The Runaways - Pioneers for the Ladies of Rock and Roll

In the early 1970s there weren't a lot of all female bands playing rock music. Many teenagers longed for a group that could personify their lives. In 1976 they got one, and the music industry got a band that would cultivate a legion of fans and inspire thousands of musicians over the next several decades.

Music producer Kim Fowley wanted to work with an all girl rock band. Drummer Sandy West and guitarist Joan Jett wanted to form an all girl band. When they got together the story of The Runaways began. Along with lyricist Kari Krome, Fowley, Jett and West started looking for other teenage girls that shared their vision.

Michael Steele joined the band in 1975 as a bass player and vocalist. They recorded several demos that would later be released as the Born To Be Bad album.

After several shows guitarist Lita Ford joined the band after originally trying out on bass. In the span of one week she quit before returning for good.

The band continued to play in Hollywood and Laguna Beach, but soon experienced their first departure. Michael Steele left and would pop up again in another successful all female band: The Bangles. Bassist Peggy Foster came in to take her place.

Jett and Fowley were on the lookout for a lead singer and found her at a popular teen disco called The Sugar Shack. Twin sisters Cherie and Marie Currie stood out, and while Marie declined the chance to audition, Cherie jumped and became the band's new singer.

After Foster left, bassist Jackie Fox joined the group. The Runaways were now solidified with a guitarist who had tried out on bass and a bassist who had originally tried out on guitar. The original five piece recording lineup was in place.

In early 1976, The Runaways were signed to Mercury Records and the media immediately gave them the name "Jailbait Rockers." Soon the band claimed the cover of Who Put The Bomp! magazine and released their first album in June. Dissension was already starting to form, heightened by the solo shot of Cherie on the album's cover.

Undeterred, they hit the road and started putting together a hardcore fan base. In September their signature song, "Cherry Bomb," appeared in the movie Dawn: Portrait of a Teenage Runaway. The following month they toured Europe. They started amassing more press, posters and magazine covers.

Touring continued through early 1977 and didn't stop after their second album hit shelves. Queens of Noise was a strong second effort and lead to a famous tour of Japan.

Seven shows from that tour were mixed and mastered in Tokyo and released as Live In Japan but Jackie Fox would not be around to support it. She left the band after the Japanese tour and was replaced by Vickie Blue. Soon after, Cherie Currie left the band as well, and Jett took over the position of lead vocalist.

The new group toured extensively for the Waiting For The Night album but it failed to chart. Fowley left abruptly and new management was hired. In September of 1978 And Now...The Runaways was released with another lineup change: Vickie Blue left and was replaced by Laurie McCallister. This lineup would record the videos for "Mama Weere All Crazy Now" and "Saturday Night Special," but in early 1979 the band would break up for good.

The Runaways were only together for a few years but their impact still resonates. Joan Jett would go on to form The Blackhearts and has been releasing albums and touring ever since. Lita Ford went solo in the mid 80s and recorded regularly until 1995. After releasing a live album she left the industry to focus on her two sons, but has recently started performing again. Cherie Currie released several solo albums of her own and embarked on a career as an actress. Jackie Fox became an attorney while Vicki Blue entered the world of filmmaking. Michael Steel had a run on the charts with The Bangles and Laurie McCallister recorded with The Orchids. Sandy West continued to play and formed The Sandy West Band but sadly passed away from cancer in 2006.

Photo by Tom Gold

West's death helped shine a light on what The Runaways legacy is today. Fans packed The Knitting Factory in Hollywood for her tribute concert in December of 2006, and a loaded roster of bands including The Donnas, The Bangles, Cherie Currie, Kanary, Michael Des Barres and legendary drummers Carmine and Vinny Appice played for hours in her honor. News of her death appeared in papers, magazines and television shows all over the world.

