Toyah (band)
Encyclopedia
Toyah is the name of the band fronted by Toyah Willcox
between 1977 and 1983. The only other consistent band member throughout this period was Joel Bogen
, Willcox's principal co-writer and guitarist.
, which used to rehearse at Golders Green cemetery and even did a few gigs there.
It was Glen Marks, though, who in 1976 introduced Toyah to a protege who was at his school called Joel Bogen
, whom she described alter as "a very accomplished musician", by far the most accomplished musician that she'd met at that time. With Joel she struck up a writing partnership. In the beginning they's only meet up on Sundays and write and answer ads from the NME. Then they got a keyboard player called Pete Bush who had a music room in his house in Totteridge where three of them could rehearse. Slowly the band came together "from friends of friends of friends".
's, Duke Of Lancaster on June 27, and gave three more concerts in London/ On July 13 the band performed at Young Vic Festival. The band began to record early demos in Willcox's converted warehouse called Mayhem - which comprised offices, recording and rehearsal rooms for many young bands on the London scene of the time.
Early demos recorded during 1978 included songs called "Mother", "Hunger Hill", "Eyes", "Computers", "Gaoler", "Waiting", "Danced", "Neon Womb", "Problem Child", "Little Boy" and "Israel", several of which would make it onto the band's early releases, and several others would emerge on the later rarities compilation Mayhem in 1985. And then the contract came. In 1980 she remembered:
In July 1979 Safari
released the band's debut single "Victims Of The Riddle
", described by the NME
as "a remarkably listenable slice of paranoia and macabre". It featured alongside Toyah Willcox, Joel Bogen and Peter Bush, Mark Henry (bass guitar) and Steve Bray (drums). "Once we were signed I really loved every moment of what happened. We were making a demo virtually once a month, we had to continually produce music, and that was great, because it gave the band focus, it made us feel really good, it put on a retainer 30 quid a week so we felt as if we were employed…", Toyah remembered. The band's next release was an extended 33⅓rpm EP
marketed as an "Alternate Play" record by their label Safari Records, entitled Sheep Farming In Barnet
, which came out in August 1979. The band followed this up with another non-album single, "Bird In Flight/Tribal Look
", and their full-length debut The Blue Meaning
(#40 UK Albums Chart) which one reviewer described as "Patti Smith on speed", another - as "Patti Smith off speed".
filmed the band during this period, both off-stage and on. The result was a hit documentary watched by 10 million viewers, propelling Toyah into the mainstream, and the live album Toyah! Toyah! Toyah!
.
By this time it became clear that Toyah gets all the attention from the press leaving her colleagues in shadows. "I can't help it if I have so much charisma I wipe four blokes off the stage - I don't believe that's true. If people prefer watching me it's not through my doing. I’d say, all due respect to the band - I work harder than any of them and it's up to them to keep up with me if they want as much publicity as I get", she argued in 1980. "When anything went wrong with the band a particular member would say it was because Toyah was acting. Which was a load of crap. So the band would go out, make mistakes, not rehearse enough, lose money, and they'd blame it on me because I was away acting. They couldn't live without me. They were totally dependent on me, so that overworked me. I was having to mother them the whole time. Which was ridiculous. They were like a bunch of old women, continually having periods as far as I was concerned", she told Paul Morley, adding that the group esented the attention she was getting, her tendency to want to write the music, the time she was away pursuing a role that created her image and diminished theirs.
on bass, Nigel Glockler
on drums and Adrian Lee
on keyboards, and released the hit EP "Four From Toyah
", the lead-track from which is a cover called "Its A Mystery" - originally recorded by Sheep Farming's producer Keith Hale and his band Blood Donor. "When I first heard 'It's a Mistery' I thought it wasn't for me. It was writted by a friend called Keith Hale for a band called Blood Donor and the record company wanted me to cover it…" Toyah remembred. She hated it, thinking it was the end of her career, "of four brilliant years' work as a credible rock artist... Because Id worked from 1977 right up to 1980 and I had an army of followers and I just knew this song wasn’t for them", she added. But the song proved to be a major success, and subsequent promotion pushed the EP to #4 in the UK singles charts
.
