Cherie Currie

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Cherie Currie
Cherie Currie in 2010
Cherie Currie in 2010
Background information
Birth nameCherie Ann Currie
Born (1959-11-30) November 30, 1959 (age 61)
Encino, California, US
GenresPunk rock, hard rock
Occupation(s)Musician, singer, songwriter, actress, artist, producer
InstrumentsVocals, keyboards, guitar, tambourine
Years active1976–present
Labels
Associated acts
Websitecheriecurrie.com

Cherie Ann Currie (born November 30, 1959) is an American musician, actress and artist. Currie was the lead vocalist of the Runaways, a rock band from Los Angeles, in the mid-to-late 1970s. After the Runaways, she became a solo artist. Then she teamed up with her identical twin sister, Marie Currie, and released an album with her. Their duet "Since You've Been Gone" reached number 95 on US charts. Their band was called Cherie and Marie Currie. She is also well known for her role in the movie Foxes.

Early life[]

Currie was born to Don Currie and actress Marie Harmon.[1] She was raised in Encino, California, with three siblings, an identical twin sister, Marie Currie,.[2] an elder sister, actress Sondra Currie, and a brother, Don Currie Jr.

Currie and her twin sister were given a role on an episode of My Three Sons at the age of two. They were going to sing "Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star" with Fred MacMurray but they froze during filming and their part was cut from the show.[3] Before Currie and her twin sister rose to fame, they danced on American Bandstand. They appeared on the show as background dancers.[4][5]

Career[]

Runaways[]

Currie was the teenage lead vocalist for the all-female rock band the Runaways with bandmates Joan Jett, Lita Ford, Sandy West, Jackie Fox and Vicki Blue. Bomp! magazine described her as "the lost daughter of Iggy Pop and Brigitte Bardot".[6]

Currie joined the Runaways in 1975, at age 15. The teen rock anthem "Cherry Bomb" was written for her at the audition. Assessments of her impact differ; one reviewer has written in 2010 that "the received wisdom that [the Runaways] carved out new territory for female musicians is hard to justify—it's doubtful that the predominantly male audience who flocked to see the 16-year-old [Currie] in her undies picked up any feminist subtext."[7]

Solo[]

After three albums with the Runaways (The Runaways, Queens of Noise and Live in Japan), Currie went on to be a solo artist. She signed a contract with Mercury saying she would record four records, but she left the Runaways after the third album, thus she was obligated to record another album.[8] She recorded it solo and the result was Beauty's Only Skin Deep for Polygram Records. Marie Currie did a duet with Cherie on her solo record "Love at First Sight".[9]

Cherie and Marie Currie[]

Cherie and Marie went on a US tour in 1977, and when Marie would join Cherie on stage to sing the encores the audience would go wild.[2] Then they went on a Japan tour in 1978. While in Japan, the twins performed on many TV shows. So Cherie ran with the idea of two blonds are better than one, and changed the band name from Cherie Currie to Cherie and Marie Currie.[10] With Marie Currie, she recorded Messin' with the Boys for Capitol Records and Young and Wild for Raven. Messin' with the Boys was released in 1980. Messin' with the Boys received more radio play than Beauty's Only Skin Deep and, the song "Since You Been Gone" off Messin' with the Boys charted number 95 on U.S. charts. Both the single "This Time" and the album Messin' with the Boys made the top 200 on U.S. charts.[citation needed] Cherie and Marie performed on television shows in the 1980s including Sha Na Na, The Mike Douglas Show,[11]The Merv Griffin Show among others.[4] Along with the album recordings with Marie, Cherie and Marie sang, wrote, and produced songs for The Rosebud Beach Hotel and its soundtrack called, The Rosebud Beach Hotel Soundtrack. In the film, they acted and sang together. In 1991, Cherie and Marie Currie performed a tribute concert to Paula Pierce, a member of The Pandoras, at the . For the final performance, the remaining Pandoras backed the Curries.[12] Currie performed at the Runaways' reunion in 1994 with other Runaways Fox and West. Her sister Marie joined the three Runaways on stage and performed with the band.[8]

In 1998, Cherie and Marie held a concert at the Golden Apple, in support of their re-released version of Messin' with the Boys. Cherie's ex-bandmate West joined Cherie on stage to perform some of the Runaways songs. The Curries and West signed autographs after the show.[13] Young and Wild was released in 1998. It was Cherie and Marie's first compilation album. It contains tracks from Beauty's Only Skin Deep, Messin with the Boys, Flaming School Girls (the Runaways' compilation album), and one new track co-written by Marie. In 1999 Rocket City Records released Currie's studio album The 80's Collection. The album contains guest work by Marie Currie.[14][15]

Film[]

