Wonderland Burlesque: Wonderland Burlesque's Down The Rabbit Hole: The Damned

Sunday, May 24, 2026

Wonderland Burlesque's Down The Rabbit Hole: The Damned

Wonderland Burlesque's

Down The Rabbit Hole:

The Damned

Down The Rabbit Hole merely places a spotlight on something slightly unusual that's caught my interest. With the help of Wikipedia, YouTube, and other sites, I gather information and learn something new.

Today, we take a look at the history and musical output of one of the UK's most beloved groups, the highly-influential The Damned.

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From Wikipedia:

The Damned are an English rock band formed in London in 1976 by lead vocalist Dave Vanian, guitarist Brian James, bassist Captain Sensible and drummer Rat Scabies. They were the first punk band from the United Kingdom to release a single, release a studio album, and tour the United States. Nine of the band's singles have charted on the UK Singles Chart Top 40.

Having played in a number of bands in previous years, the band members eventually found each other. Auditions for the lead vocalist were scheduled with Sid Vicious and Dave Vanian. Vicious failed to show, so Vanian got the gig.

The Damned played their first show on July 6, 1976, supporting the Sex Pistols at the 100 Club. They would later be placed on a the Sex Pistols package tour along with the Clash and Johnny Thunders' Heartbreakers. Unfortunately of the 20 dates scheduled only seven took place due to promoter's fear of violence and vandalism. Not that it mattered; prior to the end of the tour, The Damned were kicked off the bill by Sex Pistols' manager Malcolm McLaren.

They released their first album, Damned Damned Damned on Stiff Records in 1977. Produced by Nick Lowe, it was the first studio album released by a British punk band and included their second single, Neat Neat Neat, which managed to get to #52 on the UK chart.

They served as the opening act on T. Rex's final tour with Marc Bolan and then toured the US. Author Ian Winwood wrote, "In terms of placing boots on the ground, it's The Damned who can be credited as having had the most influence on American punk rock."

Nick Mason of Pink Floyd produced the band's second album, 1978's Music For Pleasure. The music press dismissed the album immediately as too polished which led to the band's departure from Stiff Records. Scabies was also displeased with the album and quit the band after the recording. He was replaced by future Culture Club drummer Jon Moss, who played with The Damned until they dissolved in February 1978.

The former members of the band worked on a series of brief side projects and solo recordings, all making little commercial impact. They then reformed in April of 1979 with the line-up of Scabies, Vanian, Sensible and Algy Ward on bass. By this point Sensible had switched to guitar and keyboards. After signing a recording contract with Chiswick Records, they returned to the studio and released the charting singles Love Song (#20) and Smash It Up (#35), followed by the 1979 album Machine Gun Etiquette (#31). The album received largely positive reviews, with Ira Robbins and Jay Pattyn of Trouser Press describing it as "a great record by a band many had already counted out."

Ward left the band in 1980, to be replaced by Paul Gray. The band then released the self-produced The Black Album in 1980 (#29). After leaving Chiswick Records, they eventually landed at Bronze Records, where they released the album Strawberries (#15) in 1982. By this juncture, Roman Jugg had joined the band as a full-time keyboardist. It was also during this period that Captain Sensible enjoyed a #1 solo hit with the song Happy Talk. In his absence, the band recorded the soundtrack for a non-existent film, Give Daddy The Knife, Cindy. Credited as Naz Nomad and the Nightmares, the album consisted of covers of songs from the 1960's.

In 1984, The Damned - with an altered lineup - performed on the BBC Two sitcom The Young Ones with their song Nasty. Sensible left the band for a solo career shortly after.

It was at this time the group's sound and look became associated with the burgeoning Goth movement. From the earliest days of the band, Vanian had adopted a vampire-like appearance onstage, with chalk-white makeup and formal dress. With Sensible gone, the group as a whole adopted the look and their sound took on a more brooding demeanor.

Albums and singles followed in 1985 and 1986, marking the group's most economically-successful period. During this time, they enjoyed seven Top 40 hits in the UK, which included their biggest hit, a non-album single, a cover version of the 1968 hit by Barry Ryan, Eloise (#3). However, Phantasmagoria's December 1986 follow-up album, Anything was deemed a commercial failure (despite spinning off three Top 40 singles in the UK). And although the band was in the studio working on a new album, that music would never see the light of day as their contract with MCA was effectively dissolved.

From that point on, original members would reunite briefly for the occasional gig or live recording. But essentially, the group remained on an extended hiatus until 2005. They would come back together in 2008 to release a new album and would tour continually from that point on. 2018 and 2023 also saw new albums featuring new material. As of this writing, the band remains a viable musical entity.

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