Toyah Ann Willcox was born in Birmingham, England on May 18, 1958, and trained as an actress
at the Old Rep Drama School. She was launched as an anti-establishment figure when she appeared in two cutting-edge films in the late '70s: Jubilee, the punk rock movie directed by Derek Jarman in which she played a character named Mad, and the Who's mod film version of their early-'70s rock opera album Quadrophenia, in which she played the equally bizarrely named character Monkey.
She moved on to front a punk rock band named Toyah, which featured Joel Bogen on guitar, Mark
Henry on bass, Steve Bray on drums, Peter Bush on keyboards, and Toyah herself on vocals, cutting a very striking visual image at this time with bright orange hair with pink tips.
Between 1977 and 1983, Willcox fronted the eponymous band Toyah, before embarking on a solo
career in the mid-1980s. At the Brit Awards 1982, Willcox was nominated for British Breakthrough Act, and Best Female Solo Artist. She was nominated a further two times in this category in 1983, and in 1984. Her hit singles, which she co-wrote, include "It's a Mystery", "Thunder in the Mountains" and "I Want to Be Free".
In London, Willcox lived in a place called "Mayhem", a converted British Rail warehouse serving as a studio. It was here the band Toyah recorded their first demos. For the lack of proper bed she slept for a
while in a "second-hand" coffin, reportedly used by the French Red Cross to transport victims of fatal accidents. Her First album Initially released in Germany, in 1979 it was re-released as an LP, comprising the original six tracks, "Victims of the Riddle" A and B sides and three tracks that were previously unavailable on vinyl. Willcox's second album, The Blue Meaning, went to no. 40 in the UK Albums Chart in June 1980. By this time, she is reported as announcing she had severed all ties with punk aesthetics.
In 1986 she married guitarist Robert Fripp, formally of King Crimson, who joined her on her 1991 album Ophelia's Shadow, and she formed a new band along with her husband called Sunday All Over
the World. Forming the Humans with Bill Rieflin (R.E.M.) and Chris Wong, Toyah set to work on the group's debut album, We Are the Humans, which arrived in May of 2009. A 2019 reissue of In the Court of the Crimson Queen landed her at number 74 in the U.K. albums charts, marking her first appearance there since 1985. In the 21st century, released a new album project, In the Court of the Crimson Queen, in the spring of 2008.
TOYAH - ANTHEM 1981
Anthem is a studio album by the English new wave band Toyah, fronted by Toyah Willcox, released in 1981 by Safari Records. It was the band's most successful album, reaching number 2 in the UK Albums
Chart and featuring the Top 10 singles "It's a Mystery" and "I Want to Be Free". The album was certified gold in 1981 for selling more than 100,000 copies in the UK. Anthem was the band's first full-length album recorded with the new lineup which consisted of Willcox, Joel Bogen, Phil Spalding, Nigel Glockler and Adrian Lee. The material was recorded at the Marquee Studios in London and produced by Nick Tauber.
The album cover features a painting by Steve Weston which presents Toyah as a female fairy with
wings, carrying the head of a decapitated male humanoid, with pyramids and smoke in the background. The singer explained that it refers to the theme of strength and domination, and that it was inspired by science fiction works of such authors as J. R. R. Tolkien and Philip K. Dick.
Toyah – Anthem
Label: Cherry Red – TOYAH100
Format: CD, Album, Reissue, Remastered, Stereo, 2 x CD, Box Set, Limited Edition Sep 9, 2022
Country: UK
Released: 1981
Genre: New Wave, Electronic, Rock
Style: Indie Pop, Post-Punk, New Wave
CD 1.
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01. I Want To Be Free
02. Obsolete
03. Pop Star
04. Elocution Lesson
05. Jungles Of Jupiter
06. I Am
07. It's A Mystery (Album Mix)
08. Masai Boy
09. Marionette
10. Demolition Men
11. We Are
12. It's A Mystery (EP Version)
13. Revelations
14. War Boys
15. Angels & Demons
16. Walkie Talkie
17. Alien
18. Sphinx
19. For You (Unfaded Version)
20. I Want To Be Free (Instrumental)
Flac (24/96) Size: 1.54 GB
CD 2. RARE AND ARCHIVE MATERIAL
01. Thunder In The Mountains
02. Street Addict
03. Voodoo Doll
LIVE AT PARIS THEATRE 05 - 04 - 1981
04. War Boys (Live At Paris Theatre London April 1981)
05. Neon Womb (Live At Paris Theatre London April 1981)
06. Danced (Live At Paris Theatre London April 1981)
07. Angels & Demons (Live At Paris Theatre London April 1981)
08. It's A Mystery (Live At Paris Theatre London April 1981)
09. Ieya (Live At Paris Theatre London April 1981)
MARQUEE STUDIOS DEC 1980 - AUG 1981
10. It's A Mystery (Extended Instrumental)
11. I Am (Instrumental)
12. Pop Star (Instrumental)
13. Jungles Of Jupiter (Instrumental)
14. Joel & Phil (Instrumental Outtake)
15. Turkish Delight (Instrumental Outtake)
16. Television (Instrumental Outtake)
Flac (24/96) Size: 1.65 GB
TOYAH - THE GHANGELING 1982
After the amazing commercial success of the album 'Anthem' Toyah did the right thing and produced a
far less commercial set which had the immediate effect of dumping the artist out of the mainstream, almost with immediate effect. One of the most underrated releases of the eighties, this album by Toyah.
Over the years Toyah drifted away form her punk roots, her music becoming a kind of alternative pop
with arrangements which held elements from progressive rock and psychedelica and there's off course, the voice of Toyah Willcox, sometimes singing like a fairy, sometimes yelling like a witch, sometimes speaking like a child. Her voice (which sounds like Lene Lovitch meets Kate Bush) is a delight to listen to. Sadly therefore Toyah will be best remembered for a couple of very poppy tracks lifted from the aforementioned album.
