Some Favorite Female Voices From the Punk/New Wave Era
There have always been female rock artists, but up until the 1970's, it was rare to see a woman really rock out, much less wail on the guitar or let loose on the drums. For every Wanda Jackson or Willie Mae Thornton, there were a hundred Elvises, and it was rare to hear a woman's point of view on love and sex expressed through rock 'n roll. Women tended to be relegated to safe and sanitized pop vocal groups (even if they were "bad girls" like The Ronettes or The Shangri-Las), lushly orchestrated ballads, or folk music.
Rock 'n roll seemed like it would be a boys' club forever but, finally, in the post-disco era of the late 1970's, women started to make some inroads. The Runaways and Suzi Quatro proved that girls could rock hard, but it was punk that really let women be themselves, freeing them from the restraints of having to look pretty and mouth words from Harlequin romance novels.
That's not to say that female punks couldn't be beautiful and sexy, but many seemed to go for the intimidating or the outrageous, both in terms of image and subject matter. The sexuality expressed by these women could be downright demanding and confrontational, but after decades of "Under My Thumb" and "Run For Your Life", and women being seen as nothing but groupies and accessories to male rock 'n rollers, this was, to use a cliche word, empowering to see and hear. These chicks looked tough, they sounded tough, and they enjoyed making you sweat.
Of course, we all know Debbie Harry, Patti Smith, Chrissie Hynde, Siouxsie Sioux, Exene Cervenka, Kate Pierson and Cindy Wilson, Cyndi Lauper, and Madonna, but here are just a few of the maybe "lesser-known" female punk and new wave artists of the late 1970's and early 1980's.
Talking Heads bassist Tina Weymouth put together Tom Tom Club, a funky, hip-hoppy band that released its first album in 1981. For a lot of white kids, this (along with Blondie's "Rapture") was our first exposure to a new musical form called rap.
Wordy Rappinghood:
Vocalist Cynthia Sley and guitarist Pat Place were integral to the hard-edged sound of The Bush Tetras. I couldn't afford to buy very many records back in 1980, but I had to have this one.
Too Many Creeps:
The Slits were a bit avante garde for my tastes, but it was such a rare thing to see girls with guitars who seemed so utterly oblivious to "the male gaze", I have to give them a nod here. (Hey, I had a hat like that when I worked at Burger King!)
Typical Girls:
Here is one of those videos that makes you go, "Oh my god, did we really look like that?" Yes, we did. And remember, "Don't be stupid, don't be limp. No girl likes to love a wimp!"
The Mo-Dettes - White Mice:
The Waitresses were legendary in the Akron/Kent punk scene by the time I got to Kent State in 1980. This seems so tame now, but at the time it was pretty daring. It was refreshing to hear a woman dish it out like this. Sadly, Patty Donahue died of cancer in 1996.
I Know What Boys Like:
I love Vanessa Briscoe's voice. Her gravel-edged vocals complement perfectly the dark, jangly sound of Pylon.
Turn Up the Volume:
Second wave ska was notable for its "two-tone" bands, fusing punk and ska, and often featuring racially integrated line-ups. Pauline Black was the lead singer of The Selecter. She was awesome.
Missing Words:
Lene Lovich seemed like some strange, artsy German Bauhaus Sprockets chick, but she was actually from Detroit. The weirdness seemed so much more genuine back then.
Lucky Number:
Little Willie, thanks for reminding me about The Bodysnatchers, the all-female, two-tone ska band!
Do The Rocksteady:
The Cosmopolitans were more performance art than music, I think. This "song" is a parody of those magazine articles and pamphlets from the 1950s about being a good wife.
How To Keep Your Husband Happy
At a time when I was just "coming of age" myself, it was really inspiring to be able to listen to women like this. And like I said, these are just a few. Undoubtedly, you'll have your own favorites. Feel free to link me to some of them!
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Poly Styrene, X-Ray Spex:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Au8gDOqyaBk&feature=related
Germany's Mother of Punk, Nina Hagen:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5r5MBBRRn1Y&feature=PlayList&p=52A3DE1C6BA49A25&index=1
GaGa before there was one, Missing Person's Dale Bozzio:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IasCZL072fQ
and of course, the great Chrissie Hynde of the Pretenders.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O9_xfCebbx4
communism, cold war, Reagan, and anti-fashion.
It all seems so innocent now...
Here are some you may have missed: The Bodysnatchers. They were an all female 2 Tone band that can be seen in the video, "Dance Craze." The Bodysnatchers later became The Belle Stars.
Kleenex - an all female punk band from Europe that had one or two killer songs.
Rated
I'll respond more later, but Willie! D'oh! The Bodysnatchers! I may have to revise this post.
Don't forget Joan Jett
Even Marianne Faithful made a come back
Remember Lene Lovich and her Lucky Number?
The B-52's with their
bee-hive dos ...
