Chris Bailey, lead singer of Australian band The Saints, dies | australian music

Chris Bailey, lead singer of legendary Australian band The Saints, has died.

The group announced his death on Facebook on Monday.

“It is with great pain in our hearts that we must inform you of the passing of Chris Bailey, singer and songwriter for The Saints, on April 9, 2022,” the statement read.

“Chris lived a life of poetry and music and got stranded on a Saturday night.”

Bailey was born in Nanyuki, Kenya to Irish parents in 1957 and lived the first seven years of his life in Belfast before his family emigrated to Australia.

They lived at Inala in Brisbane and he met bandmates Ed Kuepper and Ivor Hay at Corinda State High School. They originally named their band Kid Galahad and the Eternals, changing the name to Saints in 1974.

On Monday, Kuepper, who left the band in 1978 after musical disagreements with Bailey, expressed sadness at Bailey’s death, saying the pair had “an extremely strong artistic partnership” and that they “couldn’t have hope for a better singer”.

The band had their first hit with (I’m) Stranded in 1976 and released their debut LP of the same name in 1977. They went on to release 13 more records.

Bailey was the only member to be with the band for its entire duration.

The Saints were central to the Australian punk scene in the 1970s and (I’m) Stranded is considered one of the most influential punk songs of all time. In a promotional video for the single’s UK re-release, INXS frontman Michael Hutchence credited the Brisbane band with creating the sound that led to the Sex Pistols’ rapid rise.

Bailey was remembered Monday as “a co-creator of punk music.”