Brighton was a Media Picnic that DID NOT REFLECT the majority of Mod's.... We were into Fashion, Music & Dancing. We had scooter's to get around on and as a fashion statement 2nd. The 2 whell's of a scooter kept your clothes looking good, unlike what a motorbike would do. One of my best friend's was a 'rocker'. We shared an interest in Blue's Music and as he was older, had more than me ! I lived in a village and was one of two 'mods'. There were a few older 'Modernist's' who had a van and travled further afield than I did. There was a bit of tension between mod's & rocker's BUT never any violence {that I ever heard of}. We had our cafe's and weren't stupid enougth to go in each other's. Occasionaly if a Blue's band was playing, the Rocker's would visit 'our' dance venue. They kept to themselves at the back. Like so much, REAL LIFE was very different to that PUBLICISED IN THE NEWS to sell paper's. If I got 'chatting' with old school chum's, we'd take the 'mick' out of each other's clothing & hair style's but would normally have a great discussion about the blue's music. There's blue's developed into Rock 'n Roll and our's into R&B. I loved the 'mod' scene and when it developed into 'being more fashionable'. Carnaby St and the High St. catching on and cashing in.
Yes I've heard it said that the violence and trouble was wildly exaggerated (particularly in the wretched quadrophenia,which wildly 'yobbified' everyone).Anyway that bloke they interviewed looks too young to have been an origional, more I'll bet a '79 'mod'.I had a book of original '64 photos and the impression they gave was quite different to popular supposition.A few hard boys admittedly but the vast majority of the kids looked nice and HAPPY.Far more waving at the cameras than middle finger.Because that's the way it was....most of the time.A few may have stuck the hush puppy in but it was over very quickly.A lot of early to mid '60s hard boys were mostly posture anyway.Very few people actually got hurt and according to the book 'Absolute beginners'....the early modernist days were considerably LESS aggressive than the teddy boy culture that precided it.
@@randybackgammon890 Thank's for those comment's. Just seen them. I feel extremely lucky to have lived through it. Reality & Rose-tinted are forever getting mixed up.
Nice bit of history, I wouldn't of said that after the coastal troubles The Mods died if anything it was the opposite as due to the mass hyped media press it got it actually fuelled a growth of Mods especially outside of London, the music was changing Psychedelia was the new thing so many went the way of the Hippie whereas others hated the idea of hippies and the birth of The Skinheads began aka Suedeheads, Many 60's Mods carried on into the 70's but it was never as big until the late 70's hence the film Quadrophenia perfect timing for both, Northern Soul was another movement that stemmed from the Mods, just like the 80's Mods many of US went the way of Casual's or got into the Rave scene, guess it transcends but at the same time others keep it going like with you guys which is brilliant. Also just for the history of Mods, The actual Original Mods were started by Sharp dressed young Jewish Gays who would went to underground Jazz nightclubs where there were copious drugs.
I saw a photo once circa ‘66, of early skins in parkas but with ‘bovver’ boots, on the beach. As you said, the mod scene was moving on in various directions around then. It contradicts the idea that skinheads didn’t come in till ‘69. A lot of skins were younger brothers of the mods so wanted to indentify differently
Hey, what about the 1950's Jazz influence at the Flamingo Club London. Then they were called, Modernists, because of their outlook in life. How about Mods sitting in dimly lit Cinema's watching the early French New Wave Films so they could sketch down on paper what a certain actor/actress was wearing & then take it to their tailor. There is so much history wrapped up in the Mod Culture you can't bypass it's roots. I've been a Mod since 79 & believe me i know all about Subcultures. As for the idiots who fought at the Coastal resorts. Well they are what we would now call; Chavs! Real Mods didn't care about fighting, infact they were so obsessed with how they looked a scrap with someone who's taken a bath in a deep fat fryer would be the last thing they wanted. Also clothes were so damn expensive. No the scruffy herberts who fought at Brighton, ect, were just mindless thugs & not real Mods at all. Remember Mods are like Peacocks. They like to stand out & be noticed. You can't do that when you're beaten black & blue.
You had The Who, The Small Faces,The Animals, The Yardbirds, The Action, The Creation, The Hollies, as well as The Beatles and Rolling Stones. You also enjoyed U.S. exports such as various Jazz, and Blues artists, as well as the majority of music released on Atlantic/Stax, as well as Motown, and it's offshoot labels. Mods had great taste in music, which is why, as a Yank, I took keen interest in them. Shame, The Action, The Creation, and John's Children never made it to The U.S. and you REALLY had to know your British Rock to have even heard of them. (Many people STILL don't know these bands, but everybody knows Marc Bolan/T-Rex. I should also mention The King Bees and The Lower Third, although I feel they might not have been very popular, but both bands gave the world DAVID BOWIE)
A bit abridged, but historically accurate. I'm a Yank, and, even though we never had proper Mods in the U.S., when I was a teenager, I took a keen interest in the Mod subculture, being that I grew up with the music that Mods favored before discovering Punk Rock. Interestingly enough, The Jam were actually considered a "Punk" band in The U.S., and being a fan of The Jam, as well as a fan of the punk groups at the time, I saw a direct connection between the original Mods, and Punk Rockers of the day. (I know many will call me daft, but I was able to draw parallels, and it's not my imagination. The comparisons are there!) Although I hang my boots in the punk camp, I have always had respect for the Mods and their subculture even if there were rivalries between the two camps. (NO THANKS to THE EXPLOITED AND SECRET AFFAIR!) Although short, and brief, it was a good video, but I was hoping you could recommend some other videos and, perhaps some books about the Mod subculture. Oh, I like your tie, by the way.
The mod revival was in full swing musically and as a sub culture before quadrophenia ,quadrophenia and and the jams all mod cons getting decent critical acclaim bought it into media attention
@trixiek942 As that may be, (And "All Mod Cons" is short for All Modern Conveniences) The Jam had two albums prior to that, and prior to The Mod revival of 79. Also, Paul Weller publicly stated that when The Jam got together, his main mission was to put out an album that was BETTER than The Who's My Generation. Well, he might not have accomplished that, but In The City and This Is The Modern World definitely tried to revive aggressive 60s powerpop with a late 70s sensibility, but, if you ask me, Setting Sons is the BEST album The Jam ever put out, but, on the other hand, The Jam NEVER put out a bad record, IMHO!
