Died On This Date (April 25, 2011) Poly Styrene / Punk Pioneer; X-Ray Spex
themusicsover Poly Styrene (Born Marianne Elliott-Said)
July 3, 1957 – April 25, 2011
Poly Styrene was the lead singer and songwriter for the great British punk band, X-Ray Spex. Formed in 1976, the band, despite the fact that they initially released just five singles and one long-player, became one of the most important groups of the original punk movement. After running away from home at 15, Styrene bounced from one music festival to another until she eventually ended up at an early Sex Pistols gig which inspired her to form a punk band. The band’s first album Germ Free Adolescents is by most accounts one of the greatest punk – if not rock – albums ever made. Its “Oh Bondage, Up Yours” is widely recognized as a flash point for punk rock. After the band broke up in 1979, Styrene released a solo album Translucence which had more of a jazzy sound and reportedly inspired the likes of Everything But The Girl. She continued to release music, both solo and with a reformed version of X-Ray Spex, over the next two decades. She also lent her name and voice to various social causes throughout the years. In February 2011, it was announced that Poly Styrene was suffering from breast cancer. She was 53 years old when she died from the disease on April 25, 2011.
Thanks to Bruce Kilgour, Mike Woodford, and Su for the help
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