Adam & the Ants

Adam & the Ants was a punk band during the late 1970s, and then a Pop music group in the early 1980s.

Related Topics:
Punk - 1970s - Pop music - 1980s

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Led by Adam Ant (real name Stuart Goddard), the band formed in 1977 in London, England, consisting of Lester Square (guitar), Andy Warren (bass guitar) and Paul Flanagan (drums). Square was replaced by Mark Gaumont early in the band's career, before the release of their debut album Dirk Wears White Sox (1979, Do It Records). The album was somewhat dark, with post punk riffs and some vestiges of glam rock. The album was not a success, so Adam & the Ants hired Malcolm McLaren (manager of the Sex Pistols) to help with their image. He dressed them in pirate costumes.

Related Topics:
Adam Ant - 1977 - London - England - Lester Square - Guitar - Andy Warren - Bass guitar - Paul Flanagan - Drums - Mark Gaumont - Dirk Wears White Sox - 1979 - Do It Records - Post punk - Glam rock - Malcolm McLaren - Sex Pistols - Pirate

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While preparing for their second album, McLaren convinced the Ants to leave Adam and form Bow Wow Wow. A new version of the Ants was formed by Marco Pirroni (guitar), Kevin Mooney (bass guitar) and two drummers, Terry Lee Miall and Merrick. Pirroni would go on to become an influential member of the group, and cowrite many of their songs with Adam Ant.

Related Topics:
Bow Wow Wow - Marco Pirroni - Kevin Mooney - Terry Lee Miall - Merrick

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The first album released with the new lineup was Kings of the Wild Frontier, an enormous hit in the United Kingdom and put the band at the forefront of the New Romantic moment. There were several hit singles from this LP, including "Dog Eat Dog" and the rather self-referential "Ant Music". The band's most successful single, however, was "Stand and Deliver" (1981). In its video, Adam Ant is dressed as a "dandy highwayman" and generally indulges his exhibitionist tendencies. The single entered the UK Top 40 at #1 and remained there for several weeks.

Related Topics:
Kings of the Wild Frontier - United Kingdom - New Romantic - Stand and Deliver - 1981 - Dandy - Highwayman - Exhibitionist

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Later in that year was another highly successful album, Prince Charming. However, Ant had by this point grown tired of the stresses of life in a band. Also, the other band members had grown tired with the focus on Ant's celebrity and the way the group now tended toward mainstream pop music; during a concert, Kevin Mooney walked out on the band. A re-structured band attempted to attach itself to the early '80s white rap music fad (fuelled by Malcolm McLaren's "Duck Rock") with "Ant Rap", but this proved to be the band's last Top 10 hit. Ant launched a solo career, keeping only Marco Pirroni to help out with songwriting and some playing. He enjoyed some early success with the album Friend or Foe and singles such as "Goody Two Shoes"; however, he seemed unable to maintain popularity. By the mid-1980s, he had faded into obscurity somewhat.

Related Topics:
Prince Charming - Pop music - '80s - Malcolm McLaren - Duck Rock

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Adam found himself in a mental instution in the early 2000s after being hounded by the press and suffering a nervous breakdown. He attempted various comebacks with little success, but a number of "rare" versions of early songs were released in a boxed set, Antbox, with moderate success.

Related Topics:
2000s - Nervous breakdown

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