Adam Ant, born Stuart Leslie Goddard, formed Adam and the Ants with guitarist Lester Square, bassist Andy Warren, and drummer Paul Flanagan in London in 1977. During this time, the group's lineup was fairly unstable, with Square being replaced by Mark Gaumont. The band released their debut, ‘Dirk Wears White Sox’, on the independent label Do It in 1979.

At the time of its release, Dirk Wears White Sox wasn't a critical or commercial success, and the band felt the need to rework their image. Ant hired Malcolm McLaren, the manager of the Sex Pistols, to help redefine their image. McLaren dressed the band in pirate outfits and suggested a more accessible and pop-oriented style of music. The band followed his advice, preparing material for a new album. However, McLaren persuaded all of the Ants to leave Adam, using them as the core members of Bow Wow Wow. Adam Ant immediately formed a new version of the Ants, adding guitarist Marco Pirroni, bassist Kevin Mooney, and drummers Terry Lee Miall and Merrick.

The new band's first album, 1980's ‘Kings of the Wild Frontier’, became an enormous hit in the UK, launching three Top Ten hit singles. ‘Prince Charming’, released the following year, retained the same formula, spawning two number one singles, ‘Stand and Deliver’ and ‘Prince Charming.'

After ‘Prince Charming’, Adam Ant ditched the Ants for a solo career, retaining Marco Pirroni as a songwriting collaborator and a supporting musician. Adam's first solo album, ‘Friend or Foe’, was released in 1982, and although his next album, 1983's Strip, had some highlights and hit singles, it marked the end of his reign as one of Britain's top pop stars.

Released in 1985, Vive le Rock had some fun moments but the record didn't earn any hit singles, so Adam Ant pursued a surprisingly successful career in acting. In 1990, Ant made a comeback with the catchy hit single ‘Room at the Top’ from the Manners & Physique record, but the album failed to produce another hit single. For the next five years, Ant concentrated on acting.

By the time Adam Ant returned to recording in 1995, echoes of his music could be heard in the spiky singles of Elastica, the neo-goth industrial rock of Nine Inch Nails, and the pseudo-glam of Suede. Instead of capitalizing on the new wave revival, Adam Ant's 1995 comeback Wonderful had little to do with the stylish, intensely rhythmic music he made in the early '80s. Instead, the album repositioned him as a more mature pop-rocker, with crafted songs that featured acoustic guitars as prominently as electrics.

For The Record

Born Stuart Leslie Goddard, November 3, 1954, in London, England. Education: Attended Hornsey School of Art, London.

Formed group the B-sides with Andy Warren, 1976; formed Adam and the Ants, 1977; performed radio debut on The John Peel Session, BBC Radio 1, 1978; signed with Decca Records, 1978; recorded debut album, Dirk Wears White Sox, 1979; embarked on solo career and released first album, Friend or Foe, 1982; performed at Live Aid concert, 1985; appeared as the first celebrity V.J. on MTV; developed and appeared in Honda Scooter television ad ; appeared in films Nomads, Slam Dance, and Trust Me, and various TV shows, including The Equalizer and Tales From the Crypt.

Addresses: Home—Los Angeles, CA. 

Source: Charlie Katagiri

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Def Leppard formed in Sheffield in 1977, by Pete Willis, Rick Savage and Tony Kenning, with the original name Atomic Mass, acquiring their current name when Joe Elliott joined. In 1978 they picked up a guitarist named Steve Clark.

Their first gig was played at Westfield school July 18th, where they were paid out of a teacher’s pocket. In November drummer Tony Kenning was fired and replaced by Frank Noon, and the band recorded their first EP. In 1979 Def Leppard got their first major airplay, and were soon signed by Phonogram and Mercury.

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On March 14th 1980, their debut album ‘On Through The Night’ was released, shortly followed by ‘High N’ Dry’ in 1981. In 1982 Pete Willis left the band and is soon replaced by Phil Collen (formerly of Girl) In January 1983, following which their third album ‘Pyromania’ is released.

On December 31st 1984 Rick Allen's car is overturned, causing his arm to be severed. Rick gets a Simmons electric drum kit and with determination begins to practice drumming with only one arm. Def Leppard soon performed at the Mosters of Rock tour, Allen’s first performance since the accident. In August 1987 Def Leppard's fourth album, ‘Hysteria’, is released, and was a huge success, selling over 15 million copies. In 1989 the band plays a new single ‘Tear it Down’ at the MTV video music awards, the last show that Steve Clark played with the band. On January 8th 1991 in London Steve Clark died after a long battle with alcoholism, at the age of just 31.

In April 1992, Vivian Campbell joined the band and their 5th album ‘Adrenalize’ followed, with ‘Retro Active’ released the following year. In October 1995 their Greatest hits album, ‘Vault’ is released, followed by ‘Slang’ in 1996, and ‘Euphoria’ in 1000. And the next year, 1996, Slang, is released in May. On March 16th 1999 Euphoria is released.

