| The Slits |
|
| Background information |
| Origin |
 London, England |
| Genre(s) |
Punk rock
Post-punk |
| Years active |
1976 – 1981
2006 - present |
| Label(s) |
Island Records
CBS |
| Members |
Ari Up
Hollie Cook
Adele Wilson
Nadya
Tessa Pollitt
Anna Schulte |
| Former members |
Kate Korus
Suzy Gutsy
Palmolive
Viv
Albertine
Bruce Smith
Budgie |
The Slits are a post-punk
band. The quartet was formed in 1976 by members of the bands The Flowers of Romance
and The Castrators.
The members were Ari
Up (Arianna Forster) and Palmolive (Paloma Romera, who
later left to join The Raincoats), with Viv
Albertine and Tessa Pollitt replacing
founding members Kate Korus and Suzy Gutsy. Palmolive was replaced by
male drummer
Budgie (aka Pete Clarke),
formerly of The Spitfire Boys and
later to join Siouxsie & the
Banshees.
|
Contents
- 1 Career
- 2 Members
- 3 Discography
- 3.1 Studio
albums
- 3.2 Live
albums
- 3.3 Compilation
albums
- 3.4 Singles
- 4 Trivia
- 5 References
- 6 External
links
|
Career
At their outset, the Slits played a brand of brash, fun,
snotty, catchy punk rock naturally suited to supporting The
Clash on their 1977 White Riot
tour along with the Buzzcocks and the Subway
Sect (documented both on- and offstage by Don
Letts in The Punk Rock Movie).
As also captured on a legendary Peel
Session, the Slits' originally extremely raw and raucous live sound was
subsequently cleaned up and considerably polished by the time of their reggae influenced,
dub
heavy, Dennis Bovell produced 1979 debut
album Cut (Island
Records). The album's cover art depicts the band naked save
for mud and loin-cloths.
Their sound and attitude became increasingly experimental and avant-garde
during the early 1980's,
when they formed an alliance with Bristol post punk
mavericks The Pop Group, sharing a
drummer (Bruce Smith) and releasing a joint single,
"In The Beginning There was Rhythm" / "Where There's A Will" (Y
Records). However, by the time of their second 'official' LP release Return
Of The Giant Slits (a 'semi-official' bootleg
of poorly recorded early material having been released in the interim
by Rough Trade), many felt that
their initial energy, exuberance and innovativeness had deserted them.
Various Slits became involved with the On-U dub-jamming
project New Age Steppers, along with free
improvisers such as Steve Beresford and also a
young Neneh
Cherry. The band has had such fans as Johnny
Rotten and British DJ, John Peel. Albertine also collaborated
with Singers & Players and The Playgroup. Ari Up has appeared
on albums with Rip Rig & Panic, The
Slackers, Dubblestandart, and several others.
Ari Up and Tessa Pollitt reformed the band with new members in
2006, and released the EP "Revenge Of The Killer Slits".
The EP features former Sex Pistol Paul
Cook and Marco Pirroni (ex-Adam
& the Ants, and Siouxsie & the Banshees) as
both musicians
and co-producers. In fact, Cook's daughter
Hollie is a member of the current line-up. She is a backing
singer.
The band toured the United States for the first time in
twenty five years during 2006's "States of Mind" tour.
Members
The Slits personnel
| (1976) |
- Ari
Up - vocals
- Kate Korus - guitar
- Suzy Gutsy - bass
guitar
- Palmolive - drums
|
| (1976-1978) |
- Ari
Up - vocals
- Viv Albertine - guitar
- Tessa Pollitt - bass
guitar
- Palmolive - drums
|
| (1979) |
|
| (1980-1981) |
- Ari
Up - vocals
- Viv Albertine - guitar
- Tessa Pollitt - bass
guitar
- Bruce Smith - drums
|
| (2006) |
- Ari
Up - vocals
- Hollie Cook - backup
vocals
- Adele Wilson - guitar
- NO - guitar, backup vocals
- Tessa Pollitt - bass
guitar
- Anna Schulte - drums
|
Discography
Studio albums
- Cut (Island
Records, 1979)
- Return of the Giant Slits
(CBS,
1981)
- Revenge Of The Killer
Slits (EP),(2006)
Live albums
- Bootleg Retrospective
(Rough Trade, 1980)
- Live at the Gibus Club
- Typical
Girls - Live in Cincinatti & San Fransisco USA (Basic
Records, 1980)
Compilation albums
- The
Peel Sessions (Strange
Fruit, 1988)
- In the Beginning
(Jungle
Records, 1997)
Singles
- "Typical Girls"/"I Heard It Through
the Grapevine" (Island, 1979) UK #60
- "In The Beginning There Was Rhythm" (split single with The
Pop Group), (Y Records/Rough
Trade, 1980)
- "Man Next Door" (Y Records/Rough
Trade, 1980)
- "Animal Space" (Human Records, 1980)
- "Earthbeat" (CBS, 1981)
Trivia
Slits drummer, Palmolive, dated Clash frontman, Joe
Strummer.
Ari Up's mother Nora married John Lydon, also known as Johnny
Rotten from the Sex Pistols.
The Slits also appear in Don Letts' The
Punk Rock Movie (1979) and live footage of the
band playing at London's
Vortex Club is included in the Punk! The Early Years
DVD.
References
- Guinness Book
of British Hit Singles - 16th Edition - ISBN
0-85112-190-X
- Guinness Book of British Hit Albums - 7th Edition - ISBN 0-85112-619-7
External links
