Martin And The Brownshirts

Martin And The Brownshirts

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Formed in Chester in March of '77 this band of teenagers went for a more Tubes/Zappa style of punk irony and parody and featured songs such as Taxi Driver, Klans' Man, Picadilly School Days and Boring. From the onset they attracted violence which their choice of name didn't help, bringing right wing lunatics to their gigs from Chester to London. Read Willie Williams excellent account from the link above.

The band played punk bastions the Roxy, Erics and the Vortex. They also managed one single - Taxi Driver / Boring (Lightning 1978) and like every other Lightning release it sank without trace despite being also released in Belgium !

"I left school at 16 - two months later I was in London making a record, and two months after that we split up."
Willie Williams Mojo Oct 2001

Band: Norman Graveney - Vocals.
Paul Urmston - Guitar. Addy Adams - Bass. Willie Williams - Drums.

This rather excellent frenetic toon about Mr De Niro - Taxi Driver - is well worth getting. The b-side Boring ain't bad either.

"We saw the film (Taxi Driver) together the week it came out. Next day we wrote the song in about 10 minutes."
Willie Williams 2001 from Mojo Oct 2001

Click to hear audio clip of 'Taxi Driver'


Above - A selection of Martin & The Brownshirts hand made posters supplied by Willie Williams

"Concerning Martin and the Brownshirts - yes they where real from Chester, later changed name to Angry Young Men??-if my memory serves me. The band I was in Psycho Mafia (Ellesmere Port) played support to 'em once (one of our 10 or so gigs-no recordings) Taxi Driver I thought was pretty good though Boring is a bit rent-a-punk (mind you I can't criticize being a bad imitation of Iggy/Rotten at the time! 1978-79)

Remember one of their gigs at a small club in Liverpool-The Swinging Apple (Eric's was my haunt and Chester Smartyz with occasional visits to Manchester) their name brought out the local NF in force The Apple being a fave with nazis anyway-much fighting in the bogs and a heavy night all round NF=NO FUN. I think this gig may at least have been part of the reason for the name change.'

Paul Hambleton 22.7.01 Email