Mods vs rockers all seems very quaint now. The skinheads and hell's angels bikers took the violence associated with those scenes to a whole other level.
I think you probably could have referenced the Northern Soul sub- culture which was really a continuation of the Sixties Mod scene.... and also the Jam were central to the Mod Revival....I became a Mod because of the Jam.....in particular.. the Modfather himself, Weller.......and like a lot of the Mod Revivalists...it was prior to the Quadrophenia movie....also the Specials were very important....in particular Jerry Dammers in reviving 60s Ska music.....otherwise Mr Doherty a nice documentary.....We Mods havn't gone away you know!
I'm a Brummie, and the 80s were the best, music, clothes, scooters, socialising and going on rallies. I think it may even have been more popular than it was in the 60s, there were even scooter rallies in Europe to meet up with all thje mods over there. The music and groups were amazing.
When most of the people talk about mods they mention Who all the time. Wha were fabricated mods by media.The most creative and colossal period was before the groups like Who. All that jazz,French Italian cinema,Tamla Motown were door into the world of mods. Small Faces were true mot spirit in beginning.
The mod movement hsd its roots in the 50’s Jazz scene. At this time the word ‘mod’ meant someone who was into modern jazz; a ‘trad’ was into traditional jazz. Modern jazz was very avante garde and it’s followers felt like they were elitists and dressed well to reflect this
Mod was still around in 1971 when it fused with later skinhead culture - Suedeheads. By then, the clothing was virtually undistinguishable. Scooters kind of died out around 1971 when new laws regarding the wearing of crash helmets were introduced and older boys (it was invariably boys) traded them in gor Mini Cooper cars, sometimes still with Union Flag painted roofs. :-) Around that time, the favoured uptempo Rhythm & Blues/Soul discotheque music, which had formerly been referred to as "Rhythm & Soul" or just "Rare Soul", became known as "Northern Soul" as a flood of previously unknown, imported records from the US were unearthed. The fashions changed overnight when Suedeheads/Mods grew their hair and adopted different styles of clothing. Round-collared shirts, Budgie Jackets, named after Adam Faith's TV character (just as Harringtons were previously named after a character in 'Peyton Place'.) '60s style Mod fashions and scooters had become virtually extinct until Quadrophenia came along in 1979.
@Going Nowhere. LOL. Just been listening to this "History Lesson" again. What a load of Twaddly he talk's. The BEST Advise I can give him is; If you didn't live it DON'T talk it and DEFINITELY don't make a video out of it. Re, the one button Jacket. I was a 'Village' MOD, not a town or City one, so my view's & experience's are probably very different to them. I liked the clothes & music and to be honest, feel a lot has been exaggerated and fictionalised, like Quadrophinia !!! REAL LIFE was very different. It was a great time to be young. Nuff said ?
@@PurpleProjects what you're getting here is a true mod experience from the 80s. Snobbery, it's this Snobbery that killed it off. There was always this "rich kid" attitude, " you're not wearing the right clothes ", you've got the wrong amount of buttons on your jacket " , your scooter isn't from the 60s" . It sickened me then and I'm amazed to see it here. You enjoy the music you like wear what you want. Your uni project was interesting and not entirely accurate but who cares. Good luck, in the future and don't let the snobs of the world get you down.
i would have connected with this ,as a 13 year old listening to the Syle Council and Makin Time....... but weve all moved down the bus since the mid 80s ........loads of people were mods ,casuals ,skins etc nowadays they dress like divs ,,,,,,, this tells you nothing , and that wally with the hat ?!!
If you want Mod now you've got to see Small World. Started in 1979 and much the same now, they play in Essex most but their next scheduled gig is in Blackpool on the 10th of December.
As a 1980´s Mod near Glasgow I had more trouble from « other mods » out of jealousy? We thought they were « plastic mods ». In those days I went around with a mixed group of skinheads, mods, punks, rockers even New Romantics… no one cared, not even whether you supported Celtic or Rangers! One guy who was a rocker used to help me fix my scooter and he and his skinhead mates were always behind me if the « plastic mods » showed up. Most of the time we were just having a fun time… happy days!
My parents were (are?) Mods so it's always been a part of me. I like the smart suits and scooters with a million mirrors on lol. Something I'm interested in. But I grew up through the 80's and 90's listening to bands like Guns n Roses, Bon Jovi. Iron Maiden, Thunder, Whitesnake, and the classic rock stuff, still my thing now with bands like the Foo fighters, Halestorm etc, , and went around dressed in leather and denim and wanting a motorbike and tattoos. I'm not sure how my Mum felt about that! But she went along with it. Even bought me my first CD for my 13th birthday, Appetite for destruction by GnR. So I suppose I'd be a Mocker too...
i was a skin in sydney in '80 onwards and the mods hung out at the pub we did - didn't have rockers and clashes here, though a few skirmishes with punks now and then. i still know a few mods and always liked their music too [i rate quodrophenia as one of the great all time albums], and they sometimes came to our ska gigs. i guess being far off from london and the small size of the alternative scene then meant we connected as much as 'alternative' more than the clashes of ideologies, so had more affinity than maybe the scene in britain then...
My Mum was a Mod up north, Oldham, she always says the way it's shown in the South isn't how it was up here, She also really does not like Quadrophenia, and the thing you said about the Mod scene ending after that little scrap in Brighton wasn't true , up here at least. She remembers being around 15, which would be 1967, and it was still going strong.
Up north it was soul music later northern soul,the twisted wheel all nighter was packed with a crowd from all over the place. there was a club in Oldham I'm sure was called The Thing,and the Waterloo pub,where the meeting places,don't know if your mum ever went,how we got away riding round on scooters without any helmets and parkas that soaked up the drizzle,with your best gear beneath,crazy.The immortality of youth✌️
@@jeffovery9054 yeah the thing club, she's mentioned that many times, the Astoria (i knew that as Butterflys), i think shes mentioned the Broadway, still lives near where that wouldve been. Sinatras?. and the twisted wheel and super takis in Manchester are others she's mentioned, Would the Waterloo pub be near Waterloo road in Ashton, thats where my Dads from. Theres another Ashton pub she talks about, forgot the name now though. Got to be honest, i think i would be known as a Mocker lol, i like the rocker leather and motorbikes just as much, possibly more, than the scooters and Parkas. every now and then we get a group of scooters driving down our road, she always runs to watch when she hears that scooter sound.
