The Gents (British band)

The Gents
Origin Doncaster, South Yorkshire
Genres Mod, pop
Years active 1980–1989, 2010-present
Labels Posh Records, Kosmik Records, Mega Records, Prism Records, Lambs to the Slaughter Records, Detour Records, Cherry Red Records
Members Martin Burton (vocals/bass guitar)
Steve Chambers (guitar)
Steve Kendell (keyboards)
Glyn Davies (drums)

The Gents are a mod revival band from Doncaster, South Yorkshire, active in the 1980s and reunited occasionally from 2010.

Career

The group began as a cover band, playing songs originally recorded by The Who, The Kinks, The Jam, The Lambrettas and Madness, along with original material and other contemporary covers. They attracted attention after winning a competition hosted by EMI, the prize of which was studio time at Abbey Road Studios. The result was their debut single, the double-a-sided "The Faker"/"Le Pink Pantser" in 1981. The single was not a commercial success and as the vinyl record was of a limited run copies have sold for up to £70.[1]

The band developed a live following in the UK, playing up to five times a week in working men's clubs in the North and North-East of England. They were particularly appreciated at mod events, including the 100 Club on Oxford Street and also on the 1980s scooterist scene. They released a number of singles which appeared on independent charts in New Musical Express and Melody Maker,[2] but their biggest commercial success, a cover of The Easybeats'' "Friday On My Mind" was the only one to reach the top 100 in the UK singles chart.[3][4]

The Gents were active from 1980 to February 1989, having released nine 7" singles (three with accompanying 12" versions), two vinyl albums and one cassette only sampler album. They have also appeared on several multi-artist compilation albums over the years. In 1981 the band won a "Battle of the Bands" type competition called the EMI Tetley Supergroup competition, culminating in a final at the Compton Arms in Leeds and resulting in a prize of recording time at Abbey Road Studios in London and a one-single deal with EMI. IN the mid-1980s they became involved with the nationwide mod scene through Mark Johnson's The Phoenix Society of London and played at many mod events at this time, plus undertook a national tour known as the "New Direction National Tour", from May to June 1985 and named after their single release of that time. The Gents also played at the Mod-Aid all-day charity event at Walthamstow Town Hall on 15.12.85.

From 2010, Detour Records commenced a programme of reissuing the group's albums on the CD format as they had only ever been released on vinyl and cassette at the time of the band's recording career and this led to the band briefly reforming to play a selection of local concerts in South Yorkshire as a three-piece, without founding keyboard player Steve Kendell.[5]

Discography

7" Singles

12" singles

LPs

CDs

Compilations

Chart Placings

Year Single Chart positions
UK National[8] Indie Chart[2] NME Melody Maker Sounds
1981 "The Faker"/"Le Pink Pantser (double A-side)
1982 "Schooldays"
1982 "The Gent"
1983 "Revenge"
1985 "Shout" 103 33 27 16 19
1985 "New Direction" 106 32 14 8
1985 "Stay With Me" 108 9
1986 "Give It To Me"/"At the Dance Pts 1&2" (double A-side) 102 45 14
1986 "Friday On My Mind" 95

References

  1. Baldwin, Shane. "This way to ... the gents". Record Collector. Retrieved 12 January 2015.
  2. 1 2 Lazell, Barry (2000). Indie Hits: The Complete UK Independent Charts: The Complete UK Singles and Album Independent Charts, 1980–89. Cherry Red. ISBN 978-0951720691.
  3. "The Easybeats – Friday on My Mind". PopMatters. Retrieved 12 January 2015.
  4. "The Official Charts Company - The Gents". The Official Charts Company. 18 January 2015.
  5. "Get ready for an evening with The Gents of Mod". South Yorkshire Times. Retrieved 12 January 2015.
  6. "The Gents : Waiting to Be Seen". Detour Records. Retrieved 12 January 2015.
  7. "Millions Like Us : The Story of the Mod Revival 1977–1989". Cherry Red Records. Retrieved 13 January 2015.
  8. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on October 4, 2013. Retrieved September 21, 2013.

External links

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