Formed 1977 in Manchester by Alan Hempsall and Robert Davenport.
Started as a two-man outfit but adding Keith Darbyshire and Gary Madeley to the line-up in 1978.
During their first five years they recorded sessions for local and national radio and released several records on Aural Assault, Factory and Factory Benelux. They toured the UK and Europe, both as headline act and as support to Joy Division and Killing Joke and Section 25.
Crispy Ambulance broke apart in 1982, with the members pursuing other projects.
In 1999, the band reformed for a "one-off" gig in Manchester to promote the re-release of two earlier album titles on the LTM record label. But since then they have brought out several new albums and are still active as of today.