Ian Dury had to face polio at the age of 7, and consequently a string of institutions over the next few years. He joined The Walthamstow College of Art at 17, and from 1966-73 he worked as an art teacher in different schools. It was in the middle of this period he started his musical career with a band called Kilburn & The High Roads. The band - not altogether successful - finally released an ill-received album in 1977 and disbanded shortly afterwards. They subsequently started afresh as Ian Dury & The Blockheads, finding some success in the UK.