Born Susan Dallion in 1958, Siouxsie and her Banshees "were among the longest-lived and most successful acts to emerge from the London punk community."
The Banshees initial lineup emerged from the Bromley Contingent, a notorious group of rabid Sex Pistols fans. Inspired by the growing punk movement, Dallion formed the Banshees in September 1976. In addition to bassist Steve Severin and guitarist Marco Perroni, the band included drummer John Simon Ritchie, also known as Sid Vicious.
Soon after, Vicious joined the Sex Pistols, while Perroni went on to join Adam & The Ants. The core duo of Siouxsie and Severin, along with new guitarist John McKay and drummer Kenny Morris, reached the U.K. Top Ten with their 1978 debut single, "Hong Kong Garden." Their grim, dissonant first LP, The Scream, followed later in the year.
Two days into a tour for their 1979 follow up, Join Hands, both McKay and Morris abruptly departed, and guitarist Robert Smith of The Cure (the tour's opening act) and ex-Slits and Big In Japan drummer Budgie were enlisted to fill the void. Although Smith returned to The Cure soon after, Budgie became a permanent member of the group, and remained with The Banshees throughout the duration of their career.
A highly commercial version of the Beatles' "Dear Prudence" provided them with their biggest U.K. hit, peaking at number 3.
With 1986's Tinderbox, Siouxsie & The Banshees finally reached the U.S. Top 100 album charts, largely on the strength of the single "Cities in Dust."
Superstition was their most commercially successful, spawning their lone U.S. Top 40 hit, "Kiss Them for Me."
In April 1996, The Banshees announced that they were "going out with dignity" and disbanded. Siouxsie and Budgie continue as The Creatures.
All material directly quoted from: icebergradio.com and music.yahoo.com
Photo courtesy: bbc.co.uk
