Patrik Fitzgerald

Born in London during 1958, singer/songwriter Patrik Fitzgerald earned a place among the most distinctive figures associated with the so-called punk poets. His introduction to recording came in 1977 via the EP Safety Pin Stuck in My Heart, a set that fused punk’s raw anger with an uncommon thread of optimism for that era and setting. Fitzgerald’s earnest outlook and striking look, typically featuring a badge-covered blazer paired with red drainpipe trousers and sandals, placed him at a clear remove from fellow new wave artists and often drew sharp mockery from more elitist crowds.

He pressed ahead regardless, releasing the Backstreet Boys EP in 1978. The following year he joined Polydor and cut his debut album Grabby Stories, supported by the Buzzcocks’ John Maher. Neither 1982’s Gifts and Telegrams nor 1984’s Drifting Toward Violence connected with listeners, prompting an explicit attempt at broader appeal through 1986’s Tunisia Twist. When that effort also fell short, Fitzgerald took a job waiting tables at the House of Commons before relocating to Normandy in 1988. Three years afterward he came back to London, where he began pursuing acting alongside a return to live performances in clubs.