# Funkapolitan

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**Funkapolitan** was a [British soul](/source/British_soul) [band](/source/Band_(music)) active in the 1980s.

## Overview

The band was formed in 1980, by lyricist Nick Jones and musician Toby Andersen, in Andersen's bathroom, where he kept a Vox organ,[2] with the aim of "forming a hard funk outfit which would render current [disco](/source/Disco) obsolete."[3] Jones and Andersen chose the name by portmanteauing the band [Funkadelic](/source/Funkadelic) and the magazine [Cosmopolitan](/source/Cosmopolitan_(magazine)).[4] Percussionist Greg[5] and backing dancer Doria Craig[6] were siblings of [Mikey Craig](/source/Mikey_Craig) of [Culture Club](/source/Culture_Club), and guitarists Kadir and Sagat Guirey were [White Russian](/source/White_%C3%A9migr%C3%A9) royalty.[7]

The band's first gig was at [Kensington Market](/source/Kensington_Market) later in the year[8] and, with the band earning high-profile support slots with [The Clash](/source/The_Clash) and [Simple Minds](/source/Simple_Minds),[9] as well as coverage from [Peter York](/source/Peter_York) in [Harpers & Queen](/source/Harpers_%26_Queen),[10] the band signed to London Records, which teamed them with [August Darnell](/source/August_Darnell) as producer,[11] and [Roxy Music](/source/Roxy_Music) stylist [Antony Price](/source/Antony_Price) as tailor.[12]

The band's first single, "As Time Goes By", penned by Andersen and Jones, was released in July 1981. In September, despite the single only being at number 47 in the [UK Singles Chart](/source/UK_Singles_Chart), the band was invited to perform the playout on [Top Of The Pops](/source/Top_Of_The_Pops),[13] although the publicity was not enough to send the single into the top 40.

London released two more singles and a self-titled album in 1982, but none reached the charts, and the band broke up. Two members formed Loansharks[14] and bassist [Tom Dixon](/source/Tom_Dixon_(industrial_designer)) became an industrial designer who was awarded the [MBE](/source/Order_of_the_British_Empire).[15] Andersen continued as a songwriter and co-wrote all of the tracks on the [Curiosity Killed The Cat](/source/Curiosity_Killed_The_Cat) album *[Keep Your Distance](/source/Keep_Your_Distance)*.[16]

## Discography

### Albums

- *Funkapolitan*, 1982

### Singles

Year Single Peak chart positions UK [17] 1981 "As Time Goes By" 41 1982 "In The Crime Of Life" – 1982 "Run Run Run" – "—" denotes releases that did not chart.

## References

1. Betts, Graham (2004). *Complete UK Hit Singles*. UK: Collins. p. 303.

1. "Rocking the nation". *South Wales Argus*. 22 August 1981.

1. "Sounds funky". *Manchester Evening News*. 8 September 1981.

1. Mills, Simon (7 October 2021). "Are you a ‘jiving funkapolitan?". *The Times*

1. "Mikey's culture shock". *Harlow Star*. 17 November 1983.

1. "The real swing". *Evening Standard*. 11 July 1989.

1. "Toff of the pops". *Sunday Telegraph*. 6 July 1997.

1. "James Lebon". *Independent*. 26 January 2009.

1. Cooke, Rachel. ["Tom Dixon: 'I design for longevity, and I want something to be anti-fashion"](https://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/2013/jun/23/tom-dixon-dixonary-design-inspiration-interview). *Guardian*. Retrieved 9 September 2025.

1. May 1981 issue

1. "Taking the rap". *Evening Advertiser (Wiltshire)*. 4 June 1982.

1. Mills, Simon (7 October 2021). "Are you a ‘jiving funkapolitan?". *The Times*

1. ["03/09/1981"](https://totparchive.co.uk/episode.php?id=908). *Top of the Pops Archive*

1. "Cowboy congress". *Evening Standard*. 4 May 1988.

1. Law, Katie (16 September 2015). "Copper king". *Evening Standard*

1. Phillips, Matt. ["Curiosity Killed The Cat: Keep Your Distance 30 Years On"](https://movingtheriver.com/2017/04/15/curiosity-killed-the-cat-keep-your-distance-30-years-on/). *Moving the river*. Retrieved 9 September 2025.

1. ["Funkapolitan"](https://www.officialcharts.com/artist/19188/funkapolitan/). *Official Charts Company*. Retrieved 9 September 2025.

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Funkapolitan](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Funkapolitan) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Funkapolitan?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.