Waterloo pub was corner of union St and Waterloo st town centre,wasn't really into the nightclubs you mentioned,top twenty hollingwood,was a fav,went to Manchester ,oasis and the wheel mainly,only knew the Astoria Sunday mornings after all nighters,when we'd been seeing mates around Oldham!must have frightened the bowlers to death,zombie apocalypse.🤭✌️
@@jeffovery9054 ah right, top twenty doesnt ring a bell, i'll ask my Mum, shes mentioned the bowling. another shes mentioned in that area is cats whiskers, which i think was where the dreaded job centre is now...
In its early days,the mod scene developed around London's jazz clubs.that was 1958. There was no sign of Ben Sherman ( EST 1963),and no sign of Fred Perry on the mods at that early point.
The 60's time period, was a catalyst for the export of the London "Mod Scene" to America. Clothes from Carnaby Street were all the rage with natural fabrics, mostly cotton. With wide wail corduroys, indian prints, paisley, pokadots, brocades, tapestries, stripes, checks, Nerhu Jackets, and formal pinstripe suits made Fashion Statements as loud as possible. Shoes, mostly boots, were made popular by The British Invasion of Rock n' Roll Musicians; (Beatles and Stones; etc.) The "Hippies" and younger kids, adorned themselves with every article of "Victorian Garments" resourced from Antique Shops ! Leather fringed jackets, native style boots, sandals, were a whole other creative faction. Everybody expressively indulged ! To accessorize, Beads and Bells, Feathers and Shells, Peace Buttons of anything and every statement. "Wow, Far Out, Groovy, In Gear, we say... Now look at how we dress. :-)
I was a teenager during those years and if Top Rank, Nite Owl, Green Bowler, Irish (Silver Street) and Il Rondo mean anything to you - you know where I mean. The Fantasia at Quorn anyone?
Decent documentary but I have to take issue with your suggestion that "Mod died" after the riots etc. The north of England kept the music, scooters and fashions alive right into the seventies, via the Northern Soul scene.
The 60,s mod scene with bands like the Small faces the Action, Creation the high numbers the Yardbirds etc was at its best and unbeatable, In the late 70,s about 18 months prior to Quadrophenia there wasn't many Mods in London, when I was 16 I used to go to a club in charing Cross, they always had a band play, and the DJ played mainly Northern Soul and a few Who tracks, about 60 to 100 people used to attend, I was obsessed with all things Mod, another club I attended in Crystal Palace, the weeks prior to Quadrophenia there was about 60 to a 100 odd people within 2wks of the film release the place was packed and every one and their dog was a mod, which for me destroyed it, in the early 90,s the Mod scene was as close to the 60,s and left the 70,s revivalist scene behind, as for getting in fights over my cults better than your cult, I had no interest in that, but I did witness loads of violence back in the 70,s just because you dressed different.
Brillant history, I came a Mod back in 1980's, I saw Quadrophenia film, I enjoy it, I am one of Original Mod in Toronto Canada in 1980's. I only Quadrophenia film, I been in England like London, UK, I didn't get to see Brighton, UK, next time, I was in England September,8th-18,2017. .
As kids then, I can remember if the mods got word of even 1 rocker spotted 😳!, they'd jump on their scooters 🛵🛵🛵🛵🛵🛵and rev off quickly, because they were terrified their scooters might be smashed up by the rockers 🛵😎😭
Mod came from the jazz clubs in London in the 50s. There were the traditional jazz fans and the modern jazz fans. Trads and Mods. My dad was a trad jazz fan. By the 60s Mods had started to embrace the new US rhythm & blues (from the jazz scene) and this spread through a new generation in the 60s. By the mid 60s, the cool kids had moved on and mod split into hippies, skinheads and domesticity. A few scooter enthusiasts kept it breathing before it was revived again in the 70s. Brighton may be home to the mod revivalist, but Ronnie Scott's is home to the original mod. Nice camera work, by the way.
Scooterboys were not Mods mate. You're a nice fella, but you should read some books on Mod. The most recent is Eddie Pillar's "Clean Living Under Difficult Circumstances." Good job editing and you did get 100K views. Congrats for that. Do one again, but more accurate. You left out the most important reasons why people like us are Mods. It's not just about the Mods & Rocker fights. That was more tabloid headlines then the "history of Mods." Sigh.
Hey Chris, thanks for the feedback. This was done as a college project and I wasn't expecting to get this amount of views. Can you tell me what time I talk about the Scooterboys? Also, I knew about the fights being staged and it being used for headline articles please look at 5:28 of the video for context. Nonetheless, I probably won't do another Mod video due to working a 9-5. I still wear a parka and eat pie and mash though!
I was involved in the London 79 revival - loved it. Today's scene with its twist and go scooters, Ebay commercialised clothing and Weller sideburn wannabees is a million miles away from the original roots. I've still got my first edition Richard Barnes Mods book which captures the very essence of the first generation's style and narcissism.
I was a kid then 🧒the rockers were ok with us, but the mods were rude and if we were curious and giggled about all the mirrors on the scooters 😂, they'd get nasty and tell us to piss off 😕!!
Skinhead came out of mid you had soft mods who became hippies and hard mods who became skinheads. 1969 to1971. Brenner had boot boys then 1976_punk came along then in 1978 skinhead came back as punk sold out the 1979 mid came back.
Students became hippie's Working class turned to bluebeat rocksteady influenced by Jamaican migrants in London up north mods carried on in a way with Northern soul Working class northerners weren't interested in love ins neither working class Londoners The same happening to music from rave to jungle
Teddy boys were never a subculture, teddy boys was a term used for any youth at the time that was a bit naughty rather like the Chavs of today Mod really started around 1955 i suggest you read Absolute Beginners by Colin Maguiness.
all seaside resorts fighting within britain on sundays, through out the 50s up to 71 when the skinhead movement finished, that was the end of all the trouble, next please
And then the skinheads came along. They didn't like anyone... anyone remember the riots in southend between, mods, rockers, and skinheads... The punks always seemed to be Gentlemen :)
Harry you’ve got things so wrong, you’re tallking from other sources, not speaking to the people, and you can’t wear a 1 button suit and say you’re a Mod.
