Whot? U never 'eard of the Villains?

Well, maybe they were before your time, or you weren't in Canada from 1980 - 1986 because if you were, you would have heard of the legendary Canadian based Ska Band "The Villains". Count Steve and Tom Perry got together in Vancouver, B.C. in the late 70's, saw opportunity, returned to the UK and put together a hard driving ska band in London with the full intention of becoming a Canadian / N. American Ska Band of some note. The Villains did come to Canada and toured non-stop across Canada for over 5 years, setting attendance and breaking bar records from coast to coast. This amazing band: (* Tom Perry - Sax, * Dave Neal - guitar, vocals, songwriter, * Count Steve - lead vocals, steel drums, * Tommy Robertson - bass, vocals * Skankin Steve - drums) basically went on a Ska Crusade for 5 years. At the time there were only 1 or 2 other ska bands playing in Canada. The Specials opened for the Police on a Canadian Tour and there was a very good local Vancouver ska band called the B-Sides and that was about it for Ska and Canadian Music Scene until the Villains arrived......... Oh, and how they arrived!!! (and the reason why this writer got involved in managing the band). When the band arrived in Vancouver they created quite the buzz and received over the top media coverage as Ska Sensations direct from London. One night while performing a "showcase" at one of the top local live music venues, the immigration police swarmed the club and arrested the band right off the stage. It seems that a local band or agent had snitched the lads off to the officials saying that that they didn't have proper working visas to be allowed in Canada. Turns out the local snitch was right. Picture this! Photo on the front page of the local papers the next day, the Villains stepping into the Paddy Wagon, smiling at the camera, tipping their pork pie hats, dressed in zebra pants, Doc Martin boots, or Creepers w/ 2 inch soles, black pea coats, tight tartan, multi-zippered suits and totally skinhead. That was the day I accepted the invitation to manage the Villains, I could not stand to see this kind of publicity go to waste. We managed to get the band released after a few days in the pokey where they were allowed to "voluntarily leave the country" as opposed to being "deported" which allowed me to fiie the proper paperwork and bring the band back to Canada legally. Another strange twist, when the band was arrested, Vancouver was in the middle of a civic strike that had been on-going for quite some time. Because of the strike, the normal immigration issue related detention facility was not being staffed and therefore, the Villains were checked into the local Prison as a temporary holding place until they appeared in court and were allowed to depart Canada. You can imagine the apprehension in the band's minds as they find out they are being sent to PRISON, turns out the lads reputation had preceded them into the prison and the word was out that these "Villains" were famous and super cool. Instead of being abused, they were treated like rock stars including an autograph request from the Warden. And, believe it or not, that is not the end of it. When the Villains returned legally to Canada, their very first performance was a show they did for the inmates of the prison where they had been held only months before. As they say, the rest is music history. After the prison show, the band sold out the Fabulous Commodore Ballroom, then the U of Calgary, then U of Alberta, Edmonton, etc. right across the country. Sold out shows and broken bar records every where the Villains played. Very few music groups have ever received the amount of press and media coverage that the Villains garnered during their first 3 national tours. They typically received large write ups in the local papers (how could you write about the Villains without including one or more photos to back up the article, they were extreme in appearance and their many humorous interviews amounted to "shock and Awe". Picture a skinhead band in full ska gear marching thru the local paper's newsroom looking to introduce themselves to the local music critic. To put a positive spin on the fact we were a skinhead band, we headlined anti-KKK rallies, performed free concerts for sick kids at local hospitals across Canada. Activities such as that generated media coverage that most bands never reveive such as aricles in McLeans magazine and Canada's # 1 newspaper, the Globe and Mail did a major article on the Villains on their front page of the entertainment section. The Villains were a high energy, non stop action on stage dance band known for their wacky, unpredictable stage shows. At one point in the middle of a sold out show at the Commodore Ballroom, we gaffer taped our sax player to a highchair and shaved his head for an encore. Another time we put the 6 ft 6in tall guitarist on stilts making him well over 8 1/2 ft tall. The band released a 4 song EP called "Life of Crime" which sold out and is now considered a collectors item on Ebay. Over the last 3 years of the bands touring, there were some personnel changes but the band always delivered on stage. By 1984 the band has signed with Attic Records in Toronto and released "Go Crazy" a pop-ska album that received national airplay with a video in heavy rotation the first few months after the launch of the Much Music Video Channel. The band never broke up, we just agreed to stop playing live and follow other pursuits as it felt like we had done everything we could do at the time as a touring and recording dance band. The guitarist and songwriter, Dave Neal after the Villains retired, co-founded the great Vancouver, BC based Ska Band called "SkaBoom" who recently released a new CD and are performing around the Pacific Northwest. Check out myspace/skaboom or www.skaboom.ca Now, the interesting news is that the Villains sax player, Tom Perry aka Jock Stap, has put a hot, new Villains dance band together, they are booked in a Studio in Vancouver, BC to record a CD of new ska tunes mixed with Villains versions of a few ska standards. Original band members, Count Steve, singer and Jon Niemann, keyboards, will also be contributing to the new record. Expect a new Villains CD and N American Tour in Late spring 08. I invite any comments from those who might remember or have heard of the Villains or those who want to know more about the return of the Villains, who have been called "the Blues Brothers of Ska" and "Ska Na Na". For up-dates on the VILLAINS - check out http://villains.skaspot.com cheers, dc