Jak Airport
Encyclopedia
Jak Airport was the guitarist of 1970s punk
band X-Ray Spex
and New Wave
band Classix Nouveaux
, before retiring from music and working for the BBC
.
Born and raised in Catford, London, Jak Airport is best known and remembered for being member of punk rock band X-Ray Spex, contributing with songs like "Oh Bondage Up Yours" and "The Day The World Turned Day-Glo". The beginning riff of the latter song was considered a classic by the band's singer Poly Styrene
. He joined the band after leavin another punk group called Puncture
. When X-Ray Spex
disbanded in 1979, he and the group's bassist Paul Dean formed Airport And Dean.
In 1979, he and fellow X-Ray Spex drummer BP Hurding formed alongside singer Sal Solo
the New Wave band Classix Nouveaux, but he lasted a brief time.
He retired from music and began to work in the BBC
's corporate and public relations department. Jack Stafford died of cancer on August 13, 2004. It's believed he was in his forties at the time of his passing.
Punk rock
Punk rock is a rock music genre that developed between 1974 and 1976 in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia. Rooted in garage rock and other forms of what is now known as protopunk music, punk rock bands eschewed perceived excesses of mainstream 1970s rock...
band X-Ray Spex
X-Ray Spex
X-Ray Spex were an English punk band from London that formed in 1976.During their first incarnation , X-Ray Spex were “deliberate underachievers” and only managed to release five singles and one album...
and New Wave
New Wave music
New Wave is a subgenre of :rock music that emerged in the mid to late 1970s alongside punk rock. The term at first generally was synonymous with punk rock before being considered a genre in its own right that incorporated aspects of electronic and experimental music, mod subculture, disco and 1960s...
band Classix Nouveaux
Classix Nouveaux
Classix Nouveaux were an English 1980s new wave band. They had number one hits in Poland, Portugal, the former Yugoslavia, Israel, Iceland, and other countries...
, before retiring from music and working for the BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
.
Born and raised in Catford, London, Jak Airport is best known and remembered for being member of punk rock band X-Ray Spex, contributing with songs like "Oh Bondage Up Yours" and "The Day The World Turned Day-Glo". The beginning riff of the latter song was considered a classic by the band's singer Poly Styrene
Poly Styrene
Poly Styrene was the stage name of Marianne Joan Elliott-Said , a British musician, songwriter and singer, most notably in the pioneering punk rock band X-Ray Spex.-Early life:...
. He joined the band after leavin another punk group called Puncture
Puncture (band)
Puncture was an early English punk group. Founded in the summer of 1976, this Islington, London based, four-piece combo consisted of Paul McCallum , Steve Counsel , Jak Stafford and "The Fabulous" Marty Truss...
. When X-Ray Spex
X-Ray Spex
X-Ray Spex were an English punk band from London that formed in 1976.During their first incarnation , X-Ray Spex were “deliberate underachievers” and only managed to release five singles and one album...
disbanded in 1979, he and the group's bassist Paul Dean formed Airport And Dean.
In 1979, he and fellow X-Ray Spex drummer BP Hurding formed alongside singer Sal Solo
Sal Solo
Sal Solo Sal Solo Sal Solo (born Christopher Scott Stevens, 5 September 1961, Hatfield, Hertfordshire, England is an English singer.-Career:Solo began his career with an obscure band called The News, who only released one 7" single on GTO Records...
the New Wave band Classix Nouveaux, but he lasted a brief time.
He retired from music and began to work in the BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
's corporate and public relations department. Jack Stafford died of cancer on August 13, 2004. It's believed he was in his forties at the time of his passing.