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999
Biography
One of the longest-lived groups of the punk era, 999 formed in London in December 1976. Led by vocalist/guitarist Nick Cash, a onetime student at the Canterbury College of Art under the tutelage of Ian Dury and a former member of the pub rock units Kilburn and the High Roads, the band also included guitarist Guy Days, bassist Jon Watson, and drummer Pablo LaBrittain. After dispensing with a series of names -- including 48 Hours, the Fanatics, and the Dials -- 999 quickly established themselves as a popular fixture on the London punk circuit, issuing their incendiary debut single, "I'm Alive," on their own LaBrittain Records in late 1977.

The single won the quartet a deal with United Artists, who issued both "Nasty Nasty" and "Emergency" in 1978; an eponymously titled LP debut, produced by Andy Arthurs, followed later in the year. For their sophomore effort, 1978's Separates, 999 enlisted producer Martin Rushent, resulting in a more polished, mainstream veneer for material like the near-hit "Homicide" and "High Energy Plan." After LaBrittain suffered injuries in a vehicular accident, drummer Ed Case was brought in to pick up the slack for a major U.