This is a fan site for The Joboxers. In 1983, I was introduced to the band via some friends of mine who had just purchased their debut LP, "Like Gangbusters". Once I heard the band I was hooked and proceeded to purchase as many JoBoxers 12" that I could get my hands on. I was a fan of the band well after their breakup. Recently, I was watching "The 40 Year Old Virgin" and noticed that "Just Got Lucky" was part of the movie soundtrack. I thought to myself that I should keep the JoBoxers name alive by creating a MySpace page. The 1st step was to contact Dig Wayne to let him know what I was doing. He was all for it. So here it is. Take a glace at what Dig Wayne stated when asked about the band a few years back.
Dig "I can't believe it's been 20 years since I was in Joboxers. That had to be the best time of my life. Listening to this new release, especially the live disc, makes me remember just how lucky I was to sing with a group of such excellent musicians. God, they were tight! At a time when playing live was not a prerequisite for success, or even necessary, Joboxers were untouchable. The commitment to the band and it's music was something to behold. We thought nothing of rehearsing five or six hours a day, practically every day. Even when we weren't together playing, we would be working on riffs and ideas that would become songs and part of the show. We lived the whole bad boy, street urchin, concept of the band, sometimes to a fault. Leading a few of us to incarceration, and in my case, even deportation.
One of the first times we were on 'Top of the Pops' I remember being excited to be on at the same time as Dexy's Midnight Runners - a group we all loved and respected. At rehearsals, during the day of the show, I was shocked and disappointed to see them not wearing their patched dungerees. Instead, they had on Ivy League sweaters and nicely pressed trousers. I just assumed they wore the dungerees all the time. Once I got to know Kevin Roland I discovered they had moved on to another look but were performing a song that was connected to the dungerees. I struggled with that, but in the end I understood it was part of showbusiness. Everybody has a different way of going about it. All valid. The only thing I would change about Joboxers, as I remember the band, is the fact that we had big mouths. It made for great press, but we sometimes hurt people's feelings, and alienated some people we could have embraced. We were young, though, and full of ourselves. Now, twenty years later, all that really matters is the music. I'm very glad to have had the chance to be a part of something so exciting.
Dig Wayne , Los Angeles, December 2003
The following is the band's bio release in 1982-83 via RCA Records. Dig explained to me that some of the info was not as accurate as stated.
For a short time in 1983, JoBoxers looked like they would be a successful British pop band in the soul-dance style popular at the time. By the end of the year, however, the group's appeal had begun to fade. Four of the five band members, all natives of Bristol, England, came together in 1981 as a new backing band for singer Vic Goddard called, like his previous units, Subway Sect: guitarist Rob Marche (b. Oct 13, 1962); keyboardist Dave Collard (b. Jan 17, 1963); bassist Chris Bostock (b. Nov 23, 1962); and drummer Sean McLusky (b. May 5, 1961). Goddard and the band made one album together, Songs for Sale (1982), and toured but then split up. The four musicians were running a second-hand clothing stall in a street market when they met American expatriate Dig Wayne (b. Jul 20, 1958), who was running his own stall; he joined them as lead singer, and the band was complete. Adopting a working-class look complete with caps, suspenders, and work shoes, JoBoxers got their first break appearing on the BBC television series Oxford Roadshow and were then signed to RCA Records. Their debut single, "Boxerbeat," a catchy, upbeat song with horns and crowd sounds, entered the British charts in February 1983, peaking in the Top Five in April. The more soulful "Just Got Lucky" followed in May, reaching the Top Ten in June. The funk-inflected "Johnny Friendly" barely scraped into the Top 40, and the band's debut album, Like Gangsters, released in September, peaked in the Top 20. In the U.S., "Just Got Lucky" reached the Top 40, and Like Gangsters made the Top 100. With "Jealous Love," which barely made the British charts in November, the band had traced a steadily declining pattern in its singles releases, and after their 1985 album, Skin and Bone, missed the charts, they broke up. Wayne then launched a solo career; his back-up band, including Collard, releasing Square Business in 1987.
Chris Bostock (Bass Player of JoBoxers) was kind enough to send over some MP3's as well as this interview that ran on 2/22/06. Enjoy.
JoBoxers This Time The Gloves Are Off!
For a while they were everywhere on the radio, the TV and the covers of magazines then, suddenly, they were gone. But now, at last, JoBoxers could be about to smash back onto the music scene as bassist, Chris Bostock, explains to star-struck Huw CollingbourneMost other pop bands at the time were swanning around in frilly shirts and makeup and then along came JoBoxers, all boots, bracers and attitude, pounding up the charts in 1983 with the annoyingly catchy Boxerbeat and the even catchier Just Got Lucky.
You might think this was a classic case of overnight stardom. I mean, according to legend, one day the band were running a second hand clothes stall and the next day they were on the covers of magazine and doing Top Of The Pops! (Yup, youre right I am jealous!)
When I caught up with bassist, Chris Bostock, recently, the first thing I wanted to know is what the heck it feels like to wake up one morning and realize that you are a pop star
I dont think it made a lot of difference to us, he told me.
