David Vanian

Dave Vanian
Background information
Birth name	David Lett
Born	12 October 1956 (1956-10-12) (age 55)
Origin	Hemel Hempstead, England
Genres	Punk rock, gothic rock
Occupations	Gravedigger, Singer-songwriter, Musician
Instruments	Vocals
Years active	1976–present
Labels	Nitro Records
Associated acts	The Damned David Vanian & the Phantom Chords
Website	officialdamned.com

Dave Vanian (born David Lett, 12 October 1956, Hemel Hempstead, England) is a rock musician, famous for being the lead singer of the punk rock band The Damned. The band formed in 1976 in London and Vanian is the only ever-present member of the group. They were the first of the British punk bands to release a single, an album, have a record hit the UK charts, and tour the United States.

Career

David Vanian of The Damned after the band's concert at The Fillmore in San Francisco - March 1986.

Lett changed his name to Dave Vanian (pronounced as in "Transylvanian") when he became a musician, having previously worked as a gravedigger.^[1]

He is famous for bringing the gothic image to pop culture world, due to his wearing its clothing both on-stage and off. In November 1976, the British music magazine, NME, commented that Vanian "resembles a runaway from The Addams Family".^[1]

Notorious also for keeping his personal life out of the limelight, even opting out of any input towards The Damned biography The Light At The End Of The Tunnel by Carol Clerk, he also leads the rockabilly band David Vanian & the Phantom Chords. He is known to be interested in renaissance art, film noir and horror movies.

Vanian hosted Dave Vanian's Dark Screen on the UK-based television channel Rockworld TV, to which viewers sent their self-made horror films in the hope of winning prizes.

In 2004, he and Captain Sensible turned on the Christmas lights in Cambridge, causing some controversy.^[2]

In 2009, he composed the soundtrack for the film, The Perfect Sleep.^[3]

Personal life

He married Laurie Vanian in 1977, the year after he joined The Damned, but they separated in the mid 1990s. Not long after their split, he married former Sisters of Mercy bassist Patricia Morrison and lives in north-west London. In 2004 Morrison gave birth to Emily Vanian.

References

1. ^ ^{a b} Tobler, John (1992). NME Rock 'N' Roll Years (1st ed.). London: Reed International Books Ltd. p. 294. CN 5585. 
2. ^ BBC News Online - Church fury at Damned's switch-on
3. ^ The Perfect Sleep Official Movie Website

External links

• The Damned (official site): Dave Vanian section
• Interview (while touring with the Phantom Chords), November 1993 (QuickTime Video)

Persondata
Name	Vanian, David
Alternative names
Short description
Date of birth	12 October 1956
Place of birth
Date of death
Place of death