Ian Dury and the Blockheads

The Profile

Ian Dury and the Blockheads are a British band formed in 1977, blending new wave, pub rock, funk, and music-hall flair. They scored a UK No. 1 with Hit Me With Your Rhythm Stick and a Top 10 with Reasons to Be Cheerful, Part 3, and released the acclaimed Do It Yourself. They reunited in the late 1990s for the well-received Mr Love Pants.

Key UK hits include Hit Me With Your Rhythm Stick (No. 1, 1979) and Reasons to Be Cheerful, Part 3; closely associated with Stiff Records; the Blockheads continued performing as The Blockheads after Dury’s death.

A celebratory look at Ian Dury and the Blockheads, centering on Mr Love Pants and the band’s razor-witted, musically nimble legacy. The review recalls Dury’s resilience after polio, his rise through Stiff Records, the big UK hits, and the late-’90s return. It highlights the band’s sharp humor, streetwise poetry, and last burst of brilliance on stage despite illness.