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This page is for comments from fans, many of which came off the old Fan Board. If you'd like to add a comment, let us know.
I saw the Runaways at the Aragon Ballroom in Chicago during their 1976 tour and was blown away. The power and sincerity whith which these young women played was amazing. I will never forget the incredible performance the Runaways gave that night!
Darrell
I got sick for almost eleven months in 1978. My uncle gave me The Runaways and I was better in two weeks. Coincidence? I've loved 'em ever since.
Tracey
I always thought Joan Jett was really cool and I jammed to her alot in junior high. Then I found The Runaways and found my songs! Now I love them all!
Patty
i never got the chance to see the rock godesses in concert
and my favorite song and video is
saturday nite special
they all look hot there
and its that video that actually made me take a second look at laurie macallister
what a babe
they rock i still jam them every day
Dallas
i was in junior high school when i borrowed the runaways album from my way-cool social studies teacher. I was blown away! When they broke up, I was truly heartbroken. The solo careers were good, just not the same, you know, chemestry. Never found another band that, you know, i felt so close to.
Kelly
I'm 14 years old and kids usually think it's weird I prefer to bang my head to the legends instead of break danceing to usher. Joan Jett has been my idol since I was 12 I worship the ground she rocks on!! The Runaways are a real insperations too!Of course I look up to all the origanal chicks of rock n roll but mostly Joan she's a huge insperation to all the bad ass rocker chicks It's girls like Joan Jett who paved the way for women in rock n roll AND bringing a good name to all the ballsy chics on stage with a guitar! She was one of the first to bravely step up and play along side the men of rock and tottally kick their asses! Thanks Joan! :D
Amberly
i remember seeing the runaways perform LIVE at the STARWOOD club in L.A. in the 1970's. cherie currie actually hit herself on the head with her mircophone...she was out for a minute or two but then she got right back up again and finished the show.
also that night steve perry of AEROSMITH was there watching the show too
there's nothing like hearing Ch ch ch ch cherry bomb LIVE
those women ROCKed the club that night!
David
it's too bad, but i never had a chance to see this girls live.
I whish i could see them one day!
As cherrie left i was about 12 years old!
and still after all thease years she's my favorit singer.
and the runaways still my favorit band.
thanx for everything girls!
Stephanie
I first saw the runaways on the waitin for the nite euro tour in 1977, at newcastle city hall. Me and my friend Rob Wood went along not quite knowing what to expect. Rob enjoyed the show, me i was awestruck. I could not believe what i just saw. Four great looking girls belting out even better music.
The next time i got to see them was the summer of the following year. Rob and i drove to west runton, about a 400 mile round trip. We got to the venue and saw the truck and the roadies turn up. We helped to unload the equipment and came across a guitar case with Lita's name on it, we asked for alook inside. The case was opened and there was Lita's white guitar, had never seen that one before. So we touched it and the case was closed again. At about 5pm a message came through that the show was cancelled,we could not belive it. We helped pack up the equipment said our goodbye's and came home. I did at least get the advertising poster from the venue. Some people we met were travelling on to Birmingham for the next show but we did'nt bother thinking that it would not be on. So back home to Sunderland very disappointed. The Runaways were due to do two nights at birmingham so i decided to take the train and catch the second night. I got to the venue met some fans who said that tonights show was cancelled. Not again. The roadies turned up so i helped them pack up and got a lift in their minibus to London for the next show. Next day i got to the venue helped unload, i was getting to know where stuff went by now. The runaways turned up for a sound check, i spoke to Joan a little and got an autograph. The gig went off as planned and i saw it all from the side of the stage about ten feet away from where Lita stood. After the show it was back to a hotel for the band and everyone involved, i slept on the floor in a roadies room. Never saw any more of the band, said my goodbye's to the roadies and made my way home.
Some time after i got a tape of the Birmingham show which i now have on cd.
A fantastic few days of high's and low's for me which i shall never foget, thank you The runaways. A mention too for Carole Dale from north humberside an incredible fan who i met later, best wishes if you are out there Carole.
Keith
the runaways rock! Nowadays painted barbiedolls rule the rock scene; Jessica, Brittany whatever. The Runaways are real rock goddesses Damn i am so excited that i can finally relate to some fuckin real women musicians thank you sooo much for your music and real fuckin power!
Alyssa
I knew these girls when they first started at a place called Wild Man Sams, and just found in my packed belongings, an original flyer from thoise days. Great group of young ladies in the day and much fun to hang around with! Hard to believe it's been 30+ years...
