Early years
Tony James sought to form a "fantasy band" after leaving Generation X He recruited Neal X (Whitmore) via an advert in Melody Maker, and then set about recruiting a singer. After considering approaching Andrew Eldritch and Annie Lennox, he recruited Martin Degville after meeting him in the YaYa clothes shop in Kensington Market where he was working. Degville was a clothes designer and supplied the band's wardrobe, and YaYa became the band's base. Early names considered for the band included Sperm Festival and Nazi Occult Bureau, and they had not decided on a name by the time they played their first concert, supporting Johnny Thunders in Paris. James's former Gen X colleague and then drummer for Thunders, Mark Laff, played that first gig with the band.
On their return to London, they recruited drummers Ray Mayhew and Chris Kavanagh, both of whom acquired drum kits from former drummers for the Clash, Topper Headon and Terry Chimes respectively. There was a further Clash link, with Mick Jones working with the band as live sound engineer. At the suggestion of Fachna O'Kelly, manager of The Boomtown Rats who had provided much of the band's equipment, the band adopted the name Sigue Sigue Sputnik—believed to be a reference to a Russian street gang (which was said to translate as "burn, burn satellite". Though the spelling "sigue" does not exist in Russian, which uses the Cyrillic alphabet, the equivalent Russian word сиг does exist, but with the unrelated meaning of a type of whitefish of the Coregonus genus). A more plausible source of the band's name is an actual Filipino prison gang founded in the 1960s, Sigue-Sigue Sputnik, "sigue-sigue" meaning "care-free" and "sputnik" a reference to the Russian-made satellite launched in 1957. They also recruited Degville's YaYa co-worker Yana (real name Jane Farrimond) to play keyboards. The band's sound was, according to James, arrived at by accident, when he inadvertently mixed elements of film soundtracks with their demo track "Love Missile F1-11" while putting together a video compilation from his favourite films.
Reunions
In 1995, James and X formed a new version of the band with singer Christopher Novak, John Green (keyboards), and former Gen-X guitarist Derwood. Their song "Cyberspace Party" was a major hit in Japan, and an album, Sputnik: The Next Generation, was released there, selling 50,000 copies. The band split up again but reformed in 1998, this time with Degville back on vocals and with Claudia Cujo on drums, as Sputnik 2.0. They reformed again in 2001 with Degville and Neal X, which resulted in the release of Piratespace. In 2004, Degville left the band to pursue a solo career, and has performed as Sputnik2, Sputnik2 The Future, and Sigue Sigue Sputnik Electronic (SSSE). Neal X has been playing with Marc Almond. James later formed the group Carbon/Silicon with Mick Jones.
Image
James claimed that he had chosen his bandmates for their looks, and the band's slogan was "Fleece the World". James billed the band as "Hi-tech sex, designer violence, and the fifth generation of rock 'n' roll".
The themes and imagery in the band's songs were often influenced by futuristic, dystopian or post-apocalyptic films such as A Clockwork Orange, The Terminator, Blade Runner and the Mad Max trilogy. Visually, their image included fishnet masks and brightly coloured wigs.
The band's music, image and inspiration also mashed together a range of other pop culture influences, including former Tronics member Zarjaz and electronica influences of Suicide and the New York Dolls.
Singles
1986 "Love Missile F1-11" - UK No. 3, SA No. 2
1986 "21st Century Boy" - UK No. 20
1986 "Massive Retaliation"
1986 "Sex Bomb Boogie"
1986 "Sci-Fi Sex Stars"
1988 "Success" - UK No. 31
1989 "Albinoni vs. Star Wars" - UK No. 75
1989 "Dancerama" - UK No. 50
1989 "Rio Rocks"
2001 "Love Missile F1-11" (Westbam remix)
2002 "Everybody Loves You"
2004 "Grooving With Mr. Pervert"Other album appearances
1990 David Bowie Songbook
2000 Virgin Voices: A Tribute To Madonna - Volume Two
2000 Don't Blow Your Cover: A Tribute to KMFDM
2000 Covered In Nails: A Tribute To Nine Inch Nails
2001 A Gothic-Industrial Tribute to The Smashing Pumpkins
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Reunions
In 1995, James and X formed a new version of the band with singer Christopher Novak, John Green (keyboards), and former Gen-X guitarist Derwood. Their song "Cyberspace Party" was a major hit in Japan, and an album, Sputnik: The Next Generation, was released there, selling 50,000 copies. The band split up again but reformed in 1998, this time with Degville back on vocals and with Claudia Cujo on drums, as Sputnik 2.0. They reformed again in 2001 with Degville and Neal X, which resulted in the release of Piratespace. In 2004, Degville left the band to pursue a solo career, and has performed as Sputnik2, Sputnik2 The Future, and Sigue Sigue Sputnik Electronic (SSSE). Neal X has been playing with Marc Almond. James later formed the group Carbon/Silicon with Mick Jones.
