British Punk & New Wave Trivia Quiz

Answer: Culture Club

George O'Dowd is, of course, better known as Boy George - the cross-dressing pop icon of the early 80s.

Answer: The Stranglers

First formed in 1975, The Stranglers' development and songwriting was, according to Rolling Stone magazine, strongly influenced by the burgeoning English punk/new wave scene which was evolving around them.

Answer: Joe Jackson

This song appeared on Joe's first album "Look Sharp", and really is one of the finest pop songs from this period.

Answer: Elvis Costello

Elvis Costello is an eclectic and highly-talented musician whose work has ranged from sombre country and western to string quintets and everything in between.

Answer: Joe Strummer

Of course, such a name is far too cool to be true. Joe was born John Mellors in 1952 in Ankara, Turkey, of all places. May he rest in peace.

Answer: "London Calling"

Joe just wanted to give the punters more and more Clash: the next album, 1981's "Sandinista", was a triple-disc affair.

Answer: Glen Matlock

The three wrong answers are, of course, the other members of the band. Glen came to join the Sex Pistols because he was the Saturday assistant in Malcolm McLaren's shop "Sex", where the group first coalesced.
If you'd like to learn more about the English 70s punk scene, then check out the book "England's Dreaming" by UK rock journo Jon Savage.

Answer: John Ritchie

Sid really was, in words attributed to McLaren, a "fabulous disaster". He never even learned to play his instrument, and it's Glen Matlock's playing that can be heard on nearly all of the Pistols' recorded output.
For the record, the other three incorrect answers are the real names of Sting, one half of the Righteous Brothers, and the late, great Joey Ramone.

Answer: Vince Clarke

Vince truly is a master pop craftsman, and has numerous Top 40 hits to his credit. His teaming with vocalist Alison Moyet in the duo Yazoo produced the sublime "Only You".

Answer: The Jam

The Jam was one of the major acts of the period in the UK and on the continent, but was completely unable to crack the U.S. Singer/songwriter/guitarist Paul Weller went on to form The Style Council and still has a solo career, but he's never achieved quite the same level of success.

Answer: The Cocteau Twins

The Cocteau Twins were trailblazers in the field of ambient synth music. Although this particular genre has since been flogged to death by the New Agers, these albums contain music that is still fresh and original.

Answer: Generation-X

Born William Albert Michael Broad, Billy derived his stage name from a schoolteacher's written comment about his level of activity in the classroom - i.e. "idle".

Answer: Spandau Ballet

Martin Kemp is one very talented individual. He has since carved out a successful career as a film and TV actor.

Answer: "Look Sharp"

As already noted, "Look Sharp" was Joe Jackson's first album release.
The three EC albums listed are from his early career. "Get Happy!" is notable in that it represents an exercise in producing short, snappy pop songs and so contains 31 tracks.

Answer: Hynde

Hynde was an American living in London at the time of the punk explosion, and yet another ex-employee of Malcolm McLaren's shop "Sex". This talented lady has, at various times, plighted her troth with Ray Davies of The Kinks and Simple Minds' Jim Kerr.

Answer: Dexy's Midnight Runners

The other three bands were founding members of the English ska movement in the late 70s who recorded on the 2-Tone label.
Although DMR demonstrated some reggae/ska influences, they owed much more to traditional Celtic music and even American soul.

Answer: Human League

Phil Oakey achieved his greatest chart success for Human League with these albums after the departure of Marsh and Ware. However I still can't fathom why he decided to recruit those two utterly talentless women into the band.

Answer: XTC

Along with Colin Moulding, Andy is still recording and releasing albums under the XTC name to this day.

Answer: Heaven 17

Their early albums contain some truly excellent techno pop songs. They also recorded an album of techno covers of classic soul songs using guest vocalists such as Tina Turner and Gary Glitter under the name British Electric Foundation.

Answer: Ian Curtis

Curtis' death saw the band's adoption of synth/keyboards and the metronomic beat of the dancefloor: they thus transformed into New Order.
The three incorrect answers are the lead singers of The Smiths, Magazine and The Buzzcocks.

Answer: The Beat

After their breakup in 1982, the band's reggae/ska influences were carried forward by various bandmembers into their next incarnations: General Public and the Fine Young Cannibals.

Answer: Japan

Later identified with New Romantic movement, Japan was formed in 1974 but found little acceptance for their work throughout most of this decade. By the time they started achieving commercial success, internal divisions resulted in the band's demise in 1982.
Sylvian went on to use his unique vocal stylings to create some excellent albums, both solo and with Japanese musician Ryuichi Sakamoto.

Answer: New Order

After disbanding in 1990, New Order have had something of a renaissance of late. In 2000 they released "Get Ready", an album of new material.

Answer: Siouxsie and the Banshees

Susan Ballion is the real name of Siouxsie Sioux who, along with Steve Severin, formed the band in 1976. As part of the Sex Pistols' original retinue, they were founding members of the English punk movement. Possessing more enthusiasm than musical talent, they initially demonstrated the woeful inability to play coherent music that was the trademark of the bands at this time.

Answer: Every Breath You Take

I cannot help thinking that every woman who's ever found it necessary to seek a restraining order must revile Gordon Sumner for producing such sinister lyrics.