The Members

Emerging from Surrey, England during the summer of 1977, the Members counted among the fresh crop of British acts riding the initial punk surge. The lineup of vocalist Nicky Tesco, guitarists Jean-Marie Carroll and Gary Baker, drummer Adrian Lillywhite, and bassist Chris Payne ranked among the earliest acts to fuse reggae rhythms with punk’s raw edge and drive. Stiff Records detected potential and inked the group early in 1978, issuing the debut single “Solitary Confinement.” Its momentum prompted Virgin Records to sign them the following year. The Virgin debut “Sound of the Suburbs” climbed into Britain’s Top 20, yet later singles could not replicate that showing. After Gary Baker departed in favor of Nigel Bennett, the band tracked its first album, At the Chelsea Nightclub, which surfaced briefly on the lower rungs of the U.K. charts.

By then the 2-Tone wave had eclipsed much of their visibility and their audience dwindled. Virgin issued one further record, 1980 the Choice Is Yours, in 1980 before parting ways. Following a short hiatus, the Members resurfaced in 1982 with Uprhythm, Downbeat—issued in Britain the next year under the title Going West—incorporating brass and adopting a weightier stance. The track “Working Girl” later attained cult status in America after MTV rotation, though broader commercial traction remained absent on both sides of the Atlantic. The group disbanded the year after. Jean-Marie Carroll moved into film scoring, notably collaborating with Julien Temple. In 2008 a reconstituted version of the band played international dates that included Glastonbury and the Isle of Wight Festival. The Members resumed recording with Carroll, Chris Payne, Nigel Bennett, and drummer Nick Cash; health issues prompted Nicky Tesco’s exit, with Rat Scabies of the Damned stepping in. The resulting releases were 2012’s InGrrLand and 2016’s One Law. Nicky Tesco passed away on February 26, 2022 at age 66.