The Runaways

Basic Information

Country: United States

History: 1975-1979

Status: Inactive

Past Members: Joan Jett, Cherie Currie, Lita Ford, Sandy West, Jackie Fox, Peggy Foster, Micki Steele

Biography

The Runaways were an American all-female rock band that recorded and performed in the late 1970's. The Runaways began to form in the summer of 1975 by drummer Sandy West and guitarist Joan Jett, after introducing themselves to producer Kim Fowley. Kim agreed to help them find other girls to join the band, and by August, the band had grown to four members with Micki Steele on bass and Lita Ford on lead guitar. With Kim as their manager, the name was chosen and within a few weeks, they had their first show at a local party (Wayne).

In November, Joan and Kim met twin sisters Cherie and Marie Currie, who weren't even sixteen years old. Cherie came to audition for the band but had no song to sing -- so Joan and Kim wrote one for to audition with, called "Cherry Bomb," which would eventually turn into one of The Runaways' biggest hits (Wayne).

In February 1976, The Runaways were signed to Mercury Records and released their debut album, The Runaways, just a few months later. The band toured the U.S. and played numerous sold-out shows; they opened shows with headlining acts such as Cheap Trick, Tom Petty, and the Heartbreakers. Their second album, Queens of Noise, was released in 1977 and the band began a world tour. That summer, their booking agent David Libert sent the group to Japan, where they played a string of sold-out shows. The Runaways were the number four imported music act in Japan at the time, behind ABBA, Kiss, and Led Zeppelin (Wayne).

Despite this taste of success, relationships between some of the group members had begun to fray, thanks partly to substance abuse problems and management negligence. In July of 77, Jackie Fox left the group, and before the year was out, Currie had left too. Jett took over as lead vocalist and a new bassist, Vicki Blue, was hired. By this point, Fowley had lost interest in the band and quit as a manager (Huey).

Why Do They Matter?

The Runaways have grown in stature over the years as the first all-female band to make a substantial impression on the public by playing loud, straight-up, guitar-driven rock and roll. Though they were victims of their own hype, in the end, The Runaways' sound and attitude proved crucially important in paving the way for female artists to crank up the volume on their guitars and rock as hard as the boys; plus, they produced one undeniably classic single in the rebel-girl manifesto "Cherry Bomb" (Huey).

"Cherry Bomb"