Well, yes but you forgot rude boys/Ska and two tone.. Not forgetting the skins and punks, new romantics, goths .. then you have the 1979 revival..it was all part and parcel of it..
I would have formed my own youth cult that cold bank holiday at Clapton called The Rods (cant have Mockers as the, The Beatles have already claimed that one). Anyway by forming this 3rd youth cult I would have had twice as many people to fight! Think about it… 🤔👈
Calling all Mods! I design and draw many varied things. Like Mod Life themed products and Honda Super Cub ‘merchandise’ - you can find them by clicking on the ‘About’ me part of my profile, and scrolling to the bottom…. Please take a look and share with your family / friends. It’ll help me out tremendously! Cheers
This completely misses out how Mods emerged in the first place, several years before Brighton in 1964, or the significance of music to Mod culture - which evolved into Northern Soul. The Mod (and Skinhead) revivals of the late '70s early '80s were considered a media construct and a farce by anyone who remember their first incarnation.. A pseudo tribute act with no actual roots beyond the superficial.
Funny innit? How serious we were about what we were into. And each group would treat the other as something foreign , and what you belong to and if you didn’t belong to it you’d might as well jump in the sea as the bloke in this clip said . Currently there are tonnes of ppl in the UK turning to Islam as a way of life. Yeah everyone takes it too seriously. But in the end everyone will have grown up and accepted one another , and smitten the ego of enmity. There are some truly dirty ppl out there esp in positions of greed and power and they are dividing us and mugging the lot of us while we fight over the tuppence they chuck at us. I am a practicing Muslim who started after my rock “goth” years and I ain’t got a a problem with my fellow Brit brothers of different persuasions.
You buy that tie at a children's shoppe mate? Buy a three-button suit w/ a ticket pocket, wear a nice sik tie, not a skinny 80's Two-Tone New Wave number. Nice lil film project though. School assigment?
Brighton was a Media Picnic that DID NOT REFLECT the majority of Mod's.... We were into Fashion, Music & Dancing. We had scooter's to get around on and as a fashion statement 2nd. The 2 whell's of a scooter kept your clothes looking good, unlike what a motorbike would do. One of my best friend's was a 'rocker'. We shared an interest in Blue's Music and as he was older, had more than me ! I lived in a village and was one of two 'mods'. There were a few older 'Modernist's' who had a van and travled further afield than I did. There was a bit of tension between mod's & rocker's BUT never any violence {that I ever heard of}. We had our cafe's and weren't stupid enougth to go in each other's. Occasionaly if a Blue's band was playing, the Rocker's would visit 'our' dance venue. They kept to themselves at the back. Like so much, REAL LIFE was very different to that PUBLICISED IN THE NEWS to sell paper's. If I got 'chatting' with old school chum's, we'd take the 'mick' out of each other's clothing & hair style's but would normally have a great discussion about the blue's music. There's blue's developed into Rock 'n Roll and our's into R&B. I loved the 'mod' scene and when it developed into 'being more fashionable'. Carnaby St and the High St. catching on and cashing in.
Mockers
Yes I've heard it said that the violence and trouble was wildly exaggerated (particularly in the wretched quadrophenia,which wildly 'yobbified' everyone).Anyway that bloke they interviewed looks too young to have been an origional, more I'll bet a '79 'mod'.I had a book of original '64 photos and the impression they gave was quite different to popular supposition.A few hard boys admittedly but the vast majority of the kids looked nice and HAPPY.Far more waving at the cameras than middle finger.Because that's the way it was....most of the time.A few may have stuck the hush puppy in but it was over very quickly.A lot of early to mid '60s hard boys were mostly posture anyway.Very few people actually got hurt and according to the book 'Absolute beginners'....the early modernist days were considerably LESS aggressive than the teddy boy culture that precided it.
Exactly.
@@randybackgammon890 Thank's for those comment's. Just seen them. I feel extremely lucky to have lived through it. Reality & Rose-tinted are forever getting mixed up.
So Mods was short for Modernists? Never knew that!
" CLean Living under difficuLt circumstances . . ." - Peter Meaden
Nice bit of history, I wouldn't of said that after the coastal troubles The Mods died if anything it was the opposite as due to the mass hyped media press it got it actually fuelled a growth of Mods especially outside of London, the music was changing Psychedelia was the new thing so many went the way of the Hippie whereas others hated the idea of hippies and the birth of The Skinheads began aka Suedeheads, Many 60's Mods carried on into the 70's but it was never as big until the late 70's hence the film Quadrophenia perfect timing for both, Northern Soul was another movement that stemmed from the Mods, just like the 80's Mods many of US went the way of Casual's or got into the Rave scene, guess it transcends but at the same time others keep it going like with you guys which is brilliant. Also just for the history of Mods, The actual Original Mods were started by Sharp dressed young Jewish Gays who would went to underground Jazz nightclubs where there were copious drugs.
I saw a photo once circa ‘66, of early skins in parkas but with ‘bovver’ boots, on the beach. As you said, the mod scene was moving on in various directions around then. It contradicts the idea that skinheads didn’t come in till ‘69. A lot of skins were younger brothers of the mods so wanted to indentify differently
Also accurate, if not a simple explanation, or history lesson. (And this is coming from a YANK!)
Hey, what about the 1950's Jazz influence at the Flamingo Club London. Then they were called, Modernists, because of their outlook in life.
How about Mods sitting in dimly lit Cinema's watching the early French New Wave Films so they could sketch down on paper what a certain actor/actress was wearing & then take it to their tailor.
There is so much history wrapped up in the Mod Culture you can't bypass it's roots. I've been a Mod since 79 & believe me i know all about Subcultures.
As for the idiots who fought at the Coastal resorts. Well they are what we would now call; Chavs!