James claimed that he had chosen his bandmates for their looks, and the band's slogan was "Fleece the World". James billed the band as "Hi-tech sex, designer violence, and the fifth generation of rock 'n' roll".
The themes and imagery in the band's songs were often influenced by futuristic, dystopian or post-apocalyptic films such as A Clockwork Orange, The Terminator, Blade Runner and the Mad Max trilogy. Visually, their image included fishnet masks and brightly coloured wigs.
The band's music, image and inspiration also mashed together a range of other pop culture influences, including former Tronics member Zarjaz and electronica influences of Suicide and the New York Dolls.
Discography
Albums
1986 Flaunt It - UK No. 10
1988 Dress for Excess - UK No. 53
2001 Piratespace
2002 Blak Elvis vs. The Kings of Electronic Rock and Roll
2003 Ultra Real
1986 Flaunt It - UK No. 10
1988 Dress for Excess - UK No. 53
2001 Piratespace
2002 Blak Elvis vs. The Kings of Electronic Rock and Roll
2003 Ultra Real
Compilations
1990 The First Generation
1997 The First Generation – Second Edition
1998 The Ultimate 12" Collection
1999 Flaunt It + Dress for Excess - French single CD edition of both albums (minus "Success" and "Dancerama").
2000 Sci-Fi Sex Stars
2001 21st Century Boys: The Best of Sigue Sigue Sputnik
2003 The First Generation - Vid Edition
2008 1984 Flaunt It: Demos and More
1990 The First Generation
1997 The First Generation – Second Edition
1998 The Ultimate 12" Collection
1999 Flaunt It + Dress for Excess - French single CD edition of both albums (minus "Success" and "Dancerama").
2000 Sci-Fi Sex Stars
2001 21st Century Boys: The Best of Sigue Sigue Sputnik
2003 The First Generation - Vid Edition
2008 1984 Flaunt It: Demos and More
Singles
1986 "Love Missile F1-11" - UK No. 3, SA No. 2
1986 "21st Century Boy" - UK No. 20
1986 "Massive Retaliation"
1986 "Sex Bomb Boogie"
1986 "Sci-Fi Sex Stars"
1988 "Success" - UK No. 31
1989 "Albinoni vs. Star Wars" - UK No. 75
1989 "Dancerama" - UK No. 50
1989 "Rio Rocks"
2001 "Love Missile F1-11" (Westbam remix)
2002 "Everybody Loves You"
2004 "Grooving With Mr. Pervert"Other album appearances
1990 David Bowie Songbook
2000 Virgin Voices: A Tribute To Madonna - Volume Two
2000 Don't Blow Your Cover: A Tribute to KMFDM
2000 Covered In Nails: A Tribute To Nine Inch Nails
2001 A Gothic-Industrial Tribute to The Smashing Pumpkins
Videography
Videos
1986 Love Missile F1-11
1986 21st Century Boy
1986 Sex Bomb Boogie
1988 Success
1988 Dancerama
1988 Albinoni vs Star Wars
1988 Rio Rocks
2002 Everybody Loves You
2003 Live in Tokyo - DVD
Videos
1986 Love Missile F1-11
1986 21st Century Boy
1986 Sex Bomb Boogie
1988 Success
1988 Dancerama
1988 Albinoni vs Star Wars
1988 Rio Rocks
2002 Everybody Loves You
2003 Live in Tokyo - DVD