The album it was taken from, entitled Anthem
, reached #2 that same year, and also featured the hit "I Want To Be Free
", which charted highly in the UK (#8), Ireland (#10) and South Africa (#10). "It was resonated with how I felt about my school years which was very strong even if I was only 22", Toyah said later. The singer felt "We Are" might have been released as a single too. "I think history would have been re-written and we would have played Wembley in 1982 instead of Hammersmith for two nights. This was discussed between Safari and the promoters, that I could have been the first female artist to play Wembley Arena, but everyone played safe. Back then there would have been an audience backlash if we released three songs off the same album, we'd have been accused of ripping the fans off, it just wasn't done", she said in 2011.
A non-album single, "Thunder in the Mountains
", also hit the #4 spot. "In 'Thunder in the Mountains' I wanted to be Bodicea, set in the future, a woman breaking free… everything I did that year was on the concept of breaking free", Toyah commented later. The Four More from Toyah
EP followed, with its lead track "Good Morning Universe". This introduced Simon Phillips
on drums, who had replaced Nigel Glockler
(who had left to join Saxon
). "Simon Phillips joining the band certainly changed me and Joel, he was so totally bloody awesome. He raised the bar and gave the band huge credibility", Toyah later remarked. Both Phillips and Phil Spalding later were quoted to mention their time with the band Toyah as being a turning point for them as musicians. "We were a great band. We had a kind of ESP
on stage. For many musicians, they are told what they can and can't play and above all must never shine above the lead singer. With me I want a solid team where all the members are unique and I think this is why Phil and Simon enjoyed the experience", Toyah said.
Now seeing Adrian Lee's keyboard duties taken over by newcomer Simon Darlow and Joel Bogen, the band recorded a much darker gothic
album entitled The Changeling
. The album, made at the times Toyah described as being the hardest for her, was still a success, as was lead single "Brave New World", but neither reached the heights of their predecessors, and a follow-up single announced as "Dawn Chorus" never materialised - a new track, "Be Proud Be Loud (Be Heard)
" emerging instead. The album was followed by a tour, captured on the double live album Warrior Rock: Toyah On Tour
.
. Singles from the album failed to chart highly with the band's final single, "The Vow", peaking at #50.
Willcox and Bogen parted ways the following year - the pair writing several songs which never reached the recording studio, and Bogen co-writing one song for Toyah's debut solo album Minx in 1985. Toyah herself had left Safari at this point, after being signed to CBS
off-shoot Portrait as a solo artist. Safari released the rarities compilation Mayhem - featuring demos and unreleased songs - however, this was done without Toyah's consent or knowledge - she found out about the album by spotting it on import in a record store in America. The Mayhem compilation issued by Safari in 1985, was an un-autorised release. "Of all the albums I wish had not been released 'Mayhem' is the one. It's sub standard, with songs not intended for release. In fact it makes my blood boil when I think of the plain exploitation of this album, but hopefully it never sold many copies. The songs on it were rehearsal demos, never intended for anything other than workshopping ideas", Toyah said later.
Glockler joined Saxon
where he stayed for many years. Phillips was already a session musician when he joined Toyah and remains so. Phil Spalding became a session bassist. Toyah Willcox started the successful solo career. Her first album Minx was more a pop-oriented than her previous works; later she took a more experimental approach (Prostitute
), collaborating on several records with her husband, Robert Fripp
, and in 2000s returned to her late-1970s roots (Velvet Lined Shell
, In the Court of the Crimson Queen
). There were discussions regarding a Toyah band reunion in the late 1990s-early 2000s. For whatever reasons, it never got off the ground.
For more information on Toyah Willcox
's solo recordings, please refer to her individual wikipedia entry
.
Toyah Willcox
Toyah Ann Willcox is an English actress and singer. In a career spanning more than thirty years Toyah has had 13 top 40 singles, released 22 studio albums, written two books, appeared in over forty stage plays and ten feature films, as well as voicing and presenting numerous television shows...
between 1977 and 1983. The only other consistent band member throughout this period was Joel Bogen
Joel Bogen
Joel Bogen is an English rock and punk guitarist. He worked with Toyah Willcox from the late 1970s to 1983 as the guitar player in her eponymous band and was the co-writer on nearly all of the material they recorded. Bogen also produced Heaven, the 1997 debut album of neo soul artist Jai, for M&G...
