Heavy Metal Kids
Band members Related acts
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line up 1 (1973-75) - Keith Boyce -- drums, percussion - Gary Holton (RIP 1985) -- vocals - Danny Peyronel -- keyboards, backing vocals - Ronnie Thomas -- bass, vocals - Mickey Waller (RIP 2013) -- guitar
line up 2 (1975) as The Kids - Keith Boyce -- drums, percussion NEW - Cosmo Verrico-- lead guitar (replaced Mickey Waller) - Gary Holton (RIP 1985) -- vocals NEW- John Sinclair -- keyboards, backing vocals (replaced Danny Peyronel) - Ronnie Thomas -- bass, vocals
line up 3 (1976-78) as The Heavy Metal Kids - Keith Boyce -- drums, percussion - Gary Holton (RIP 1985) -- vocals NEW - Barry Paul (RIP 2019) -- guitar, backing vocals (replaced Cosmo Verrico) - John Sinclair -- keyboards, backing vocals - Ronnie Thomas -- bass, vocals
line up 3 (1978) - Keith Boyce -- drums, percussion - Cosmo Verrico -- lead guitar (replaced Mickey Waller) - Gary Holton (RIP 1985) -- vocals - Barry Paul (RIP 2019) -- guitar, backing vocals - Ronnie Thomas -- bass, vocals NEW - Jay Williams -- lead guitar (replaced John Sinclair)
line up 4 (2002-2008) NEW - Marco Barusso -- guitar, backing vocals - Keith Boyce -- drums, percussion NEW - Marco Guarnerio -- guitar NEW - Danny Peyronel -- vocals, keyboards - Ronnie Thomas -- bass, vocals
line up 6 (2008-2010) - Marco Barusso -- guitar, backing vocals - Keith Boyce -- drums, percussion - Danny Peyronel -- vocals, keyboards NEW - Matteo Salvadori -- lead guitar (replaced Marco Guarnerio) - Ronnie Thomas -- bass, vocals
line up 7 (2010) NEW - John Altman -- vocals (replaced Danny Peyronel) - Keith Boyce -- drums, percussion NEW - Cosmo Verrico -- lead guitar NEW - Justin McConville -- lead guitar, vocals, keyboards - Ronnie Thomas -- bass, vocals
line up 8 (2010) - John Altman -- vocals (replaced Danny Peyronel) - Keith Boyce -- drums, percussion - Cosmo Verrico -- lead guitar NEW - Phil Lewis -- vocals - Justin McConville -- lead guitar, vocals, keyboards - Ronnie Thomas -- bass, vocals
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- Ashman-Reynolds (Keith Boyce) - The Babys (John Sinclair) - Battleaxe (Keith Boyce) - Banzai (Danny Peyronel) - The Blue Max (Danny Peyronel) - Cayne (Marco Barusso) - Caesar ((Keith Boyce and Barry Paul) - City Life (Cosmo Verrico) - The Crowd (Gary Holton) - The Cult (John Sinclair) - The Difference (Keith Boyce) - The Electric Banana (Brian Johnstone) - Femme Fatale (Mickey Waller) - Mickey Finn & the Blue Men (Mickey Waller) - Gary & the Gems (Gary Holton) - Gulf Stream (Brian Johnstone) - Heaven (Brian Johnstone) - Gary Horton (solo efforts) - House of X (Danny Peyronel) - Gary Holton (solo efforts) - Gary Holton and Casino Steel - Jeg ( Justin McConville) - Jerico (Justin McConville) - The Kids - Leaf Hound (Ronnie Thomas) - Leggs (Keith Boyce, Brian Johnstone, Ronnie Thomas and Mickey Waller) - Lip Service (Gary Holton) - Lion (John Sinclair) - Made In Japan (Barry Paul) - Steve Marriott's All Stars (Mickey Waller) - Phil May and Fallen Angels (Keith Boyce, Brian Johnstone and Mickey Waller) - Justin McConville (solo efforts) - The Mickey Finn (Mickey Waller) - Raw Glory (Justin McConville) - Riff - Savoy Brown (Keith Boyce, Barry Paul and John Sinclair) - The Scott/Finn Band (Mickey Waller) - The Senate (Brian Johnstone) - The Shortlist (Brian Johnstone) - Shy (John Sinclair) - Simon K & the Meantimers (Brian Johnstone) - Smokie (John Sinclair) - The Spamm Band (Brian Johnstone) - Streetwalkers (Brian Johnstone) - Tarzen (Danny Peyronel) - Bram Tchiakovsky (Keith Boyce) - Then (Justin McConville) - UFO (Danny Peyronel) - Uriah Heep (John Sinclair) - Gary Joe Weise Trio (Keith Boyce) - Whitesnake (Brian Johnstone)
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Genre: rock Rating: 4 stars **** Title: Heavy Metal Kids Company: ATCO Catalog: SD
7047 Country/State: UK Grade (cover/record): VG+/VG+ Comments: small cut out notch tip edge; minor ring wear; promo sticker on cover' 99 cents written on front cover Available: 1 Catalog ID: 6324 Price: $20.00
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These overlooked British rockers get labeled as proto-glam advocates and early punks. I'm not going to tell you that's entirely wrong, but to my ears they actually sound like a cross between The Faces and a British version of a mid-western American working band like Head East. In fact front man/lead singer Gary Holton vocal mannerisms occasionally remind me a bit of a cross between Aerosmith's Steven Tyler and Head East singer John Schlitt (albeit with a heavy Cockney accent).