Cherie starred in the film Foxes in 1980 with Jodie Foster. She received strong reviews for her acting debut, and because of this film she received many roles in other films.[16] Along with starring in Foxes (her best-known film), she starred in Parasite, Wavelength, Twilight Zone: The Movie, The Rosebud Beach Hotel (with Marie Currie), Rich Girl, and others, as well as numerous guest spots on television series (Matlock and Murder, She Wrote, among others). In 1984 Currie was cast as Brenda in Savage Streets, but was replaced by Linda Blair.[17] In the same year Currie was cast as the lead singer of the fictional band the Dose in the film This Is Spinal Tap, but her character was cut out of the film.[18] Cherie was considered for a part in the 1985 film Explorers but, according to her autobiography, she was in the throes of drug dependency and couldn't even make it to a meeting.[19]

Later years[]

Currie was a guest vocalist on Shameless's 2013 album, Beautiful Disaster. Currie released singles with ex-bandmate, Lita Ford[20] and Glenn Danzig the same year. On October 19, 2013, Currie won the Rock Legend Award at the sixth annual Malibu Music Awards. The reward was presented to her by ex-bandmate, Lita Ford. That night Currie and Ford played on stage together for the first time in 37 years.[21] Currie released another studio album, Reverie, in 2015.[22] The album features guest work from ex-bandmate, Lita Ford, Currie's son, Jake Hays, and Currie's ex-manager, Kim Fowley. Cherie toured the UK in November 2015, to support her new album. Her special guest on her UK tour was Last Great Dreamers. While in the UK, Currie recorded a live album entitled "Midnight Music in London" which features a special live appearance by Suzi Quatro. It was released in 2016.[23] In late May and early June 2016 Currie toured Australia and New Zealand.[24] In 2018, Currie and her son were nominated for the Marshall Hawkins Award for Best Original Score for the film Take My Hand.[25]

In 2019, Currie's album Blvds of Splendor was released on April 13.[26][27][28][29]

On August 2, The Motivator, her album with Brie Darling, was released.[30][31][32][33][34][35][36][37][38]

In 2020 Cherie Currie released an audio version of her memoir, Neon Angel. Her audio version of her book reached number 1 on Amazon's Best Biographies of Punk Rock Musician.[39] In the same year, Currie contributed her vocals to the song "Flatten the Curve" for the band .[40]

Currie is now a wood-carving artist, using a chainsaw to create her works. She has been doing chainsaw art since 2002 and opened her own gallery in 2005 in Chatsworth, California.[41] As a chainsaw artist, Currie has competed in and won awards at three world Chainsaw Art competitions.[42]

Personal life[]

Currie struggled with drug addiction for much of her younger life, a major factor in the abrupt ending of her career. She later wrote a memoir, Neon Angel, recounting life in the band and her traumatic experiences with drug addiction, sex abuse, and her broken family.[43][44][45][46][47][48]

The Runaways, a 2010 biographical drama film executive-produced by Joan Jett, focuses on the group's beginnings and explores the relationship between Currie and Jett. Dakota Fanning portrays Currie.

Currie married actor Robert Hays on May 12, 1990, and they had one son together, Jake Hays.[49][50] The marriage ended in a divorce in 1997.[50] Jake Hays learned to play guitar well enough to be included in recent recording sessions, and as a member of Currie's new touring band.

Influence on pop culture[]

In 1979 an alternative cover photo of Currie's album Beauty's only Skin Deep appears in the background of the feature film Rock 'n' Roll High School. It appears when the Ramones are backstage.[51]

The sisters Dot, Helen, and Darby (played by Chloë Sevigny, Carisa Glucksman, and Darby Dougherty) are characters in the 1997 film Gummo, written and directed by Harmony Korine, who has mentioned that "Dot and Helen were based off [sic] a combination of Cherie and Marie Currie, home schooling, and The Shaggs."[52]

In 2006 the teen drama The O.C., in the season 3 episode "The Man of the Year", Marissa makes an entrance to "Cherry Bomb", while dressed in a provocative schoolgirl outfit, to Kaitlyn's boarding school. She pays tribute to Currie because when Currie sang "Cherry Bomb" live she wore a provocative outfit.

Discography[]

With the Runaways[]

Studio albums[]

Live albums[]

Solo[]

Studio albums[]

Live albums[]

  • 2013 – Live in Los Angeles 8/30/13[53]
  • 2016 –

EPs[]

  • 2007 – Cherry Bomb[54]

Guest appearances[]

