Chris Bailey of The Saints

Tannin

Chris Bailey died on Monday. I was never a Saints fan but I recognise their status and significance, and know that Chris Bailey was their driving force. RIP.

Kittyfrisk

Wow. The Saints weren't my favourite band from that era, but (I'm) Stranded was a great, raw track that still evokes the period for me. RIP.

Tannin

The funny thing about (I'm) Stranded is that it was written and first performed in 1974 - long before the period officially began. 

Here is a nice obituary by my old mate and sparring partner Andrew Stafford - like Bailey, a Brisbane boy.

https://www.theguardian.com/music/2022/apr/11/chris-bailey-of-the-saints-the-voice-that-tore-across-the-world-and-changed-the-face-of-brisbane

I always rather liked this one from a couple of years later

DarnWeight

Always loved This Perfect Day, and this TOTP appearance in particular...



I guess in some ways they were kind of an Antipodean Stranglers, in that they predated punk, but were so stylistically in tune with it that they were labelled punk almost by default.  Fond of a lot of Ed Kuepper's subsequent output, but there's something special in those first few Saints records for sure.

RIP Chris