Senseilady
I discovered the Runaways with the 'Queens of noise' album...I was in my early 20's and totally in love with Lita and Joan...still think Joan has beautiful eyes....would love to see the girls reunite and do another tour, and see them perform live again....if they need a keyboard player, I'm available...one can only hope....thanks for the rock girls.
Tom
I was born in 1982, I was into metal in 1988 bands/artists like Ozzy Osbourne, Helloween etc. I forgot music for years, then I found heavy rock again...Black Sabbath, Led Zeppelin etc. Then after a while I borrowed a collection from my elder brother. There was Rush, Black Sabbath's "Trashed" etc....and Lita Ford's "Out for Flood". A year after it I bought the Lita Ford collection. I remembered that in the collection it said that Lita Ford was in one of the first female hard rock groups The Runaways. After 2-3 years I borrowed "The Runaways" from library. Then I was in a hook...what a great album. I decided to buy it from www.amazon.co.uk and also "Queens of Noise", "Waitin' for the Night", and "Live in Japan". I didn't like so much the album "...And Now the Runaways"...well there was two great songs "Saturday Night Special" and "Mama Weer All Crazee Now" but not so good that I had to buy them. Now I listen to the albums almost every day. My favourites are "Cherry Bomb", "I Love Playin' with Fire", "Queens of Noise", "Don't Go Away", and "Rock And Roll". They must be the most underrated rock band ever!!! I like the three albums so much and the live album is the best live album I have, indeed!!!
Reijo
Cool website girls!
Well, actually i am fan of Lita's and Joan's and checked out your old band The Runaways just for fun. I really like this stuff. Very cool punk rock. Pity that I was only 1-year old when Live in Japan was released. But that is so cool album that it pisses me off because i was born 15-years too late. ;) We listened to it (live in japan) three times in a row at my work place. Volume level 10!! :) Very cool album, especially You Drive Me Wild-song.
"And in the beginning there was... The Runaways!"
Timo
Finding this site sure brings back some of the best memories. I first heard the girls on Rodneys show and was forever changed. Seeing them play at The Golden Bear in HB and having to sneak out to do it was one of my fav memories. The girls were and still are the best all girl group ever they deserve a place in the history books! Thanks for the music
Melanie
While it's true I have never saw the RUNAWAY'S live I have seen them in Television and heard them on the radio, I also heard them on my brothers record, they are I believe the best female band I have ever heard and I must say the best looking female band. I have liked all the music I have heard, but Joan Jett, and Lita Ford, are my personal favorites. When I heard Joan Jett and the black hearts, I knew I had to have the record, though I still love the Runaways, Joan Jett And The Blackhearts are where it's at!!
Shane
I was 14 or 15 when I first saw the Runaways, in Cleveland Ohio at teen club "CyrisErie". They were everything my mother told me to stay away from. And I loved them. I have been collecting memorable for the past 30 years and still looking. My most prized are a press kit form their 1976 tour, several vinal copy's of Beauty's Only Skin Deep (Lp&45)and a signed picture sleve (with 45) by all five band members. Their songs are the music of my youth. Thanks You Runaways
Ron
I was five when The Runaways album came out and my 16 year old sister loved it. I can't remember what I got for Christmas that year but I remember singing Cherry Bomb with my sister in our pajamas in the living room. And we're still fans. Thanx
Michelle
During the 80's I played in the
SANDY WEST BAND, what a Great time that was. Sandy is one of the best Drummers I have ever Played with,
and she also Plays a good Rythum Guitar Now.
I still have some videos of the gigs we did, and studio Sessions.
Ah What a Great Time, was had by one and All.
Thanks SANDY your Buddy Paul Hone.
Paul
I was watching a t.v. movie called "Dawn:Portrait of a teenage Runaway",starring Eve Plumb in like, 1975.Every now and then, a song would kick in...The same song...it was so cool, this song, I thought. When the movie was over, I sat about 2 inches from the screen in hopes that they would credit the artists of this kickin' tune, "Cherry Bomb". Thankfully they did, and thus began what is now, like a 27 year relationship that I have had with these (girls) women. About 6 years ago I was in L.A. and I caught a mini reunion @ The Coconut Teaser with Sandy, Jackie and Cherie...Jackie F.(my favorite...I was so pissed when I read in Cream mag. that she quit) signed my ticket that night. I'm a screenwriter now, and in every project I create, there is always a scene which opens up with the beginning few bars of "Cherry Bomb." Favorite song: American Nights...Thankx,Michael
Michael
First saw the Runaways in Cali in 77 sometime. They made it cool to be a teenager, even if my mom didn't like me cutting my hair like Bowie. I was trying to get Cherie's attention but I went to a show and six guys had Bowie hair. Oh well. The Runaways were and still are the backbeat of my teenaged years.
