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British singer

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Dave Vanian
Vanian performing live with the Damned in 2011
Background information
Birth name	David Lett
Born	(1956-10-12) 12 October 1956 (age 68) Newcastle upon Tyne, Tyne and Wear, England
Origin	Hemel Hempstead, Hertfordshire, England
Genres	Punk rock gothic rock gothabilly
Occupations	Singer songwriter musician gravedigger
Instruments	Vocals keyboards guitar tambourine
Years active	1976–present
Labels	Nitro Big Beat Raw Power
Member of	The Damned
Formerly of	Dave Vanian and the Phantom Chords Masters of the Backside Naz Nomad and the Nightmares

Website	officialdamned.com

Musical artist

David Vanian (born David Lett, 12 October 1956) is an English rock musician, and lead singer of the punk rock band the Damned. Formed in 1976 in London, the Damned were the first British punk band to release a single, release an album, have a record hit the UK charts, and tour the United States. With a fluid line-up since their founding, Vanian has been the only ever-present member. Vanian's baritone singing voice, dark lyrics and vampire-themed costumes, were a major influence on the goth subculture.

Career

Born in Newcastle upon Tyne, North East England, Vanian moved with his parents to Hemel Hempstead, Hertfordshire when he was a couple of months old. Vanian changed his name from Lett to Vanian in early life after a stint as a gravedigger – Vanian being a play on "Transylvanian". He remains one of the early influencers of gothic fashion, wearing dark and otherworldly clothing both on stage and off. He is known to be a fan of renaissance art, film noir and horror movies, all of which manifest in his stage appearance. In November 1976, the British music magazine NME stated that Vanian "resembles a runaway from the Addams Family".

In 1978, he was guest in the song "Don't Panic England", from the band Doctors of Madness.

In 2004, he and fellow Damned member Captain Sensible turned on the Christmas lights in Cambridge, causing some controversy.

Vanian sang with MC5 for their 40th anniversary singing "Looking at You", which was released as part of Revolution: A Celebration of the MC5. In 2008, Vanian with the band the Throb, performed on "Let's Get Lost (Sailor Jerry's Story)" for the compilation album, The Original Sailor Jerry Rum – Music To.... Outside of the Damned, Vanian has led the gothabilly band Dave Vanian and the Phantom Chords, hosted Dave Vanian's Dark Screen on the UK-based television channel Rockworld TV and composed the soundtrack for the 2009 film, The Perfect Sleep.

Personal life

Vanian has kept his personal life out of the limelight, opting out of any input into the Damned biography, The Light at the End of the Tunnel, by Carol Clerk. He married his first wife, Laurie, in 1977; they separated in the mid-1990s. He married Patricia Morrison in Las Vegas in 1996, after the Damned had toured Australia. The couple have one child and live in Harrow, Greater London.

Discography

Studio album

David Vanian and the Phantom Chords (1995)

References

Thompson, Dave (1 November 2000). Alternative Rock. Miller Freeman Books. ISBN 0-87930-607-6.
Tobler, John (1992). NME Rock 'N' Roll Years (1st ed.). London, UK: Reed International Books Ltd. p. 294. CN 5585.
Church fury at Damned's switch-on, Bbc.co.uk; accessed 12 September 2015.
Profile, Theperfectsleep.com; accessed 12 September 2015.
"Official Damned.com". OfficialDamned.com. Archived from the original on 23 April 2003. Retrieved 16 July 2015.

External links

v t e The Damned
Dave Vanian Captain Sensible Monty Oxymoron Rat Scabies Paul Gray Brian James Lu Edmonds Algy Ward Roman Jugg Bryn Merrick Moose Harris Patricia Morrison Stu West Henry Badowski Jon Moss Lemmy Gary Holton Garrie Dreadful Spike Smith Pinch William Granville-Taylor
Studio albums	Damned Damned Damned Music for Pleasure Machine Gun Etiquette The Black Album Strawberries Phantasmagoria Anything Not of This Earth Grave Disorder So, Who's Paranoid? Evil Spirits Darkadelic
Live albums	Live Shepperton 1980 Live at Newcastle The Captain's Birthday Party Not the Captain's Birthday Party? Final Damnation Ballroom Blitz – Live at the Lyceum Molten Lager Live at the 100 Club
Compilation albums	Light at the End of the Tunnel The Radio One Sessions Smash It Up: The Anthology 1976–1987 Black Is the Night: The Definitive Anthology
EPs	Friday 13th Testify The Rockfield Files
Singles	"New Rose" "Neat Neat Neat" "Stretcher Case Baby" "Problem Child" "Don't Cry Wolf" "Love Song" "Smash It Up" "I Just Can't Be Happy Today" "White Rabbit" "The History of the World (Part 1)" "There Ain't No Sanity Clause" "Wait for the Blackout" "Lovely Money" "Dozen Girls" "Lively Arts" "Generals" "Thanks for the Night" "Grimly Fiendish" "The Shadow of Love" "Is It a Dream?" "Eloise" "Anything" "Gigolo" "Alone Again Or" "In Dulce Decorum" "Fun Factory" "Prokofiev" "Shut It" "Little Miss Disaster" "Standing On the Edge of Tomorrow" "Devil in Disguise" "Look Left" "Procrastination"
Associated acts	Masters of the Backside London SS The Lords of the New Church Dave Vanian and the Phantom Chords Naz Nomad and the Nightmares
Related articles	Band members Discography "Nasty" The Damned: Don't You Wish That We Were Dead Stiff Records

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