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London SS

Genre:Punk Rock,Protopunk


London SS were an early British punk rock group founded in March 1975 by guitarist Mick Jones and bassist Tony James. The band spent most of their short history auditioning potential members. Besides Jones and James, however, guitarist Brian James (not related to Tony) was the only other semi-permanent member. Other musicians who played with them included Matt Dangerfield and Casino Steel, then of The Hollywood Brats, who would later go on to play in The Boys.
Many other notable musicians tried out for the band but did not make the cut including future members of The Clash, Paul Simonon and Terry Chimes. Another future Clash member, Nicky "Topper" Headon, was asked to join but declined. Rat Scabies, future drummer for The Damned played with the band even though he was in his own protopunk band, Rot, at the time. Roland Hot also served as drummer. Punk poet Patrik Fitzgerald also claims to have auditioned for the band.
The London SS's only recording was a demo
featuring James, Jones, James and Hot. Musically they played straightforward rock 'n' roll and covered 1960s R&B although some former members felt the band's music was pretty poor. An example of this is their leftover song "1-2 Crush On You", which was later recorded by the Clash.
After Roland Hot was kicked out in January 1976, he joined fellow musicians Kid Rogers and Doug McArthur to form "Kid Rogers and the Henchmen". The band lasted less than two years but managed to sign with Chiswick Records and record a double A side single ("Getaway" b/w "Sensational"). "Sensational", penned by Hot and McArthur, was the more commercial number and was written after a chance meeting with Banshees vocalist Siouxsie Sioux. "Getaway", penned by Kid Rogers (a guitar instrumental), was featured on the album 100 Great Guitar Instrumentals. McArthur went on to join "Killerhertz", a Motorhead-like three piece outfit, with guitar wizard Hugo Mallet and drummer (later to join Chelsea) Marc Rathbone. Killerhertz had a strong following in London and were a regular feature at clubs like Dingwalls, the Marquee and the Music Machine. Notable recordings were "5 second wonders", "Heartbreak", "Nightmare", "All Along the Road".

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