Ian Dury

Youth

Born in Upminster, district of the London district of Havering, Dury suffers as of 7 years from a Poliomyélite which it according to him had contracted in a swimming pool. It preserved an atrophied leg of it.

Dury studied in particular with the Royal College off Art where it had in particular as professor Peter Blake and began a career in artistic teaching in 1967, year during which it married Betty Rathnell. The couple had two children, Baxter and Jemima. They divorced in 1985 and Betty died in 1994.

Kilburn and the High Roads

In 1971, following the death of its idol Gene Vincent, Dury decided to form a group, Kilburn and the High Roads, which was made a name in the circuit Pub rock'n'roll. Dury sang and Co-wrote the songs with the pianist Russell Hardy. However, in spite of a good press and a first part of The Who, the group never took off really and separated in 1975.

Blockheads

Dury created then the group Ian Dury and the Blockheads , in particular with Chaz Jankel as guitarist. The group succeeds in placing a certain individual number of S in the hit parade, such as " Hit Me With Your Rhythm Stick" or " celebrates it; Sex and Drugs and Rock'n'roll " (1977), expression become emblematic one time.

The style of Blockheads mixed the gouaille cockney and the corrosive humor of Dury with a music in which one could find mutiples influences, the whole coloured by the image of punk removed from rim of Dury.

In 1981, Dury dissolves Blockheads and began a career solo. In 1998, he learned that he suffered from a cancer and reformed the Blockheads for a new album Mr. Love Pants and a series in concerts which were completed with its death in 2000. Blockheads continue " however; tourner" , although each musician has his own career independently of this homage group.

Dury also played in many films, musical comedies and plays.

His/her son, Baxter Dury; started a musical career.

Discography

Individual

Rough Kids/Billy Bentley (1974)
Crippled With Nerves/Huffety Puff (1975)
Sex and Drugs and Rock'n'roll & Roll/Razzle In My Pocket (1977)
Sweet Gene Vincent/You' Re More Than Fair (1977)
Sex and Drugs and Rock'n'roll & Roll/Two Stiff Steep Hills/England' S Glory (1977) - NME Give-a-way
What has Waste/Wake Up And Make Love With Me (1978)
Hit Me With Your Rhythm Stick/There Ain' T Half Been Summon Clever Bastards (1978)
Billy Bentley/Pam' S Moods (1978)
Reasons To Be Cheerful (Pt .3)/Common As Muck (1979)
I Want To Be Straight/That' S Not All (1980)
Superman' S Big Sister/You' L See Glimpses (1980)
Spasticus Autisticus/(Instrumental) (1981)
Really Glad You Came/(You' Re My) Inspiration) (1983)
Very Personal/Ban The Bomb (1984)
Hit Me With Your Rhythm Stick (Re-mix)/Sex And Drugs And Rock'n'roll/Reasons To Be Cheerful, Share 3/Wake Up And Make Love With Me (1985)
Profoundly In Coils With Pandora/Eugenius (You' Re has Genius) (1989)
Apples/Byline Brown (1989)

Albums

Hansome (1975)
New Boots and Panties! (1977)
Wottabunch! (1978)
C It Yourself (1979)
Laughter (1980)
Lord Upminster (1981)
The Best Off Kilburn & The Highroads (EP, 1983)
4000 Weeks Holiday (1984)
Hold One To Your Structure (VHS- Video Live, 1985)

Apples (1989)

Live! Warts “Does not go down for hearing (live album, 1990)
The Bus Driver' S Prayer and Other Short Stories (1992)
Mr. Love Pants (1997)
Straight From The Desk (Live At Ilford Odeon, 2001)
Ten More Turnips from the Tip (Posthumous release, 2002)

The Blockheads Solo Albums

Straight From The Desk - 2 (Live At Patti Pavillion, 2003)
Where' S The Party? (2004)

See too

External bonds

Ian Dury' S Website
The Blockheads' Biography
Guardian obituary for Ian Dury
BBC Music artist biography

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