Proto-punk, punk and new wave

Pub rock

Pub rock was a short-lived trend that left a lasting influence on the British music scene, especially in punk rock. It was a back-to-basics movement that reacted against the glittery glam rock of David Bowie and Gary Glitter, and peaked in the mid 1970s. Pub rock developed in large north London pubs. It is said to have begun in May 1971 with Eggs over Easy, an American band, playing in the Tally Ho! in Kentish Town. A group of musicians who had been playing in blues and R&B bands during the 1960s and early 70s soon formed influential bands likeBrinsley Schwarz, Ducks Deluxe and Bees Make Honey. Brinsley Schwarz was probably the most influential group, achieving some mainstream success both in the UK and in the States. The second wave of pub rock included Kilburn and the High Roads, Ace and Chilli Willi and the Red Hot Peppers; these were followed by the third and final wave of pub rock, including Dr. Feelgood, The Winkies and Sniff 'n' the Tears. Several pub rock musicians joined the new wave acts such as Graham Parker's backing band, The Rumour, Elvis Costello & the Attractions and even The Clash.

Punk rock

The Clash performing in 1980.

Punk rock developed between 1974 and 1976, originally in the United States, where it was rooted ingarage rock, and other forms of what is now known as protopunk music. The first punk band is usually thought to be the Ramones from 1976. This was taken up in Britain by bands also influenced by the pub rock scene, like the Sex Pistols and The Clash, particularly in London, who became the vanguard of a new musical and cultural movement, blending simple aggressive sounds and lyrics withclothing styles and a variety of anti-authoritarian ideologies. Punk rock bands eschewed the perceived excesses of mainstream 1970s rock, creating fast, hard-edged music, typically with short songs, stripped-down instrumentation, and often political, anti-establishment lyrics. Punk embraced a DIY (do it yourself) ethic, with many bands self-producing their recordings and distributing them through informal channels. 1977 saw punk rock spreading around the world, and it became a major international cultural phenomenon. However, by 1978, the initial impulse had subsided and punk had morphed into the wider and more diverse new wave and post punk movements.

New wave

As the initial punk impulse began to subside, with the major punk bands either disbanding or taking on new influences, the term new wave began to be used to describe particularly British bands that emerged in the later 1970s with mainstream appeal. These included pop bands like XTC, Squeeze and Nick Lowe, the electronic rock of Gary Numan as well as songwriters like Elvis Costello, rock & roll influenced bands like the Pretenders, the reggae influenced music of bands like The Police, as well as bands of the ska revival like The Specials andMadness. By the end of the decade many of these bands, most obviously the Police, were beginning to make an impact in American and world markets.

Post punk

Beside the development of mainstream new wave, there were also less commercial, darker and sub-culture acts, often classified as post punk. Like new wave they incorporated a range of influences, including electronic music, Jamaican dub music (specifically in bass guitar), and American funk. Examples of post-punk outfits in Britain included The Smiths, Orange Juice, The Psychedelic Furs, The Fall, Siouxsie and the Banshees, The Lords of the New Church, Joy Division, Killing Joke, Echo & the Bunnymen, The Cure, Bauhaus, Magazine, Wire,The Jesus and Mary Chain, and Tubeway Army. Post punk would be a major element in the creation of the alternative rock and gothic rock genres.

Folk punk

The Levellers in Prague, 2006

Folk punk or rogue folk is a fusion of folk music and punk rock, or occasionally other genres, which was pioneered by the London-based Irish band The Pogues in the 1980s. It achieved some mainstream success in the 1980s and, particularly as the sub-genre of Celtic punk, has been widely adopted in areas of the Celtic diaspora in North America and Australia and by many bands in continental central and eastern Europe. Unlike earlier Celtic rock and electric folk groups, folk punk groups tend to include relatively little traditional music in their repertoire, but instead usually performed their own compositions, often following the form of punk rock, using additional folk instrumentation, including, mandolin, accordion, banjo and particularly violin. Other bands adopted some traditional forms of music, including sea shanties and eastern European gypsy music. Among the most successful performers were The Men They Couldn't Hang, New Model Army, Oysterband, The Levellers, and singer-songwriter Billy Bragg, who enjoyed a series of hits in the 1980s.