On September 5, 2000, Def Leppard were inducted into the Rock Walk of Fame on Hollywood's Sunset Boulevard by their friend Brian May of Queen.

Def Leppard's tenth album, simply titled X, was released in July 2002. It saw the band's musical direction moving more towards pop and further away from the band's hard rock roots.

On May 23, 2006, Def Leppard released an all-covers album titled ‘Yeah!’. The disc pays homage to classic rock songs of their childhood, originally recorded by ELO, Sweet, The Kinks, Blondie, and Badfinger among others. The band began their "Downstage Thrust Tour", on June 29, which took them across the US and into Canada.

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Placebo, the multi-national glam band was formed by singer/guitarist Brian Molko (part Scottish and American, but raised in Britain) and bassist Stefan Olsdal (originally from Sweden). Briefly called Ashtray Heart and influenced by the likes of Sonic Youth and the Smashing Pumpkins, Placebo's drum slot was filled alternately early on by Robert Schultzberg and Steve Hewitt (the latter being the group's only member of British origin).

Placebo signed a recording contract with Caroline Records, which had issued the trio's self-titled debut in 1996. The album was a surprise hit in the UK, where such singles as ‘Nancy Boy’ and ‘Bruise Pristine’ gained massive commercial airplay.

Despite the band’s success, Schultzberg left the band, and Hewitt became Placebo’s full time drummer. One of Hewitt's first performances with Placebo proved to be a big one, as major fan David Bowie personally invited the trio to play at his 50th birthday in 1997.

The following year, Placebo switched to Virgin Records, and issued ‘Without You I'm Nothing’ in November. The album saw great UK success, and was used as their breakthrough to the US, with MTV embracing single ‘Pure Morning’. Around the same time, Placebo also recorded a cover version of T. Rex's classic ‘20th Century Boy’ for the movie Velvet Goldmine, in which the trio appeared performing the song as well.

The relationship between Placebo and Bowie continued to blossom, as Bowie made a special appearance on-stage with the band during a tour, even joining the band for a re-recording of the title track from ‘Without You I'm Nothing’. Placebo's third release, Black Market Music was released in 2000, with added hip-hop and disco elements.The recording spawned additional UK hits such as ‘Taste in Men’ and ‘Slave to the Wage’.

In 2003, Placebo showcased a harder sound with the release of their fourth album, ‘Sleeping with Ghosts’. The album went Top Ten in the UK and sold 1.4 million copies worldwide. Placebo's singles collection, ‘Once More with Feeling: Singles 1996-2004’, was released before the year's end. The 19-song compilation included their biggest UK hits and the new track ‘Twenty Years’.

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Frenchman Dimitri Tikovoi produced Placebo's fifth effort, 2006's Meds. In 2007, after scheduling to tour with Linkin Park and My Chemical Romance, Virgin released the Extended Play '07 EP as a simple introduction for new fans to the band's past decade of music.

The band returned, minus Steve Hewitt and plus new drummer Steve Forrest, in 2009 with album 'Battle For The Sun', which was released on their new label, PIAS.

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Justin David Hawkins (March 17, 1975) is an English musician and songwriter, best known for being the former lead singer and lead guitarist of The Darkness, mainly due to his high pitched squeals and glittery cat suits. 

Growing up in Lowestoft, Hawkins studied at Kirkley High School (notably the venue for the second series of Channel 4's Rock School programme), although he left part-way through his A Levels to study Music Technology at Huddersfield Technical College.

Hawkins developed his love of rock music while playing with the now obsolete heavy metal band The Commander, who are credited on The Darkness' debut album ''Permission to Land''. He considered himself a lead guitarist until his brother Dan, rhythm guitarist in The Darkness, saw him performing an interpretative mime to Queen's "Bohemian Rhapsody", whereupon they realized his potential as a front man.

Hawkins also worked created jingles, his most famous being an IKEA advert, of which the payment was used to record The Darkness' ground-breaking debut album, ''Permission to Land''. The album became a multi-platinum seller, and the band shot to fame - touring all over Europe and America. The pressure mounted as many anticipated the 2nd album, ''One Way Ticket To Hell and Back'', released in November of 2005.

In 2005, Justin set up a solo project, called British Whale. His debut single, "This Town Ain't Big Enough for Both of Us", a cover of the 1974 hit by Sparks, was released on August 15th and reached number six on the UK Singles Chart.

In August 2006 it was reported that Justin Hawkins had been admitted to The Priory, a rehabilitation clinic. On October 11 2006 Hawkins revealed spending £150,000 in three years on cocaine after cracking the charts in 2003 with their single "I Believe in a Thing Called Love", following which he quit the band.

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In 2007, Justin revealed his new band – Hot Leg, who are currently playing festivals around the UK. Earlier this year, Justin Hawkins lent high pitched voice to the track "Party All Day (Fuck All Night)" appearing on the latest Steel Panther release, "Feel The Steel".

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