Biography
Originally assembled in 1977 as Ian Dury’s touring unit to support and promote the album New Boots and Panties!!, the Blockheads comprised Chaz Jankel, Norman Watt-Roy, Charlie Charles, John Turnbull, and Mick Gallagher. Excluding Jankel, they quickly entered the studio with Dury and scored a hit as Ian Dury & the Blockheads via the 1978 single “What a Waste.” The resulting momentum produced a U.S. tour opening for Lou Reed, while further British success followed in the next two years with the Dury-and-Jankel composition “Hit Me with Your Rhythm Stick” and the album Do It Yourself.
During the early 1980s, Jankel’s absence in pursuit of a solo career in the States did not halt activity; Dury and the remaining members issued Laughter and toured Europe and the U.K. throughout 1981. Their collaboration ended in 1982, yet they reunited for shows across Asia in 1987. Charlie Charles’s death prompted another assembly in 1990 to benefit his family, yielding the live album Warts ’n’ Audience. Without Jankel, the band played Spain in 1991 before pausing until their 1994 slot at the Madstock Festival.
Upon receiving a cancer diagnosis, Dury resolved to complete one more record and reconvened with the Blockheads to record Mr. Love Pants, released in 1998. A subsequent tour ended on a semi-permanent note with Dury’s passing in early 2000. The group resurfaced on disc with Where’s the Party? in 2004, and in 2008 they booked an extensive run of U.K. dates that led to the 2009 release of Staring Down the Barrel.
During the early 1980s, Jankel’s absence in pursuit of a solo career in the States did not halt activity; Dury and the remaining members issued Laughter and toured Europe and the U.K. throughout 1981. Their collaboration ended in 1982, yet they reunited for shows across Asia in 1987. Charlie Charles’s death prompted another assembly in 1990 to benefit his family, yielding the live album Warts ’n’ Audience. Without Jankel, the band played Spain in 1991 before pausing until their 1994 slot at the Madstock Festival.
Upon receiving a cancer diagnosis, Dury resolved to complete one more record and reconvened with the Blockheads to record Mr. Love Pants, released in 1998. A subsequent tour ended on a semi-permanent note with Dury’s passing in early 2000. The group resurfaced on disc with Where’s the Party? in 2004, and in 2008 they booked an extensive run of U.K. dates that led to the 2009 release of Staring Down the Barrel.
Albums
Singles
Live
