Bad Brains: From Central High to Rock for Light

The band's roots trace back to Central High, a school in Maryland, where HR and his younger brother Earl (drums) met Dr Know (guitar) and Darryl Jenifer (bass). Sid McCray introduced the band to Sex Pistols, Dead Boys and Ramones after he discovered punk. Mind Power was renamed Bad Brains, and HR took over the microphone from McCray.

The band entered Don Zientara's Inner Ear Studio in 1979 to record a six-track demo. Bad Brains' first studio session took place in 1979, and the band's first poster billed them as the greatest punk rock band in the world. A 1979 gig with the Damned led to an invitation to tour the UK. Trust Records released the remastered 1979 demo under the title Are You Ready: The First Studio Recording.

The band released the 7-inch Pay to Cum in 1980. Rock for Light was produced by Ric Ocasek. The band split for the first time after the release of Rock for Light. The band's Rastafari beliefs fuelled their zeal during the period of Rock for Light.

The band reunited for the 1986 album I Against I, which expanded into soul, funk and heavy metal. The band initially aspired to the jazz-fusion of Return to Forever and the Mahavishnu Orchestra. The band's music was influenced by everything from the Damned and Dead Boys to P-Funk, Stevie Wonder and Chick Corea's Return to Forever.

The band's 1980s releases were followed by violent incidents that sank a series of high-profile gigs with Beastie Boys and a deal with Madonna's Maverick Records.