The studio side of the LP includes the fabulous, Hey, Little Rich Boy which is just redolent of all things punk, it’s fabulous and has one of Punk’s finest guitar solos, all in 1 minute 43 seconds. The group’s debut album, Tell Us the Truth, featured one side of studio recordings another of live recordings, including their Polydor debut single. Their follow-up, Angels With Dirty Faces, made the Top 20 in May 1978 followed by If the Kids Are United, which made the Top 10 a few months later. Despite the band being embraced by the ‘Oi crowd’ Pursey despised the movement’s right-wing politics. Former Velvet Underground bassist, John Cale, who was also supposed to produce their major-label debut, Borstal Breakout, had produced the single but instead the band’s leader, Jimmy Pursey stepped in at the last minute. In the summer of 1977 Sham ’69 (their name derives from a piece of football graffiti), released their debut single, I Don’t Wanna, on an indie label and it prompted Polydor Records to sign the band.
They were prime movers in the Oi movement of punks and skinheads and while they may not have had the significant chart success of some of their rivals their music has staying power and is well worth seeking out for its catchy hooks and genuine enthusiasm for the cause. Sham 69 continues to tour in this new line up.Sham ’69 were one of the more influential bands to come out of the UK Punk scene. In 2006 Jimmy Pursey left Sham 69, leaving guitarist Dave Parsons to carry on with a new singer. The song was based on the Sham 69 hit, "Hurry Up Harry", and instead of the lyric being, "We're going down the pub", it was changed to, "We're going to win the cup!" The resulting single, "Hurry Up England" reached number 10 in the UK Top 40, becoming the band's first such hit for over 26 years. In 2006, Virgin Radio listeners voted overwhelmingly for Jimmy Pursey to record a song to support England in the FIFA World Cup. Blair / We know you care / So bring them home / Don't leave them there", referring to the troops remaining in Iraq after the the 2003 invasion. As a result of this, they were invited onto BBC TV's current affairs programme, Newsnight to sing a version of the song. The band gained further media attention when "If The Kids Are United" was played during UK Prime Minister Tony Blair's entrance at the 2005 Labour Party Conference. Pursey is a vegetarian, and appeared in the UK media condemning the use of one of his songs by what - he saw - as a multi-national animal and human abuser. "If The Kids Are United" was used in a McDonald's advertising campaign, long after the rights to their songs had been sold. Pursey resurrected Sham 69 in the 1990s with a different line-up, but without major success. Dave Treganna joined the pioneering 1980s glam-punk-Gothic band, The Lords of the New Church, with Stiv Bators of The Dead Boys and Brian James of The Damned.
Pursey moved in a heavy metal direction after working with the remaining members of the Sex Pistols for a short time, under the name Sham Pistols. Sham 69 broke up after their fourth album.
They then started to move away from punk rock into a sound heavily influenced by classic British hard rock bands such as Mott The Hoople, The Who and The Faces, evidenced on their third album, The Adventures of the Hersham Boys.
SHAM 69 ADVENDURES OF HERSHAM FULL
The latter came from their second LP and first full studio album, That's Life. Their major label debut was "Borstal Breakout" in January 1978, followed by UK singles chart success with "Angels With Dirty Faces" (reaching number 19 in May 1978), "If The Kids Are United" (number 9 in July 1978), and "Hurry Up Harry" (number 10 in October 1978). Sham 69 released their first single, "Ulster", on Step Forward Records in August 1977, and its success in the independent charts prompted Polydor to sign the band. Their concerts were notoriously plagued by violence, and the band ceased live performances after one of their gigs at Middlesex Polytechnic in 1978 was broken up by National Front skinheads fighting and rushing the stage. The band had a large skinhead and hooligan following, which helped set the tone for the Oi! movement. Sham 69 lacked the art school background of many rock bands of the time, and brought in football chants, drinking songs and a sort of inarticulate political populism.
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