THIS WAS THE MODERN WORLD

In the late 70s, as punk’s blast of insurrectionary fire began to flame out, many of those inspired to get up onstage began to look further back for inspiration – to the mods of the previous decade, all sharp sense of style and gritty R’n’B pop.

- 

Encouraged by the success of The Jam and the mythology captured in Franc Roddam’s Quadrophenia, the mod revival was on, and by the turn of the decade, many of its prime movers were taking up residence in the charts. Here some of the key figures tell their stories to Lois Wilson and explain how many of them are still flying the mod flag onstage and on record

“There was a feeling in the air,” says Ian Page, the charismatic, suit-wearing singer with Secret Affair, who is looking back on the run-up to the group’s success with their 1979 debut single, Time For Action. “Change was coming. The overall philosophy of punk was very negative; it was nihilistic, and there were all these like-minded people who weren’t satisfied with that and were looking for an alternative, for something different.”

That ‘something different’ was the mod revival, which loosely spanned 1978 to 1983, and was the sound of mainly working-class youth who, disillusioned with punk, but still thrilled by its passion, energy and DIY nature, donned thrift store suits and Fred Perry shirts and, mixing The Who, Kinks and Tamla with new wave pop, created a music from the street that was new and exciting. Buoyed by the release of Franc Roddam’s 1979 film Quadrophenia and with a wealth of fanzines like Maximum Speed and Extraordinary Sensations promoting the scene, the main groups involved were the aforesaid Secret Affair, The Chords and Purple Hearts. And then there were The Jam and Paul Weller, a reluctant spokesperson for this new generation.

“The mod revival was very exciting,” says Ed Piller, head of Acid Jazz, who back then was part of the Glory Boys, a dedicated group of fans who followed Secret Affair from gig to gig. “Their debut single, Time For Action, became a rallying cry.”