, Willcox's principal co-writer and guitarist.
Background
Back in the National Theater, when she was 18, Toyah Willcox felt that was the right environment for her to work out how to put a band together: the theatre was full of musicians as well as actors. "Through a series of coincidences I just got involved in a punk band and that was purely from asking around y’know 'Has anybody got a band, does anyone need a singer?'" she remembered. First Toyah ended up in a punk band from Golders GreenGolders Green
Golders Green is an area in the London Borough of Barnet in London, England. Although having some earlier history, it is essentially a 19th century suburban development situated about 5.3 miles north west of Charing Cross and centred on the crossroads of Golders Green Road and Finchley Road.In the...
, which used to rehearse at Golders Green cemetery and even did a few gigs there.
It was Glen Marks, though, who in 1976 introduced Toyah to a protege who was at his school called Joel Bogen
Joel Bogen
Joel Bogen is an English rock and punk guitarist. He worked with Toyah Willcox from the late 1970s to 1983 as the guitar player in her eponymous band and was the co-writer on nearly all of the material they recorded. Bogen also produced Heaven, the 1997 debut album of neo soul artist Jai, for M&G...
, whom she described alter as "a very accomplished musician", by far the most accomplished musician that she'd met at that time. With Joel she struck up a writing partnership. In the beginning they's only meet up on Sundays and write and answer ads from the NME. Then they got a keyboard player called Pete Bush who had a music room in his house in Totteridge where three of them could rehearse. Slowly the band came together "from friends of friends of friends".
The band Toyah
In June 1977 the band played their first gig without a name or a bass player. After several line-up changes, they spent a brief period under the name Ninth Illusion, without recording any music. In the beginning of 1978 they met again and the idea of Toyah the band was born. Joel auditioned several musicians and chose Pete Bush (keyboards), Dave Robin (drums), and Windy Miller (bass), quartet quickly taking their name from their unusual vocalist and figurehead. Toyah debuted in BarnetBarnet
High Barnet or Chipping Barnet is a place in the London Borough of Barnet, North London, England. It is a suburban development built around a twelfth-century settlement and is located north north-west of Charing Cross. Its name is often abbreviated to Barnet, which is also the name of the London...
's, Duke Of Lancaster on June 27, and gave three more concerts in London/ On July 13 the band performed at Young Vic Festival. The band began to record early demos in Willcox's converted warehouse called Mayhem - which comprised offices, recording and rehearsal rooms for many young bands on the London scene of the time.
Early demos recorded during 1978 included songs called "Mother", "Hunger Hill", "Eyes", "Computers", "Gaoler", "Waiting", "Danced", "Neon Womb", "Problem Child", "Little Boy" and "Israel", several of which would make it onto the band's early releases, and several others would emerge on the later rarities compilation Mayhem in 1985. And then the contract came. In 1980 she remembered:
In July 1979 Safari
Safari Records
Safari Records was an UK independent record label based in London and operating between 1977 and 1985. Safari Records was formed early in 1977 by Tony Edwards , Andreas Budde and John Craig who previously ran Purple and Oyster Records...
released the band's debut single "Victims Of The Riddle
Victims of the Riddle
"Victims of the Riddle" was the debut single from the post-punk band Toyah, fronted by Toyah Willcox, and was released on July 27, 1979. The single, and its B-side, "Victims of the Riddle " were eventually featured on the LP version of Sheep Farming In Barnet, which was itself an extended reissue...
", described by the NME
NME
The New Musical Express is a popular music publication in the United Kingdom, published weekly since March 1952. It started as a music newspaper, and gradually moved toward a magazine format during the 1980s, changing from newsprint in 1998. It was the first British paper to include a singles...
as "a remarkably listenable slice of paranoia and macabre". It featured alongside Toyah Willcox, Joel Bogen and Peter Bush, Mark Henry (bass guitar) and Steve Bray (drums). "Once we were signed I really loved every moment of what happened. We were making a demo virtually once a month, we had to continually produce music, and that was great, because it gave the band focus, it made us feel really good, it put on a retainer 30 quid a week so we felt as if we were employed…", Toyah remembered. The band's next release was an extended 33⅓rpm EP
Extended play
An EP is a musical recording which contains more music than a single, but is too short to qualify as a full album or LP. The term EP originally referred only to specific types of vinyl records other than 78 rpm standard play records and LP records, but it is now applied to mid-length Compact...
