Big Audio Dynamite
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| Big Audio Dynamite | ||
|---|---|---|
 left to right: Leo Williams, Greg Roberts, Mick Jones, Don Letts, Dan Donovan (1986)
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| Background information | ||
| Origin | London, England | |
| Genre(s) | Post-punk, dance, rock | |
| Years active | 1983–1998 | |
| Label(s) | CBS Records, Radioactive Records | |
| Members | ||
| Mick Jones | ||
Big Audio Dynamite (later known as Big Audio Dynamite II and Big Audio, and often abbreviated BAD) was a British musical group formed in 1984 by the ex-guitarist and singer of The Clash, Mick Jones. The group was noted for its effective mixture of varied musical styles, incorporating elements of punk rock, dance music, hip-hop, reggae, and funk into a unique sound. BAD's one constant throughout frequent shifts in membership and musical direction was the distinct vocal style of Mick Jones.
Contents |
[edit] Big Audio Dynamite (1984 - 1990)
- Lineup:
- Mick Jones - guitars & vocals
- Don Letts - sound effects & vocals
- Dan Donovan - keyboards
- Leo Williams - bass
- Greg Roberts - drums & background vocals
The group's initial incarnation, founded by Jones and film director Letts (maker of The Punk Rock Movie, various Clash music videos, and later the Clash documentary Westway to the World), debuted with the 1985 release This Is Big Audio Dynamite. Curiously, the album's cover shows the group as a four-piece (minus Donovan); the full group is pictured on the back cover.
1986's No. 10, Upping St. reunited Jones for one album with former Clash-mate Joe Strummer, who was a co-producer of the album and co-writer of a number of its songs. BAD supported U2 on their 1987 world tour, then followed with 1988's Tighten Up, Vol. '88 and 1989's Megatop Phoenix.
[edit] Big Audio Dynamite II (1991-1993)
- Lineup:
- Mick Jones - guitar & vocals
- Nick Hawkins - guitar & background vocals
- Gary Stonadge - bass & background vocals
- Chris Kavanagh - drums & background vocals
For 1991's The Globe, only Jones remained from the previous assemblage, and the band was now called Big Audio Dynamite II. This new line-up, featuring two guitarists, was more "Clash-like" and, possibly as a result, often played heavier, more alternative rock-influenced music. The Globe produced the band's most commercially successful single, "Rush" which hit #1 on the US modern rock charts.
[edit] Big Audio (1994)
- Lineup:
- Mick Jones - guitar & vocals
- Nick Hawkins - guitar & background vocals
- Gary Stonadge - bass & background vocals
- Chris Kavanagh - drums & background vocals
- Andre Shapps - keyboards
- Michael 'Zonka' Custance - DJ, percussion & background vocals
The band later recruited keyboardist Andre Shapps (co-producer of The Globe) and Michael "DJ Zonka" Custance as DJ and vocalist. Both appeared on the band's 1994 album Higher Power, which was released under the shortened name "Big Audio," which fans often called them. The album wasn't as well-received as The Globe or previous BAD albums; there was a joke going around amongst fans about the removal of "Dynamite" from the band's name (they claimed the group had "lost their ka-boom").
After signing with Gary Kurfirst's Radioactive Records in 1995, the band released its least successful album, F-Punk, which (despite the same personnel as Higher Power) was credited to Big Audio Dynamite.
[edit] Post-1995
- Lineup:
- Mick Jones - guitar & vocals
- Andre Shapps - keyboards
- Darryl Fulstow - bass (1996 - 1998)
- Bob Wond - drums (1996 - 1998)
- Ranking Roger - vocals (1996 - 1998)
BAD found its proposed next album, Entering a New Ride, in limbo - the record company apparently refused to release it.[citation needed] Spotlighted in this new line-up was vocalist Ranking Roger (The Beat, General Public). In 1998, the band launched a new web site, primarily as a means to distribute songs from the Entering a New Ride album to the group's fans.
As of 2005, Jones is working on a project with Tony James (ex-member of Generation X and Sigue Sigue Sputnik) called Carbon/Silicon.
