Poly Styrene | X-Ray Spex singer, 53
Poly Styrene, 53, the braces-wearing singer who belted out "Oh bondage, up yours!" with the band X-Ray Spex, died Monday. Styrene, whose real name was Marion Elliott-Said, had been suffering from cancer.
Poly Styrene, 53, the braces-wearing singer who belted out "Oh bondage, up yours!" with the band X-Ray Spex, died Monday. Styrene, whose real name was Marion Elliott-Said, had been suffering from cancer.
Boy George was among those paying tribute on Twitter, writing, "Oh bless you Poly you will be missed! Legend!"
X-Ray Spex released just one album, 1978's Germ Free Adolescents. But its aggressively catchy single "Oh Bondage, Up Yours!" became an enduring punk anthem.
Styrene later said the song, a gleeful nonconformist shoutout, was inspired by the iconic bondage trousers designed by Vivienne Westwood.
Of British and Somalian heritage, Styrene was born in the London suburb of Bromley - a quiet corner backwater with a strong rock-and-roll streak that was also the childhood home of David Bowie, Billy Idol, and Siouxsie Sioux.
She later joined the Hare Krishna movement and released several solo albums - the most recent, Generation Indigo, in March. - AP