Born July 30: Vaughn Toulouse, meteoric singer of Department S

He was born in 1959 in St. Helier on the island of Jersey. His real surname, Cotillard, is just as Francophile, but it evokes that of the well-known actress rather than that of the painter born near Albi, whose appearance he often adopted...

Raised in St. Austell, Cornwall, the future lead singer of the post-punk band Department S left school in 1978 to follow The Clash on tour before moving to London in 1979. There, he founded the punk/ska band Guns for Hire, which quickly adopted the name Department S, borrowed from a British television series. The band achieved their major success with the single "Is Vic There?", which reached number 22 in the UK charts in 1981. "Substance" (1981), their only album from this period, was reissued in 2003 on the LTM label, accompanied by a live recording and demo versions of some tracks.

After the first incarnation of Department S disbanded in 1982, Vaughn Toulouse pursued a solo career as an amateur. He worked as a DJ under the name Main T and released the single "Fickle Public Speaking" in 1983, written and produced by Paul Weller (The Jam), with whom he had also collaborated in 1981 for concerts against the nuclear arms race. Always ready to support causes close to his heart, he also participated in a charity project to raise funds for English miners with The Style Council in 1984. He also released a solo single in 1985, "Cruisin' the Serpentine."

Vaughn Toulouse was openly gay. He tragically died of an AIDS-related illness on August 8, 1991, at just 32 years old. Reformed in the mid-2000s, the new Department S naturally keeps his memory alive and continues to perform live to this day while recording new albums that maintain the same social commitment. The latest, released in 2024, is titled "Burn Down Tomorrow" but, without Vaughn's distinctive voice, it must be admitted that an essential ingredient is missing.

(MH with Stéphane Soupart - Photo : © Etienne Tordoir)

Photo: Vaughn Toulouse with Department S in Leuven (Belgium) in November 1982