Real Mods didn't care about fighting, infact they were so obsessed with how they looked a scrap with someone who's taken a bath in a deep fat fryer would be the last thing they wanted.
Also clothes were so damn expensive. No the scruffy herberts who fought at Brighton, ect, were just mindless thugs & not real Mods at all. Remember Mods are like Peacocks.
They like to stand out & be noticed. You can't do that when you're beaten black & blue.
Spot on, mod came from modern jazz in comparison to traditional jazz. Mods or Trads.
I've been in the mod scene since I was 12 now I am nearly 70 ,still love the music and the fashion. Long live mods 🤩😊😎🤗
Paul selkirk.same age as a friend of mine.would be 70.Had scooters from the age of 16.His name was Neville John from Middlesbrough.North east England.
Excellent !!
You had The Who, The Small Faces,The Animals, The Yardbirds, The Action, The Creation, The Hollies, as well as The Beatles and Rolling Stones. You also enjoyed U.S. exports such as various Jazz, and Blues artists, as well as the majority of music released on Atlantic/Stax, as well as Motown, and it's offshoot labels. Mods had great taste in music, which is why, as a Yank, I took keen interest in them. Shame, The Action, The Creation, and John's Children never made it to The U.S. and you REALLY had to know your British Rock to have even heard of them. (Many people STILL don't know these bands, but everybody knows Marc Bolan/T-Rex. I should also mention The King Bees and The Lower Third, although I feel they might not have been very popular, but both bands gave the world DAVID BOWIE)
A bit abridged, but historically accurate. I'm a Yank, and, even though we never had proper Mods in the U.S., when I was a teenager, I took a keen interest in the Mod subculture, being that I grew up with the music that Mods favored before discovering Punk Rock. Interestingly enough, The Jam were actually considered a "Punk" band in The U.S., and being a fan of The Jam, as well as a fan of the punk groups at the time, I saw a direct connection between the original Mods, and Punk Rockers of the day. (I know many will call me daft, but I was able to draw parallels, and it's not my imagination. The comparisons are there!) Although I hang my boots in the punk camp, I have always had respect for the Mods and their subculture even if there were rivalries between the two camps. (NO THANKS to THE EXPLOITED AND SECRET AFFAIR!) Although short, and brief, it was a good video, but I was hoping you could recommend some other videos and, perhaps some books about the Mod subculture. Oh, I like your tie, by the way.
The mod revival was in full swing musically and as a sub culture before quadrophenia ,quadrophenia and and the jams all mod cons getting decent critical acclaim bought it into media attention
@trixiek942nah. Weller said himself he liked it cause it had the word ‘mod’ in it.
@trixiek942 As that may be, (And "All Mod Cons" is short for All Modern Conveniences) The Jam had two albums prior to that, and prior to The Mod revival of 79. Also, Paul Weller publicly stated that when The Jam got together, his main mission was to put out an album that was BETTER than The Who's My Generation. Well, he might not have accomplished that, but In The City and This Is The Modern World definitely tried to revive aggressive 60s powerpop with a late 70s sensibility, but, if you ask me, Setting Sons is the BEST album The Jam ever put out, but, on the other hand, The Jam NEVER put out a bad record, IMHO!
Mods vs rockers all seems very quaint now. The skinheads and hell's angels bikers took the violence associated with those scenes to a whole other level.
lol what quaint
I loved it!...Im a 79 Revivalist... I'm 55!
I think you probably could have referenced the Northern Soul sub- culture which was really a continuation of the Sixties Mod scene.... and also the Jam were central to the Mod Revival....I became a Mod because of the Jam.....in particular.. the Modfather himself, Weller.......and like a lot of the Mod Revivalists...it was prior to the Quadrophenia movie....also the Specials were very important....in particular Jerry Dammers in reviving 60s Ska music.....otherwise Mr Doherty a nice documentary.....We Mods havn't gone away you know!
The Small Fakers 🇬🇧🏆👍 are a great night out if they are in your town go & see them you won’t be disappointed. Love the music. 🇬🇧🕺🏻
Not a Small Faces tribute band, is it?
@@nankypooh655 yes you’re right 🤣. They are very good.
I'm a Brummie, and the 80s were the best, music, clothes, scooters, socialising and going on rallies. I think it may even have been more popular than it was in the 60s, there were even scooter rallies in Europe to meet up with all thje mods over there. The music and groups were amazing.
OUTRIGGER,UPPER GROUNDS SUMMER ROW AND CHICKEN GEORGE FOR YOUR HIPSTERS 😎
When most of the people talk about mods they mention Who all the time.
Wha were fabricated mods by media.The most creative and colossal period was before the groups like Who.
All that jazz,French Italian cinema,Tamla Motown were door into the world of mods.
Small Faces were true mot spirit in beginning.
The mod movement hsd its roots in the 50’s Jazz scene. At this time the word ‘mod’ meant someone who was into modern jazz; a ‘trad’ was into traditional jazz. Modern jazz was very avante garde and it’s followers felt like they were elitists and dressed well to reflect this
that was connected tot the beatnik era in the late 50's
Mod was still around in 1971 when it fused with later skinhead culture - Suedeheads. By then, the clothing was virtually undistinguishable. Scooters kind of died out around 1971 when new laws regarding the wearing of crash helmets were introduced and older boys (it was invariably boys) traded them in gor Mini Cooper cars, sometimes still with Union Flag painted roofs. :-)
Around that time, the favoured uptempo Rhythm & Blues/Soul discotheque music, which had formerly been referred to as "Rhythm & Soul" or just "Rare Soul", became known as "Northern Soul" as a flood of previously unknown, imported records from the US were unearthed. The fashions changed overnight when Suedeheads/Mods grew their hair and adopted different styles of clothing. Round-collared shirts, Budgie Jackets, named after Adam Faith's TV character (just as Harringtons were previously named after a character in 'Peyton Place'.) '60s style Mod fashions and scooters had become virtually extinct until Quadrophenia came along in 1979.
Ill informed pish. And why is the "former mod" wearing a novelty hat?
