Duncan Reid

Duncan Reid

Duncan Reid is a UK punk and power-pop musician best known as the bass player and singer in The Boys, a band associated with the 1970s punk scene. He grows up in a small English cathedral town and moves to London as a teenager after finding a vintage bass guitar in his father’s cupboard. In London, he arrives during the early period of punk and becomes part of the circle around Matt Dangerfield’s four-track studio in Maida Vale, where early recording work by members of The Sex Pistols, The Clash, The Damned and Generation X takes place.

The Boys

The Boys form out of that environment and recruit Reid on bass and vocals. The group records four albums and tours extensively in Europe and the United States. They become known as “the Beatles of Punk” because of their mix of harmonies, pop sensibility and raw punk energy. Their influence reaches later bands including Green Day and Die Toten Hosen, and Joey Ramone names them as a favourite group. During a tour with The Ramones, Reid and fellow Boys member Casino Steel provide backing vocals on a live version of “Baby I Love You”.

The Boys also record under the name The Yobs, releasing comic punk versions of songs such as “The Worm Song” and Christmas carols. After the group splits, they later reform for two shows in Tokyo, and then continue to play internationally, including dates in the UK, Germany, Spain, Italy, the Czech Republic, Slovenia, Norway, Sweden, Japan, the United States, Argentina, Uruguay and Brazil.

Solo work and other projects

Reid later records with other Boys members as The Mattless Boys and writes songs for other acts, including The Cute Lepers. He releases his first solo album, Little Big Head, in 2012. He then issues The Difficult Second Album under the name Duncan Reid and the Big Heads in 2014.