Justin
Wow...where do I start. I have Cystic Fibrosis and the Indiana Wish Foundation decided to grant my wish this year. My wish was to meet Joan Jett. They did it alright. It was August 16, 2003 and it was the greatest day of my life. Everytime I start to think of all the stuff I got to see and learn from the legend herself..I start to cry. Joan is the coolest person you can ever meet. She is down to earth and hasn't let fame get to her head..but if you piss her off...she is a force to be reckond with. After the concert in Kentucky I got to spend time with her and only her, in the dressing room. I was just in awe at the whole thing. There I was not yet 18 and I was meeting my idol. Whether she realizes it or not she has influenced at least one person...me...and she is my guardian angel. Her music helped me get through some of the thoughest times in my life and I can truly say that her music saved my life. Thank you Joan for what you have done for me...and trust me I am learning guitar...Next time I see you I'll play you a song.
Amy
I found The Runaways in high school. My dad could not believe that I was listening to them when I could be listening to Creedence. Within a few months though he knew all the lyrics to Cherry Bomb. Since then we've seen Cherie once and Joan four times as father and son. Pretty cool. Thanks for the good music.
Dustin
Saturday October the 9th 1976. A day filled as much with the bright, blinding sun, as it was with my air of unsuppressed excitement and optimism. I was a 16 year old boy living in the industrial heartland of North East England, and two weeks beforehand I had picked up the UK’s best selling Sunday paper – The News Of The World, and discovered… The Runaways.
It’s important to note at this point, that I hadn’t even had the pleasure of actually hearing this troupe of Californian dream-girls. Yet, here I was standing on the platform of Middlesbrough railway station in the bright sunshine of this crisp English autumn day, waiting for the train to take me south to the Yorkshire city of Leeds to see this rock phenomenon on the last date of their inaugural UK tour.
My school friend Richard ‘Alex’ Alexander wasn’t going to travel in such comparative luxury. He’d decided to travel the 200 miles from his Cambridge home on his new 50cc motorcycle at an average speed of 30 miles an hour!
Alex and I had left school 3 months previous. I’d just started Art School and didn’t yet have a close enough network of friends who shared my musical tastes. Those I had mentioned The Runaways to in the week leading up to the gig, had been pretty unanimous in their derision. "Girl band?”… Ha!”… "They can’t play you know!”… "Don’t they fake orgasms for an encore?”… Were just a few of the comments thrown back at me by people who had little else to base their criticisms on than the ranting of the English tabloid press.
So, as I settled back into my seat for the journey, I began to wonder why on earth I was there. Why was I spending the whole of my paltry monthly allowance travelling hundreds of miles to see a rock band I’d never even heard before? A band that maybe couldn’t play. Perhaps faked orgasms on stage. Who didn’t even appear to have a record out in England!
Well, let’s be honest, the images from the press may have had a little to do with it. Oh, go on then, they had a lot to do with it! If you’re a rock obsessed teenager and a band like The Runaways break onto a scene solely frequented by the dull, sterile, kaftan clad - ‘Fanny’, then what are you going to do? Well as I say, what some did was mock. Not me, or the other 1,500 hormonally imbalanced guys who would cram into the murky depths of Leeds University later that night.
I got into Leeds at lunchtime and headed straight for a pub. Alex’s torturous journey would bring him and his (by now) rattling, smoking, motor cycle into the city much later in the afternoon. We met up, parked his bike at the railway station and headed back to the pub to loosen up for the evening’s festivities.
In the bar, we hooked up with a couple of Scottish guys who’d hitch hiked all the way down from the Highlands for the gig. They’d seen the girls at the Glasgow Apollo a few weeks previous and enthusiastically filled us in on what to expect.
As the late afternoon sun started to set, Alex, I and the Scottish guys started to head up towards the venue. The streets of Leeds were coming alive, thanks largely to the crowds spilling out of the city’s Elland Road Stadium, home of the Leeds United football team. Home also, to one of the countries most feared gangs of soccer hooligans. As shouting and scuffles broke out amongst the crowds thronging the streets, the four of us quickened our pace and split off into the mazy alleys and side streets that eventually led us, untouched and thankfully unscathed, to the university campus.
To our surprise, a lengthy, but orderly queue had already formed at the main entrance. Almost exclusively male, it snaked the length of the tree lined street to the corner where we joined it. The guys were all in high spirits, due no doubt to the copious amounts of beer cans being shared up and down the line (as well as other stimulants!) By the time the doors opened, we were all ready to rock in no uncertain terms. So much so, in fact, that the queue soon lost it’s semblance of order, and it just became a mad stampede, a front-stage spot the prize for the mad, galloping, teenage rampage rumbling towards the glass fronted entrance.
