In de Beginnin' ..

F.Baube[tm] (flb@flb.optiplan.fi)
Tue, 30 Mar 93 23:26:33 EET

from Entranced: The Siouxsie & the Banshees story

Chapter 1: The Approaching Disease

Born Janet Susan Ballion. I've seen "Dallion" in her
own handwriting. This book says that Dallion is wrong,
it's Ballion. I've also read her say she tries that
her mum doesn't get bombarded with phone calls.
So maybe she wiley-ly invented "Dallion".

Born 27 May 1957 in Guy's Hospital, London
(am proud to say I am a contemporary).

First concert: Cliff Richard.

"I used to go out of my way to have very attractive
hairstyles, very short, geometrically very ugly,
cropped and very frightening to the opposite sex."

Chapter 2: Exposure

photo: on stage at a gig in August 1976: Sioux in cupless
black bra, fishnets, one hip-length boot, swastika armband.
punk siren from Hell.

"It was meant to be our 15 minutes of fame, but we managed to
sustain it for 10 years, which only goes to show how addictive
dressing up and making noise for a living can be." - S, 1986

The gig: the 100 Club's "Punk Rock Festival",
two nights in July (1976?).

The original idea was to play three of their most-hated
songs: the Bay City Rollers' "Money Honey", the theme from
Goldfinger, and the 'grossly overutilised' "Louie Louie".

Billy Idol was sposta teach a modicum of guitar to Steve.
He backed out a week before the gig. So, the planned "set"
went out the window.

Twenty-four hours before show time they finally got together
to practice at the Clash's rehearsal room in Camden.

The gig itself:
"They carried out their planned improvisation based around
'The Lord's Prayer', though the performance didn't go quite
to plan: 'The intention was to play one number until they
threw us off the stage,' said Sioux, 'but they never did ..
We got bored before them.' It was more likely a mistaken
gesture from Marco [Pirroni] to Steve that ended the set."

photo: At London's 100 Club, Sid (Vicious), Steve, and Sioux.

-- 
* Fred Baube (tm)         * In times of intellectual ferment,
* baube@optiplan.fi       * advantage to him with the intellect
* #include <disclaimer.h> * most fermented
* May '68, Paris: It's Retrospective Time !!