Holton actually had a background in acting before his stint as a wannabe rock star. He'd started his career in the theater as a child actor, including a stint in the Royal Shakespeare Company. In his teens he won a role in the English touring company of Hair. That experience seemingly turned him on to the rock and roll bug and in 1973 Holton decided to form a band, recruiting drummer Keith Boyce, keyboardist Danny Peyronel, bass player Ronnie Thomas and guitarist Mickey Waller. Mixing Holton's theatrical roots with the desire to be a real rock and roll band, The Heavy Metal Kids attracted a loyal cult following and a sponsor/mentor in the form of A&R man Dave Dee. Dee brought them to the attention of Atlantic Records, which signed them to a recording contract (ATCO acquiring US distribution rights).
Recorded
at London's Olympic Studios with Dee producing, 1973's "Heavy
Metal Kids"
may be flawed, but to my ears those flaws are part of what makes this a
great album. Musically they couldn't have picked a worse, less
descriptive name for themselves (though years later Holton was in the
running to replaced Bon Scott in AC/DC). These guys weren't a metal
outfit; there weren't really an out-and-out glam outfit, nor were the a pop
band, though all of those genres had an influence o
The album generated positive reviews from the critics, but in spite of extensive touring, the set proved commercially stillborn.
The band has an entertaining website at: http://www.heavymetalkids.co.uk/
"Heavy
Metal Kids" track listing: 1.) Hangin' On (Mickey Waller) - 3:05 rating: **** stars Penned by guitarist Waller, 'Hangin' On' was a rollicking rocker that's one of the album's highlights. The combination of Holton's snarling vocals (he really sounded like John Schlitt on this one), Personnel's' galloping keyboards and Waller's slashing guitar made this one very radio-friendly. Not sure where it was filmed, but YouTube has a clip of the band lip-synching the tune; a wild-eyed, top hat and silk scarf clad Gary Holton coming off as a foppish, English version of Steven Tyler: Heavy Metal Kids - Hangin' On [1974] 2.) Ain't It Hard (Ronnie Thomas - Mickey Waller - Gary Holton) - 3:00 rating: **** stars If you thought Ian Hunter or the late Freddy Mercury were guilty of theatrical deliveries, then I suggest you check out 'Ain't It Hard'. One again built on the combination of Peyronel's keyboards and Waller's guitar, this one exploded with a totally unexpected and enchanting chorus. One of their most commercial tunes and another personal favorite. 3.) It's the Same (Danny Peyronel - Ricardo Soule) - 5:40 rating: *** stars 'It's the Same' found the band throwing a curve ball in the form of a pretty ballad with surprisingly touching lyrics. Imagine something Smokie would have released in the mid-'70s. As mentioned earlier, Holton seemed to take pride in his heavy accent and it literally took me a couple of spins to figure out he was singing "it's the same". The track was tapped as a single in France and as a three track promotion 45 in the UK:
France - 1974's 'It's the Same' b/w 'Rock 'N' Roll Man' (Atlantic catalog number 10509) UK - 1974's 'It's the Same' b/w 'Run Around My Eyes' and 'Nature of the Game' (Atlantic catalog number HMK-X-DJ)
Apparently recorded at the same place as the earlier video, YouTube has a clip of the band lip-synching the song: it's the same....Heavy Metal Kids Music (Lyrics) 4.) Run Around Eyes (Keith Boyce - Gary Holton - Danny Peyronel - Ronnie Thomas - Mickey Waller) - 2:57 rating: **** stars White guy bands playing reggae aren't anything rare. Still remembering this was recorded in 1974, the inclusion of a reggae tune was quite adventuresome. The fact 'Run Around Eyes' was actually quite good also spoke highly of the band. Holton sounded surprisingly legitimate and the title refrain was certainly catchy. Kudos to Atlantic's Australian subsidiary for releasing the song as a single:
- 1974's 'Run Around Eyes' b/w 'We Gotta Go' (Atlantic catalog number 45-10044)
5.) We Gotta Go (Keith Boyce - Gary Holton - Danny Peyronel - Ronnie Thomas - Mickey Waller) - 4:55 rating: **** stars Another group composition, 'We Gotta Go' started out as a surprisingly low-keyed and reflective ballad. Powered by a nifty Peyronel keyboard riff, the track also highlighted by some of Waller's prettiest lead guitar. The song quickly picked up steam becoming kind of a party anthem that they're apparently still playing in-concert. Anyone know what kind of effect he was using to get the weird spidery sound ?
