The Boomtown Rats
 The
Boomtown Rats were formed in Dun Laoghaire (near Dublin), Ireland in
1975 by former NME journalist Bob Geldof, and were originally
called the Nightlife Thugs (the name 'Boomtown Rats' came from Woody
Guthrie's autobiography Bound For Glory). Moving to London in late 1976 they signed
to the newly founded Ensign label.
Although their music was rooted in R&B and they
were more of a new wave outfit than anything, the band were loosely
affiliated with the burgeoning punk scene, at least initially.
In the long, hot summer of 1977 their debut
single Lookin' After Number One made the UK Top 20. This was
closely followed by a similarly successful eponymous debut album and a
second Top 20 hit, Mary Of The 4th Form. With a sound somewhere
between Eddie & The Hot Rods and The Rolling
Stones, The Boomtown Rats
were a compelling live band, with Geldof's moody charisma helping give
the band its distinctive identity.
Major success came with A Tonic For The Troops
(1978) which spawned their first Number 1 hit in Rat Trap which
knocked John Travolta and Olivia Newton-John out of the top spot in
the UK. They scored a second Number 1 and a huge worldwide hit with
I Don't Like Mondays, a stunningly effective, piano-driven piece,
inspired (if that's the right word) by schoolgirl Brenda Spencer who
shot dead several of her classmates in San Diego, California.
The accompanying album, The Art Of Surfacing
(1979) showed the Rats at their peak, although subsequent albums
increasingly followed a more mundane pop/rock direction and the band
slowly faded from view, finally calling it a day in 1984.
 Geldof
retained a high profile, with the Irishman helping to mastermind the
mammoth undertaking that was Band Aid. He and Midge Ure (of
Ultravox
fame) assembled together all the major music stars of the time to sing
Do They Know It's Christmas?, with the resulting single making
millions for famine relief in Ethiopia.
Not content with this, Bob and Midge reunited
most of the stars again for the Live Aid concert at Wembley Stadium on
July 13th, 1985. This was simultaneously broadcast across the Atlantic
at JFK Stadium in Philadelphia. At the time, it amassed well over £10
million, the money being spread around other needy charities as well
as Ethiopia. The total at the end of 1991 was over £100 million!
In June 1986, Bob became Sir Bob Geldof after
being knighted by the Queen. Two months later he married fiancée Paula
Yates. She gave birth to Fifi Trixibelle and in 1989, their second
daughter, Peaches, was born. By 1995, Paula had left Geldof for
Michael Hutchence of INXS. Bob and Paula were subsequently divorced
but tragically her new relationship was cut short when Hutchence died
on 22 November 1997.
| The
Band |
Bob Geldof
Vocals
Johnnie Fingers
Keyboards |
Gerry Cott
Guitar
Pete Briquette
Bass |
Garry Roberts
Guitar
Simon Crowe
Drums
|
|
