The Starjets
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The Starjets were a late 1970s power pop/punk group from Belfast, Northern Ireland.
The band consisted of guitarist/vocalist Terry Sharpe, guitarist/vocalist Paul Bowen, bassist Sean Martin and drummer Liam L'Estrange. The group sported a mix of punk and mainstream pop influences. Early sets consisted of such 1960s pop standards as "Please Please Me" by The Beatles and "Sugar, Sugar" by The Archies at a time when such light, happy fare was an anathema to the punk community. The band also stood out from their punk contemporaries with their tight, sophisticated harmonies. Appropriately, they opened for groups as diverse as teen idols the Bay City Rollers and aggressive punk rockers Stiff Little Fingers. Because of their clean-cut, boys-next-door image, sugary songs, and amiable persona, they were sometimes even tagged the "Bay City Rollers of punk".
The group secured a major-label deal with Epic Records; they were signed by Muff Winwood. They released a number of singles in 1979, with their biggest hit being "War Stories" b/w "Do the Push", which peaked at #51 on the UK singles charts. The A-side is a celebration of World War II comic book stories, such as those of Sgt. Fury. They released one album, 1979's God Bless the Starjets, but it failed commercially. After two more singles in 1980, the band split up. Terry Sharpe found greater success in the 1980s with the rock group The Adventures. Though the band is largely forgotten today, they do show up on major compilations from time to time (such as Rhino Records' "DIY - Starry Eyes: UK Pop II" [1]), and their one album, recently re-issued on CD by punk specialty label Captain Oi! Records, received 4.5 stars in the All Music Guide, the second-highest rating possible.
[edit] External links
- Biography on the Mod-Pop-Punk Archives
- Discussion on BBC Northern Ireland's "The Saturday Magazine"
- Review of God Bless the Starjets in the All Music Guide.
- Review of God Bless the Starjets in Trouser Press
