The Partisans

The Partisans

The Partisans are a punk band from Bridgend, Wales, active from 1979 to the present. Their line-up includes Mark Harris, Andy Lealand, Dave Parsons, Spike, Phillip Stanton and Louise Wright. The band is associated with punk, punk rock, street punk and UK82.

Formation and early line-up

The group forms in the late 1970s and begins with Phil Stanton on vocals, Rob “Spike” Harrington on guitar and vocals, Andy Lealand on guitar, Mark “Shark” Harris on drums, and Mark “Savage” Parsons on bass guitar. They draw on punk influences including the Sex Pistols, The Clash and The Ramones. At first they play covers of punk rock songs before starting to write their own material.

Stanton and Parsons leave in 1979. Spike then takes over lead vocals, and Louise Wright, Lealand’s girlfriend at the time, joins on bass.

Recordings and label history

The Partisans are the second band signed to Chris Berry’s No Future Records. Their debut release is the double A-side Police Story/Killing Machine, which reaches number 5 on the UK Indie Chart. The single follows a tour with labelmates Blitz and receives support from Sounds writer Garry Bushell.

The band is then included on the third volume of Bushell’s Carry On Oi! compilation series, which reaches number 60 on the UK Albums Chart. This leads to further live bookings with Blitz, Peter and the Test Tube Babies, The Ejected, and a No Future night at London’s Zig Zag Club with Red Alert, The Lombardos and Peter and the Test Tube Babies.

The second single, 17 Years of Hell, peaks at number 2 on the Indie Chart. The self-titled debut album follows in February 1983 and reaches number 5 on the Indie Chart and number 1 on the Punk Chart. The record is noted for strong attention from the national press and the underground fanzine scene.

After Louise Wright leaves, the remaining members move to Bayswater in west London and relaunch the band with new bassist Dave Parsons. Their next release is the three-track Blind Ambition EP on Cloak & Dagger Records, which reaches number 23 on the Indie Chart and receives airplay on Radio 1. The album Time Was Right follows in 1984, reaches number 20 in the Indie Chart, and includes live recordings from a show at the Brixton Ace, where The Partisans support Anthrax, Lost Cherrees, Conflict and others.

Break-up and later activity

The band splits in 1984. Dave Parsons later finds chart success with Transvision Vamp and, later still, with Bush. Andy Lealand moves to Scandinavia. In late 1989, Lealand and Harrington record another session for Link Records under the name Agent Orange, with Iggi, Lealand’s partner at the time.

In the late 1990s, Lealand and Harrington reform The Partisans with two Swedish musicians, Magnus Neundorff and Mikael “Gustav” Gustavsson. The group signs to the American label TKO, which releases the single So Neat in 2001, and later issues the full-length Idiot Nation on Dr. Strange in 2004. The band continues to write and record new material.