By 1976, the old English guard of heavy hitters, headed by Led Zeppelin, Deep Purple and Black Sabbath, had peaked, while young 'n' hungry groups were on the rise. The state-side hard rock scene witnessed the ascent of Aerosmith, Blue Oyster Cult, KISS, Lynyrd Skynryd and Ted Nugent, while across the pond Thin Lizzy, UFO and Judas Priest were taking flight. In addition, despite the onslaught of the snot-nosed punk movement, several rock group's emerged, but failed to bust out big. Widowmaker, featuring guitarist Ariel Bender (aka Luther Grosvenor), plus bassist Bob Daisley and vocalist Steve Ellis, debuted in '76 with their ten song self-titled debut LP, that failed to move major numbers.
Signed to Jet Records, the English group recorded the tracks for the Widowmaker album at De Lane Lea Studios in Wembley, during August and September of '75. Produced by the band, the grinding rocker, "Such a Shame", opens the disc with a cool vibe and attitude. Side one adds the mid-paced "On the Road", and the Humble Pie/Foghat blues 'n' boogie inspired "Ain't Telling You Nothing".
The raucous "When I Met You" kick starts the flip side with Bender accenting the track with slide work, and Zoot Money contributing barroom keyboards. By contrast, the boys-will-be-boys laid back acoustic "Leave the Kids Alone" offsets the highball rollin' action. The boys drop down to a stone cold blues groove on "Shine a Light on Me", which features backing vocals from Bobby Tench and Roger Chapman. "Running Free" starts on a mellow note, before Widowmaker abruptly bust out behind Daisley's tough bass line. The short, down-home, pass-the-bottle "Got a Dream", closes out the thirty-nine minute LP.
Signed to Jet Records, the English group recorded the tracks for the Widowmaker album at De Lane Lea Studios in Wembley, during August and September of '75. Produced by the band, the grinding rocker, "Such a Shame", opens the disc with a cool vibe and attitude. Side one adds the mid-paced "On the Road", and the Humble Pie/Foghat blues 'n' boogie inspired "Ain't Telling You Nothing".
The raucous "When I Met You" kick starts the flip side with Bender accenting the track with slide work, and Zoot Money contributing barroom keyboards. By contrast, the boys-will-be-boys laid back acoustic "Leave the Kids Alone" offsets the highball rollin' action. The boys drop down to a stone cold blues groove on "Shine a Light on Me", which features backing vocals from Bobby Tench and Roger Chapman. "Running Free" starts on a mellow note, before Widowmaker abruptly bust out behind Daisley's tough bass line. The short, down-home, pass-the-bottle "Got a Dream", closes out the thirty-nine minute LP.
Personnel:
Ariel Bender (guitar
Bob Daisley (bass)
Steve Ellis (vocals)
Llyod Langton (guitar)
Paul Nichols (drums)
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Zoot Money (keyboards)
Bob Tench (guitar, vocals)
Tracklist:
01. Such A Shame (Ellis/Grosvenor/Nichols) 3.18
01. Pin A Rose On Me (Ellis/Grosvenor/Nichols) 4.59
02. On The Road (Ellis/Grosvenor/Nichols) 3.03
03. Straight Faced Fighter (Ellis) 3.29
04. Ain´t Telling You Nothing (Bender/Ellis) 4.47
05. When I Met You (Grosvenor) 3.49
06. Leave The Kids Alone (Ellis) 4.36
07. Shine A Light On Me (Grosvenor/Wright) 4.36
08. Running Free ('Farnham) 3.35
09. Got A Dream (Daisley) 2.57
ARMU 2156
ARMU 2156 (shareplace)