marketed as an "Alternate Play" record by their label Safari Records, entitled Sheep Farming In Barnet
Sheep Farming In Barnet
Sheep Farming in Barnet is the debut album by Toyah, fronted by Toyah Willcox, released in 1979 by Safari Records. The album was originally released as a 6-track extended EP, dubbed an 'Alternate Play' record by Safari, and was later expanded into full-album status...
, which came out in August 1979. The band followed this up with another non-album single, "Bird In Flight/Tribal Look
Bird In Flight/Tribal Look
"Bird in Flight"/"Tribal Look" is the third single by Toyah, released on February 1, 1980, by Safari Records. Neither track was featured on an album at the time, though both were added to the 2002 reissue of Sheep Farming in Barnet//The Blue Meaning, and also on the 2005 compilation album The...
", and their full-length debut The Blue Meaning
The Blue Meaning
The Blue Meaning is the second album by Toyah, released in 1980 by Safari Records. Although not the first full-length release, this is often considered to be the band's first "proper" album....
(#40 UK Albums Chart) which one reviewer described as "Patti Smith on speed", another - as "Patti Smith off speed".
Commercial success
Following Willcox's appearance as punk musician Toola in an episode of the UK TV series Shoestring, ATVAssociated TeleVision
Associated Television, often referred to as ATV, was a British television company, holder of various licences to broadcast on the ITV network from 24 September 1955 until 00:34 on 1 January 1982...
filmed the band during this period, both off-stage and on. The result was a hit documentary watched by 10 million viewers, propelling Toyah into the mainstream, and the live album Toyah! Toyah! Toyah!
Toyah! Toyah! Toyah!
Toyah! Toyah! Toyah! is a live album recorded by Toyah on 17 June 1980 at the Lafayette Club in Wolverhampton. The concert was also filmed by ATV as part of a TV documentary about the band and its eponymous singer....
.
By this time it became clear that Toyah gets all the attention from the press leaving her colleagues in shadows. "I can't help it if I have so much charisma I wipe four blokes off the stage - I don't believe that's true. If people prefer watching me it's not through my doing. I’d say, all due respect to the band - I work harder than any of them and it's up to them to keep up with me if they want as much publicity as I get", she argued in 1980. "When anything went wrong with the band a particular member would say it was because Toyah was acting. Which was a load of crap. So the band would go out, make mistakes, not rehearse enough, lose money, and they'd blame it on me because I was away acting. They couldn't live without me. They were totally dependent on me, so that overworked me. I was having to mother them the whole time. Which was ridiculous. They were like a bunch of old women, continually having periods as far as I was concerned", she told Paul Morley, adding that the group esented the attention she was getting, her tendency to want to write the music, the time she was away pursuing a role that created her image and diminished theirs.
The line-up change
In 1981 the line-up changed, with only Willcox and Bogen remaining for the band's next set of releases. They were joined by Phil SpaldingPhil Spalding
Philip Spalding also known as Phil Spalding, is an English bass player. He is best known as a session musician and player of Fender Precision Bass guitars...
on bass, Nigel Glockler
Nigel Glockler
Nigel Glockler is an English drummer for the NWOBHM band, Saxon.His first professional musical experience was the UK band Krakatoa, followed by session work. He joined Toyah Willcox's band in late 1980...
on drums and Adrian Lee
Adrian Lee
Adrian Lee is an English musician, known especially for his brass instrumentation work with several well-known acts of the 1980s.-Career:...
on keyboards, and released the hit EP "Four From Toyah
Four from Toyah
"Four from Toyah" was the sixth UK single, and second EP by the band Toyah, fronted by Toyah Willcox, and was released in 1981. It was the first to feature the new band lineup of Willcox, Joel Bogen, Phil Spalding, Nigel Glockler and Adrian Lee. This was the breakthrough single for the band,...
