Gene October

Who is Gene October?

Gene October is an English musician, best known as the singer for the punk rock band, Chelsea. His real name is John O'Hara and he is thought to originate from the Solihull area of Birmingham.

He was in the original line-up of Chelsea with Billy Idol and Tony James but they split after a few weeks and Idol/James formed the band Generation X. They had originally supported Throbbing Gristle at the ICA in London an were known as 'LSD', their set consisted of Beatles and Rolling Stones cover versions.

October was instrumental in the creation of the punk venue The Roxy, persuading the manager of gay London nightclub, 'Shageramas', to convert the club to cater for a punk clientele. He briefly managed a club called Revolution No.9 and for many years worked as an A&R man for Miles Copeland III's IRS label. He currently works for Brighton & Hove Council in the recycling department.