I'd never heard of this band, String Driven Thing. They must have never "made it" here in the U.S. but apparently were popular in Scotland in the '70s. They originally did "It's A Game."
"String Driven Thing were formed in Glasgow, Scotland in 1968 by the husband and wife team of Chris and Pauline Adams. Their debut self-titled album, released in 1970 in very limited quantities on the Concord label, has become much sought after by collectors. They signed to Charisma Records and released their second album, also self-titled, in 1972, with violinist Graham Smith. At the same time, they released a single, "It's a Game", which was covered by, and became a minor hit for, the Bay City Rollers. Their third album, arguably their best, was called "The Machine that Cried". It was released in 1973, and it was the first album to feature a drummer, in the form of Billy Fairley ( percussion duties were previously handled by John Mannion ), and the band took on a decidedly more progressive feel. After this album, the Adams family ( sorry - couldn't resist ), departed, leaving Graham Smith the responsibility of continuing the band. Recruiting vocalist Kimberely Beacon, who at times sounded like a more refined Rod Stewart, guitarist Alun Roberts, bassist/vocalist James Exell and Beggars Opera drummer Colin Fairley, presumably related to Billy Fairley, he set about releasing two very good albums, " Please mind your Head " in 1974, and then this album, "Keep yer 'and on it" in 1975, both still with Charisma ( 20th Century Records in the US ). String Driven Thing split in the mid seventies, with Smith moving on to Van Der Graaf Generator and Peter Hammill. In the early to mid nineties, Chris Adams reformed the band and released a number of very good albums, including the excellent "Suicide - Live in Berlin 1994" album. It would be nice if some record company somewhere released their last two Charisma albums on CD, though!"
No comments:
Post a Comment