", the lead-track from which is a cover called "Its A Mystery" - originally recorded by Sheep Farming's producer Keith Hale and his band Blood Donor. "When I first heard 'It's a Mistery' I thought it wasn't for me. It was writted by a friend called Keith Hale for a band called Blood Donor and the record company wanted me to cover it…" Toyah remembred. She hated it, thinking it was the end of her career, "of four brilliant years' work as a credible rock artist... Because Id worked from 1977 right up to 1980 and I had an army of followers and I just knew this song wasn’t for them", she added. But the song proved to be a major success, and subsequent promotion pushed the EP to #4 in the UK singles charts
UK Singles Chart
The UK Singles Chart is compiled by The Official Charts Company on behalf of the British record-industry. The full chart contains the top selling 200 singles in the United Kingdom based upon combined record sales and download numbers, though some media outlets only list the Top 40 or the Top 75 ...
.
The album it was taken from, entitled Anthem
Anthem (Toyah album)
Anthem was Toyah's most successful album to date, propelling them into both the UK Album Charts as well as the singles charts with releases of "It's a Mystery" and "I Want To Be Free"...
, reached #2 that same year, and also featured the hit "I Want To Be Free
I Want To Be Free
"I Want to Be Free" is the seventh UK single by the band Toyah, fronted by Toyah Willcox, and was released on 7 May 1981.Backed by an appearance on Top of the Pops, and bolstered by the performance of the previous single, "I Want to Be Free" entered the UK Top Ten with a peak at #8, and helped push...
", which charted highly in the UK (#8), Ireland (#10) and South Africa (#10). "It was resonated with how I felt about my school years which was very strong even if I was only 22", Toyah said later. The singer felt "We Are" might have been released as a single too. "I think history would have been re-written and we would have played Wembley in 1982 instead of Hammersmith for two nights. This was discussed between Safari and the promoters, that I could have been the first female artist to play Wembley Arena, but everyone played safe. Back then there would have been an audience backlash if we released three songs off the same album, we'd have been accused of ripping the fans off, it just wasn't done", she said in 2011.
A non-album single, "Thunder in the Mountains
Thunder in the Mountains
"Thunder in the Mountains" is the eighth UK single by the band Toyah, fronted by Toyah Willcox, and was released in 1981.The single, which was not included on an album at the time, continued the success of previous hits...
", also hit the #4 spot. "In 'Thunder in the Mountains' I wanted to be Bodicea, set in the future, a woman breaking free… everything I did that year was on the concept of breaking free", Toyah commented later. The Four More from Toyah
Four More From Toyah
"Four More From Toyah" was the ninth UK single, and third EP by the band Toyah, fronted by Toyah Willcox, and was released at the end of 1981....
EP followed, with its lead track "Good Morning Universe". This introduced Simon Phillips
Simon Phillips
Simon Phillips is an English jazz, pop and rock drummer.-Career:Phillips began to play professionally at the age of twelve in his father's Dixieland band for four years. He was then offered the chance to play in the musical Jesus Christ Superstar...
on drums, who had replaced Nigel Glockler
Nigel Glockler
Nigel Glockler is an English drummer for the NWOBHM band, Saxon.His first professional musical experience was the UK band Krakatoa, followed by session work. He joined Toyah Willcox's band in late 1980...
(who had left to join Saxon
Saxon (band)
Saxon are an English heavy metal band, formed in 1976 in Barnsley, Yorkshire. As front-runners of the New Wave of British Heavy Metal, they had 8 UK Top 40 albums in the 1980s including 4 UK Top 10 albums. Saxon also had numerous singles in the Top 20 singles chart...
). "Simon Phillips joining the band certainly changed me and Joel, he was so totally bloody awesome. He raised the bar and gave the band huge credibility", Toyah later remarked. Both Phillips and Phil Spalding later were quoted to mention their time with the band Toyah as being a turning point for them as musicians. "We were a great band. We had a kind of ESP
ESP
-General use:* Extrasensory perception, a paranormal ability* English for Specific Purposes, a subset of English language learning and teaching* Effective Sensory Projection, a term used in the Silva Method* Empire State Plaza in Albany, New York, U.S.A...
on stage. For many musicians, they are told what they can and can't play and above all must never shine above the lead singer. With me I want a solid team where all the members are unique and I think this is why Phil and Simon enjoyed the experience", Toyah said.
