The Wasps- Discography

The Wasps - Discography

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How would you describe The Wasps music? Poppy punk or as Sounds succinctly put it..."All Wasps songs ....are well constructed, paying strict attention to melody yet retain the more energetic traits of the orthodox new wave bands." The songs were good but they were never going to set the world alight in all honesty and that sounds worse than I mean. Two singles in nearly two years meant they had a mountain to climb. The John Peel sessions give a much better idea of the band.

Teenage Treats / She Made Magic (4 Play Records 1977)
Reviewed by John Savage in Sounds 3.12.77 he wrote...More punk but after the undistinguished verses there's a great hook and some insinuating high-register guitar. And a middle eight. In other words, more than routine rent -a-riffs; some originality. Maybe with time, a minor-league classic.

Fair comments. The single IS a minor punk classic. The back cover reads..."what you are holding in your hands is more than a single. If we are lucky, it is debut." Ahh the dreams of youth!!!

Band: Steve Wollaston - Bass. Johnny Rich - Drums. Gary Wellman - Guitar. Vocals - Jesse Lyn-Dean

Contributed two songs to the Live At The Vortex album (Nems 1978) - Can't Wait Till '78 & Waiting For My Man. The album got a real drubbing in the music press but that withstanding, The Wasps contributions rate as arguably the best on the album and Can't Wait Till '78 is another gem which incidentally was featured on the single from the album (along with Mean Street's Bunch Of Stiffs). Nice touch covering Waiting For My Man and explaining in the pre song lead in that "if Lou Reed was alive now this is how he would have done it"!!

Rubber Cars / (RCA 1979)
Average single that sank without a trace. Gary Wellman described it as 'pure shit' which is a little harsh. Steve Wollaston says it was the fastest selling RCA single and destined for No1 in the charts but I can't verify this.

Danny Baker in NME 24.2.79 wrote..."I can feel a rage coming on....The Wasps sing fly in the air nonsense under a cloak of closed-club intellectualism, fake wonder Floyd inflection and drawing board 'clever song' structure. Did I fight the war to hear them abuse hard worn privileges so?"

The Band. Jesse only original member. Neil Fitch - Guitar. Dave Owen - Bass. Tiam Grant - Drums. (However Steve Wollaston reckons original band played on single and Tiam says they did overdubs.)

Two John Peel sessions

22.2.78
Teenage Treats, J-J-J-J-Jenny, She Made Magic, Something To Tell You. (Bass on all tracks - Steve Dominic ( aka Wollaston))

Band: Steve Wollaston - Bass. Johnny Rich - Drums. Gary Wellman - Guitar. Vocals - Jesse Lyn-Dean

20.2.79
Angelica, Rubber Cars, She's Alarming, This Time

The Band. Jesse only original member. Neil Fitch - Guitar. Dave Owen - Bass. Tiam Grant - Drums.

Punkryonics (Overground 2003)

Good compilation featuring debut single and demos from throughout their career including Rubber Cars, JJJ-Jenny and Can't Wait Till '78. Sadly not featuring the John Peel sessions. Entertaining sleeve notes too.

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