Beijing, and recorded a live album, ''Undercover - Live in China'', which was released by Action Records on 1 July 2015. In September 2021, the band released an EP called ''I'm a Believer'' which also featured "She's the Reason" from ''Punk Rock Menopause'' and the unreleased track "(There Ain't No) Just One Beer". In May 2022, the band reached the top 30 of

Mike Read Michael David Kenneth Read (born 1 March 1947) is an English radio disc jockey, writer, journalist and television presenter. Read has been a broadcaster since 1976, best known for having been a DJ with BBC Radio 1, and television host for mus ...

's '' Heritage Chart'' on Talking Pictures TV with "Weekend", in a chart which also featured

the Vapors The Vapors are an English new wave and power pop band formed in Guildford, active from 1978 to 1982 before reforming in 2016. They are best known for their 1980 hit single, "Turning Japanese", which reached No. 3 on the UK Singles Chart and ...

and the Automatics. On 12 June 2025, Honest John Plain, died at the age of 73.

Legacy

The Boys achieved limited commercial success, but their music has influenced the development of other bands.

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany, the country of the Germans and German things **Germania (Roman era) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...

punk band

Die Toten Hosen Die Toten Hosen are a German punk rock band from Düsseldorf. The name is taken from the German slang idiom ''tote Hose'' (literally "dead trousers"), which means "nothing happening"; "boring". The band has had an important success through th ...

performed cover versions of their music regularly for more than a decade. They also recorded

cover version In popular music, a cover version, cover song, remake, revival, or simply cover is a new performance or recording by a musician other than the original performer or composer of the song. Originally, it referred to a version of a song release ...

s of some songs, namely "First Time" for their album ''

Auf dem Kreuzzug ins Glück - 125 Jahre die Toten Hosen Die Toten Hosen are a German punk rock band from Düsseldorf. The name is taken from the German slang idiom ''tote Hose'' (literally "dead trousers"), which means "nothing happening"; "boring". The band has had an important success through th ...

'' and "Brickfield Nights" for the

cover album An album is a collection of audio recordings (e.g., music) issued on a medium such as compact disc (CD), Phonograph record, vinyl (record), audio tape (like 8-track cartridge, 8-track or Cassette tape, cassette), or digital distribution, dig ...

Learning English, Lesson One ''Learning English, Lesson One'' or ''Learning English, Lesson 1'' (other punctuation variations possible) is a cover album by the German punk band Die Toten Hosen. The album includes covers of mostly British bands, which were big influences on t ...

''. On the rear of the cover of

The Jam The Jam were an English rock band formed in 1972 in Woking, Surrey, consisting of Paul Weller, Bruce Foxton and Rick Buckler. They released 18 consecutive top 40 singles in the United Kingdom, from their debut in 1977 to their break-up in ...

's 1978 album ''

All Mod Cons ''All Mod Cons'' is the third studio album by the British band the Jam, released in 1978 by Polydor Records. The title, a British idiom one might find in housing advertisements, is short for "all modern conveniences" and is a pun on the band' ...

'', the photograph of

Paul Weller John William Weller (born 25 May 1958), better known as Paul Weller, is an English singer-songwriter and musician. Weller achieved fame in the late 1970s as the guitarist and principal singer and songwriter of the rock band the Jam, alongside ...

Rickenbacker 330 The Rickenbacker 330 is part of Rickenbacker's 300 series of guitars. The 330 entered the Rickenbacker product line in 1958, though at the time the 300 series of guitars was known as the "Capri" series.

guitar carries a ''The Boys'' sticker. In the mid 1990s, Los Angeles based

power pop Power pop (also typeset as powerpop) is a subgenre of rock music and form of pop rock based on the early music of bands such as the Who, the Beatles, the Beach Boys, and the Byrds. It typically incorporates melodic hooks, vocal harmonies, ...

band, Amanda Jones, covered the song, "First Time ". Later that decade, Japanese band

Thee Michelle Gun Elephant Thee Michelle Gun Elephant (often abbreviated to TMGE) was a Japanese garage rock band formed in 1991. History The band was formed in 1991,Strong, Martin C. (2003) ''The Great Indie Discography'', Canongate, , p. 1025-6 while Chiba, Ueno, and Kuh ...

had a hit with a Boys cover. This prompted the re-release of several Boys albums, and more than 30,000 albums were sold in Japan alone. A Boys tribute album was also released featuring 13 bands from around the world. The Boys also influenced the cult

band The Exploding Hearts, who performed and recorded in the early 2000s.

