Eddie & The Hot Rods

Eddie and the Hot Rods
Eddie & the Hot Rods
Background information
Also known as	The Rods
Origin	Canvey Island, Essex, England
Genres	Pub rock, punk rock, new wave
Years active	1975–1981, 1984–1985, 2000-present
Labels	Island, EMI, Voiceprint, Wienerworld
Associated acts	The Damned, The Kursaal Flyers, Plus Support, The Inmates, Dr. Feelgood, John Otway
Website	www.eddieandthehotrods.com
Members	Barrie Masters Simon Bowley Ian "Dipster" Dean Richard Holgarth Chris Taylor
Past members	Graeme Douglas Paul Gray Lew Lewis Paul Curtis Steve Nicol Tony Cranney Dave Higgs Gary Loker Gordon Russell Pete Wall Ian Nix Rob Steele Russ Strutter Warren Kennedy Tony Cranney Tex Axile Steve Walwyn Mick Rodgers Madman Keyo Jess Phillips/Steve Kehoe

Eddie and the Hot Rods are a pub rock band from Essex founded in 1975. They are best known for their 1977 UK top ten hit "Do Anything You Wanna Do", released under the name The Rods. The group broke up in 1981, but have reformed reformed several times since, with singer Barrie Masters the only constant member.

The band was formed in Canvey Island during 1975 by guitarist Dave Higgs (who had previously played in the Fix with Lee Brilleaux), with drummer Steve Nicol, bassist Rob Steele, and singer Barrie Masters.

Before rising to semi-stardom in 1977, the Hot Rods underwent several changes in personnel: One of the first members to leave the band was Eddie himself, a dummy that featured prominently in the Hot Rods' early gigs and was discarded as the joke had worn thin. Otherwise, the band consisted of Barrie Masters on vocals, Pete Wall and Dave Higgs on guitar, Rob Steele on bass and Steve Nicol on drums. Ed Hollis (brother of Talk Talk's Mark Hollis) became their manager.

In May 1975, after building a live reputation, they secured a Saturday-night residency at The Kensington in London. This was followed in October by a joint residency with The 101ers at The Nashville, playing alternate headline sets. In November, after positive press reviews of their live shows, they were signed by Island Records.

By 1976, Lew Lewis (harmonica) and Paul Gray (bass) had replaced Wall and Steele. Lewis's tenure in the group lasted for the release of their first two singles before he too left. With this new line-up, the Hot Rods played a set at London's famous Marquee Club – their opening act was a young band named the Sex Pistols playing their first London gig, which descended into chaos with the Pistols smashing the Hot Rods' gear; During a residency at the club in the summer of 1976 they duelled for alternate weeks with AC/DC, to see who could cram more bodies into the Marquee during one of the hottest summers on record. They first appeared in the UK Singles Chart the end of that year with the Live at the Marquee EP and the single "Teenage Depression", an energetic rock and roll song.