We are the mods!

                                    We Are The Mods!



     

Mod culture was born from London's west end underground jazz clubs in the late 1950s.
The name "mod" came as a result from their taste in modernist jazz, this early incarnation of mods had very little impact outside of London.
This somewhat group of so called intellectual and elitist mods gave way to the next incarnation of mods, and it's in this second incarnation that the scooter boys on Brighton's beaches can be found! Mod culture, with it's symbols,fashion and music was very much a working class movement. It influenced the masses and infiltrated the high street at every level.
It was all encompassing, and it was very much a product of it's time!
In one of The Daily Mail editions of 1963 it was reported 'to be a mod... is more than a fashion. It is almost a way of life!

Looking at the mod culture for anyone who likes pop music and pop culture of yesteryear, is a great way to examine the British pop music and youth fashion explosion of the 1960s in general.

Partly as a result of no more military conscription and partly as a result of teenagers having jobs and a little more money to spend!

Popular pop television show, Ready, steady, go! that was televised every friday night was clearly aimed at the the "mod" market!

Fashion boutiques across the country benefitted enormously from this with the programs bands, singers, male and female dancers alike wearing mod fashions and the latest styles and look being

freely advertised. Mod culture was changing the face of british life and challenging  politicians who were struggling with the horror of losing cultural control over the youth media with the `onslaught of pirate radio stations such as Radio Caroline and Radio London! Teenagers wanted more air time for their favourite pop groups! The Beatles, The Who, The small faces, The Kinks, The rolling stones ect

And back in the day The BBC only had 1 to 2 hours a day for this massive market! 

The British government of the day fought hard and aggressively to close those stations down.

Mod culture brightened up dreary and finically crushed post war Briton and also with the international success of bands like The Beatles opening the flood gates for other Brit pop outfits sending mod culture all over the world!

The British Taxman had a huge mod smile on His or Her face!

Piagio whom make vespa scooters and lambretta scooters the two most popular brands of motor scooters amongst mods also did very nicely out of the mod explosion! 

My 1996 PX 200 Vespa is a pleasure to ride! Motor bike riders just don't get it! They still feel the need to ride up along side me and the drag me off! As if i don't know a motor 10 times the size of mine has more power...

But hey.... They can't understand can they? It's a way of life!

 

Artic Monkeys.

                                                                    Artic Monkeys

Arctic Monkeys are an English indie rock band formed in 2002 in High Green, a suburb of Sheffield. The band consists of Alex Turner, (lead vocals, lead/rhythm guitar), Jamie Cook (rhythm/lead guitar), Nick O'Malley (bass guitar, backing vocals), and Matt Helders (drums, backing vocals). Former member Andy Nicholson (bass guitar, backing vocals) left the band in 2006 shortly after its debut album was released.

The band have released five studio albums: Whatever People Say I Am, That's What I'm Not (2006), Favourite Worst Nightmare (2007), Humbug (2009), Suck It and See (2011) and AM (2013), as well as one live album At the Apollo(2008).

The band's debut album is the fastest-selling debut album in British music history, surpassing Elastica's self-titled album.  The band have won seven Brit Awards—winning both Best British Group and Best British Album three times, and have twice been nominated for Grammy Awards.  The band also won the Mercury Prize in 2006 for their debut album, in addition to receiving nominations in 2007 and 2013  The band have headlined at the Glastonbury Festival twice, in 2007 and again in 2013.

Arctic Monkeys were heralded as one of the first group of acts to come to public attention via the Internet (through fan-based sites rather than from the band), with commentators suggesting they represented the possibility of a change in the way in which new bands are promoted and marketed.

http://www.theoompahroundabout.com/

http://youtu.be/fX4Unxsa_HA

http://youtu.be/WvPhAIBeNNk

http://youtu.be/2M_Vwx-G7MA

http://youtu.be/J4sC_0kmHxs

http://youtu.be/KissP4ol55Q

http://youtu.be/gB7MYNsMZ18

The Troggs.

                                                                      The Troggs.

 The Troggs are an English rock band from the 1960s that had a number of hits in the UK and the US. Their most famous songs include the Hot 100 chart topper "Wild Thing", "With a Girl Like You" and "Love is All Around", all of which sold over one million copies and were awarded gold discs.^[1] "Wild Thing" is ranked #257 on the Rolling Stone magazine's list of The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time and was an influence on garage rock and punk rock.

Fronted by Reg Presley, the Troggs were from the town of Andover in southern England and were originally called the Troglodytes.

Paul Weller

                                                                       Paul Weller.

Paul Weller (born 25 May 1958) is a British musician and singer-songwriter. Starting with the band The Jam (1976–82), Weller went on to branch out musically to a more soulful style with The Style Council (1983–89). In 1991 he established himself as a successful solo artist, and remains a respected singer, lyricist and guitarist.

Despite widespread critical recognition, Weller has remained a national rather than an international star, and much of his songwriting is rooted in British culture. He is also the principal figure of the 1970s and 80s mod revival and is often referred to as the Modfather.

Elvis Costello.

                                                                     Elvis Costello.

Elvis Costello (born Declan Patrick MacManus; 25 August 1954) is an English singer-songwriter.  He began his career as part of London's pub rock scene in the early 1970s and later became associated with the first wave of the British Punk & New Wave movement of the mid-to-late 1970s.  His critically acclaimed debut album, My Aim Is True, was recorded in 1976. Shortly after recording his first album he formed The Attractions as hisbacking band. His second album, This Year's Model, was released in 1978, and was ranked number 11 by Rolling Stone on its list of the best albums of the period 1967-1987. Costello and The Attractions toured and recorded together for the better part of a decade, though differences between them caused a split by 1986. Much of Costello's work since has been as a solo artist, though reunions with members of The Attractions have been credited to the group over the years.

Steeped in wordplay, the vocabulary of Costello's lyrics is broader than that of most popular songs. His music has drawn on many diverse genres; one critic described him as a "pop encyclopaedia", able to "reinvent the past in his own image".

Costello has won multiple awards in his career, including a Grammy Award, and has twice been nominated for the Brit Award for Best British Male. In 2003, Costello and The Attractions were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. In 2004, Rolling Stoneranked Costello number 80 on their list of the 100 Greatest Artists of All Time.