Yes, well, Im not convinced. Like most boys, I always dreamed of becoming a pop star. Sadly, for me, it never happened. OK, so maybe thats because I didnt have the talent, the looks or the determination but apart from that, I think Id have been perfect for the job. I mean, heck, it must have been a terrific kick to see yourself staring out from the covers of Smash Hits and Jackie
Nah. Appearing on the covers of teen magazines was just part of the process of promoting our music and style it was all part of the game of introducing people to us.
But, come on - the first time you did Top Of The Pops, that must have been incredible!
You have to remember that there was some anti-traditionalist feeling in the post punk era after the Clash refused to play on Top Of The Pops
But JoBoxers did the show even so. I remember seeing you!
Youre right. We appeared on Top Of The Pops seven times in the early 80s. We tried to keep the performances feeling live and like our shows. Personally, I always felt the show was fairly progressive and entertaining. I was pleased to be a part of it."
I think Top Of The Pops really flourished in the 60s when popular music was in one of its most pioneering stages. I remember being impressed by Jimmy Savile who used to present the show back then he always had that Pop Art look you know, with his clothes and hair coloured white down one side and black down the other. Jimmys is a hard act to follow. And then, to me, the next pioneering age was the early 80s."
What about the 70s? You are not a fan of glam, punk and disco, I take it ?
Oh yes - glam, punk and disco were certainly all influential movements, I was into Bowie, early funk and Chic but the early 80s was a special period as it came at the end of a steady stream of music scenes from Punk to New Wave to Ska to New Romantic. It also seemed to work particularly well with Top of the Pops, being visual, colourful, innovative and entertaining.
The early 80s has an easily identifiable sound, partly because of the abundance of well written pop songs and partly because of the technology of the time. It may be that its easier now, twenty or so years on, to see the eighties in perspective; to see it for what it really was. I feel that entertainment and innovation are key elements of the 80s that are often missed today."
So are there any bands today that you rate?
Well, I quite like The Scissor Sisters, The Hives, The Strokes, The Kaiser Chiefs and Franz Ferdinand.
Looking back on those days, in the early 80s I mean, what was the most enjoyable thing about being in a successful band back then?
The most enjoyable thing was seeing the hard work pay off and realising that going against the grain was the right thing thats particularly satisfying when you see the influence rub off on other groups.
And the worst thing?
I cant think of anything bad about being in a successful band.
TV shows and pop magazines in the 80s were always trying to get bands to do daft stuff. Were you ever asked to do any weird things?
I think we must have been lucky here - maybe because we had a strong image. We once had a request to take our clothes off for a French magazine! It didnt go down too well, though, so we declined.
Ah, what a missed opportunity! (Rushes off and takes a cold shower) Ahem, but to get back to the subject After all the success you had with JoBoxers, how did you feel when it all came to an end?
It was devastating because so much hard work had gone into it, only to evaporate into thin air. I tried to be philosophical after all, we needed some kind of break after slogging flat-out for nearly four years. But that break just ended up being a bit too permanent! We should have left the door open for occasional shows as there are often requests for JoBoxers appearances at festivals. Thankfully, the music lives on through the Anthology and Essential Boxerbeat albums.
Was it a conscious decision to call it a day or was there a falling out?
No, there wasnt a falling out. We were just tired out because we had taken it all very seriously for a long time and needed a break to try out different projects, these projects then gradually led us further apart.
Anyhow, after the break, we all achieved success in different musical projects the list is lengthy. I worked with the Eurythmics Dave Stewart on albums, touring and other projects in LA as a member of the Spiritual Cowboys before going on to produce bands for major labels. I also played sessions with the Style Council, Sandie Shaw, Shakespears Sister, Rhythm Sisters and many more. Also a short stint in A & R.
"Last year I gained a Masters Degree at London South Bank University its an MSc in Advanced Information Technology, which I did because I wanted to experience other technologies and it enabled me to get involved in areas such as multimedia.
You started the JoBoxers web site recently. What prompted that? Is it the prelude to something new from the group?
There is actually something big in the pipeline. We are in negotiations to release the long lost third album which has never been heard. Twelve tracks in total, all in the spirit of Boxerbeat and Just Got Lucky. If we were re-united tomorrow, this is what we would play. When the band went their separate ways, the album was abandoned and left in a vacuum. It represents an unheard section of the 80s which never saw the light of day but still sounds fresh and formidable today. For news on this, keep an eye on the website.
You say if we were reunited. Is that more than just if?
Its always going to be hard to do anything long term when some of the group live in London and some in the States but with a new release there will be no shortage of new material ready to perform. Festivals could be a distinct possibility. Other groups in a similar position seem to manage to make appearances when opportunities arise; you just never know whats around the corner
So enjoy the MySpace page for The JoBoxers and keep checking for music updates.
Man...It would be great to hear that a new Joboxers record was on the way...How about a cover of "Build Me Up Buttercup" for starters...I think you guys could really tear it up on that one.
