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Babyshambles are an English indie rock band established in London. The band was formed by Pete Doherty during a hiatus from his former band The Libertines, but Babyshambles has since become his main project. Babyshambles draws inspiration from the punk and ska genres, and has released two albums, one EP and a number of singles. The band has received a great deal of attention from the British tabloid press as a result of interest in Doherty's personal life.

History

Early history

In mid- 2003, Pete Doherty was banned from playing with The Libertines until he could overcome his substance abuse problems. As a response, Doherty formed an alternate band, and recruited former Libertines line-up man, 'Scarborough' Steve Bedlow as vocalist. Initially, Doherty planned on calling his new band "The Libertines," disputing former bandmate Carl Barât's rights to the name.

On the night Babyshambles' first gig was scheduled to take place, Doherty was arrested for burgling Barât's flat. After he was charged and released, his friend Dean Fragile organized a new gig at the Tap'n'Tin. The performance received mixed reviews.

Doherty was sentenced to six months imprisonment for his crime. His sentence was later reduced on appeal to two months. When he was released from prison, Doherty rejoined The Libertines

In the early summer of 2004, Doherty once again found himself cast out of The Libertines because of his drug use. As a result, Doherty brought Babyshambles to the fore with Patrick Walden on guitar, Gemma Clarke on drums and Peter Perrett's two sons, Jamie and Peter Junior, on guitar and bass respectively. Doherty organised several gigs and the band began to gain respect in their own right, even though Doherty missed a number of appearances. The band's line-up underwent several changes before stabilizing during the late summer of 2004 with Doherty on vocals, Patrick Walden on guitar, Gemma Clarke on drums and Drew McConnell on bass.

UK tours

In September and October 2004, Babyshambles embarked on a British tour that culminated with two shows at the London Scala. Despite fears that Doherty's performance would not be consistent, the tour sold-out and received critical acclaim. The band's second single "Killamangiro" was released November 29, 2004 on Rough Trade Records, reaching Number 8 on the UK singles chart. The band embarked on another tour in December 2004, among growing concerns regarding Doherty's drug dependence. During a gig in Blackpool, the band walked off the stage when it became clear that Doherty was too intoxicated to perform,

In January 2005, Gemma Clarke quit the band, citing disagreements with the management, whom she blamed for failing to address Doherty's obvious drug problem.

Debut album

In April and May 2005, Babyshambles spent several weeks in a recording studio in Wales working on their debut album with Mick Jones of The Clash, who had also worked with Doherty on the production of The Libertines' albums. The album, entitled Down in Albion, was leaked onto the internet on October 19, 2005 and was officially released on November 14 of the same year. It reached the Top 10 on the BBC Radio 1 album chart. The first single from the album, "Fuck Forever", had been released on August 15, reaching number four on the UK singles chart. The second single, "Albion", was released on November 28 and reached number eight in the UK singles chart.

Several small gigs took place at the end of 2005, punctuated by Doherty's appearance on the high-brow current affairs television show Newsnight, which ended with a tearful rendition of "Music When the Lights Go Out".

2006-present

Babyshambles announced three small club shows in London, Sheffield and Stoke in January, 2006. To the surprise of his fans, the band performed without guitarist Patrick Walden, with Doherty on guitar instead. Walden returned for a gig in Cambridge on January 23 and a UK tour in February. He played his last gig with the band at the Shepherd’s Bush Empire during that tour, and has not appeared with Babyshambles since. He has, however, appeared on stage independently and in the company of Drew McConnell and Seb Rochford, playing two Babyshambles songs which he co-wrote with Pete Doherty.

In February 2006, Babyshambles won the Naomi Award for Worst Live Act,

In August, 2006, Babyshambles signed to major record label Parlophone for the release of an EP, and headlined the Get Loaded in the Park festival. The band released the limited edition single "Beg, Steal or Borrow", which was exclusively available to those who had attended the festival. A free copy of "The Blinding" was released in the street magazine The Big Issue.

A cover version of the Clash song "Janie Jones" was released through B-Unique Records in October. The single was released to raise money for the late Joe Strummer's charity foundation Strummerville and features contributions from others bands such as Dirty Pretty Things, Larrikin Love, We Are Scientists, The Kooks, and Guillemots. This release marked the first time that Carl Barat and Pete Doherty had worked together since The Libertines parted, although they never met during the recording process.

On December 4, 2006, The Blinding EP was released to critical acclaim. The release was promoted with music videos for "The Blinding" and "Love You But You're Green", and an acoustic performance of the latter on The Culture Show. The single was not eligible for the singles chart because it contained too many tracks; however, the band claimed on its MySpace page that it would have made number four in the Christmas Day 2006 UK chart had it been eligible.

On January 18, 2007, it was announced that the band had signed a long-term record deal with Parlophone.

Shotter's Nation

On October 1, 2007 Babyshambles released their second album Shotter's Nation. The Stephen Street-produced record contains 12 tracks and features a guest appearance from Bert Jansch on the acoustic closer.

Another brief review, accompanied by the photograph of the current cover, was posted on Observer Music Monthly Online on July 25, 2007.

The first single from the album, "Delivery", was released on September 17, 2007, reaching number six in the UK Singles Chart after its first week on general sale.

The cover photograph of Kate Moss in Agent Provocateur lingerie was removed for copyright reasons.

Controversy

Main article: Pete Doherty's controversies

Pete Doherty has regularly been in trouble with the law and has been convicted of possessing Class A drugs and of driving offences. He is often featured in the tabloid press for his problematic lifestyle and drug habits.

Discography

Albums

EPs

• Fuck Forever EP (Japan only) (September 2005)
• Albion EP (Japan only) (June 2006)
• The Blinding EP UK #62 (December 4, 2006)

Singles

• "Babyshambles" UK #32 (April 2004)
• "Killamangiro" UK #8 (November 2004)
• "Fuck Forever" UK #4 (August 2005)
• "Albion" UK #8 (November 2005)
• "Janie Jones" UK #17 (October 30, 2006)
• "Delivery" UK #6 (September 17, 2007)
• "French Dog Blues" (October, 2007)

Free releases

• "Beg, Steal or Borrow" (2006), given away with tickets to Get Loaded in the Park only
• "Dirty Fame" (2006), given away with The Big Issue (download only)
• "The Blinding" (2006), given away with The Big Issue
• "Delivery (acoustic)" (2007), given away with NME magazine.

Music videos

• "Killamangiro"
• "Fuck Forever" by Jez Murrell
• "Albion" by Roger Pomphrey
• "Janie Jones" by Drew McConnell and Statik
• "The Blinding" by Julien Temple
• "Love You But You're Green" by Julien Temple
• "Delivery" by Douglas Hart
• "French Dog Blues" by David Mullett