Monday, August 31, 2009

Plummet Airlines - 1981 - On Stoney Ground (UK)

Plummet Airlines - 1981 - On Stoney Ground (UK)
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Plummet Airlines, was a British Pub rock band of the mid 1970s, which was originally formed in Nottingham. Band members later joined The Pogues and Darts

The band was formed by students at Nottingham School of Art (now Nottingham Trent University, School of Art and Design), who needed a band for a film they were trying to make, and was initially called The Brothel Creepers, after the band in the film. Harry Stephenson (vocal/guitar) had previously been in Harrogate band "Junkyard Angel", whilst Richard Booth (guitar/vocal), Darryl Hunt (bass) and Simon Bladon (drums) had played in the same jazz band. Having completed the film, the band started playing gigs, and writing their own songs, mostly written by Stephenson.
In 1974 Bladon was replaced on drums by Keith Gotheridge, and Duncan Kerr (guitar/vocals) joined. They changed their name to "Glider", and got a residency at The Kensington, Olympia, London; one of the new pub-rock venues. A band called "Glyder" forced them to change their name, so they became Plummet Airlines. They played at the Hope and Anchor, Islington, where they met Malcolm Morley (ex Man and Help Yourself who was living in the pub, and they soon moved in, working in the bar on their nights off. Fred Grainger and John Eichler, who ran "The Hope", became their managers.
They recorded their first Peel Session in August 1976 Dave Robinson, who ran the recording studio at The Hope and Anchor, gave them a one record deal with Stiff Records who issued their first single: Silver Shirt" / "This is the World" (BUY 8) produced by Sean Tyla. Morley started jamming with them and joined them for a Dutch tour in 1976, where they also supported Clancy. Morley recorded a solo album, at Foel Studios, using Plummet Airlines as the backing musicians, but the master tape was then lost until 2002, when it was issued as Lost and Found (Hux 34) Gasper Lawal, who had been in Clancy, joined the band and appeared on their second Peel show in January 1977, and they supported Van der Graaf Generator, Rockpile and other bands. A second single "It's Hard" / "My Time in a While" was issued on State Records, but Grainger, their manager, could not agree an album deal. They split with Grainger, and sued him for mismanagement, as he was being ousted from "The Hope" by a coup d'état.
When punk arrived they could not agree what direction to follow. Booth left first, followed by Stephenson, and the band broke up in 1977. After the band split, Booth compiled a double album of their work, including live and studio recordings. This was issued in 1981 as a double LP On Stoney Ground on Armageddon Records (Hedonics 1/2)
In 2004 there was a reunion concert in Nottingham, and in 2006 several members appeared in the "Richard Booth Band"
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source Wikipedia (link)

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