The Boomtown Rats

Biography

The Boomtown Rats are an Irish rock and new wave band originally formed in Dublin in 1975. Between 1977 and 1985, they had a series of Irish and UK hits including "Like Clockwork×Like ClockworkJune 1978 · SingleSpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 2 tracks1Like Clockwork2D.U.N. L.A.O.G.H.A.I.R.E.", "Rat Trap×Rat Trap1978 · SingleSpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 2 tracksARat Trap5:04BSo Strange3:04", "I Don't Like Mondays", and "Banana Republic×Banana Republic1980 · SingleSpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 2 tracksABanana Republic3:24BMan at the Top3:05". The original line-up comprised six musicians; five from Dún Laoghaire in County Dublin; Gerry Cott (rhythm guitar), Simon Crowe (drums), Johnnie Fingers (keyboards), Bob Geldof (vocals), and Garry Roberts (lead guitar), plus Fingers's cousin Pete Briquette (bass). The Boomtown Rats broke up in 1986, but reformed in 2013, without Fingers or Cott. Garry Roberts died in 2022. The band's fame and notability have been overshadowed by the charity work of frontman Bob Geldof.

Beginnings

The band was formed in 1975 with five of the six members having come from Dún Laoghaire, while Pete Briquette was originally from Ballyjamesduff, County Cavan, Ireland. Geldof initially managed the band but took over the lead vocals from Garry Roberts. Initially known as The Nightlife Thugs, the group changed their name to The Boomtown Rats, which Geldof had taken from the name of Woody Guthrie's boyhood gang mentioned in Guthrie's autobiography Bound for Glory. The name change came during their first gig on Halloween Night, which took place at Bolton St College of Technology, Dublin (known now as TU Dublin Bolton Street). At the break in the middle of that first gig, Bob Geldof scrubbed The Nightlife Thugs from the blackboard beside the stage where their name was displayed and replaced it with 'The Boomtown Rats'.
In the summer of 1976, the group played their first UK gig as well as gigs in Amsterdam, and Groningen in The Netherlands before moving to London where they signed with Ensign Records later that year. Their first single, "Lookin' After No. 1", released in August 1977 after a year of touring, including a support slot with Tom Petty. It reached the Top 40 of the UK singles chart at No. 11. Their first album The Boomtown Rats was released the following month and included another single, "Mary of the 4th Form×Mary of the 4th Form11 November 1977 · SingleSpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 2 tracksAMary of the 4th Form (alternate version)3:52BDo the Rat2:13" reached No. 15 in December. Music journalist Martin C. Strong commented, "Geldof's moody charisma helped to give the band a distinct identity".

