Lurkers

The Lurkers, who formed in the late 1970s, are an English punk rock group from Uxbridge, West London. They are notable for being the first group ever on Beggars Banquet Records. (Read more at Wikipedia.)

Links to Peel
The Lurkers were one of Peel's favourite bands of the punk era, recording four sessions for his show between 1977 and 1979. The DJ, who seemed attracted by their "fundamental" approach, included both sides of their debut single on Beggars Banquet in his self-chosen 1977 Festive Fifty.

Writing in Margrave Of The Marshes (hardback, p310), Sheila Ravenscroft included the Lurkers among the "second wave of punk bands ... with no art or fashion background ... groups of rowdy youths battling to burst through the door kicked open by the Sex Pistols."

In the 1995 Punk Fiction documentary, Peel commented:

" 'Punks with A levels tended to be a bit dismissive of the Lurkers. I think they thought they were a sort of punk Status Quo, but I liked Status Quo and I also liked the Lurkers, along with other bands like the Models, the Cortinas, even eventually Sham 69.' "

The DJ featured the Lurkers' first two albums heavily on his show, but none of their new material after the band split for the first time in 1980, although he did play tracks from guitarist Pete Stride's subsequent collaboration with John Plain of The Boys.

Festive Fifty Entries

 * 1977 Festive Fifty: Shadow #12
 * 1977 Festive Fifty: Love Story #31

Sessions
Four sessions. Officially released on The BBC Punk Sessions CD, 2000 (Captain Oi! ‎AHOY CD 137)

1. Recorded: 1977-10-18. First broadcast: 22 October 1977. Repeated: 28 December 1977 (best sessions of 1977)
 * Freakshow / Total War / I'm On Heat / Then I Kissed Her / Be My Prisoner

2. Recorded: 1978-04-18. First broadcast: 24 April 1978. Repeated:
 * Ain't Got A Clue / Pills / Tell Her / Jenny

3. Recorded: 1978-07-25. First broadcast: 07 August 1978. Repeated: 22 August 1978.
 * Here Come The Bad Times / God's Lovely Men / In Room 309 / Countdown

4. Recorded: 1979-01-24. First broadcast: 30 January 1979. Repeated: 16 May 1979.
 * Whatever Happened To Mary / Take Me Back To Babylon / Out In The Dark / See The World

Other Shows Played

 * 1977
 * 12 August 1977: Shadow / Love Story
 * 26 December 1977: Love Story (single) Beggars Banquet (FF#31)
 * 27 December 1977: Shadow (single) Beggars Banquet (FF#12)


 * 1978
 * 10 July 1978: It’s Quiet Here (LP – Fulham Fallout) Beggars Banquet
 * 14 July 1978: Pills (single) Beggars Banquet
 * Punk 78 (exact date unknown): Jenny / Time Of Year / It's Quiet Here (LP - Fulham Fallout) Beggars Banquet (JP: "Well, the experts may tell you that people no longer want to hear music as fundamental as that, but the experts, as they often are I think, are wrong. Those are the Lurkers from the LP Fulham Fallout.")
 * 27 July 1978: I’m On Heat (LP – Fulham Fallout) Beggars Banquet
 * 02 August 1978: I Don't Need To Tell Her (LP Fulham Fallout) Beggars Banquet
 * 08 August 1978: Jenny (LP - Fulham Fallout) Beggars Banquet
 * 15 August 1978: I Don't Need To Tell Her (7 inch) Beggars Banquet
 * 16 August 1978: Hey You (album - Fulham Fallout) Beggars Banquet
 * 17 August 1978: Ain’t Got A Clue (single) Beggars Banquet (Ripped & Torn Top 13)
 * 01 November 1978: I Don’t Need To Tell Her (7”) Beggars Banquet


 * 1980
 * 11 January 1979: Just Thirteen (7”) Beggars Banquet
 * 16 January 1979: Countdown (7”) Beggars Banquet
 * 17 January 1979: Just Thirteen (7”) Beggars Banquet
 * 25 January 1979: Just Thirteen (7") Beggars Banquet
 * 29 January 1979: Just 13 (Single)
 * 01 February 1979 (Paul Gambaccini): Just Thirteen (7") Beggars Banquet
 * 14 February 1979: Just Thirteen (7 inch) Beggars Banquet
 * 06 March 1979: Just Thirteen (7") Beggars Banquet
 * 07 May 1979: Jenny
 * 05 June 1979: Cyanide / Whatever Happened To Mary / Take Me Back To Babylon (LP - God's Lonely Men) Beggars Banquet
 * 11 June 1979: Seven O'Clock Someday / Sleep On Diamonds / Bad Times (LP - God's Lonely Men) Beggars Banquet
 * 27 June 1979: She Knows (LP - God's Lonely Men) Beggars Banquet
 * 09 July 1979: Cyanide (album - God's Lonely Men) Beggars Banquet
 * 30 October 1979: New Guitar In Town (single) Beggars Banquet
 * 04 December 1979: Shadow (single) Beggars Banquet


 * 1980s and later
 * 09 September 1981: I Don't Need To Tell Her (7 inch) Beggars Banquet (JP:  'All our yesteryears, those loveable Lurkers from way back when. I can be a real disc jockey, you know, I'm working well tonight.' )
 * Peel 070 (BFBS) (1987-10-09): Go, Go, Go (LP-Fulham Fallout) Beggars Banquet
 * 03 May 1990: I Don't Need To Tell Her (7 inch) Beggars Banquet (John mentioned the previous night that he listened to a mixtape he made some 11 years ago and this was on it.)
 * 29 October 1994: Shadow (CD - Greatest Hit - Last Will And Testament) Beggars Banquet
 * 22 April 1999: Shadow (5xCD: 1-2-3-4 Punk & New Wave 1976-1979) Universal
 * 25 April 1999 (BFBS): Shadow (7") Beggars Banquet
 * 11 April 2001: Shadow (7") Beggars Banquet (Lurkers punk oldie, the first ever release on Beggar's Banquet, played after Peel saw the band advertised as playing in Ipswich the previous week, although Lammo has informed him that only the bassist remains from the original lineup.)


 * Other
 * Punk Fiction: Freak Show


 * Pete Stride / John Plain
 * 04 June 1980: School Girls (album - New Guitars In Town) Beggars Banquet