[edit] Discography
[edit] Albums
| Year | Album | UK | US | Additional information |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1985 | This is Big Audio Dynamite | 27 | 103 | as "Big Audio Dynamite" |
| 1986 | No. 10, Upping St. | 11 | 135 | as "Big Audio Dynamite" |
| 1988 | Tighten Up, Vol. 88 | 33 | 102 | as "Big Audio Dynamite" |
| 1989 | Megatop Phoenix | 26 | 85 | as "Big Audio Dynamite" |
| 1990 | Flashback Movie Soundtrack | 98 | 86 | as "Big Audio Dynamite" |
| 1990 | Kool-Aid | - | - | as "Big Audio Dynamite II" |
| 1991 | The Globe | - | 76 | as "Big Audio Dynamite II", Gold Certified |
| 1991 | Ally Pally Paradiso | - | - | The "Live Official Bootleg", as "Big Audio Dynamite II" |
| 1993 | The Lost Treasures of Big Audio Dynamite I & II | - | - | double album compilation of rare 12" cuts and b-sides |
| 1994 | Higher Power | - | - | as "Big Audio" |
| 1995 | Planet B.A.D. | - | - | general "best of" compilation for all B.A.D. variants |
| 1995 | F-Punk | - | - | as "Big Audio Dynamite" |
| 1997 | Entering a New Ride | - | - | released on the Internet |
| 1999 | Super Hits | - | - | general "best of" compilation for all B.A.D. variants |
[edit] Chart singles
| Year | Song | UK singles | US Hot 100 | US Modern Rock | Album |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1986 | "The Bottom Line" | 97 | - | - | This Is Big Audio Dynamite |
| 1986 | "E=MC2" | 11 | - | - | This Is Big Audio Dynamite |
| 1986 | "Medicine Show" | 29 | - | - | This Is Big Audio Dynamite |
| 1986 | "C'Mon Every Beat Box" | 51 | - | - | No 10, Upping Street |
| 1987 | "V Thirteen" | 47 | - | - | No 10, Upping Street |
| 1987 | "Sightsee MC" | 94 | - | - | No 10, Upping Street |
| 1988 | "Just Play Music!" | 51 | - | 1 | Tighten Up, Vol. 88 |
| 1988 | "Other 99" | 81 | - | 13 | Tighten Up, Vol. 88 |
| 1989 | "James Brown" | - | - | 2 | Megatop Phoenix |
| 1989 | "Contact" | 86 | - | 6 | Megatop Phoenix |
| 1990 | "Free" | - | 77 | 22 | Flashback (Soundtrack) |
| 1991 | "Rush" | - | 32 | 1 | The Globe |
| 1991 | "The Globe" | - | 72 | 3 | The Globe |
| 1994 | "Looking For a Song" | 68 | - | 24 | Higher Power |
[edit] Sound clip
- Big Audio Dynamite - E=MC2 excerpt (file info) — play in browser (beta)
- An excerpt from E=MC2
- Problems listening to the file? See media help.
[edit] Trivia
- 'E=MC2' features samples from the 1970 gangster film Performance starring James Fox and Mick Jagger and is considered the first world popular hot song to feature newly refined sampling technologies [1].
- 'E=MC2' has been covered live a few times by the band HARD-Fi. One notable performance of this (mentioned on NME's website) was at Brixton Academy on 15 May 2006, a gig also guested by Billy Bragg and Paul Weller. No official (or bootleg) recording of this cover is known to exist at present. On 18 May 2006, at the end of HARD-Fi's record-equalling five night residency of Brixton Academy (a record matched by The Clash amongst others) they were joined onstage by Mick Jones one song into their three song encore for their final performance of 'E=MC2'.
- Mick Jones was noted for playing a high-tech British-made guitar called the Bond Electraglide with BAD. It's worn by Mick Jones on the cover of No. 10 Upping St.
[edit] See also
- Dreadzone
- Sigue Sigue Sputnik (featuring Chris Kavanagh from BAD II and Jones' partner in Carbon/Silicon Tony James)
