Tributes to pioneering Peterborough punk rocker Allen Adams

To some, Allen Adams was the bloke on reception at (city nightclub) The Met Lounge - but to many he was the driving force behind punk band The Destructors, and one of the most well known and popular faces on the city music scene.

Allen, who lived in Park Road, Peterborough died this week - and tributes flooded in.

Dave Colton, who played with Allen in The Destructors, said: “We are all devastated. The impact he had on the music scene in Peterborough is immeasurable.

“He gave so much time and money to help younger musicians.

“He had an encyclopaedic knowledge of music. He was a very clever man.”

Fellow band mate Ian Stapleton said: “He was one of the good guys. He was eccentric, funny and just a really generous guy. He would do anything for anyone.

“He was everything in the band, the singer, he wrote the lyrics, provided all the energy.”

Steve Jason, who runs the Met Lounge where Allen worked for two decades, said: “Everyone who came here knew Allen. He was off ill last week, and we had so many people asking after him.

“The reception was his domain. He could be grumpy - especially if someone had lost their coat ticket.

“We are all going to miss him. He was an old school punk rocker.

“I hope Jesus hasn’t lost his coat ticket, because he won’t get his coat back till 3am.”

Gizz Butt, who played with the Destructors in the early 1980s before going on to play for The Prodigy, said: “Allen gave me the opportunity to get out on the road, and have vinyl with me on it. He was always up for a good time.

“It was a huge shock to hear the news.
“I hope people can come together to do something in his memory, and play the old tunes.”

Joe Maccoll, who also played in The Destructors, said: “He was a character, a one off. He could be funny and infuriating in one sentence.

“When I heard the news, it floored me. He is going to be missed by so many people.”