The band was formed in 1980, by lyricist Nick Jones and musician Toby Andersen, in Andersen's bathroom, where he kept a Vox organ, with the aim of "forming a hard funk outfit which would render current
disco obsolete." Jones and Andersen chose the name by portmanteauing the band
Funkadelic and the magazine
Cosmopolitan. Percussionist Greg and backing dancer Doria Craig were siblings of
Mikey Craig of
Culture Club, and guitarists Kadir and Sagat Guirey were
White Russian royalty. The band's first gig was at
Kensington Market later in the year and, with the band earning high-profile support slots with
The Clash and
Simple Minds, as well as coverage from
Peter York in
Harpers & Queen, the band signed to London Records, which teamed them with
August Darnell as producer, and
Roxy Music stylist
Antony Price as tailor. 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, the band was invited to perform the playout on
Top Of The Pops, 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 and bassist
Tom Dixon became an industrial designer who was awarded the
MBE. Andersen continued as a songwriter and co-wrote all of the tracks on the
Curiosity Killed The Cat album
Keep Your Distance. ==Discography==