Boys' Brigade

For the 80s New Wave band from Canada, see Boys Brigade (band). Not to be confused with the Church Lads' and Church Girls' Brigade.

The Boys' Brigade (BB) is an interdenominational Christian youth organisation, conceived by Sir William Alexander Smith to combine drill and fun activities with Christian values. Following its inception in Glasgow in 1883, the BB quickly spread across the United Kingdom and became a worldwide organisation by the early 1890s. As of 2003, there were 500,000 Boys' Brigade members in 60 countries.

Object, motto and emblem

The stated object of the Boys' Brigade is "The advancement of Christ's kingdom among Boys and the promotion of habits of Obedience, Reverence, Discipline, Self-respect and all that tends towards a true Christian manliness." Except for the addition of the word "obedience" in 1893, the contents of the object has remained unchanged from the beginning. However, some countries, particularly those which permit girls on their membership roll, have re-worded the object for gender neutrality. For example, in Malaysia, the word "manliness" has been changed to "character".

Boys Brigade (band)

Boys Brigade was a Canadian new wave band formed in 1981 in Toronto. The band consisted of vocalist and keyboardist Malcolm Burn, guitarist and vocalist Tony Lester, bass guitarist Wayne Lorenz, drummer Billie Brock and percussionists and backup vocalists David Porter and Jeff Packer. The nucleus of Boys Brigade grew out of Toronto punk band, Arson, which broke up when lead singer and songwriter Rude Van Steenes quit in 1981. Boys Brigade was originally booked by Raymond Perkins (Roots, Demics). The band played an eclectic collection of venues in Toronto, many of which were not known for live music at the time, including the now popular Rex Hotel and the more famous Drake Hotel.

Part of the Queen Street West scene, the band's song "Mannequin" appeared on Q107's annual compilation album of local bands, Homegrown, in 1981. Howard Ungerleider, the lighting designer for Rush, signed a management agreement with the band that year, that was later signed over to Ray Danniels' SRO. Geddy Lee was enlisted to produce the band's self-titled debut album in 1983. Engineered by Nick Blagona (Rolling Stones), the sessions were stretched over six months, to accommodate Geddy's touring schedules.