Prince Charles and the City Beat Bandwere an American synth-funk band active in the early 1980s. Joined by his City Beat Band and playing a unique wind synthesizer called the Lyricon, Charles "Prince Charles" Alexander released a handful of wild synth-funk albums -1981'sGang War,1982'sStone Killers, and1984'sCombat Zone. These albums achieved more recognition in the UK than in the USA, even though their best singles were contemporaneous with that of the Gap Band, Rick James,Grandmaster Flash, and the Egyptian Lover.