Heart of a Punk Soul of a Rasta

The Damned 35th Anniversary Tour 2011
The Old Bastard's Refresher Guide.

If you're like me and were around to hear the "Black Album" the first time around, perhaps our Beginner's Guide is not for you. But fear not, we're not going to leave ya out. Here's our Old Bastard's Refresher Guide, designed for the more discerning, slightly infirmed, generally forgetful, often larger, usually balder Damned punter (male & female alike).

1/ Firstly buy your ticket, you'll never get through those changing room windows now. GO HERE

2/ Then watch the video of "Curtain Call" from C4's Whatever You Didn't Get (supplied herewith). Nice. But whatever happened to Keith Allen? I guess he never worked again. Shame.

3/ Read an old Fanzine featuring The Damned. Fanzines were great weren't they? So insightfull, but usualy foll of terisable spolling and puncturation.

C/ Find your gig ticket from the Black Album tour. Stare at it intensely. Now try to remember anything at all about that night, that week, or even any part of 1980. Yep its one big blank vacant void of nothingness isn't it.

7a/ Read a review of the "Black Album" from Sounds circa 22nd November '80 (supplied herewith). See the Black Album was/is a great bleedin' album. I bet NME said it was rubbish. Bunch of CFC's! (That's Cheeky F**ing C**ts to you).

5/ Next, dig out some Damned memorabilia. An old T shirt perhaps and see if it still fits. My "Machine Gun Etiquette" T Shirt still fits. My ten year old kid! (PS Whatever happened to my Smash it Up armband?)

10/ (Sub section D). Finally dig out some old photo's of The Damned. I bought these from Reddingtons Rare Records in Birmingham in '79. Do you remember when you could buy piccis of bands from record shops? They were usually 6 for .50p or 5 for a £1. Back in the day we used to think if we had a photo of a band it meant we also possessed their souls. Happy days.

So that's it.
Ready to go?
Yeah?
Wait a minute though.
I haven't listened to the bleeding album.

22b/ LISTEN TO THE BLACK ALBUM by the DAMNED!