Mainstream success

The band together with producer Mutt Lange embarked on recording their next album, A Tonic for the Troops×A Tonic for the TroopsJuly 1978 · Studio albumSpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 10 tracksA1Like Clockwork3:44A2Blind Date3:22A3(I Never Loved) Eva Braun4:38A4Living in a Island4:10A5Don’t Believe What You Read3:08B1She’s So Modern2:58B2Me and Howard Hughes3:11B3Can’t StopB4(Watch Out for) The Normal PeopleB5Rat Trap5:11 (1978). In May, the first single "She's So Modern" reached No. 12 in UK chart. A headlining tour around the UK culminated in a show filmed at the Hammersmith Odeon. The second single "Like Clockwork×Like ClockworkJune 1978 · SingleSpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 2 tracks1Like Clockwork2D.U.N. L.A.O.G.H.A.I.R.E." reached the UK Top Ten at No. 6 in July. The album was released shortly after, while in early November, the third single "Rat Trap×Rat Trap1978 · SingleSpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 2 tracksARat Trap5:04BSo Strange3:04" became the first rock song by an Irish band to reach No. 1 in the UK. In addition, "Rat Trap" was also the first new wave song to claim the number one spot. The U.S. version of the album (with a slightly different selection of tracks) came out the next year on Columbia Records.
The band returned to the recording studio with Lange to produce a follow-up in 1979, while they embarked on a U.S. tour in support of the album with moderate success. The single "I Don't Like Mondays" was released in July, also reached No. 1 in the UK. The song was written in response to a school shooting in California, and became a worldwide Top Ten hit, except for the United States. It was the band's only song to reach the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 and was included in the band's third album, The Fine Art of Surfacing×The Fine Art of Surfacing24 October 1979 · Studio albumSpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 10 tracksA1Someone’s Looking at You4:23A2Diamond Smiles3:50A3Wind Chill Factor (Minus Zero)4:37A4Having My Picture Taken3:19A5Sleep (Fingers’ Lullaby)5:05B1I Don’t Like Mondays4:19B2Nothing Happened Today3:20B3Keep It Up3:39B4Nice ’n’ Neat2:51B5When the Night Comes4:58 released in November of that year. The album also contained "Diamond Smiles×Diamond Smiles1979 · SingleSpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 2 tracksADiamond SmilesBLate Last Night" and their next Top 10 hit in the UK, "Someone's Looking at You".
In December 1980, "Banana Republic×Banana Republic1980 · SingleSpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 2 tracksABanana Republic3:24BMan at the Top3:05" was released, which was their last Top 10 hit, reaching No. 3. In the following year, the Boomtown Rats' next studio album Mondo Bongo×Mondo BongoDecember 1980 · Studio albumSpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 12 tracksA1Mood Mambo4:09A2Straight Up3:18A3This is My Room3:42A4Another Piece of Red2:40A5Go Man Go4:02A6Under Their Thumb (Is Under My Thumb)2:50B1Please Don’t Go3:37B2The Elephant’s Graveyard3:43B3Banana Republic3:30B4Fall Down2:25B5Hurt Hurts3:07B6Whitehall 12123:37 produced by Tony Visconti appeared. A second single, "Elephant's Graveyard (Guilty)", charted at 26, while the title track was released in the U.S. without much success. During the subsequent tour, Gerry Cott decided to depart the band, which continued as a quintet. In December 1981 the single "Never in a Million Years×Never in a Million Years1981 · SingleSpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 2 tracksANever in a Million Years3:51BDon’t Talk to Me2:54" stalled at No. 62 in the UK chart.
The band's fifth album, V Deep×V DeepMarch 1982 · Studio albumSpotifyYouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 11 tracksA1Never in a Million Years3:53A2The Bitter End4:31A3Talking in Codes2:56A4He Watches It All3:16A5A Storm Breaks6:00B1Charmed Lives4:00B2House on Fire4:46B3Up All Night3:38B4Skin on Skin4:38B5The Little Death3:43B6House Burned Down1:19, again produced by Visconti, was released in February 1982. A second single from the album "House on Fire×House on FireMarch 1982 · SingleSpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 2 tracksAHouse on FireBEurope Looked Ugly" made number 24 in the UK singles chart. A third,"'Charmed Lives×Charmed Lives1982 · SingleSpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 2 tracksACharmed LivesBA Storm Breaks (instrumental)" failed to chart however. In the U.S., the album was initially rejected by their American label, which instead issued a four-song EP called The Boomtown Rats, featuring four selections from V Deep. The full album was eventually issued in the U.S. in late 1982. The same year Geldof appeared in the film Pink Floyd – The Wall directed by Alan Parker.
A follow-up album entitled In The Long Grass×In the Long GrassDecember 1984 · Studio albumSpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 10 tracksA1A Hold of Me4:58A2Drag Me Down4:31A3Rain4:19A4Over Again3:47A5Another Sad Story3:47B1Tonight3:54B2Hard Times3:56B3Lucky3:37B4An Icicle in the Sun3:51B5Up or Down3:24 was recorded in 1983, but was initially rejected by the group's label. By 1984, the band was touring universities after becoming unable to fund the "guarantee" required to book mainstream concert halls. In The Long Grass was finally issued in the UK in May 1984, but failed to chart. Two singles, "Tonight" and "Drag Me Down", were taken from the album; these reached the lower rungs of the UK singles chart, but two further singles, "Dave" and "A Hold of Me", failed to register.
The Boomtown Rats' involvement with Band Aid (on which they all played) raised their profile again, and in January 1985, a revised version of In the Long Grass was finally released in the U.S. The album made the U.S. chart at No. 188, but the associated singles failed to make an impact on the charts or on the radio. The band subsequently performed at Live Aid's charity performance.
"Dave", a single from the original release of In the Long Grass, was re-recorded as "Rain" for the U.S. market. The song was about the band's saxophone player and school friend David McHale, who had suffered a breakdown after his girlfriend was found dead in a public toilet next to an empty heroin bag.