Why yo shoes raggedy
TRUE and GOOD QUESTION ! Atrue MOD would never be seen looking like that. LOL
@Going Nowhere. LOL. Just been listening to this "History Lesson" again. What a load of Twaddly he talk's. The BEST Advise I can give him is; If you didn't live it DON'T talk it and DEFINITELY don't make a video out of it. Re, the one button Jacket. I was a 'Village' MOD, not a town or City one, so my view's & experience's are probably very different to them. I liked the clothes & music and to be honest, feel a lot has been exaggerated and fictionalised, like Quadrophinia !!! REAL LIFE was very different. It was a great time to be young. Nuff said ?
@@HTJB60 nuff said
@@PurpleProjects what you're getting here is a true mod experience from the 80s. Snobbery, it's this Snobbery that killed it off. There was always this "rich kid" attitude, " you're not wearing the right clothes ", you've got the wrong amount of buttons on your jacket " , your scooter isn't from the 60s" . It sickened me then and I'm amazed to see it here.
You enjoy the music you like wear what you want.
Your uni project was interesting and not entirely accurate but who cares.
Good luck, in the future and don't let the snobs of the world get you down.
This is a great review. Thanks for loading. In 1979, aged 18, listening to the few bars of The Who at the end here was pleasantly chilling.
i would have connected with this ,as a 13 year old listening to the Syle Council and Makin Time....... but weve all moved down the bus since the mid 80s ........loads of people were mods ,casuals ,skins etc nowadays they dress like divs ,,,,,,,
this tells you nothing , and that wally with the hat ?!!
Brilliant Harry; I learnt something too!!!
3:16.... Chap on the right light coloured suit ......Thats actually Marc Bolan of T.Rex fame
Iv been in to the mod scene since I was 14 I'm now 53 and still love it
Me too. I'm 67 and still present as a mod in clothes and music.
Snap
The mod revival started before the film
The mod scene roots go back to the early blues scene of Soho... Bands like Yard Birds. Long John Baldry and black artist like Howling Wolf
Not forgetting Sam Cooke... The best
juge Dread put bring back the skins in1977 and then in 1979 Two Tone came out at this time as well
If you want Mod now you've got to see Small World. Started in 1979 and much the same now, they play in Essex most but their next scheduled gig is in Blackpool on the 10th of December.
PH2 are good too - a revamped Purple Hearts with Drew from The Scene and John from Small World 🙂
First impressions, what a tune, lucky to have a copy in my record collection. Never seen them live though. When they next playing?
Brian Jones was one of the very first mods.
As a 1980´s Mod near Glasgow I had more trouble from « other mods » out of jealousy? We thought they were « plastic mods ». In those days I went around with a mixed group of skinheads, mods, punks, rockers even New Romantics… no one cared, not even whether you supported Celtic or Rangers! One guy who was a rocker used to help me fix my scooter and he and his skinhead mates were always behind me if the « plastic mods » showed up.
Most of the time we were just having a fun time… happy days!
I remember the Spy Kids from Glasgow.
The violence and troubles was between the Teddy Boys and the Rokers before the Mods movement came out.
The MODS on scooters weren't all guys --- my sister and I had scooters -- the only girls in our town to be part of the scooter gang.
Awesome 👍 thank you, Cheers 🍻
Second generation mod but who loved rock music too ,so im sort of a Mocker.My two favorite bands are Rush and The Jam ,work that one out.
My parents were (are?) Mods so it's always been a part of me. I like the smart suits and scooters with a million mirrors on lol. Something I'm interested in. But I grew up through the 80's and 90's listening to bands like Guns n Roses, Bon Jovi. Iron Maiden, Thunder, Whitesnake, and the classic rock stuff, still my thing now with bands like the Foo fighters, Halestorm etc, , and went around dressed in leather and denim and wanting a motorbike and tattoos. I'm not sure how my Mum felt about that! But she went along with it. Even bought me my first CD for my 13th birthday, Appetite for destruction by GnR. So I suppose I'd be a Mocker too...
It was a uniquely British movement at a time when people were proud to be British.
Extraordinarily done. Thank you, mate.
i was a skin in sydney in '80 onwards and the mods hung out at the pub we did - didn't have rockers and clashes here, though a few skirmishes with punks now and then. i still know a few mods and always liked their music too [i rate quodrophenia as one of the great all time albums], and they sometimes came to our ska gigs. i guess being far off from london and the small size of the alternative scene then meant we connected as much as 'alternative' more than the clashes of ideologies, so had more affinity than maybe the scene in britain then...
My Mum was a Mod up north, Oldham, she always says the way it's shown in the South isn't how it was up here, She also really does not like Quadrophenia, and the thing you said about the Mod scene ending after that little scrap in Brighton wasn't true , up here at least. She remembers being around 15, which would be 1967, and it was still going strong.
Up north it was soul music later northern soul,the twisted wheel all nighter was packed with a crowd from all over the place. there was a club in Oldham I'm sure was called The Thing,and the Waterloo pub,where the meeting places,don't know if your mum ever went,how we got away riding round on scooters without any helmets and parkas that soaked up the drizzle,with your best gear beneath,crazy.The immortality of youth✌️
@@jeffovery9054 yeah the thing club, she's mentioned that many times, the Astoria (i knew that as Butterflys), i think shes mentioned the Broadway, still lives near where that wouldve been. Sinatras?. and the twisted wheel and super takis in Manchester are others she's mentioned, Would the Waterloo pub be near Waterloo road in Ashton, thats where my Dads from. Theres another Ashton pub she talks about, forgot the name now though. Got to be honest, i think i would be known as a Mocker lol, i like the rocker leather and motorbikes just as much, possibly more, than the scooters and Parkas. every now and then we get a group of scooters driving down our road, she always runs to watch when she hears that scooter sound.
Waterloo pub was corner of union St and Waterloo st town centre,wasn't really into the nightclubs you mentioned,top twenty hollingwood,was a fav,went to Manchester ,oasis and the wheel mainly,only knew the Astoria Sunday mornings after all nighters,when we'd been seeing mates around Oldham!must have frightened the bowlers to death,zombie apocalypse.🤭✌️
@@jeffovery9054 ah right, top twenty doesnt ring a bell, i'll ask my Mum, shes mentioned the bowling. another shes mentioned in that area is cats whiskers, which i think was where the dreaded job centre is now...