Now seeing Adrian Lee's keyboard duties taken over by newcomer Simon Darlow and Joel Bogen, the band recorded a much darker gothic
Gothic rock
Gothic rock is a musical subgenre of post-punk and alternative rock that formed during the late 1970s. Gothic rock bands grew from the strong ties they had to the English punk rock and emerging post-punk scenes...
album entitled The Changeling
The Changeling (album)
The Changeling was Toyah's follow-up album to the critically acclaimed Anthem. Although it has a similar overall sound, the band's writing took a darker, almost gothic direction...
. The album, made at the times Toyah described as being the hardest for her, was still a success, as was lead single "Brave New World", but neither reached the heights of their predecessors, and a follow-up single announced as "Dawn Chorus" never materialised - a new track, "Be Proud Be Loud (Be Heard)
Be Proud Be Loud (Be Heard)
"Be Proud Be Loud " is the twelfth UK single by the band Toyah, fronted by Toyah Willcox, and was released in 1982.The single, and its B-side were not included on an album at the time, though both would eventually be included on the 2005 reissue of Love Is the Law, while the title track became the...
" emerging instead. The album was followed by a tour, captured on the double live album Warrior Rock: Toyah On Tour
Warrior Rock: Toyah On Tour
Warrior Rock: Toyah On Tour is a live double LP recorded on 17 July and 18 July 1982 at London's Hammersmith Odeon at the end of Toyah's 25 date The Changeling tour....
.
Split
The final Toyah album, Love Is the Law, followed in 1983, and again saw another line-up change, with only Willcox, Bogen and Darlow remaining. Phillips had been replaced by Andy Duncan, and Spalding shared bass duties with Brad Lang: both Phillips and Spalding had moved on to work with Mike OldfieldMike Oldfield
Michael Gordon Oldfield is an English multi-instrumentalist musician and composer, working a style that blends progressive rock, folk, ethnic or world music, classical music, electronic music, New Age, and more recently, dance. His music is often elaborate and complex in nature...
. Singles from the album failed to chart highly with the band's final single, "The Vow", peaking at #50.
Willcox and Bogen parted ways the following year - the pair writing several songs which never reached the recording studio, and Bogen co-writing one song for Toyah's debut solo album Minx in 1985. Toyah herself had left Safari at this point, after being signed to CBS
CBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc. is a major US commercial broadcasting television network, which started as a radio network. The name is derived from the initials of the network's former name, Columbia Broadcasting System. The network is sometimes referred to as the "Eye Network" in reference to the shape of...
off-shoot Portrait as a solo artist. Safari released the rarities compilation Mayhem - featuring demos and unreleased songs - however, this was done without Toyah's consent or knowledge - she found out about the album by spotting it on import in a record store in America. The Mayhem compilation issued by Safari in 1985, was an un-autorised release. "Of all the albums I wish had not been released 'Mayhem' is the one. It's sub standard, with songs not intended for release. In fact it makes my blood boil when I think of the plain exploitation of this album, but hopefully it never sold many copies. The songs on it were rehearsal demos, never intended for anything other than workshopping ideas", Toyah said later.
Glockler joined Saxon
Saxon (band)
Saxon are an English heavy metal band, formed in 1976 in Barnsley, Yorkshire. As front-runners of the New Wave of British Heavy Metal, they had 8 UK Top 40 albums in the 1980s including 4 UK Top 10 albums. Saxon also had numerous singles in the Top 20 singles chart...
where he stayed for many years. Phillips was already a session musician when he joined Toyah and remains so. Phil Spalding became a session bassist. Toyah Willcox started the successful solo career. Her first album Minx was more a pop-oriented than her previous works; later she took a more experimental approach (Prostitute
Prostitute (Toyah album)
Prostitute is Toyah Willcox's 1988 album. It is a concept album and highly experimental in nature, marking a considerable divergence from previous works. It is uncompromising in its style, containing no obviously "radio-friendly" tracks....
), collaborating on several records with her husband, Robert Fripp
Robert Fripp
Robert Fripp is an English guitarist, composer and record producer. He was ranked 42nd on Rolling Stone magazine's 2003 list of the "100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time" and #47 on Gibson.com’s "Top 50 Guitarists of All Time". Among rock guitarists, Fripp is a master of crosspicking, a technique...
