𝗚𝗶𝗿𝗹𝘀𝗰𝗵𝗼𝗼𝗹’𝘀 𝗯𝗼𝘅𝘀𝗲𝘁 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗦𝗰𝗵𝗼𝗼𝗹 𝗥𝗲𝗽𝗼𝗿𝘁 𝟭𝟵𝟳𝟴-𝟮𝟬𝟬𝟴 𝗿𝗲𝗹𝗲𝗮𝘀𝗲𝗱 𝗼𝗻 𝗖𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗿𝘆 𝗥𝗲𝗱 𝗥𝗲𝗰𝗼𝗿𝗱𝘀
Jewish Telegraph, January 2023
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I don’t hide the fact that I am stuck in the 1980s — my teen years.
From the films, music, bad fashion . . . it played such a major role in shaping me.
I’ve written a number of times about my love of Kim Wilde (even naming my robovac after her as there is nothing more amusing than receiving a message saying ‘Kim Wilde is stuck’), but there was always room in my life for another group of female musicians, Girlschool.
Kim Wilde was a bit of an anomaly for me because heavy metal was my first love as I hit barmitzvah age at the start of the decade.
There always used to be debates in the music magazines about whether women could rock or if women used sex to sell their records.
Well Girlschool could definitely rock as hard as the men and they didn’t need to dress scantily to attract attention. They looked rough and ready — aligning themselves with Motorhead probably helped with this image.
So my playlist at the time would be Def Leppard, Dio, Motorhead, Iron Maiden, Kiss, Rush, Kim Wilde . . . and Girlschool. They fitted in so seamlessly to the whole New Wave of British Heavy Metal scene that included Leppard, Maiden, Saxon and their ilk. I didn’t even think of them as ‘girls’, they were just metallers playing the music I loved.
The new boxset The School Report 1978–2008 is five-CDs of pure joy. For the casual fan, the first four CDs are all that is needed, but the fifth disc is a treasure trove for the obsessed — a live set from Painted Lady before they morphed into Girlschool.
It’s not polished or essential, but it provides a snapshot of who they were in 1978 and shows some of their influences with covers of songs like I Saw You Standing There (The Beatles), All Along the Watchtower (Hendrix) along with Rolling Stones, Bob Dylan and others.
The first three discs show the true evolution of the band. I have to admit that it’s the first disc which has occupied most of my time. This marked the period when the fledgling band signed with Gerry Bron’s label Bronze and enjoyed such huge success.
I remember the thrill of seeing them on Top of the Pops alongside Motorhead performing the number five hit Please Don’t Touch as Headgirl.
This disc also includes other classic rockers like Emergency, Race with the Devil, Hit and Run, Tush, Screaming Blue Murder and the controversial 1–2–3–4 Rock and Roll.
The band hadn’t wanted to record the latter song, but Bron wanted to turn them into the British version of Joan Jett and the Blackhearts, who had hit number one in 1982 with I Love Rock N Roll.
It was a bad misstep from Bron as it caused a rift between him and the band. But listening to the song almost 40 years later, it stands up pretty well . . . it’s just not in keeping with their style.
I saw them at the Manchester Apollo on the Screaming Blue Murder tour in May, 1982. I was a 15-year-old with no heavy metal-loving friends so I had to go to the concert on my own.
Obviously as a Jewish teenager, my mother was not far away. In fact, as the concert ended, my mum was waiting for me at the back of the auditorium after having been allowed to wait inside to take me home — definitely a culture shock for a middle-aged Cliff Richard fan.
Disc two covers 1983–1988. Despite not being as strong as their earlier material — and with lead guitarist and singer Kelly Johnson jumping ship, it still has many highlights like Play Dirty, Running Wild and Love at First Bite.
For four years, the band was on hiatus, so the third disc goes from 1992 to 2015 with Johnson returning in 1993. Sadly, this period also saw the death of the hugely talented Johnson in July, 2007, from spinal cancer.
Girlschool celebrated Johnson’s life and their 30th anniversary with the album Legacy the following year, from which the Motorhead cover Metropolis, Legend and I Spy feature on the boxset.
CD four is for those who want a condensed version of Girlschool’s recorded history, featuring the singles and b-sides from 1980–1983, including more of the Headgirl EP tracks and some live versions.
Girlschool may have had limited success as the years went on, but their influence will last a lifetime. They showed that women didn’t have to dress sexy to sell records — if they had the talent they could succeed.
For people of my age, who are also stuck in the past, The School Report is essential listening. Once again Cherry Red Records are helping me to stay young.
