The strong performances of “Twilight” star Kristen Stewart and precocious film veteran Dakota Fanning - who portray Runaways guitarist-singer Joan Jett and lead singer Cherie Currie, respectively - should draw viewers who weren’t born until several decades after this band imploded in 1978 after only two albums. It also captures with vivid accuracy the look and feel of the mid-1970s, when The Runaways briefly ignited as an artistic force despite never scoring a hit record. Like the pioneering all-girl rock band from Los Angeles it portrays, “The Runaways” at times exudes enough teen spirit and attitude to light up the Sunset Strip.

She appears on San Diego singer Candye Kane’s 1995 album, “Knockout.” Birtha bassist Rosemary Butler went on to work as a backing vocalist with Jackson Browne, Little Feat, James Taylor and many more. one of the most important female bands in American rock.”īirtha: Also formed in California in the late 1960s, this four-piece group recorded two albums for Dunhill Records in 1972 and ’73. Longtime fan David Bowie has hailed Fanny as “extraordinary. Zelkowitz changed her name to Raven and formed the brass-rock band Ten Wheel Drive in 1968, while Gingerbreads guitarist Carol MacDonald and drummer Ginger Bianco co-founded Isis, the first all-female jazz-rock fusion group, in 1972.įanny: Formed in 1969, this California band was co-led by sisters Jean and June Millington and released six major label albums between 19. The Kinks and Ringo Starr were fans, but fame eluded The Gingerbreads. Goldie & The Gingerbreads: Headed by singer Genya Zelkowitz, this New York quartet signed a deal with Atlantic Records in 1964.

In 1965, the short-lived band - which also featured leading San Diego singer-songwriter Gregory Page’s mother - performed two shows in Spain as the opening act for The Beatles. The Beat Chicks: Formed in England in 1964 by drummer Crissy Lee, The Beat Chicks followed in The Beatles’ footsteps by playing a residency at the Star Club in Hamburg, Germany. Some of The Runaways’ notable precursors include: But the teenaged Los Angeles quintet was briefly the most prominent during the mid-1970s, at least until the English punk-rock explosion led to the formation of a slew of all-female acts, including - in 1979 - San Diego’s pioneering Dinettes. The Runaways were not the first all-girl band in rock. According to her MySpace Web site, Steele, 51, is now “enjoying the quiet life in Northern California.” She went on to join The Bangles, a band she performed with off and on until 2004. Michael “Micki” Steele: The Runaways’ original bassist and lead singer, Steele left not long after the band formed in 1975. A divorced mother of a 19-year-old son, she is now a “chain saw artist.” Her latest album, “Wicked Wonderland,” was released last year.Ĭherie Currie: Now 50, the former lead singer of The Runaways battled back from a debilitating drug habit to become a drug counselor in 1984. She now lives on an island in the West Indies with her husband and her two sons, whom she home schools. Lita Ford: The Runaways’ lead guitarist enjoyed success as a heavy-metal solo star in the 1980s. Their new album, the 21-song “Greatest Hits” (which coincides with the release of the film “The Runaways”), kicks off, appropriately with The Runaways’ most popular song, “Cherry Bomb.” Joan Jett: The heart and soul of The Runaways, singer-guitarist Jett, 51, went on to have the most successful solo career, thanks to such enduring hits as “I Love Rock ’N’ Roll” and her hard-hitting version of Tommy James & The Shondells’ “Crimson and Clover.” She and her band, The Blackhearts, perform July 4 at the San Diego County Fair’s Grandstand Stage in Del Mar. With the exception of drummer Sandy West, who died of cancer in 2006, all of the former members of The Runaways are alive and well.

Runaways joan jett