Themods Are Back, but Whowerethey?

TheMods are back, but whowerethey?

BRAD WHEELER

The Globe and Mail

PublishedMonday, Aug. 13 2012

They woretheirjacketscutslim and checked, maybe a touchofseersucker and an open neck. They rode Vespa GS scooterswiththeirhaircutneat. TheywereBritishMods. But whatdoesthatallmean?

To most oftheworld, not much – not much in the early 1960s (whenModswere a sharp-dressed gang happening) and not much now, 50 years on. Mods, though, are makingtheir return thissummer, triggering a revivedfascinationwithanexotic, perpetuallyyouthfulcultmovement.

SomeofthemillionsofviewerswhowatchedtheWhoclosethe London OlympicGames on Sundaywouldhavenoticed a paradeofmirror-bedeckedItalian motor scooters. Back in theday, thatishowtheModsrolled.

TheWho’sbombasticmedleywas part a band revivalthatincludesthe comeback ofQuadrophenia and, withit, thelittleknownculturalphaseofBritishModism. TheWho’sgeneration, then, wastheModgeneration.

Quadropheniawasanambitious double album thattheWho and itsconceptualistPeteTownshendreleased in 1973. The double LP inspired a featuredramatic film from 1979, whichlaterthismonthgetsitsBlu-ray/DVD re-release. Themovie and album revolvearoundthecharacter Jimmy, whoisanangst-riddenyouth and a Mod. WhatitisleftoftheWho – Townshend, singer Roger Daltrey and a troupeofhiredhands – toursQuadrophenia in late 2012 and early 2013, performingthe rock opera in itsentiretyacrossNorth America.

TheModmovement in theBritish 1960s wasanobscureculturalphase, onethatsawyoungEnglishurbanites dressing meticulously, gobblingamphetamines and peacockingabout on thosestylishscooters. Thecoloured RAF roundelsused by theWho as part oftheir pop-art stageapparelcame to symbolizeMods.

TheircounterpartswereRockers, whoworejeans and zippedleatherjackets. Rockersgreasily rode mannishmotorcycles and wereintoBe-Bop-A-Lula music – thinkMarlon Brando, TheWildOnevintage.

A confusingaspectofQuadrophenia, directed by Franc Roddam, wasthatModswerepracticallyincomprehensible to NorthAmericanaudiences. Not onlydidtheirrituals and peculiaritiesdefytranslation, but thethickaccents and jargonalmostrequiredsubtitles. (In fact, theEnglishModwas a cultfigure not only in North America, but in Britain as well. In RichieUnterberger’sbookWon’tGetFooledAgain, photographerEthan Russell recalls a phone call he receivedfromTownshend, whowasfrustratedwiththeprogressofthe album art. “I’mhavingever so much troublewiththe [cover] becauseeverybody’sgottheirown idea ofwhatModswere,” Townshendexplained.)

Someonewho has preciseideasofwhat a ModwasisIrish Jack Lyons, a friend to Townshend and a typicalModwhoat least partlyinspiredthe Jimmy character. “A Modwasessentially a young boy or girl fromtheage, say, of 17 whodressed in neat-cutFrenchorItalianclothes,” recallsLyons, whoisreferenced in theWho song Long Live Rock. “WeworeFrench-croppedhair as well as a full headofhair, but with a parting in themiddle. And theonlyacceptable mode of transport for a Modwas a Vespa GS orLambretta LI 150 scooter. ”

Askedabouttheadversarialrelationshipbetweenthetwogangs, whichculminated in a sensationalseriesofseasidebrawls in 1964, Lyonsplaysdowntherivalry. “ThisisoneofthegreatmythsabouttheMods and Rockers,” he says. “Peoplehavethiskindofskewedreceivedinformationthatifyouwere a Mod, thenyourmortalenemywas a Rocker and vice versa. Nothingcouldbefurtherfromthetruth.”

Iftherewassomething a Mod and Rocker couldagree on, itwasanappreciationforthe music oftheWho. In thenewdocumentaryQuadrophenia: CanYouSeeThe Real Me?, a newscastfromtheeraportrayedthedancehallscene as beingshared by thegangs, describingthemusic’s rhythm as “blue, and almoststrongenough to leanagainst.”

Lyons, reachedat his home in Ireland, describes a typicalMod-Rocker interactionattheGoldhawkSocial Club in West London, wheretheWho had a residency. “Theplaceused to bejammedeveryFriday and Saturday night withMods, alongwithmaybe 20 or 30 Rockers, and therewasneveranytrouble,” he recalls. “A typical incident involvedmedressed up to thenines in my Modclothes and there’dbe a groupofRockerssitting on a wall and I’dpass by. You’dgetthiskindofverbalslating, nothingobscene, just a fewcomments as to theoriginsofyour gender. Modsdressedeffeminately – clean-cut, stylish and smug.”

Thathaughtyflairwasrevived in Englandwiththeoriginalreleaseofthe film in 1979. TeenagersagainworeFrenchcrewcuts and rode scooters, but their musical heroeswerenew: thesharp-suited Paul Weller and the Jam, most famously.

In 1965, theWho had releasedI Can’tExplain, whichalongwithMy Generationexpressedthehormonal, angst-riddenconcernsofthatday’syouthmovement. “I’mgettin’ funnydreamsagain and again,” Townshendwrote and Daltrysang, expressingwhattheModsfelt but couldn’tarticulate – a frustrationthatis universal and evergreen.

TheWho’sgeneration

“I’vegot to movewiththefashions, orbeoutcast,” PeteTownshendsang on Cut My Hairfromthe 1973 album Quadrophenia. He sangfromthe point ofviewof Jimmy, whobelonged to thesharp-dressedMods, whosecounterparts in theBritain’s early 1960s weretheRockers. The rival gangscouldagree on the music oftheWho, but littleelse.

Mods

Music: Modern jazz (Dave Brubeck), Hammond B-3 soul (Booker T & theMGs) and girl-group pop (Ronettes).

Fashion: Hand-made Italianshoes, Sta-Prest jeans in high-tonedcolours, zootsuits, parkas and Fred Perrysweaterswith a specialinsignia to denotethegarment’sauthenticity.

Job: Entry-levelwhite-collar, to payfortheirpills and expensive taste in fashion.

Transportation: Vespa GS orLambretta LI 150 scooters, highlyaccessorized.

Rockers

Music: Bill Haley, EddieCochran, Gene Vincent and Jerry LeeLewis – AmericanGraffiti-style rock.

Fashion: Jeans and zippedleatherjackets.

Job: Blue-collar (truck drivers)

Transportation: Manlymotorcycles, usuallyTriumphsorNortons – nothingtooflash.