(side
2) 'Always Plenty of Women' has always reminded me of a Faces track - it had the same time of easy-going, drunken and sexist charm, along with the kind of killer chorus that exemplified the best of Rod Stewart and company. 2.) Nature of My Game (Mickey Waller - Gary Holton) - 3:35 rating: **** stars Opening up with some killer Waller guitar that then morphs into one the album's funkiest rhythms, 'Nature of My Game' was the LP's most straightforward and commercial rockers. Of course I was also a lost cause when Peyronel's cheesy synthesizer kicked in at the end of the track. If Mott the Hoople had recorded a song this tight and radio-friendly they would have been major stars. 'Course it didn't do a thing for these guys. 3.) Kind Woman (Mickey Waller) - 4:28 rating: **** stars I'm not sure who handled the first lead vocal on the ballad 'Kind Woman' (I think it was keyboardist Peyronel, but it certainly wasn't Holton - you can hear him step in and take over the song). Regardless, the results were very impressive, exhibiting one of their strongest melodies that recalled the kind of big ballad that '80s hair bands rode to one-hit wonder status, crossed with some glistening Badfinger-styled harmonies. Peyronel stole the spotlight with a wonderful barrelhouse piano solo. 4.) Rock n Roll Man (Ronnie Thomas - Paul) - 7:30 rating: ** stars Tapped as the album's single, most of 'Rock n Roll Man' was a mindless slice of boogie rock. I can see where after a couple of cold beers this might have sounded far better (well, until the tune abruptly shifted into a slower, more melodic section). Very Slade-esque and simply lacked the creativity found on the rest of the collection. That Slade-ish sound might explains why it was released as the UK single. It was also released as a 45 in Japan.
- 1974's 'Rock N Roll Man' b/w 'Hangin' On' (Atlantic catalog number K- 10465) 5.) We Gotta Go (reprise) (Keith Boyce - Gary Holton - Danny Peyronel - Ronnie Thomas - Mickey Waller) - 1:20 rating: ** stars The album ended with a short and forgettable reprise of 'We Gotta Go'.
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n their collective
sound. One of those albums that's simply hard to accurately describe,
I'd suggest you think along the lines of a mix between Faces-styled bravado
and sloppiness, Mott the Hoople glam accessories and Head East-styled
plug-ahead professionalism. In fact that lack of a clear identity was
probably one of the things that hurt the band - trying to slot them into a
rock category was just too hard and you can see where club owners would have
found it difficult to see where they fit into their marketing niches.
From a performance standpoint Holton certainly didn't have the best voice
you'd ever heard. He could be shrill and irritating like chalk on a
blackboard ('Always Plenty of Women')
and unlike most English singers he seemed to go out of his way to showcase
his Cockney accent (check out 'It's the Same') which occasionally left
American ears struggling to figure out what was going on. As for the rest of
the band, they were surprisingly accomplished, if not technically the
tightest group you've ever stumbled across. Boyce and Thomas weren't
fancy, but they kept the band firmly planted on the ground and where
versatile enough to give the band a credible reggae flavor on 'Run
Around Eyes', while the
Argentine-born Peyronel and Waller added occasional color to the
proceedings. 
