The Adverts.

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Line up:  Laurie Driver - Drums. TV Smith - Vocals. Gaye Advert - Bass . Howard Pickup - Guitar.

"One Thing I hate is categories. A lot of people turned up tonight expecting to see a punk band:1-2-3-4 blam    blam blam blam. It didn't happen and they were put off. That's what went wrong tonight. people have got this  stereotype of punk from their music papers. They've read NME and Sounds and they think, here it comes, its gonna be headbanging time. But maybe it wasn't ."  Tim Smith.  New Wave News 1977. 
There is so much about The Adverts that captures all that punk means. Originally to be called One Chord Wonders Tim and Gaye instead settled on The Adverts. Perhaps one of the first bands to be formed outside of the London based scene around the Pistols (and like others inspired by seeing them) luck was in for them by virtue of the fact their first gigs were at The Roxy Club London. Formed in late 76 nearly three months later they would be on a well promoted  tour with The Damned and their first single under their belts. Not least a part of the success of the band tho they might not like it was Gaye Adverts obvious  sexy punk attraction and the fact that she was the bass player gave the band an obvious commercial angle which Stiff and music papers exploited. The fact that Gaye was often snapped along with other punk musos didn't help. At the same time some absolute corking tunes allied to sharp lyrics made the band a force to be reckoned with  as they hit the charts in Aug 77 with Gary Gilmore  Eyes and signed to major label Anchor all at breakneck speed. It was punk but it was more thought  provoking .

Roxy Club London 1977

Dingwalls London 1977 Ian Dickson

Gaye image courtesy of Mick Mercer

Outside the Roxy Club 1977

However there was more behind the rosy picture than meets the eye . Constant criticism of Gaye's playing became spiteful and at times directed at the fact that she was female and the constant images of her in the media created rifts in the band causing at least Laurie to leave, Burchill and Parsons were really vindictive towards the band portraying them as Gaye's Adverts and really giving them a bad slagging.  For a pair who supposedly liked Gaye their criticism helped break the band up and Gaye hang up her bass. A Fanzine review at the time and other bands memories of touring with the Adverts have them as arrogant and ego tripping. I can't confirm or deny this but no doubt every punk band from The Clash to The Pistols probably behaved similarly at some time. 

Bad luck followed with the demise of Anchor and they ended up on RCA. Long gaps between records , no publicity machine and unable to make that difficult second album  and  leap from punk to the great beyond they found themselves sidelined with an uninterested record company. More personnel changes with Gaye hanging up the bass meant the Adverts finally gave up on 27 October 1979.

A classic punk band who made at least three classic singles and a heap of good punk toons.

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