, and in 2000s returned to her late-1970s roots (Velvet Lined Shell
Velvet Lined Shell
Velvet Lined Shell is a 6 track mini-album by Toyah Willcox. It was cited as a return to her punk roots. Recorded in her home town of Birmingham, most of the tracks have a deliberately raw feel to them, with Willcox naming Nick Cave and Garbage amongst her newer influences.Like Toyah's first album,...
, In the Court of the Crimson Queen
In the Court of the Crimson Queen
- Personnel :* Toyah Willcox - vocals, author* Simon Darlow - drums, violin, producer, co-author* Alan Sawyers - artwork* Dean Stockings - photography-External links:* @ www.toyahwillcox.com....
). There were discussions regarding a Toyah band reunion in the late 1990s-early 2000s. For whatever reasons, it never got off the ground.
Albums
- Sheep Farming in BarnetSheep Farming In BarnetSheep Farming in Barnet is the debut album by Toyah, fronted by Toyah Willcox, released in 1979 by Safari Records. The album was originally released as a 6-track extended EP, dubbed an 'Alternate Play' record by Safari, and was later expanded into full-album status...
(1979) - The Blue MeaningThe Blue MeaningThe Blue Meaning is the second album by Toyah, released in 1980 by Safari Records. Although not the first full-length release, this is often considered to be the band's first "proper" album....
(1980) - Toyah! Toyah! Toyah!Toyah! Toyah! Toyah!Toyah! Toyah! Toyah! is a live album recorded by Toyah on 17 June 1980 at the Lafayette Club in Wolverhampton. The concert was also filmed by ATV as part of a TV documentary about the band and its eponymous singer....
(live recording) (1980) - AnthemAnthem (Toyah album)Anthem was Toyah's most successful album to date, propelling them into both the UK Album Charts as well as the singles charts with releases of "It's a Mystery" and "I Want To Be Free"...
(1981) - The ChangelingThe Changeling (album)The Changeling was Toyah's follow-up album to the critically acclaimed Anthem. Although it has a similar overall sound, the band's writing took a darker, almost gothic direction...
(1982) - Warrior Rock: Toyah on TourWarrior Rock: Toyah On TourWarrior Rock: Toyah On Tour is a live double LP recorded on 17 July and 18 July 1982 at London's Hammersmith Odeon at the end of Toyah's 25 date The Changeling tour....
(live recording) (1982) - Love Is the Law (1983)
Compilations
- Toyah! Toyah! Toyah!Toyah! Toyah! Toyah! (compilation)Toyah! Toyah! Toyah! is a compilation of tracks by Toyah, mostly from singles and EPs...
(K-telK-telK-tel International is an "As-Seen-On-TV" company, which is most noted for its compilation music albums, such as "The Super Hits" series, "The Dynamic Hits" series and "The Number One Hits" series...
album) (1984) - Mayhem (rare & archive material) (1985)
- Best Of Toyah (1994)
- The Very Best Of Toyah (1997)
- Live & More: Live Favourites & Rarities (1998)
- Proud, Loud & Heard: The Best Of Toyah (1998)
- The Safari Singles Collection Part 1: 1979-1981 (2005)
- The Safari Singles Collection Part 2: 1981-1983 (2005)
- Mayhem (Expanded Version) (rare & archive material) (2005)
- Good Morning Universe - The Very Best of Toyah (2008)
Singles
- Victims of the RiddleVictims of the Riddle"Victims of the Riddle" was the debut single from the post-punk band Toyah, fronted by Toyah Willcox, and was released on July 27, 1979. The single, and its B-side, "Victims of the Riddle " were eventually featured on the LP version of Sheep Farming In Barnet, which was itself an extended reissue...
(1979) - Sheep Farming in Barnet EPSheep Farming In Barnet EPSheep Farming in Barnet was the second single by Toyah, fronted by Toyah Willcox, released in 1979 by Safari Records. Originally released as a 6-track extended EP, dubbed an 'Alternate Play' record by Safari, the single was later expanded into full-album status, including the previous single,...
