 |
Raymond Ian Burns (Captain Sensible)British rock musician and songwriter,
Date of Birth: 24.04.1954
Country:  Great Britain |
Content:
Early Life and Career
Raymond Burns, better known as Captain Sensible, was born in Balham, London, and raised in South Norwood. After graduating high school, he joined the punk band Johnny Moped. In 1976, he joined The Damned after a referral by drummer Rat Scabies.
While in The Damned, Sensible played bass, lead guitar, and keyboards. He became the band's primary songwriter after Brian James' departure. He left the band in the 1980s to pursue a solo career but returned in 1996. Sensible remains an active member of The Damned and contributed to their 2001 album "Grave Disorder" and 2008 album "So, Who's Paranoid?."
Solo Success
Sensible released his debut solo single, "Jet Boy, Jet Girl," in 1978 during a brief hiatus from The Damned. His first solo EP came in 1981 on Crass Records. Signed to A&M Records, Sensible had a major hit with his cover of "Happy Talk" from the musical "South Pacific," featuring Dolly Mixture and Robyn Hitchcock. The song later became the basis for Dizzee Rascal's track "Dream."
Other notable solo hits for Sensible include "Wot?," "One Christmas Catalogue," and "Glad It's All Over." After parting ways with A&M Records, he released material on various independent labels, including Deltic Records and Humbug Records. He also toured with his own band, Punk Floyd.
Other Projects
Sensible's version of "The Snooker Song" from Mike Batt's musical "The Hunting of the Snark" became the theme tune for the BBC game show "Big Break." He also wrote and performed the song "Brain's Theme" for the film "Skinned Deep."
Sensible was part of the supergroup Dead Man Walking, which featured Mike Peters of The Alarm, Kirk Brandon of Spear of Destiny, and Slim Jim Phantom of Stray Cats.
Political Activism
In September 2006, Sensible founded the Blah! Party, a political party that satirized the state of British politics. Sensible advocated for non-voting as a form of protest against the irrelevance and apathy of the established political system.