In its early days,the mod scene developed around London's jazz clubs.that was 1958. There was no sign of Ben Sherman ( EST 1963),and no sign of Fred Perry on the mods at that early point.
Thankyou purps.
Thank you! Great work
yes and after 74 everyone dressed like cheap scruffs
The 60's time period, was a catalyst for the export of the London "Mod Scene" to America. Clothes from Carnaby Street were all the rage with natural fabrics, mostly cotton. With wide wail corduroys, indian prints, paisley, pokadots, brocades, tapestries, stripes, checks, Nerhu Jackets, and formal pinstripe suits made Fashion Statements as loud as possible. Shoes, mostly boots, were made popular by The British Invasion of Rock n' Roll Musicians; (Beatles and Stones; etc.) The "Hippies" and younger kids, adorned themselves with every article of "Victorian Garments" resourced from Antique Shops ! Leather fringed jackets, native style boots, sandals, were a whole other creative faction. Everybody expressively indulged ! To accessorize, Beads and Bells, Feathers and Shells, Peace Buttons of anything and every statement. "Wow, Far Out, Groovy, In Gear, we say... Now look at how we dress. :-)
I was a teenager during those years and if Top Rank, Nite Owl, Green Bowler, Irish (Silver Street) and Il Rondo mean anything to you - you know where I mean. The Fantasia at Quorn anyone?
Decent documentary but I have to take issue with your suggestion that "Mod died" after the riots etc. The north of England kept the music, scooters and fashions alive right into the seventies, via the Northern Soul scene.
Anyone else got curious what a Mod was after watching the Punk and Goth interview
Good work👍
Thank you :)
Parkas to keep the cold out ,maybe 🤔.
I wore mine to keep my suit clean.
The 60,s mod scene with bands like the Small faces the Action, Creation the high numbers the Yardbirds etc was at its best and unbeatable, In the late 70,s about 18 months prior to Quadrophenia there wasn't many Mods in London, when I was 16 I used to go to a club in charing Cross, they always had a band play, and the DJ played mainly Northern Soul and a few Who tracks, about 60 to 100 people used to attend, I was obsessed with all things Mod, another club I attended in Crystal Palace, the weeks prior to Quadrophenia there was about 60 to a 100 odd people within 2wks of the film release the place was packed and every one and their dog was a mod, which for me destroyed it, in the early 90,s the Mod scene was as close to the 60,s and left the 70,s revivalist scene behind, as for getting in fights over my cults better than your cult, I had no interest in that, but I did witness loads of violence back in the 70,s just because you dressed different.
You showed young Marc Bolan in the magazine article but neglected to mention him- the king of the mods!
Well spotted...Marc the mod at 3.17 ✊🏽🎶
Don't think so
@@mikeowen1192 well think again
@@mikeowen1192 Bottom corner of the photo from 3.15 - 3.19 is a young Mark Feld later to become Marc Bolan
My grandparents were mods so I guess that’s why I am lucky and grew up intelligent.
The first time I heard of mods was by virtue of Mighty Boosh. That show was genius!
2-tone tonic suits, brogues and tassled shoes with blakey studs in the soles, Brutus pleated white shirts or Ben Sherman, Parka jackets, trilby hats.
Brillant history, I came a Mod back in 1980's, I saw Quadrophenia film, I enjoy it, I am one of Original Mod in Toronto Canada in 1980's. I only Quadrophenia film, I been in England like London, UK, I didn't get to see Brighton, UK, next time, I was in England September,8th-18,2017. .
@David Small someday David Small I want to come to Mod Weekend when I get funds, when this Pandemic ends, I am from Toronto Canada .
That was cool man nice 👍 one
The joke is I consider myself to be a mod in 2023, age 21. Absurd I know, but I just can't get excited the same way by contemporary cults...
Nothing absurd about that. I wish you all the best in your mod journey.
As kids then, I can remember if the mods got word of even 1 rocker spotted 😳!, they'd jump on their scooters 🛵🛵🛵🛵🛵🛵and rev off quickly, because they were terrified their scooters might be smashed up by the rockers 🛵😎😭
Mod came from the jazz clubs in London in the 50s. There were the traditional jazz fans and the modern jazz fans. Trads and Mods. My dad was a trad jazz fan. By the 60s Mods had started to embrace the new US rhythm & blues (from the jazz scene) and this spread through a new generation in the 60s. By the mid 60s, the cool kids had moved on and mod split into hippies, skinheads and domesticity. A few scooter enthusiasts kept it breathing before it was revived again in the 70s. Brighton may be home to the mod revivalist, but Ronnie Scott's is home to the original mod. Nice camera work, by the way.
Spot on my Dad was a modern jazz fan, and explained this to me as where mods came from.
Amazing !!!
Thank you! Cheers!
This young guy looked really smart but were let down by his choice of footwear
Scooterboys were not Mods mate. You're a nice fella, but you should read some books on Mod. The most recent is Eddie Pillar's "Clean Living Under Difficult Circumstances." Good job editing and you did get 100K views. Congrats for that. Do one again, but more accurate. You left out the most important reasons why people like us are Mods. It's not just about the Mods & Rocker fights. That was more tabloid headlines then the "history of Mods."
Sigh.
Hey Chris, thanks for the feedback. This was done as a college project and I wasn't expecting to get this amount of views. Can you tell me what time I talk about the Scooterboys? Also, I knew about the fights being staged and it being used for headline articles please look at 5:28 of the video for context. Nonetheless, I probably won't do another Mod video due to working a 9-5. I still wear a parka and eat pie and mash though!
I have photos of my late father at FLAMINGO SOHO 1954 watching BILLIE HOLIDAY .
He was the REAL McCoy..RIP
The rocker kid is actually Mr. French from the Departed
I watched The Departed the other day. Wicked film
The way things going the MOD movement will return again in the near future, maybe in slightly different version.
I was involved in the London 79 revival - loved it. Today's scene with its twist and go scooters, Ebay commercialised clothing and Weller sideburn wannabees is a million miles away from the original roots. I've still got my first edition Richard Barnes Mods book which captures the very essence of the first generation's style and narcissism.