Primary Colors Paint Love Blue
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xpR4wDx2XrA
Hmmm...who is that singing I wonder? (so sue me I like this song!)
And don't make me delete your comments! Primary who?
Rated.
And way back, pre-punk, pre-Elvis, Memphis Minnie. Man that woman could sing, and play her giant git box!
Tina Weymouth and David Byrne both went to my art school just before I was there, but one of my classmates who came back for another degree, knew them well and when they played in Providence in the mid '70s they stayed at his apartment, as I recall.
"Talking Heads bassist Tina Weymouth put together Tom Tom Club, a funky, hip-hoppy band that released its first album in 1981. For a lot of white kids, this (along with Blondie's "Rapture") was our first exposure to a new musical form called rap. "
I don't know about rap, but by 1984, it seemed like punk had fallen to the wayside. Apart from the song "Eighties" by Killing Joke, even Chrissie Hynde had gone mainstream with the Pretenders' Learning to Crawl album. I remember seeing young people in my age group back then with t-shirts proclaiming, "Punk's Not Dead."
Punk bounced back, of course. Several years ago, in the '00s, I remember telling Hilton, a friend at work, "I'm surprised punk is still around."
Hilton responded: "I'm surprised rap is still around!"
I've seen the Pretenders seven times thus far. Regarding Chrissie Hynde: She's originally from Akron, Ohio (born 1951), and that's where she recently opened her new vegetarian restaurant: Vege-Terranean. Chrissie Hynde, lead singer/guitarist for the Pretenders, has been vegetarian since she was 17. In her youth, she was wild and rebellious. In one of her first songs with the Pretenders, "Precious" (1979), she tells a man to "Fuck off!" In another song, "Tattooed Love Boys," she says, "I shot my mouth off, and you showed me what that hole was for."
Motherhood changed her. In her biggest hit to date, "Middle of the Road" (1984), she sings about being a rock star harassed by the tabloid press:
"I can't get from the cab to the curb
Without some little jerk on my back
"Don't harass me, can't you tell
I'm going home, I'm tired as hell
"I'm not the kind I used to be
I've got a kid---I'm thirty-three, baby"
In 1984, Chrissie Hynde was praising Bhagavad-gita as the book with all the answers to life's questions, and said she thought it was a good idea to spend time in a Krishna temple, learning how to lead a good, clean life. Her song "Show Me" from around that time may have been directed at her newborn first daughter:
"Welcome to the human race
with its wars, disease and brutality
"You say you've found yourself a
hopeless case
"One who's seeking perfection on earth
some kind of rebirth..."
I've seen the Pretenders in concert seven times. The first time was with my brother at UC Berkeley's Greek Theater in September 1984. The Simple Minds were the opening act. (Chrissie Hynde left Ray Davies, the father of her first child, to marry Jim Kerr of the Simple Minds.)
The second time was in 1987 with my friend Greg in San Diego. Chrissie Hynde praised San Diego, but said, "Unfortunately, you've still got your Wendy's and McDonald's--but you can always burn them!"
The Pretenders' song "Tradition of Love" from around that time has Chrissie Hynde singing to Krishna (God) as her Lover:
"Oh, you're nice to touch
Lovely to look at
In the tradition of love"
and concludes with a prayer to Lord Chaitanya Mahaprabhu (1486-1534), the most recent incarnation of God:
"Sri Gauranga
Jai Gauranga
Gaur Gauranga Nam"
In a Vegetarian Times interview in 1987, Chrissie Hynde said, "The reason I associate with Krishna devotees is because they are a religious sect that is truly nonviolent." Around that time, Chrissie Hynde and Peter Cox (author of the UK bestseller, Why You Don't Need Meat) founded Reprieve! -- a UK organization dedicated to promoting vegetarianism.
The third time I saw the Pretenders was in 1995 at Neil Young's annual Bridge School Benefit concert, here in the SF Bay Area. This was an acoustic performance. The fourth time I saw the Pretenders was in 1998, at the Shoreline Ampitheater in Mountain View, CA with the B-52s as the opening act.
Chrissie Hynde was arrested in an anti-leather demonstration in 2000. I've seen the Pretenders thrice in the '00s; the sixth concert being the annual Concert For Kids put on by local radio station KFOG 104.5 a few years ago.
I haven't met Chrissie Hynde, but I am a fan of her music and (especially) her animal activism!
Stymie
hoppingonthe fly, it really was a time for powerful women, and I'm glad I was around to see it.
ghost writer, I know what you mean. You could go to Goodwill, find an old mini skirt and a striped top, and you were good to go. It was so easy.