Things got pretty dangerous as this sea of hot blooded humanity hurtled carelessly down the venue’s steep staircases and into the basement hall. By the time we’d been in there 10 minutes the temperature already felt like 100 degrees, and it was about to get hotter.
A Birmingham Glam band opened the proceedings (their name escapes me, and it’s bugged me ever since) But it soon became clear that the frenzied audience are only here for one thing, and sadly for our beleaguered support band, it isn’t them! Each song of their curtailed set is met with a resounding chorus of boo’s, backed by chants of… "We want The Runaways!”
Our mystery glamsters retire in abject defeat after what seems like only 20 minutes. An exit greeted by the biggest cheer of the night so far. Prompting another stampede, this time to the front of the stage, in feverish anticipation of the appearance of our headlining heroines.
Problem was, the support set had been cut so short by the baying crowd, that the word going round suggested that The Runaways hadn’t even arrived at the venue. This in turn led to more wildfire rumours… "They’re not coming”…. "Cherie’s ill”… "The tour bus has broken down”… "They’ve pulled out”….
The atmosphere in the hall suddenly becomes decidedly unrestful, the mood becomes one of simmering hostility. A couple of scuffles break out near the stage; things could get out of hand. Eventually after what seemed like a lifetime, we’re brought to attention by a lone announcer who takes to the stage as the last remnants of the support bands gear is cleared.
We are asked to stay calm; The Runaways are in the building and will be onstage as soon as possible. The audience erupts into delirium and begins the repeated mass chant. "Runaways (clap, clap, clap)… . "Runaways (clap, clap, clap)…
Another huge roar goes up as a large black curtain is pulled aside revealing the riser housing Sandy West’s awesome clear Perspex drum kit. (I’d played drums in a band at school with Alex, and I’d never seen anything like Sandy’s set up before) And before long, the hall lights dimmed, the stage now in complete blackness but for the roadies torches in the wings, the cacophony from the crowd now ear splitting. And then, at last, the announcers voice…. "All right Leeds?... Are you ready?.... Will you please welcome from Hollywood California… The Queens Of Noise…. The Runaways!”
The lighting rig flames into life, the PA explodes with deafening sound… and suddenly, there they are! In my life for the first time, in the flesh, and rocking, with an arsenal of attitude. The girls, needless to say, look simply amazing, very much the stuff of a red blooded boys rock dreams. Cherie initially in a tight fitting all in one number. Joan all in black, Lita prowling in a black and white hooped top, Sandy hammering away in that all in one leatherette number, Jackie – smiling, flicking that beautiful hair back and forth. An awesome sight!
As their debut album and single were both only available on import, even during the tour, every song was completely new to me. So giving a chronologically correct set list after all this time is impossible. But American Nights, California Paradise, the awesome Dead End Justice, and of course… Cherry Bomb …were all spat out to riotous reception. Particularly with Cherie’s much anticipated arrival onstage in basque and stockings! And still the onslaught continued… You Drive Me Wild, Blackmail, I’m sure they did Don’t Abuse Me as well. To be honest, it all went by so quickly and crazily, I’m surprised I can even remember these small details.
Then, as quickly as it had begun, it was over. The lights come up, revealing the condensation soaked walls, and over 1,000 new members of The Runaways army make their unruly way into the night. Our new Scottish friends tell us that whilst the show was good, they felt that Glasgow edged it for sheer hysteria, and they hitch up with us for the long walk to the railway station.
Alex claims his battered motorcycle, we wish him a safe journey, and I tell him I hope to see him again (Sadly, I never do) My new friends and me seek refuge in the railway station café until it closes just before midnight, then, I bed down on the nearest bench in the waiting area for my train which is due some 6 hours later, at 6am on Sunday morning!
Since that weekend in Leeds almost 30 years ago, as part of my work as a radio presenter and rock journalist, I’ve seen thousands of bands in countless venues all over Europe. I think it is brutally fair to suggest that many of them have been musically more proficient, and that many more have put on bigger, slicker, productions than that of October 9th 1976.
But for me, that night was about a rite of passage. It’s the event I remember in more detail than any that came after. It was about the energy, and the enthusiasm. It was about the crowd, and the sense of danger. It was also about the sense of witnessing something potentially very important for music. Of course, it was also about the headlines, and about the mania. But moreover, it was about 5 beautiful girls who came to play with real commitment, and who exuded a sense of fun and true enjoyment while they played their rock and roll.
It was the first, and sadly, only time I ever saw The Runaways, and it was one of the best days of my life!
Truly treasured memories.
Thanks girls.
Mark
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