In 2007 a renewed push began, spurred by fans, to get The Runaways inducted into The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Time will tell if that will happen but one fact remains: over 30 years after their formation, The Runaways still impact modern music. Dozens of bands still highlight them as influences, and thousands of musicians across the world trace their inspiration back to the day they heard "Cherry Bomb," "Queens of Noise" or "Neon Angels On The Road To Ruin" for the first time. The Runaways legacy is not yet complete. The fans won't allow it.

Bio written by Christy Lindsay, © 2009, all rights reserved.

No. The only people who could be considered members of The Runaways in any fashion are Joan Jett, Sandy West, Cherie Currie, Lita Ford, Michael Steel, Jackie Fox, Vicki Blue, Peggy Foster and Laurie McCallister.

A lot of people seem to get a kick out of claiming to have been in The Runaways. I can tell you that when asked about some of these people, Sandy West got a pretty good laugh. Apparently, according to some, you can be a Runaway if you ever:

• Played as a session musician on a song somewhere, even if for only three seconds.
  
• Walked through a recording studio while the band was there and you said hello.
  
• Cherie Currie looked at you while she was on stage.
  
• You look a little like Lita Ford, therefore you must be Lita Ford.

And my personal favorite reason I was actually given by someone demanding to be added to the Members page:

• You (allegedly) played piano on one song during one practice session in 1977, after having been seen loitering in a music store nearby.

Tracklist:
1. Cherry Bomb
2. You Drive Me Wild
3. Is It Day Or Night?
4. Thunder
5. Rock And Roll
6. Lovers
7. American Nights
8. Black Mail
9. Secrets
10. Dead End Justice

Lineup: Cherie Currie, Joan Jett, Lita Ford, Jackie Fox, Sandy West

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Lyrics

Tracklist:
1. Queens Of Noise
2. Take It Or Leave It
3. Midnight Music
4. Born To Be Bad
5. Neon Angels On The Road To Ruin
6. I Love Playin' With Fire
7. California Paradise
8. Hollywood
9. Heartbeat
10. Johnny Guitar

Lineup: Cherie Currie, Joan Jett, Lita Ford, Jackie Fox, Sandy West

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Lyrics

Tracklist:
1. Queens Of Noise
2. California Paradise
3. All Right You Guys
4. Wild Thing
5. Gettin' Hot
6. Rock-N-Roll
7. You Drive Me Wild
8. Neon Angels On The Road To Ruin
9. I Wanna Be Where The Boys Are
10. Cherry Bomb
11. American Nights
12. C'mon

Lineup: Cherie Currie, Joan Jett, Lita Ford, Jackie Fox, Sandy West

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Lyrics

Tracklist:
1. Little Sister
2. Wasted
3. Gotta Get Out Tonight
4. Wait For Me
5. Fantasies
6. School Days
7. Trash Can Murders
8. Don't Go Away
9. Waitin' For The Night
10. You're Too Possessive

Lineup: Joan Jett, Lita Ford, Sandy West, Vicki Blue

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Lyrics

Tracklist:
1. Saturday Night Special
2. Eight Days A Week
3. Mama Weer All Crazee Now
4. I'm A Million
5. Right Now
6. Takeover
7. My Buddy & Me
8. Little Lost Girls
9. Black Leather

Lineup: Joan Jett, Lita Ford, Sandy West, Vicki Blue

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Lyrics

For more Runaways releases and solo member cds and dvds, see the bottom of this page.

The Runaways Formed: August, 1975
Joan Jett, Sandy West and lyricist Kari Krome hook up with Kim Fowley. The three-piece lineup of Jett, West and Michael Steel comes together and records demos that would be released as Born To Be Bad in 1991.

First Concert: September 12, 1975
Phast Phreddies Living Room - Torrance, CA

Lita Ford joins The Runaways.

The band plays a few shows as Steele leaves the band and Peggy Foster is brought in for a short time.

Cherie Currie joins The Runaways

Jackie Fox joins The Runaways

Press Conference: December 5, 1975
Wild Man Sam's Garden Grove, CA

Contract: December 29, 1975
Signed with Mercury Records

Recording: March 1976
In studio recording for self-titled album "The Runaways"

Magazine Cover: Spring '76
Who Put The Bomp!

