How was the band started ? Was it always punk or did you start before. If the latter what type of music were you playing and the bands were in ? I know you were a competent guitarist so was it painful for you to see Punk bands mangle music or liberating. ? What was the worst thing you ever heard ?
OK, this one's easy. Basically, Riff, Jon and Steve were advertising for a guitarist and I applied. I have no idea how they got together, maybe Riff can fill in those details. Riff and the others probably don't know this, but I actually rang up first and gave my real name (Colin), but Riff (I think) asked me what kind of music I was into. I foolishly told him the truth; Hendrix, Tamla Motown, lots of R&B stuff and Blues. I think he threw up when I told him, but Colin did not get an audition. Luckily Riff did give me an indication of what my influences should be, so Dave emerged complete with some of the right background influences. When Dave eventually rang up a few\par hours later he did get an audition.

 Before I auditioned with London I was just playing with some local bands in Lincoln. I had followed the music scene through the music press and the whole punk thing had really excited me. You have to remember how bad music was in the mid 70s. There was either glam rock, which apart from some exceptions was dire or all the Yes, Genesis crap. I had followed the press hysteria re Punk, which went from the extreme of "it's brilliant" to "it's all crap; can't play, can't sing...etc." There was all this stuff in the music press, but out in the sticks you couldn't hear any of it because none of it was out yet. I was curious and ordered the original EMI copy of "Anarchy in the UK" and thought it was brilliant. I remember when I ordered it the bloke in the shop said "you don't want that crap" and everybody looked round;

 Lincoln was a centre of prog-rock at that time. Anyway, that was it for me; I packed all of my possessions into an old Morris car and took off to London. I knew some mad Aussies who had room in a house in Chiswick. I left Lincoln on the Wednesday and first thing Thursday morning I was speaking to Riff about the ad in Melody Maker. Yeah, I suppose I was competent, but actually Punk was bloody hard to play; it was all so fast. What was the worst thing I ever heard? Riff trying to make himself heard above our pathetic attempts to play in time. Nah seriously. The worst thing I ever heard was and still is anything by Yes.

What were your influences ? How did you get into punk ?
Well, like I say, I was always into Hendrix and Tamla, but also Jeff Beck and Peter Green or Soul/R&B. Mostly guitar based stuff. But I hated all the prog-rock stuff and never (and still don't) saw the attraction of Led Zeppelin. I was also into the Velvet Underground and the Doors. Hated the New York Dolls though, which didn't help. I got into Punk because it was a breath of fresh air in the mid-70s.

What did you think of John Moss's later career ?
I think John's done great. I was never really into Culture Club, but so what. Actually, there was a slight window of opportunity of me joining them. They were looking for a guitarist and I met John at a party somewhere. He suggested that I come along for an audition, but only if I got rid of all that "nneeee, ggeeee, whhhheeeeey" bendy guitar stuff I liked to do (basically stop sounding like Hendrix). I think he suggested Haircut 100 as a role model. But before I contacted him I got the chance to do a US tour with Holly and the Italians, so I took that (well who wouldn't? Haircut 100!!!). When I came back Culture Club had already found someone and the rest as they say is history.

How did the general public take to yourself and local punks ?
 Back in Lincoln, everybody, even the members of the band I was in, thought I was mad. It was like Punk was the coming destruction of music, and perhaps civilisation itself. In London, it was different and it was just such a great time. Every night you were out either playing or watching groups. There was a real sense of being involved in a common project. It was a really exciting time, but you had to be there to know what I mean.

Audience reaction at gigs violence, gobbing ? 
The audience reactions varied. In London it was great in the early days. The people who came along were already well into Punk and knew what to expect. When we did the tour with the Stranglers however, the audiences were often perplexed, and on some occasions actively looking for trouble. This was all to do with the publicity. There was this idea that at Punk gigs there were fights. People in Punk groups were "ard", or at least that was the media image. So the local loonies used to come along to show that they were "arder". To teach those cocky young punks a lesson. It was mad. The gobbing; what was that all about? How can gobbing on somebody be a sign of liking them? If I remember correctly the Stranglers used to get involved in the violence quite a bit; and enjoy it.

