The Avengers

Biography

There are at least four bands and one radio show sharing the name The Avengers: For Avengers, San Francisco see Avengers the first wave of American Punk. Penelope Houston. 1) The Avengers was an American group from Bakersfield, California. The first incarnation came together in 1964, as a surf six-piece. Where the name came from is unknown, but the hip British TV series 'The Avengers' had started running on the BBC two years earlier. The group soon latched on to the new sound of the British I...

There are at least four bands and one radio show sharing the name The Avengers:

For Avengers, San Francisco see Avengers the first wave of American Punk. Penelope Houston.

1) The Avengers was an American group from Bakersfield, California. The first incarnation came together in 1964, as a surf six-piece. Where the name came from is unknown, but the hip British TV series 'The Avengers' had started running on the BBC two years earlier. The group soon latched on to the new sound of the British Invasion and bands like The Beatles, but also American acts like Paul Revere & the Raiders and The Music Machine. Between 1965 and 1967 The Avengers released five 45s and played support slots for the likes of The Beach Boys, The Animals, The Seeds and The Music Machine. They didn't have a hit, but their song "Be a Caveman" has become legendary in garage circuits for having the sort of lyric you'd think everyone would write but never really did. Other songs that have turned up on garage compilations are "It's Hard to Hide" and its b-side "Open Your Eyes". The Avengers had unusually short hair, because they were still in school and were afraid to get suspended.

2) The Avengers were based in Wellington, New Zealand and were active from 1966 until 1969. They had a string of top ten hits on the New Zealand charts, with the most successful, "Love, Hate, Revenge", reaching #2 in August 1968. Overseas, however, they had considerably less success and they broke up after their second tour of Australia. During their career, they released two albums, Electric Recording in 1968 and Medallion in 1969, as well as a live album in 1968. In 2001, almost all of their studio material was collected on one compilation that also appeared under the name Electric Recording.

3) The Avangers from Brisbane, Queensland, Australia, made 3 singles in 1968-69.

4) (See) Avengers were formed in San Francisco, in the first wave of American Punk. Penelope Houston was the lead singer, primary songwriter, and her persona was a large part of the draw for the act. The other band members were James Wilsey (bass), D. Furious (drums), and Greg Ingraham (guitar). Critic Greil Marcus once said The Avengers were, “…San Francisco’s best punk band - in their moments, they were, you knew, better than any other band playing that night anywhere in the world.”

Avengers gained much publicity when they opened for the Sex Pistols in San Francisco, for their legendary final show at Winterland. The Avengers’ 4-song EP was also produced by Steve Jones (of the Sex Pistols) in 1979 on White Noise Records.

Their discography also contains an earlier 3-song EP (on Dangerhouse Records) from 1977, a full album called “The Avengers” from 1981, a compilation of unreleased tracks and outtakes called “The Avengers Died for Your Sins” in 1999 on Lookout! Records, and a second compilation titled “The American in Me” on DBK Works (2004). Houston and Ingraham have reunited and currently perform as The Avengers with bassist Joel Reader (MXT, Pansy Division) and drummer Luis Illades (Pansy Division) touring the US and Europe.

5) The Avengers was a British cult television show, made mostly in the sixties. As the show went from black and white to colour, the tone became less serious. It is best known for the combination of John Steed (Patrick Macnee) and Emma Peel (Diana Rigg). In South Africa, the series was also turned into a radio show. The radio show was made in 1971. Donald Monat voiced Steed and Diane Appleby was Emma Peel. Read more on Last.fm. User-contributed text is available under the Creative Commons By-SA License; additional terms may apply.