"ooh I've got a book that makes me better than you!" tit
@@mikemccaine4229 haha... Classic Mike 👍
@@mikemccaine4229 I've purely referenced a book without claiming any form of intellectual superiority. Thank you though for responding.
@@rogerramjet5302 hhmmm whatever you say mate
What is the name of the second song apart from that one from the kinks?
I was a Mod who was off his Rocker.
When you were talking about vespas and lambrettas did you have a shot in Jump the gun I think I recognised it
I was a kid then 🧒the rockers were ok with us, but the mods were rude and if we were curious and giggled about all the mirrors on the scooters 😂, they'd get nasty and tell us to piss off 😕!!
And right you should. 😜
I would definitely been a mod. Rockers were scruffy unstylish tramps.
Thanks! ....YES....MOD is a way of LIFE ! You can´t get it out of our Head !!!! 53 and proud to be a M O D !!! ...in Hamburg
lol i grew up with shepherd´s bush mods
st pauli nord
nice documentary but a message to u rudie i dunno bout that one its was a skinhead song then a rude boy song never mod
Skinhead came out of mid you had soft mods who became hippies and hard mods who became skinheads. 1969 to1971. Brenner had boot boys then 1976_punk came along then in 1978 skinhead came back as punk sold out the 1979 mid came back.
Students became hippie's
Working class turned to bluebeat rocksteady influenced by Jamaican migrants in London up north mods carried on in a way with Northern soul
Working class northerners weren't interested in love ins neither working class Londoners
The same happening to music from rave to jungle
loving this
Teddy boys were never a subculture, teddy boys was a term used for any youth at the time that was a bit naughty rather like the Chavs of today Mod really started around 1955 i suggest you read Absolute Beginners by Colin Maguiness.
all seaside resorts fighting within britain on sundays, through out the 50s up to 71 when the skinhead movement finished, that was the end of all the trouble, next please
Bullshit
Football gangs regularly fought at the seaside during bank holidays, 70s and 80s.
3:17 Marc Bolan! :0)
Great Documentary, Love the WHO.
Back in the 60's, my two brothers were on opposite ends of the scale...one was a mod, one was a rocker. I sided with the rockers!
so u betray your other bro........
What happens if you weren't a mod or rocker?dangerous times from both.
No mention of zoot suits ? Correct me if I'm wrong but wasn't the zoot suit a MOD classic ??
We have three films being realised in 2021 The Pebble And The BOY, Being and To Be Someone See if you can promote that for a new Mod Revival
Three films?! I can promote them just send me the trailers :)
Did you notice Marc Bolan in the magazine.
NOICE
That's basically how i renember it,
👍💜👍💜
And then the skinheads came along. They didn't like anyone... anyone remember the riots in southend between, mods, rockers, and skinheads... The punks always seemed to be Gentlemen :)
Harry you’ve got things so wrong, you’re tallking from other sources, not speaking to the people, and you can’t wear a 1 button suit and say you’re a Mod.
to be honest this was a college project, don't expect a masterpiece Dan
@@PurpleProjects Ah! You are PLAYING a Mod for the video.
@@tooleyheadbang4239 well you got to be someone aight ya?
Gucci bro 👌
lol people saying bro on our cultures videos
If this was done as a college project then I give it a C-. This could easily have been so much better.
Actually got an A* due to all the effects used 😄 pretty pog if you ask me
@@PurpleProjects lucky I wasn't your college tutor then, because I actually know a thing or two about the mod movement.
@@TheCardiganR you ain’t got the qualification to be a college tutor. Only thing you’re good at is saying would you like fries with that?
Nice. A personal insult. God help this country with twats like you coming out of college.
@@TheCardiganR extra large fries please with a cheese burger
No mention of jazz.
Well, yes but you forgot rude boys/Ska and two tone..
Not forgetting the skins and punks, new romantics, goths .. then you have the 1979 revival..it was all part and parcel of it..
Nice one mate. Thanks for that.
I would have formed my own youth cult that cold bank holiday at Clapton called The Rods (cant have Mockers as the, The Beatles have already claimed that one). Anyway by forming this 3rd youth cult I would have had twice as many people to fight!
Think about it…
🤔👈
Calling all Mods! I design and draw many varied things. Like Mod Life themed products and Honda Super Cub ‘merchandise’ - you can find them by clicking on the ‘About’ me part of my profile, and scrolling to the bottom…. Please take a look and share with your family / friends. It’ll help me out tremendously! Cheers
What's the music around 00:31?
Harlem Shuffle, Bob and Earl
AWESOME VIDEO.
Thanks David :)
Oi! don't forget the HARD MODS = ]
This completely misses out how Mods emerged in the first place, several years before Brighton in 1964, or the significance of music to Mod culture - which evolved into Northern Soul. The Mod (and Skinhead) revivals of the late '70s early '80s were considered a media construct and a farce by anyone who remember their first incarnation.. A pseudo tribute act with no actual roots beyond the superficial.
is purps short for purple ? haha
Yes :) this channel was originally called PurpleProjects. But I thought I change it to something with less words. Hopefully it’s more memorable :p
@@PurpleProjects oh i thought it was something to do with purple hearts which were taken by mods back in the 60s ? regards
I’m a Mod !!! Everyday All Day!!!!!
We are the Mods, We are the Mods, We are, We are, We are the Mods!
Funny innit? How serious we were about what we were into. And each group would treat the other as something foreign , and what you belong to and if you didn’t belong to it you’d might as well jump in the sea as the bloke in this clip said . Currently there are tonnes of ppl in the UK turning to Islam as a way of life. Yeah everyone takes it too seriously. But in the end everyone will have grown up and accepted one another , and smitten the ego of enmity. There are some truly dirty ppl out there esp in positions of greed and power and they are dividing us and mugging the lot of us while we fight over the tuppence they chuck at us.
I am a practicing Muslim who started after my rock “goth” years and I ain’t got a a problem with my fellow Brit brothers of different persuasions.
You buy that tie at a children's shoppe mate? Buy a three-button suit w/ a ticket pocket, wear a nice sik tie, not a skinny 80's Two-Tone New Wave number. Nice lil film project though. School assigment?
🔘💃✌mods..rule OK