How did you get your deal with MCA ? 
Because they were deaf obviously. Only joking; no idea. Our manager Simon Napier Bell, who incidentally used to have this big fur coat thrown over his shoulders all the time, got that together. I think MCA thought they needed a Punk group cos everybody else had one. But they never really understood itand marketed it all wrong; just look at the Animal Games cover.

You can tell that the band was musically proficient. Did you dumb yourselves down at all to fit in or adapt your sound to suit the times ? How would you describe your sound.
Actually, although I could play anything by Hendrix backwards I found the stuff Riff wanted me to do quite hard at first. He was coming from a kind of speeded up Ziggy Stardust/Mott the Hoople kind of thing and I had no idea of that stuff. All the chord changes were alien to me. So it took some time to adjust. Also there was just the sheer speed everything was played at. And I do remember that they were always on at me to stop playing that guitar solo stuff (but then everybody is on at me to stop that). John was a really good drummer and Steve could play as well, but I don't think they thought they were dumbing down. Look let's be honest here, we were always a second wave band. The innovators like the Pistols, the Clash, the Damned were what all\ the rest were trying to emulate. How would I describe the sound? "Thick, Fast and Heavy, with a melodic edge". Some of the tracks I think are really good in retrospect (No Time, for example).

What do you remember of the london scene .... the faces, places etc ?
This was a brilliant aspect. The Punk scene was still quite small and this meant when you went to a gig you would invariably see the "faces" and meet people. It was just like one big party all of the time. The Nashville was not far from me and I used to go there a lot and that was great.

What do you regard as the best London song and why ?
No Time, without a doubt; should have been a hit and probably still could be. Like I say listening back to it now I don't think the album is that bad.\ Some of the stuff I was doing on it is probably out of place, but people didn't realise that we were probably one of the first punk bands to use irony. The guitar intro to Summer of Love, for example, is meant to be a piss-take. The album is not a Punk classic, but then how many are. I'm pleased it's out on CD.

How did it all eventually end ?
Well, for one thing the money ran out. Second, John left to join the Damned I think. Third, the records didn't sell well enough. Fourth, I think all things Punk were intended to burn out soon. Anything which endured for any length of time wouldn't be Punk any more. It would have been incorporated into the mainstream and become boring. Punk was more than just a music movement, as I am sure you know. It was also a cultural and political smack in the face. But like all smacks in the face you don't want them to keep on happening.

Looking back on it how do you view your time in London in the punk years ?? Looking back what was your view of punk in general back then and what did it achieve ?
Punk was great. I had a great time. Punk obviously shook things up and they needed it. It's greatest impact, however, has not been on the music scene, but on culture at large. There is loads that we take for granted that simply could not have happened without Punk. Also, politically it is often forgotten the role Punk played in anti-racist movements and in bringing Reggae to prominence. And it is important to stress this because this point can get lost due to the links some people make between some of the racist "Skinhead" (not all Skinhead bands are racists) bands and Punk. I suppose this begins to answer your question re the change from 1977 to '78 and '79. By '79 there were lots of people involved who were much more into the whole violence thing. At the time, however, we didn't know any of this and anybody who tells you otherwise is lying (apart from the Clash perhaps), we werejust a bunch of young kids having fun and reacting to what was a dire music scene. We couldn't buy what we wanted, so we made it.

Any particular memories, gigs, incidents stand out ???
I do remember bumping into the Banshees at a motorway service station on the way back from a gig. There was no comeradery there. In fact the atmosphere was pretty hostile. Partly, I suppose because of the song title. But I just feel very privileged to have been around when it all happened. Whatever one thinks of the merits of the music it really was a perfect time to be young and in London (the place not the group). We thought we could do anything and lots of the time did. Sex, Drugs and Rock and Roll doesn't come into it.

What punk bands of the time did you like / dislike ???
The Pistols were great, so were the Clash and I like the Damned's first album. I also liked 999. Lot's of the bands were pretty good actually, but the whole thing was really about a live experience and didn't translate too well onto vinyl.

The End