Album: "The Runaways" released June 1, 1976

Magazine Cover: July 24, 1976
New Musical Express

Magazine Cover: August 5, 1976
Cleveland Scene

Movie: Dawn, Portrait Of A Teenage Runaway released September 27, 1976
Song "Cherry Bomb" appears in film soundtrack

Magazine Covers: November, 1976
Bravo and Circus

Album: "Queens Of Noise" released

Magazine Cover: June 1977
Ongaku Senka

Jackie Fox leaves The Runaways

Album: "Live In Japan" released

Vicki Blue joins The Runaways

Cherie Currie leaves The Runaways

Recording: August 1977
In studio recording for "Waitin' For The Night"

Album: "Waiting For The Night" released October 1, 1977

TV Appearance: October 25, 1977
Old Grey Whistle Test

Vicki Blue leaves The Runaways

Laurie McCallister joins The Runaways

Last Concert: December 31, 1978
Cow Palace, CA

Album: And Now...The Runaways released

The Runaways officially break up

This timeline barely scratches the surface of the information available but is a good starting point.

The Runaways broke up in 1979, but for the most part the members didn't fade away from the entertainment industry.

Joan Jett formed Joan Jett and the Blackhearts and launched a new career that spawned top ten hits and is still going strong today. She also took up acting and appeared in movies like Light of Day and television shows like Highlander and Law and Order: Criminal Intent.

Lita Ford took her act solo and became one of the leading queens of metal in the 80s and 90s. In 2008, after a hiatus, she returned to the road and is embarking on the next phase of her career.

Cherie Currie started a solo career after The Runaways and released several albums of her own. She too became an actress and appeared in Foxes with Jodi Foster among others. Today she continues to play and has become an accomplished chainsaw artist.

Sandy West formed The Sandy West Band and continued playing whenever she could. Unfortunately she was diagnosed with lung cancer, and died in October of 2006.

Vicki Blue became a filmmaker and releases films under Sacred Dogs Entertainment including Edgeplay, a film about The Runaways.

Michael Steel became a hit maker with The Bangles.

Jackie Fox is an entertainment attorney.

Sandy West - 1959-2006

In 1976, The Runaways released their first album, and Sandy West began to entertain and inspire a legion of fans. Throughout her life and career, she maintained her passion for music and a deep love for her friends and fans. Drummers across genres list her as an influence and she proved to a lot of people that girls could, in fact, rock the house down.

On October 21, 2006, Sandy died of lung cancer. The news of her death was reported in papers, blogs and in the news across the world, and her fans, friends and peers got together to pay tribute to her life on December 9th, 2006 in Hollywood.

For more on Sandy and her Celebration, visit the Sandy West Tribute.

Perhaps the most important aspect of The Runaways legacy is their lasting impact. As an all-female and truly talented group, they broke down walls for other female musicians and inspired bands in each generation since. TheCoverZone lists over 300 "influenced by" bands for Joan Jett alone, including Bikini Kill, Le Tigre, The Donnas, The Pandoras, The Germs, Betty Blowtorch, The Iron Maidens, The Eyeliners, Katt Lowe, Veruca Salt, Sleater-Kinney, 7 Year B*itch, Kittie, Hole, Inger Lorre, Broadzilla, The Gits, Babes in Toyland, Bif Naked, Nine Inch Nails, L7, and many, many more.

And they're still at it today. When I was running TheRunaways.com, I got emails weekly from young girls citing The Runaways as the reason they were picking up instruments. That's what you call a lasting impression.

The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame is supposed to honor people who have contributed to rock and roll. A band is eligible 25 years after the release of their first album. Despite what some would call the Hall's shortcomings, there's no doubt that The Runaways deserve to be in a Hall of Fame. Their fans have been pushing for it for some time.

There are two petitions currently being run by The Runaways Rock on MySpace, for fans who want the band to be inducted into the Hall of Fame. You can sign below or grab the badge to show your support.