Break up

After Live Aid, the band was on hiatus while Geldof focused on the Band Aid Trust. The band's final performance came at Self Aid, a May 1986 concert at the RDS in Dublin, to raise awareness of unemployment in Ireland. Their rendition of "Joey's on the Street Again" was 12 minutes long, with an extended bridge, during which time Geldof ran among the crowd. It also included a rendition of Woody Guthrie's song "Greenback Dollar", which provided circularity and closure. Following this performance, Geldof addressed the crowd, saying, "It's been a great ten years; rest in peace". The band then performed "Looking After No.1".
Following the band's break-up, Geldof launched a solo career with Pete Briquette continuing to work alongside him.
Garry Roberts co-wrote songs for Kirsty MacColl before leaving the music business and going on to become a successful salesman of financial services. Roberts later presented his Guitar Workshop to schools, encouraging pupils to play the instrument and emphasising the contribution of the blues to modern rock and pop music.
Fingers became a successful record producer in Japan, as well as being part of the Japanese band Greengate. Simon Crowe was in the West Country-based Celtic instrumental band Jiggerypipery and has also run a clock-making business.
In 2005, the band's albums were all remastered and re-released and a 'Best Of×Best Of2003 · Album · CompilationSpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 19 tracks1She’s So Modern3:002Mary of the 4th Form3:323Rat Trap4:574Looking After No. 13:095When the Night Comes4:446Someone’s Looking at You4:267Joey’s on the Street Again5:418Banana Republic5:029Dave4:2110I Don’t Like Mondays4:1611Like Clockwork3:4512(I Never Loved) Eva Braun4:3813Neon Heart3:5414Never in a Million Years3:5215Diamond Smiles3:5216Drag Me Down4:1017I Can Make It (If You Can)5:5118The Elephant’s Graveyard3:4819Fall Down2:01' compilation was released, along with two DVDs. Briquette mixed the live DVD and Francesco Cameli mixed the extra tracks for the re-release of the Boomtown Rats albums at Sphere Studios in London.

The Rats

In 2008, Garry Roberts and Simon Crowe, who had continued playing together in The Fab Four, with Alan Perman (ex Herman's Hermits) and Bob Doyle (who once auditioned unsuccessfully for E.L.O.), and The Velcro Flies, with Steve (Dusty) Hill and Gavin Petrie, got together as "The Rats", playing their favourite Boomtown Rats songs, with two guitars, bass and drums. The band was initially fronted by Peter Barton, who since the early 1980s has played with several resurrected acts, including The Animals, The Hollies and Lieutenant Pigeon. Barton was replaced on lead vocals and bass by Bob Bradbury, who was the founder and main songwriter in Hello. Darren Beale, formerly of The Caves, played lead guitar. Saxophone player Andy Hamilton, who toured and recorded with The Boomtown Rats, including at Live Aid, played as a guest at some gigs.
Gerry Cott and Johnnie Fingers were invited to join the band when circumstances allowed. Cott attended The Rats' second gig (at The 100 Club on Oxford Street, London). Fingers, meanwhile, worked for the Fuji Rock Festival in Japan, but planned to join the band on stage when he was in the UK.
On 21 June 2009, Geldof, Roberts, and Briquette got together in Dublin to play "Dave", at a party to celebrate the life of Boomtown Rats' close friend and saxophone player, "Doctor" Dave MacHale, who had died of cancer in Frankfurt.
On 20 September 2011, Gerry Cott guested with Geldof's band at The Cadogan Hall, London. They played three Boomtown Rats songs prior to the encores. Cott returned to the stage for the final encore playing on two Geldof solo songs.