  • 1978 – Yesterday & Today – Struck Down[55]
  • 1981 – 707 – The Second Album[56]
  • 1984 – various artist – The Rosebud Beach Hotel Soundtrack (with Marie Currie)
  • 1991 – various artist – Rich Girl Soundtrack
  • 1990 – Tater Totz – Stereo: Sgt. Shonen's Exploding Plastic Eastman Band Request[57]
  • 1993 – Atsushi Yokozeki Project – Raid
  • 1998 – Precious Metal – What You See Is What You Get: The Very Best of Precious Metal[58]
  • 2001 – Katt Lowe & the Othersyde – Katt Lowe & the Othersyde
  • 2004 – Texas Terri Bomb! – Your Lips...
  • 2006 – Rick Derringer – Rock 'n' Roll Hoochie Coo: The Best of Rick Derringer
  • 2007 – Dee Dee Ramone / Johnny Ramone / Marky Ramone – Ramones Solo Performances[59]
  • 2008 – The Ramones – [60]
  • 2003 – The Streetwalkin' Cheetahs – Maximum Overdrive
  • 2013 – Shameless – Beautiful Disaster
  • 2013 – Warehouse 13 – Runaway
  • 2013 – Glenn Danzig – "Some Velvet Morning"
  • 2018 – – "When We Need Her"
  • 2020 – FTC – "Flatten the Curve" [61]
  • 2020 - Cherie Currie and Dave Schulz - "What The World Needs Now Is Love"
  • 2020 - Ryan Cassidy - "Small Price (featuring Cherie Currie)"

Singles[]

Year Single US Album Artist
1977 "Call Me at Midnight" – Beauty's Only Skin Deep Cherie Currie
1978 "Beauty's Only Skin Deep" – Beauty's Only Skin Deep Cherie Currie
1978 "Love at First Sight" – Beauty's Only Skin Deep Cherie and Marie Currie
1978 "Science Fiction Daze" – Beauty's Only Skin Deep Cherie Currie
1979 "Since You Been Gone" 95 Messin' with the Boys Cherie and Marie Currie [62]
1979 "Messin' with the Boys" – Messin' with the Boys Cherie and Marie Currie
1980 "This Time" – Messin' with the Boys Cherie and Marie Currie
1980 "Overnight Sensation (Hit Record)" – Messin' with the Boys Cherie and Marie Currie
1989 "Instant Karma!" – Mono! Stereo: Sgt. Shonen's Exploding Plastic Eastman Band Request Tater Totz featuring Cherie Currie
1998 "Cherry Bomb" – Maximum Overdrive The Streetwalkin' Cheetahs meets Cherie Currie
2013 "Life's a Gas" – Beautiful Disaster Shameless featuring Cherie Currie
2013 "Some Velvet Morning" – Single only Glenn Danzig featuring Cherie Currie
2013 "Rock This Christmas Down" – Single only Lita Ford and Cherie Currie
2015 "Believe" – Reverie Cherie Currie
2018 "When We Need Her" – Fanny Walked the Earth Fanny
2019 "The Motivator" – The Motivator Cherie Currie and Brie Darling
2019 "Get Together" – The Motivator Cherie Currie and Brie Darling
2020 "Black Hole Sun" – Single only Cherie Currie and Brie Darling
2020 "What the World Needs Now Is Love" – Single only Cherie Currie and Dave Schulz

Album charts[]

Year Album US US Indie Heatseekers Album Artist
1978 Beauty's Only Skin Deep - - - Cherie Currie
1980 Messin' with the Boys TBA - - Cherie and Marie Currie
1997 Messin' with the Boys (Re-released) - - - Cherie and Marie Currie
1999 The 80's Collection - - - Cherie Currie
Cherie and Marie Currie
2015 Reverie - - - Cherie Currie
2016 - - - Cherie Currie
2019 - - - Cherie Currie
2019 - 48 18 Cherie Currie and Brie Darling

Filmography[]

Year Film Role Notes
1974-1975 American Bandstand Background Dancer, Herself
1980 Foxes Annie
1982 Parasite Dana
1983 Twilight Zone: The Movie Sara Segment #3
1983 Wavelength Iris Longacre
1984 Murder, She Wrote Echo Cramer TV episode: "It's a Dog's Life"
1984 The Rosebud Beach Hotel Singing Maid Cherie Her twin Marie Currie played Singing Maid Marie.
1990 Matlock Renee Thorton 2 episodes: "The Informer: Part 1" and "The Informer: Part 2"
1991 Betsy Rhodes TV episode: "The Suspect"
Rich Girl Michelle
1992 Dr. Giggles ADR voice
2004 Getting the Knack Herself documentary
2005 Edgeplay: A Film About the Runaways Herself Film by former Runaways bassist Victory Tischler-Blue documenting the Runaways' musical history.
2013 Hansel and Gretel: Warriors of Witchcraft Ms. Thoman Direct-to-DVD release
Warehouse 13 Herself TV episode "Runaway"
2014 Keeping up with the Kardashians Herself
2014 Glory Days Herself
2017 Under the Influence – Glam Rock Herself documentary
2018 Bad Reputation Herself documentary
2019 Suzi Q Herself documentary

Bibliography[]

Year Book L.A. Weekly author(s) notes
1989 Neon Angel - Cherie Currie, Neal Shusterman author
2008 Cherry Bomb - Carrie Borzillo-Vrenna contributor
2010 Neon Angel (Re-released) 9 Cherie Currie, Tony O'Neill author
2014 The Narrow Road of Light - Marie Currie developer

References[]

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External links[]

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