TWO of the founder members of the Boomtown Rats have teamed up once again.

Now known as The Rats, Garry Roberts and Simon Crowe play a Liverpool gig next month, with special guest Dave Sharp, formerly of The Alarm.

The Boomtown Rats formed in Dublin in 1975.

Their hits included Mary Of The Fourth Form, She’s So Modern and Like Clockwork before the band released their classic, Rat Trap, which shot to Number One in 1978 and remained in the charts for 15 weeks.

The band's second album, A Tonic For The Troops, also topped the charts, and 1979 saw the huge international number one, I Don’t Like Mondays.

Their success continued until 1986, when Bob Geldof left the band to pursue a solo career.

Garry and Simon’s new band, with Peter Barton on bass and vocals and Darren Beale on guitar, performs their classic hits along with live favourites, and a new album is in the pipeline.

“This initial couple of weeks of gigs has been fantastic. It feels like we are setting off on a new adventure,” said Garry.

Simon added: “After all this time, it’s such a vibe to get up and play our music again with this great new band.”

* THE Rats play the Live Lounge, at Baby Blue, on February 10.