The Boomtown Rats reform

Bob Geldof, Gary Roberts, Pete Briquette, and Simon Crowe reunited as The Boomtown Rats in 2013, joined by Alan Dunn (longtime member of Geldof's band) on keyboards and Darren Beale (who played with Roberts & Crowe in The Rats) on guitar. Bob Geldof said, "Playing again with the Rats and doing those great songs again will be exciting afresh. We were an amazing band and I just feel it's the right time to re-Rat, to go back to Boomtown for a visit." In June 2013, it was announced that the band would be embarking on a UK and Ireland tour supported by a new compilation album, Back to Boomtown: Classic Rats Hits. The group performed at the Brentwood Festival in 2016, where Geldof attracted controversy for criticising the audience. In April 2017, the band returned to the studio to record new material for their first studio album since In the Long Grass×In the Long GrassDecember 1984 · Studio albumSpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 10 tracksA1A Hold of Me4:58A2Drag Me Down4:31A3Rain4:19A4Over Again3:47A5Another Sad Story3:47B1Tonight3:54B2Hard Times3:56B3Lucky3:37B4An Icicle in the Sun3:51B5Up or Down3:24 in 1984. In March 2020, they released a new album, Citizens of Boomtown×Citizens of Boomtown13 March 2020 · Studio albumSpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 10 tracks1Trash Glam Baby3:542Sweet Thing3:113Monster Monkeys4:254She Said No3:565Passing Through4:366Here’s a Postcard3:527K.I.S.S.3:118Rock ’n’ Roll Yé Yé4:559Get a Grip4:0010The Boomtown Rats5:20, and a lead single, "Trash Glam Baby×Trash Glam Baby10 January 2020 · SingleSpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 1 track1Trash Glam Baby3:54".
In 2025 The Boomtown Rats reformed for a 12-date, 50th anniversary tour of the UK. A two-album compilation on vinyl and CD, The First 50 Years: Songs of Boomtown Glory, was released on 19 September 2025.

Band members

Current
Bob Geldof – lead vocals, guitar, harmonica, saxophone (1975–1986, 2013–present)
Pete Briquette – bass, keyboards, backing vocals (1975–1986, 2013–present)
Simon Crowe – drums, percussion, backing vocals (1975–1986, 2013–present)
with

Alan Dunn – piano, keyboards, backing vocals (2013–present)
Darren Beale – rhythm guitar, keyboards, backing vocals (2013–present)
Paul Cuddeford – lead guitar, backing vocals (2022–present)
Steve 'Smiley' Barnard – drums, backing vocals (2025–present)
Former

Garry Roberts – lead guitar, backing vocals (1975–1986, 2013–2022; his death)
Johnnie Fingers – keyboards, piano, backing vocals (1975–1986)
Gerry Cott – rhythm guitar (1975–1981)
Timeline

Studio albums

The Boomtown Rats (1977)
A Tonic for the Troops (1978)
The Fine Art of Surfacing (1979)
Mondo Bongo (1981)
V Deep (1982)
In the Long Grass (1984)
Citizens of Boomtown (2020)

UK Top 40 singles

"Lookin' After No. 1" (1977) No. 11
"Mary of the 4th Form×Mary of the 4th Form11 November 1977 · SingleSpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 2 tracksAMary of the 4th Form (alternate version)3:52BDo the Rat2:13" (1977) No. 15
"She's So Modern" (1978) No. 12
"Like Clockwork×Like ClockworkJune 1978 · SingleSpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 2 tracks1Like Clockwork2D.U.N. L.A.O.G.H.A.I.R.E." (1978) No. 6
"Rat Trap×Rat Trap1978 · SingleSpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 2 tracksARat Trap5:04BSo Strange3:04" (1978) No. 1
"I Don't Like Mondays" (1979) No. 1
"Diamond Smiles×Diamond Smiles1979 · SingleSpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 2 tracksADiamond SmilesBLate Last Night" (1979) No. 13
"Someone's Looking at You" (1980) No. 4
"Banana Republic×Banana Republic1980 · SingleSpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 2 tracksABanana Republic3:24BMan at the Top3:05" (1980) No. 3
"The Elephant's Graveyard (Guilty)" (1981) No. 26
"House on Fire×House on FireMarch 1982 · SingleSpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 2 tracksAHouse on FireBEurope Looked Ugly" (1982) No. 24
"I Don't Like Mondays" (CD single re-issue) (1994) No. 38