X-Ray Spex
One of the most inventive, original and genuinely exciting groups to appear during the punk era, X-Ray Spex were the brainchild of the colourful Poly Styrene (Marion Elliot), whose exotic clothes and tooth brace established her as an instant punk icon. With a line-up completed by Lora Logic, later replaced by Glyn Johns (saxophone), Jak Stafford (guitar), Paul Dean (bass) and B.P. Hurding (drums), the group began performing in 1977 and part of their second gig was captured for posterity on the seminal Live At The Roxy WC2. A series of extraordinary singles including Germ Free Adolescents, Oh Bondage Up Yours, The Day The World Turned Dayglo and Identity were not only rivetting examples of high energy punk, but contained provocative, thoughtful lyrics berating the urban synthetic fashions of the '70s and urging individual expression. Always ambivalent about her pop-star status, Poly dismantled the group in 1979 and joined the Krishna Consciousness Movement. X-Ray Spex's final single, Highly Inflammable was coupled with the pulsating Warrior In Woolworths, a parting reminder of Poly's early days as a shop assistant. Although she reactivated her recording career with the album TRANSLUCENCE (1980) and a 1986 EP GODS AND GODDESSES, no further commercial success was forthcoming.