Formed in 1989, Thee Headcoats was one of a number of bands fronted by Billy Childish (b. William Charlie Hamper, 13 December 1958, Chatham, Kent, England), formerly of the Milkshakes and Thee Mighty Caesars. Featuring either John Agnew or Alan Crockford (from the Prisoners) on bass, and drummer Bruce Brand, Headcoats Down! echoed its predecessors with a blend of US garage band styles, punk and, for good measure, country blues. The Earls Of Suavedom was similarly derivative, but The Kids Are All Square - This Is Hip! represented a new departure with memorable, and contrasting, pop songs. Members of the Delmonas, redubbed Thee Headcoatees, and new bass player Ollie Dollar, enlivened the content considerably, and for once, Childish seemed more concerned with quality rather than haste. By comparison, Heavens To Murgatroyd, Even! It's Thee Headcoats! (Already) was a disappointment, comprising new versions of previously recorded songs, cover versions and new material. Nevertheless, the fact that the CD was mastered "directly from vinyl" reveals much about the band's and Childish's spirit. Childish "retired" from the music business in 1995, but returned with Thee Headcoats in 1998 for the typically uncompromising The Messerschmitt Pilot's Severed Hand. The band played their final gig at the Dirty Water Club on 12 May 2000.

Listen to Thee Headcoats at Finetune.

• (2008)  Heavens To Murgatroyd, Even! It's Thee Headcoats!

• Girl Of Matches (Album)
• Mantrap (Album)
• We're Gone (Album)
• Hand To Hand (Album)
• Headcoat Man (Album)

• The Mooney Suzuki
• Franz Ferdinand
• Rolling Stones
• The Kinks
• The Monkees
• The Who
• Fu Manchu
• Monster Magnet
• Beck
• Guns N' Roses
• The Ramones
• Bullets And Octane
• Corrosion Of Conformity
• Hole
• Kyuss
• Motorhead
• Nebula
• Queens Of The Stone Age
• Riverboat Gamblers
• The Bronx

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