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On this day, 1 August 1978, New Wave/Power Punk band the Rich Kids played Cardiff Top Rank supported by The Slits.
Founded in 1977 by Glen Matlock following his departure from the Sex Pistols. The band also included future Ultravox member Midge Ure and Rusty Egan, who both later founded Visage together.
They released one album and three singles during their existence, from March 1977 to December 1978 (although the official announcement of their disbanding was not made until mid-1979).
Rich Kids were amongst the foremost British exponents of the power pop style, blending influences from 1960s acts such as Small Faces and The Who with more recent punk rock sounds. With only one single making the Top 40 in the UK Singles Chart,
The Rich Kids released the album Ghosts of Princes in Towers, and the single of the same name, in August, with the latter ranking only at #51.
Their last TV appearance was at the University of Reading where they taped a live show for Rock Goes to College on 27 October.
But the band ran into creative differences as they recorded demos for a second album. Having acquired a synthesiser, Ure, alongside bandmate Egan, wanted to integrate the new instrument into the band's sound while Matlock and New preferred to remain with traditional guitars and drums. This resulted in the group's decision to go their separate ways.
Matlock and New went on to tour with Iggy Pop, while Egan and Ure formed a band called The Misfits (not the American horror punk band Misfits) and, after short spells with Skids and Thin Lizzy, respectively, reunited in Visage.In April 1979, Ure joined Ultravox.
Steve New
On 7 January 2010, the band played a one-off reunion concert at The O2 Academy Islington, London in aid of Steve New. New died from cancer on 24 May 2010.
