AROUND December 1976, when the Sex Pistols swore, spat and caused chaos for Bill Grundy on the BBC, shocking the establishment and alienating older people everywhere, York was already developing its own musical trend, as a backlash against overblown progressive pomp-rock and a stagnant pop scene.
However, punk was also influenced by the political and cultural background of the time, and the perceived alienation of youth, and by the rocketing unemployment in the mid to late 70s.
Bands like Cyanide, Sema 4, The Blades, The Jerks and The Jermz were smashing out pure punk power in venues such as the Grob and Ducat, The Munster Bar, The Cats Whiskers, The Assembly Rooms and the De Grey Rooms.
A generation of York music fans were hungry for change, and a host of bands formed, willing to give it to them.
Feb 78, Sema 4 at Munster Bar. Photo by Nev Astley
Hipjoints, The Issue, The Benders, The Opposites – it seemed like every local punk band picked a word, put “ The….” in front of it, and grabbed instant fame.
Other venues came on board, eager to cash in on the new musical explosion, such as The Roxy, The Pop Club, Jaspers, York University, and The Barge and soon, any acne-ridden youth with a cheap guitar and a “stuff you..” attitude realised you could make great exciting music.
No more denim-clad stadium rockers; no more 15-minute keyboard solos; no bands wearing funny costumes and song lyrics which disappeared up their own backside… this was all about excitement, rebellion, anarchy with a small ‘a’, and the youth of York lapped it up.
Paul Carroll, bassist with The Passion Killers, Pullovers, and later Cyanide, remembers it well.
“I’d been playing guitar for about a year, but the national music scene was dire – novelty records, the Philadelphia sound, Prog Rock…! I couldn’t understand why I didn’t sound like Jeff Beck..?
“It was like the whole city was waiting for something to happen. Then I saw The Sex Pistols on a programme called So It Goes.
“I wasn’t a big fan of Johnny Rotten, but the music was simple, beautiful, just guitar, bass, drums. Definitely not Jeff Beck!
“Being an 18 year old at that time, I knew that the older generation would be appalled, shocked, but this was our music, just like Elvis shocked everyone back in the fifties.
“But the main thing I took from this was that anyone could do this and have fun. I had a couple of friends who were in bands so we formed Passion Killers. We couldn’t get a singer, so I remember we approached the best looking guy in the pub one night, who looked a bit like Billy Idol. It was irrelevant whether he could sing or not – that didn’t matter – he was persuaded to join.
“After a couple of weeks, we had a epiphany moment – we saw Cyanide perform at Nunthorpe School Hall. They were not quite total punk, obviously nervous, but played every song at 90 miles an hour, and Bob de Vries their front man was a proper performer – his whole attitude was ‘I’m doing it, I’m having it, I don’t give a s..t if you like it or not…’. Amazing!
“We got a manager, Roger Young, also 18, and he got us our first gig at The Assembly Rooms. We also supported Penetration, a well-known punk band who were just on the cusp of becoming famous. We were so nervous, we did our 20-minute set in about 15 minutes but who cared? It was punk, and fun, and mad.
“I’d been at school with Dave Stewart, guitarist from Cyanide. They had a chance to tour with the UK Subs, who Steve Roberts (aka Stevie Ze Suicide from York) had joined. I was asked if I’d join them, so I ended up touring and playing in the band I’d always wanted to be in.”
Sean Parkin was the singer with The Checkmates, and later Dada. He began editing and creating short films relating to his passion for the York punk era and has covered The Pop Club, Dave (Jock) Marston (Cyanide bassist), Cyanide (documenting the struggles of a local band), The Adventures of Kid Krupa (Jon McLoughlin – First Offence and later to the Revillos), and most recently, John Barry – From York With Love.
He has produced an album of unreleased Cyanide material, and a CD – Punk and Beyond, with 20 tracks from local bands. He recalls the era with fond memories.
“Seeing what punk and new wave bands were doing triggered a desire to try to make music like that myself. I remember how creative everyone was at that time – punk just took off as reaction to big stadium bands. And it wasn’t just the music, the whole world of fashion, graphic design and music really opened up. And bands took risks!”
Sean was friendly with both Dave Astley (Pullovers) and Nev Astley. Nev had amassed hundreds of photographs, documenting a lot of the York punk era at that time. This was an archival reference of huge cultural importance and York Art Gallery were approached to see if they would curate it.
However, Sean also realised that a special anniversary was approaching. In 2022, it would be 45 years since 1977, and there was an opportunity to put on an event which celebrated that turning point in popular music, which they christened Punk York.
The Victoria Vaults was chosen to host an exhibition of Nev’s photographs, which, over the next three years turned into a band reunion concert with the various surviving members of Cyanide, The Issue and The Jerks, with all proceeds going to charity. Nev Astley’s amazing photographic archive was published as a book to tie in with the event, and for five hours on June 25, 2022, York relived those amazing times in 1977 with films, book signings, poster signings and live bands.
Two more Punk Yorks followed in 23 and 24, both sold out, proving that York punk fans hadn’t faded away – they were still alive and kicking!
By 1980, though, the raw immediacy and naked excitement of those early years was coming to an end. Bands became more proficient on their instruments, took the music in new directions, were signed to record labels who wanted marketable product, not shouty, sweaty, sweary kids having a blast on stage doing whatever they wanted. Synthesisers were on the rise, New Romantics just around the corner..
But, in those three short years, the pubs and venues of York reverberated to the sound of punk bands every bit as talented as their London rivals, proving once again that anything that happens anywhere musically can be matched in northern cities, and creating a legacy and memories which are kept alive through the individuals whose lives it touched.
Maybe “touched” is the wrong word – those lives were kicked, pogo-ed, stamped on, crowd-surfed and elbowed, and the punks of York loved every single minute.
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