Who were they?Jaguar

The New Wave of British Heavy Metal (or NWOBHM) movement produced a lot of bands during it's prime which was about 1979 to 1984. Some like Iron Maiden and Def Leppard made it big, but many didn't other than a cult following. One of those is Jaguar and I say is because they are still around. They first formed in late 1979 with a lineup of Garry Pepperd (Guitar), Jeff Cox (Bass,Vocals) and Chris Lovell (Drums). Shortly thereafter Rob Reiss was added as vocalist/frontman. They recorded some demos in 1980 and struck a deal with Heavy Metal Records. In 1981 they released the single Back Street Woman which sold over 400,000 copies. Then the band had some problems with their label,Reiss quit and was replaced by Paul Merrell. In 1982 they landed a new deal with Neat Records and released another single called Axe Crazy. By 1983 they released their debut lp "Power Games".

They established a little bit of a following, but the follow up album "This Time"came out in 1984 and was a marked change of direction, showing a dance music influence. Drummer Lovell left and was replaced by Gary Davies.

Reportedly the change in musical direction hurt the band's following and they folded in 1985.
In 1998 the band reformed with two original members (Peppard and Cox) and released the album "Wake me". In 2000 Peppard was the sole original member left and the band released"Run ragged". A best of called "Power Games/Anthology" was released in 2002 and just this year a live album called "Holland 82" was released.
They are really just one of a number bands that never made it that big. A lot of the bands from this scene were good, but didn't stand out from the pack. Jaguar's Power Games is somewhat like Iron Maiden's debut in ways. It's very much solid no-frills metal and worth getting as it goes for a cheap price if you look around. I have never heard "This Time" and probably won't bother tracking it down based on the descriptions I have read. Even band members later referred to it as "dance metal" and that may be two words that shouldn't be put together. They stand out to me because I heard a song by them on a late night metal radio show back in 1985. I liked it, but don't remember what song it was. Shortly after that I remember seeing their album in my local record store. I looked at the cover on several occasions, but never bought it. I actually just got it on cd a few years ago.

I was surprised to learn that these guys are playing at an upcoming festival in England with some other NWOBHM bands
The official Jaguar site is here.

**Next month's "Who were they?" will be on a speed metal band from Puerto Rico called Cardinal Sin. An interesting, but sort of sad story that tells how tough the music business can be.