Willie, as you can see, I did add a Bodysnatchers vid. I don't know how I could have overlooked them. Middle-aged brain! I'm jealous that you actually have the Mo-Dettes 45 and album. Collectors items for sure. And I hadn't heard of Kleenex, but watched a vid on YouTube. They were great! So typical of that time period. (And Romeo Void was on the short list too. How much more "in your face" could you get than, "I might like you better if we slept together."?) Oh, and as far as being "cool" when it comes to music, I had some good friends with massive record collections who were always willing to share, and that helped!
Roger, thanks. Glad you enjoyed it.
Patty, yeah, Patti Smith is kind of the source for just about everything else. I got a copy of "Radio Ethiopia" even before I knew what punk really was, and it just blew me away.
Anne, you're welcome! A little bit of nostalgia is good for the soul, I think.
Scarlett, as I told you in my PM, I tried to get the Lene Lovich video on here. "Lucky Number" was always one of my faves.
Akopsa, thanks for stopping by!
verytallman, weren't they great? I can't get enough ska.
Scylla the rock, thanks so much.
Even in 1981, she was too young for me, but at 14, Annabella Lwin of Bow Wow Wow had some of the most incredible vocals at the time. They had a big pop hit with their cover of "I Want Candy" (it's pretty much the standard version now), but their (one!) album, "See Jungle!" still rocks.
Bow Wow Wow - "Run Wild (In the Country)":
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J4Gh-GH8Miw
Great post.
~
Greenheron (and Placebo), Laurie Anderson was/is one-of-a kind. I consider her more of a performance artist than a musician, but I guess the line is pretty fuzzy. I saw her on her "O Superman" tour. That was pretty wild.
wikigrrrl, ah yes, the 12-inch 45. Good times indeed.
designanator, I loved Alison Moyet (and Yaz) too!
Vasu, you certainly know your Pretenders! That's one band I never got to see live, and I do regret it. (I met my husband at a bar in Kent called JB's. Chrissie Hynde's brother, Terry, used to play there regularly in The Numbers Band. Who knows, maybe they're still playing!)
that had their LP reissued on DGC due to Kurt Kobain.
The Waitresses will forever be known for "Christmas Rapping" . Saw Pylon in 08' and was distressed to find out that Randy Brewer the guitarist died a few months later in a automobile accident.
Saw Pylon at the same place that I saw them 20 years prior (same location different club name) they still rocked.
Good reference points would be the movie "Urgh A music war" (that had the Go -Go's) and the book "Rip it Up and Start Again" by Simon Reynolds.
Stuff from my music gravy days.
Thanks!
I saw her band (The Plasmatics) New Years Eve 1980 at a club called Heat - a couple of blocks away from the Mud Club. She was incredible live - the albums give barely a glimpse of the energy she brought to the stage - no to mention attitude...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e-6FxSml2d4&feature=related
toddpony, you're welcome! (Your avatar looks like Uncle Joe from "Petticoat Junction"!)
Scarlett, Chrissie is a goddess. I'd say that she and Patti Smith are among the coolest of the cool.
Eric, thanks, glad you liked it. And you're so right about the Mo-Dettes video - all of these videos, really. They are what they are, and they capture the zeitgeist of the time perfectly.
Stymie, it would have been fun to see Tom Tom Club. I saw a lot of bands back then, but that's one I missed. (I can't imagine a more odd double bill, though!)
davis, I haven't heard of some on your list. I'll have to check them out. I considered Bow Wow Wow. Maybe I'll need to do a second installment!
And same to Meander. Annabella was pretty out there, wasn't she? Thanks for stopping by!
normalized, I'm glad this post got you to join OS. I hope you'll start blogging yourself. That's sad about Pylon's guitarist. Thanks for the movie and book recommendations.
DrFish, I just couldn't include WOW here. For one thing, I was reaching the video saturation point and, secondly, I've never been that big a fan of The Plasmatics. They seemed a little too "picture-book punk" for some reason, like they just took every gimmick and incorporated it into a "schtick". I could be completely wrong, of course. Perhaps I'll give them another listen.
Flora, Armatrading is another artist that I need to listen to more. Thanks for reading, and thanks for the link!
And Bow Wow Wow? C30 C60 C90 is a hot little tune about music piracy and the dreaded technology that was going to break the music industry in half - the *gasp* cassette tape! I'd love it Anabella updated the tune to include mp3's in her rap. Bow Wow Wow was fantastic, but read "Rip It Up And Start Again" to find out how disgustingly exploitive Malcolm McLaren was with Anabella - worse than anything he did to the Sex Pistols.
Thanks!
salvybatts, I had to go and do a little research on April Lawton. (Fanny rings a bell somewhere back there in my hazy memories.) Apparently, Lawton was regarded as just too good to be a mere woman, so there was a rumor that she was a transsexual. Pretty outrageous, huh?
Chiller, thanks for another book recommendation. I think I might have to agree to disagree about WOW and The Plasmatics. Let me think about it some more... (But, yes, point taken about Lilith Fair!)
Gwendolyn, be sure and check out the other links and recommendations from the comments section too!