Band members

Current

*Matt Dangerfield - guitar, vocals (1976–1981 & 1999–present) *Casino Steel - organ, piano, vocals (1976–1981 & 1999–present) *Kent Norberg - bass, vocals (2011–present) *Martin H-Son - drums (1999–present) *Chips Kiesbye - guitar, vocals (2017–present)

Former

*Kid Reid - bass, vocals (1976–1981 & 1999-2011) *Jack Black - drums (1976–1981) *Honest John Plain - guitar, vocals (1976–1981 & 1999–2025; his death)

Discography as The Boys

Chart placings shown are from 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 ...

Albums

*'' The Boys'' (1977) *'' Alternative Chartbusters'' (1978) *''To Hell with the Boys'' (1979) *''Boys Only'' (1981) *''

Punk Rock Menopause ''Punk Rock Menopause'' is the fifth studio album by UK band The Boys, released in 2014. On release, it was the first studio album An album is a collection of audio recordings (e.g., music) issued on a medium such as compact disc (CD), ...

'' (2014)

Live albums

*''Live at Roxy'' (1990) *''Powercut'' (

unplugged Unplugged may refer to: *Acoustic music, music not produced through electronic means * "Unplugged" (B.A.P song), 2014 * "Unplugged" (''Modern Family''), a 2010 episode of ''Modern Family'' Albums and EPs * ''Unplugged'' (5'nizza album), 2002 * '' ...

) (1996) *''Live in Concert (1980 & 1977)'' (with

the Vibrators The Vibrators were a British punk rock band whose greatest success was in 1977–1978 with the albums ''Pure Mania'' and ''V2 (album), V2''. Their first Epic Records single "Baby Baby (The Vibrators song), Baby Baby" is considered a punk cla ...

) (1993) *''Undercover - Live in China'' (2015)

Singles

*"I Don't Care" / "Soda Pressing" (1977) *"First Time" / "Watcha Gonna Do" / "Turning Grey" (1977) *"Brickfield Nights" / "Teacher's Pet" (1978) *"Kamikaze" / "Bad Days" (1979) *"Terminal Love" / "I Love Me" (1980) *" You Better Move On" / "Schoolgirls" (1980) *"Weekend" / "Cool" (1980) *"Let It Rain" / "Lucy" (1980) *"Svengerland" / "Only a Game" (2002) *"Jimmy Brown" / "Walk My Dog" (2008)

Compilation appearances

*''Odds and Sods'' (1990) *''The Boys/Alternative Chartbusters'' (1993) *''Best of the Boys'' (1995) *''Complete Punk Singles Collection'' (1996) *'' No Thanks!: The 70s Punk Rebellion'' (2003) *''Terminal Love'' (2021), Gutterwail

Discography as The Yobs

Albums

*''The Yobs' Christmas Album'' (1979) *''The Yobs' Xmas 11'' (1991) *''The Yobs' Leads 3 Amps Utd 0'' (1995) *''The Yobs' The Worst of the Yobs'' (2001)

Singles

*"Run Rudolph Run" / "The Worm Song" (1977) *"Silent Night" / "Stille Nacht" (1978) *"Rub-A-Dum-Dum" / "Another Christmas" (1979) *"Yobs on 45" / "The Ballad of the Warrington" (1981)

References

External links

Official siteStill unbeatable records
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Boys, The 1976 establishments in England English power pop groups English punk rock groups Punk rock groups from London Musical groups established in 1976