Happy 51st Birthday, Siouxsie Sioux!

Siouxsie Sioux.

Yet another sign I’m getting old: an alt-rock icon from my teen years turned 51 today — Susan Janet Ballion, better known to the world as Siouxsie Sioux (pronounced “Suzie Sue”). She and her band, Siouxsie the Banshees, were a mainstay of my music collection, and if you were a regular at Clark Hall Pub (the engineering pub at Crazy Go Nuts University) during my 1989 – 1994 DJ run, you’d probably hear one of the singles during my alt-rock sets. Somewhere in my parents’ basement is a near-complete collection of Siouxsie and the Banshees vinyl LPs; I’ll have to dig them up sometime.

In her honour, here are some Siouxsie and the Banshees videos for your enjoyment. Happy birthday, Siouxsie!

Here’s Hong Kong Garden by Siouxie and the Banshees, from 1978:

And now, some Siouxsie and the Banshees numbers from my teen years, the eighties. I’ll start with Christine from 1980:

Here’s Cities in Dust, from 1985:

Here’s their 1983 cover of Dear Prudence, which made it to a number of my mix tapes:

I’d be remiss if I didn’t show you the video for the one Siouxsie and the Banshees number that featured an accordion (or at least a very well-synthesized accordion): Peek-a-Boo, from 1988…

And finally, here’s Kiss Them for Me, from 1991, the Lollapalooza era: