Chelsea are an English punk rock band which formed in 1976. Three of the four original band members went on to found Generation X. Led by vocalist and frontman Gene October, Chelsea were
one of the pioneering bands on the British punk scene, with a tough sound and a populist outlook typified in songs like "Right to Work" and "Urban Kids." Thanks to October's tenacity, they became an enduring presence in U.K. punk, and though the band sounded a bit faster and louder on latter-day albums like 2015's Saturday Night Sunday Morning and 2005's Faster, Cheaper & Better Looking than on early efforts such as 1979's Chelsea and 1982's Evacuate (and October's voice showed signs of wear over time), their commitment to the essential rudiments of first-wave U.K. punk never wavered.
The original line-up of the band was assembled in late 1976 by John Krivine and Steph Raynor, the owners of Acme Attractions, a fashion boutique shop in King's Road in Chelsea, London, comprising
vocalist Gene October, guitarist William Broad (later and better known as Billy Idol), bassist Tony James and drummer John Towe; James and Towe had previously been in London SS. Undaunted, October put together another Chelsea lineup, featuring guitarist Marty Stacey, bassist Bob Jessie, and drummer Carey Fortune; Stacey and Jessie didn't last long in the band, and were quickly replaced by Henry Daze (aka Henry Badowski) on bass and James Stevenson on guitar.
This version of Chelsea lasted long enough to record the band's first single, 1977's anthemic "Right to Work," and the track was featured in Derek Jarman's film Jubilee, in which October appeared as an
actor. Later in 1977, Chelsea's second single, "High Rise Living," arrived in shops, which documented yet another lineup shift, as Simon Cade Williams (aka Simon Vitesse) took over on bass. By the end of 1978, Steve J. Jones dropped out and Chris Bashford took over on drums; this version of the band would cut Chelsea's self-titled debut album, and stay together for close to two years. The group toured extensively in 1979, opening a string of dates for the Clash and headlining shows with an up and coming act called the Police as their opening act.
After spending 1977–78 touring in the UK and overseas, they released their first album, Chelsea, in
1979. After a split, October put together a new line-up, including guitarist Nic Austin, which recorded the critically acclaimed second album Evacuate (1982). October sporadically released albums with various Chelsea line-ups throughout the 1980s, including Original Sinners, Rocks Off and Underwraps' in which the band were joined by Clash drummer Nicky 'Topper' Headon on a cover of The Clash's song "Somebody Got Murdered".
In the early 1990s, a line-up featuring the returning Austin and new bassist Mat Sargent released The
Alternative (1993) and Traitors Gate (1994) albums. In 1999, the line-up from the first album, including Stevenson, reformed for the Social Chaos Tour across North America. The group took a fresh batch of songs into the studio to cut 2015's Saturday Night Sunday Morning, and remarkably enough, the same lineup was still intact for 2017's Mission Impossible.
CHELSEA - EVACUATE 1982
Chelsea – Evacuate
Label: Captain Oi! – AHOY CD 94
Format: CD, Album, Reissue
Country: UK
Released: 1998
Genre: Rock
Style: Punk
Label: Captain Oi! – AHOY CD 94
Format: CD, Album, Reissue
Country: UK
Released: 1998
Genre: Rock
Style: Punk
TRAXS
01. Evacuate 3:53
02. How Do You Know 3:27
03. Cover Up 3:08
04. Looks Right 3:19
05. Tribal Song 5:52
06. War Across The Nation 3:20
07. 40 People 3:05
08. Running Free 3:00
09. Last Drink 2:56
10. Only Thinking 5:00
BONUS TRAXS
11. Rockin' Horse 4:01
12. Years Away 3:23
13. Freemans 3:13
14. I.D. Parade 3:01
15. How Do You Know (Single version) 3:15
16. New Era 3:50
17. War Across The Nation (Single version) 3:03
18. Stand Out 3:33
NOTES
The cover features former drummer of The Meteors Mark Robertson although he didn't actually play on the recording.
Flac Size: 387 MB
CHELSEA - THE PUNK SINGLES COLLECTION 1977 - 1982 (1998)
Chelsea – The Punk Singles Collection 1977-82
Label: Captain Oi! – AHOY CD 98
Series: The Punk Singles Collection
Format: CD, Compilation
Country: UK
Released: Nov 18, 1998
Genre: Rock
Style: Punk
Label: Captain Oi! – AHOY CD 98
Series: The Punk Singles Collection
Format: CD, Compilation
Country: UK
Released: Nov 18, 1998
Genre: Rock
Style: Punk
TRAXS
01. Right To Work
Written-By – October
02. The Loner
Written-By – October
03. High Rise Living
Written-By – Stacy
04. No Admission
Written-By – October
05. Urban Kids
Written-By – Ferguson, Martin, October, Perry
06. No Flowers
0Written-By – Martin, October
07. No One's Coming Outside
Written-By – Martin
08. What Would You Do
Written-By – Martin
09. I'm On Fire
Written-By – Bashford, Stevenson
10. Look At The Outside
Written-By – Bashford
11. Don't Get Me Wrong
Written-By – Myles
12. No Escape
Written-By – Reeder, Lawrence, Saxon
13. Decide
Written-By – October
14. Rockin' Horse
Written-By – October
15. Years Away
Written-By – October, Austin
16. Freemans
Written-By – October
17. I. D. Parade
Written-By – Austin
18. How Do You Know
Written-By – October, Corfield
19. Evacuate
Written-By – Austin
20. New Era
Written-By – Austin
21. War Across The Nation
Written-By – Austin
22. Stand Out
Written-By – Austin
23. Last Drink
Written-By – Austin
LINE - UP
Vocals – Gene October
Bass – Geoff Myles (tracks: 5 to 13), Henry Daze (tracks: 1 to 4), Linc (tracks: 19 to 23), Tim Griffin (2) (tracks: 14 to 18)
Drums – Carey Fortune (tracks: 1 to 4), Chris Bashford (tracks: 7 to 13), Geoff Sewell (tracks: 22, 23), Mal Asling (tracks: 21), Sol Mintz (tracks: 14 to 20), Steve J. Jones (tracks: 5, 6)
Guitar – Dave Martin (13) (tracks: 5 to 13), James Stevenson (tracks: 1 to 13), Nic Austin (tracks: 14 to 23), Stephen Corfield (tracks: 14 to 18)
