Adam and the Ants

What's your opinion? I think they've had a few really great songs and they're pretty good musicians. In Prince Charming, I love the middle bridge vocals from the band.

 

Love 'em. Always dug their rhythm/percussion (probably why I like BowWowWow, too). Had tix to see Adam Ant a couple of years ago in SF, but the date was postponed and I couldn't make the rescheduled date. Wishing the guy all the best.

"Stand and Deliver" is one of my favorite tunes from that era. Reminds me of watching MV3 during afternoons after school before MTV was added to our cable lineup.

 

Dirk Wears White Sox & Kings Of the Wild Frontier are two of the greatest albums ever made.

Some of the most under rated musicians in the world were in the band. Matthew Ashman was an incredible guitar player, sad that he is gone. Dave Barbarossa is an amazing drummer. Why Leigh Gorman is not widely recognized for his genius on the bass is a crime. Marco, while not a technically great guitarist is one of my favorites, and a great personal influence, the sounds he gets are like no one else's. Gary Tibbs good enough for Roxy Music. Chris Hughes talented producer and drummer. the rest ain't too bad neither.

 

Love it. Kings of the Wild Frontier (the american traclisting) is one of my top ten albums of the 80´s.

 

I love Adam Ant. They used to play Goody Two Shoes at the skating rink when it came out. Good times.

 

Dirk is a long time favorite, IMO light years ahead of the next two (even though I enjoy them also). What I find most interesting is that even though A&tA started out as a punk band, by the time of their first album, they'd already evolved into making a more ambitious, artier music though its roots were still obviously in punk. I suppose it fits the "post punk" label but that's not a term I ever heard at the time.

It's a solid and unique work. And the U.S. Epic version doesn't do it justice.

 

I saw them at Tiffany's in Glasgow just when Kings Of The Wild Fronteir came out, a phenomenal live band.

Antbox was one of the first box sets I ever bought.

 

Friend Or Foe is my favorite.

 

Good stuff! He put on a great show last year so check him out if he's in your neck of the woods.

 

Love Adam and the Ants ... They have their own unique sound. One of my favorite tracks is "Playboy" from the Strip LP great production and string arrangement.

 

Big fan of Adam and his ants - don't really like Dirk Wears White Sox. Kings is one of the all time great albums. Prince Charming is not quite as good although it has the three great singles + "Scorpio". Friend Or Foe was a return to form.

Some great b-sides as well such as "Beat My Guest" and "Red Scab"

 

I like
Dog Eat Dog
Kings Of The Wild Frontier
Ant Music
Scorpios
Stand And Deliver

 

The b-side to Stand and Deliver, Beat My Guest, kicks a$$.

 

ALL of the Adam & the Ants B-sides are great. I think in all cases they are better than the A-sides.

Lady > Young Parisians
Whip In My Valise > Zerox (close call)
Kick > Cartrouble
Press Darlings > Kings Of the Wild Frontier (on second thought equal)
Physical > Dog Eat Dog
Fall In > Antmusic
Beat My Guest > Stand and Deliver
Christian Dior > Prince Charming
Friends > Ant Rap
Red Scab > Goody Two Shoes

 

You missed Plastic Surgery > Deutsche Girls

 

I liked their big album "Kings of the Wild Frontiers" and their early singles, they had a great groove, the drumming was amazing. But then I made the mistake and went to a concert when "Stand and deliver" was the hit.
It was simply disappointing. They couldn't reproduce the drum groove, several songs were hardly recognisable and I remember the concert being quite short.
Still like some of the singles, but it's nostalgia only.

 

"Adam Ant Is the BlueBlack Hussar in Marrying the Gunner's Daughter" is good. I have been listening to it regularly for the past couple years. Kings Of the Wild Frontier doesn't have a bad track imo. Saw them live a few times way back in the day.

 

Stuart Goddard did alright from a brand of bubblegum name of a band to Adam &The Ants ..charismatic front man(still). Britains James Dean with lipstick massacre.

 

I love Adam Ant too. The early Ant albums are great and his solo work is very underrated. Actually, I think he's a great songwriter. I was lucky enough to see him perform live here in the Netherlands about three years ago. He was still very energetic and entertaining. He mainly played early Ants stuff, but still sounded very fresh and he obviously had fun playing this material.

I hope the new album (which was supposed to appear last year) will see the light of day sooner or later.

 

I like them. Very entertaining pop with several dashes of weird, pirates, adventure, jungle beats, humor along the way.

Never got into Dirk (has been years since I heard it - maybe should revisit) but I think his run from Kings thru Strip was very solid.

He also had a nice (artistic) comeback with Wonderful a decade or so ago. If not familiar, it's worth rooting around for. No gimmicks, costumes, etc - just Adam and a good selection of songs.

 

A&TA make for great radio. Infectious. Who doesn't bellow along to 'Goody two Shoes' or 'Stand & Deliver' etc when they come on? Gawd bless that 1981/82 period.

 

I've collected Adam Ant (with the Ants and solo) since I was a teenager.

I love everything from his first single on up through Strip (1983) and even Vive Le Rock (1985). I love that he referenced Blade Runner in Vive Le Rock, so maybe I am cutting that album more slack than it deserves (since I love Blade Runner).

Ant's multi-media approach is part of why he's so infectious. The music video costume dramas - with everyone from Amanda Donohoe (lesser known, LA Law) to Hugh Laurie (House!) - are so much fun. Kate Bush and Adam Ant seem to have been the ones from the early era of music videos who sincerely loved making music videos as part of their own artistic expression. (Others like Duran Duran got in on it too (to sometimes great effect!) but the vision of their videos came from the directors they hired.)

You'd have to be an already-established fan to keep on with his later albums, imo. The quality drops with Manners & Physique (1989) (though there are some gems from those sessions, particularly some b-sides on the Can't Set Rules About Love single). That was followed by the appallingly sexist and self-degrading (not sexy) Persuasion (1992) (which was not released but was leaked). Wonderful (1995) floats around in the ethers as a sort of Adam Ant-lite, a sort of book of poems set to music - nice, but not an album that I'd think to go to.

As for his recent return, it's just a garage band backing him so it is hard to judge - I'm undecided. Probably that's a good sign.

 

Is there a collection available with all the A & B sides?

 

^^ B-Side Babies catches most of the b-sides.

 

The only AA album I really like is "Dirk Wears White Sox". Adam's autobiography is a very good read!