9 March 2025
Cover debut LP – Brian James on the right
Last Thursday the brill guitarist BRIAN JAMES who co-founded the legendary proto-punk band THE DAMNED in 1976, has passed away, aged 70. No cause of death was revealed.
He was the driving and songwriting force of the group. He made 2 albums – Damned Damned Damned and Music For Your Pleasure with them and already left at the end
of 1977.
Afterward he kept on playing with different acts and big names such as badass
Iggy Pop, Blondie’s Clem Burke, MC5’s Wayne Kramer, The Police’s Stewart Copeland
and others.
He wrote the very first British punk song (James never want to label what
they did was punk) with the smashing Damned‘s debut single NEW ROSE.
Flamboyant Damned bassist/guitarist Captain
Sensible posted this message on his social media.
We’re shocked to hear that creator of @thedamned, our great chum Brian James has sadly gone. A lovely bloke that I feel so lucky to have met all those years ago and for some reason chose me to help in his quest for the music revolution that became known as punk. Cheers BJ! 🌹 pic.twitter.com/HuLdyMvI3z
— Captain Sensible (@CaptainSensible) March 7, 2025
R.I.P.