This is a shame because the first two albums, 'Anthem, and this their fourth album actually offer a very
strong and quite original collection of good quality, creative indie rock tracks.
Toyah – The Changeling
Label: Cherry Red – TOYAH150
Format: CD, Album, Reissue, 2 x CD, Box Set, Deluxe Edition, Limited Edition Sep 29, 2023
Country: Europe
Released: 1982
Genre: Rock
Style: New Wave, Pop Rock
CD 1. THE CHANGELING
01. Creepy Room
02. Street Creature
03. Castaways
04. The Druids
05. Angel & Me
06. The Packt
07. Life In The Trees
08. Dawn Chorus
09. Run Wild, Run Free
10. Brave New World
BONUS TRACKS
11. Warrior Rock
12. Paradise Child
13. Good Morning Universe
14. Urban Tribesmen
15. In The Fairground
16. The Furious Futures
17. Go Berserk (Tour Intro)
18. Stand Proud
19. Clapham Junction
20. I Want To Be Free (Roundhouse Session)
21. Dawn Chorus (6.55 Special Version)
Flac Size: 771 MB
CD 2. RARE & ARCHIVE MATERRIAL - ROUNDHOUSE STUDIOS / FEB - JUNE 1982
01. Creepy Room (Work In Progress Mix)
02. Street Creature (Work In Progress Mix)
03. Castaways (Work In Progress Mix)
04. The Druids (Work In Progress Instrumental)
05. Angel & Me (Work In Progress Mix)
06. The Packt (Work In Progress Mix)
07. Life In The Trees (Work In Progress Mix)
08. Dawn Chorus (Work In Progress Mix)
09. Run Wild, Run Free (Work In Progress Mix)
10. Brave New World (Work In Progress Mix)
11. Warrior Rock (Work In Progress Instrumental)
12. Paradise Child (Instrumental Outtake)
13. Untitled No.12 (Instrumental Outtake)
JOEL'S PORTASTUDIO DEMOS / SEPT 1981
14. Chariots (Instrumental Home Demo)
15. The Pied Piper (Instrumental Home Demo)
16. Roxy One (Instrumental Home Demo)
17. Talking To Seifert (Instrumental Home Demo)
18. Piano Ballad (Instrumental Home Demo)
19. Anger (Instrumental Home Demo)
20. Bus Station For Heroes (Instrumental Home Demo)
THANK YOU !! I don't know. I'm happy to discovers something good in the late 70s/early 80s. A good price for only 19e on amazon.
ReplyDeleteI'm very happy that you find new music in the blog. Now is time to post something Ethnic - World music.
DeleteVery good bring some Ethnic.
DeleteHasn't happened in a long time.
THANK YOU !! great music
ReplyDeleteThank you! Interesting to hear the bonus tracks. I loved Toyah in Jubilee, and her youtube channel with Robert "Fripp's My Bitch" is delightful and funny and shines a new light on aging gracefully.
ReplyDeleteI've noticed that you've recently switched to FLAC24 format from FLAC (& MP3). I can appreciate that there's a bit of sound quality difference, but, not to look a stolen gift horse in the mouth, as an appreciative fan if your brilliant and well-curated blog, the 24 format is a bit large and unweildy, and I can only fit so much onto my phone (my main digital music listening device, although I have a separate stereo system for records and CDs.) I don't mind something a bit lossy if it's free, and to be honest it takes away any desire to find a proper copy and actually support the artists involved if I've already got a pirate copy of equal sound quality. FLAC24 for me is pretty damn cool for an album where I'm already a fan of the artist and can't find a copy because it's rare/out of print (i.e. that awesome Greek version of 666 which ironically has only recently been reissed properly), but if I'm just taking a chance on something that I've never heard of and may or may not like, I'd probably choose the MP3 320 size on which to "give it a spin."
Of course, this is just my opinion, and it's your most excellent blog to do with as you choose, but the super high quality FLAC24 format usage does tip things for me from this being a fan-based enthusiastic "for preview purposes only" site to sliding towards more of a Pirate Bay model. (I'd also hate to lose this incredible resource you've built to Blogspot's (c) enforcement policies, if such things even get monitored anymore.)
I'm not sure if anyone else has commented on this. I'm only doing so because I really like what you've built here, and all of the hard work that you put into it.
All the best from Troy in NS!
Thank you very much for your comment. Your opinion is welcome and I appreciate it. I know that the size is a problem, but I thought that there's no problem, cause the external hard disks are very cheap and you can put many files. Thank you again.
DeleteI listen to THE LEMON PIPERS their two lps which are on one cd. Inspired by Erwin who has been into Bubble Gum music a lot lately.
ReplyDeleteThere aren't that many lps in the scene, but there are singles. Ofter things are mixed with Bubble Gum that are not Bubble Gum.
The LEMON PIPERS is one and i like it a lot.
I have their albums. I will post them someday. I agree, they are good. I have even a best of. Was a gift from a friend.
DeleteIt's a shame that the band is so underrated and still unknown. Hopefully the sampler of the 2 lps i have will do the band justice.
DeleteI will post them after 3 posts. The first post is Ethnic, the second is a new Aussie band, the third will be an old Prog band and after all, the Lemon 🍋 Drops.
DeleteSorry, the Lemon Pipers.
DeleteVery nice anonnncements. I'm really looking forward to it. Erwin wants to tell me about 2 ultra rare old bands next, not only rare but also very good. I'll let you know as soon as i know more.
Delete