(AP) (1979) - Bird in Flight / Tribal Look (1980)
- IeyaIEYA"Ieya" was the fourth UK single from the post-punk band Toyah, fronted by Toyah Willcox, and was released in 1980. It was later remixed and re-issued in 1982....
(1980) - Danced (Live)Danced (Live)"Danced " is the fifth UK single from the post-punk band Toyah, fronted by Toyah Willcox. Their first and only live single, it was released at the end of 1980....
(live recording) (1980) - Four from ToyahFour from Toyah"Four from Toyah" was the sixth UK single, and second EP by the band Toyah, fronted by Toyah Willcox, and was released in 1981. It was the first to feature the new band lineup of Willcox, Joel Bogen, Phil Spalding, Nigel Glockler and Adrian Lee. This was the breakthrough single for the band,...
(EP) (1981) - I Want to Be FreeI Want To Be Free"I Want to Be Free" is the seventh UK single by the band Toyah, fronted by Toyah Willcox, and was released on 7 May 1981.Backed by an appearance on Top of the Pops, and bolstered by the performance of the previous single, "I Want to Be Free" entered the UK Top Ten with a peak at #8, and helped push...
(1981) - Thunder in the MountainsThunder in the Mountains"Thunder in the Mountains" is the eighth UK single by the band Toyah, fronted by Toyah Willcox, and was released in 1981.The single, which was not included on an album at the time, continued the success of previous hits...
(1981) - Four More from ToyahFour More From Toyah"Four More From Toyah" was the ninth UK single, and third EP by the band Toyah, fronted by Toyah Willcox, and was released at the end of 1981....
(EP) (1981) - Brave New World (1982)
- Ieya '82IEYA"Ieya" was the fourth UK single from the post-punk band Toyah, fronted by Toyah Willcox, and was released in 1980. It was later remixed and re-issued in 1982....
(new version of IEYA) (1982) - Be Proud Be Loud (Be Heard)Be Proud Be Loud (Be Heard)"Be Proud Be Loud " is the twelfth UK single by the band Toyah, fronted by Toyah Willcox, and was released in 1982.The single, and its B-side were not included on an album at the time, though both would eventually be included on the 2005 reissue of Love Is the Law, while the title track became the...
(1982) - Rebel RunRebel Run"Rebel Run" is the thirteenth UK single by the band Toyah, fronted by Toyah Willcox, and was released in September 1983, over a year after the band's previous single. The single reached number 24 on the UK Singles Chart, Spending a total of 5 weeks on the chart. It became 'Toyah's' seventh and...
(1983) - The Vow (1983)
For more information on Toyah Willcox
Toyah Willcox
Toyah Ann Willcox is an English actress and singer. In a career spanning more than thirty years Toyah has had 13 top 40 singles, released 22 studio albums, written two books, appeared in over forty stage plays and ten feature films, as well as voicing and presenting numerous television shows...
's solo recordings, please refer to her individual wikipedia entry
Toyah Willcox
Toyah Ann Willcox is an English actress and singer. In a career spanning more than thirty years Toyah has had 13 top 40 singles, released 22 studio albums, written two books, appeared in over forty stage plays and ten feature films, as well as voicing and presenting numerous television shows...
.
Band members
- Toyah Willcox - 1977-1983, vocals
- Joel Bogen - 1977-1983, guitars
- David Robin - 1977-1978, drums
- John Phillips - 1977, guitar
- Carrie Kotzberg - 1977, vocals
- Raja Curry - 1977, bass
- Tony Ollman - 1977-1978, bass
- Peter Bush - 1977-1980, keyboards
- John Windy Miller - 1978, bass
- Mark Henry - 1979, bass
- Steve Bray - 1979-1980, drums
- Charlie Francis - 1979-1980, bass
- Phil Spalding - 1980-1983, bass
- Nigel Glocker - 1981, drums
- Adrian Lee - 1981, keyboards
- Simon Phillips - 1982, drums
- Simon Darlow - 1982 (studio only) -1983, keyboards, 2007 onwards, keyboards, guitars
- Keith Hale - 1982, keyboards
- Chris Blackwell - 1982, drums
- Andy Duncan - 1983, drums and percussion
- Brad Lang - 1983, bass