Hustler
Band members Related acts
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line up 1 (1974-75) - Tony Beard -- drums, percussion - Kenny Daughters -- keyboards - Steve Haynes -- vocals - Mickey Llewellyn (RIP 2014) -- lead guitar, backing vocals - Kenny "Tigger" Lyons -- bass, backing vocals
line up 2 (11975-76) - Tony Beard -- drums, percussion - Kenny Daughters -- keyboards - Steve Haynes -- vocals - Mickey Llewellyn (RIP 2014) -- lead guitar, backing vocals - Kenny "Togger" Lyons -- bass, backing vocals NEW - Henry Spinetti -- drums, percussion (replaced Tony Beard)
line up 3: (2020) NEW - Tick Brown -- guitar - Kenny Daughters -- keyboards - Steve Haynes -- vocals NEW - Tony Miles -- guitar
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- 38 Special (Kenny "Tigger" Lyons) - The Anti-Herin Project (Tony Beard) - The David Austin Project (Tony Beard) - Fancy (Henry Spinetti) - George's Band (Henry Spinetti) - Go West (Tony Beard) - Gumbo (Steven Haynes) - The Herd (Henry Spinetti) - Judas Jump (Henry Spinetti) - Lazy Racer (Henry Spinetti) - Mr. Big (Mickey Llewellyn) - Scrugg (Henry Spinetti) - SFX (Tony Beard) - The SFX Band (Tony Beard) - Chris Stainton's Tundra (Henry Spinetti) - Storyteller (Henry Spinetti) - Glenn Turner's Tundra (Henry Spinetti) - Tundra (Henry Spinetti) - Wizard's Convention (Henry Spinetti)
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Genre: rock Rating: 4 stars **** Title: High Street Company: A&M Catalog: SP
4504 Country/State: UK Grade (cover/record): VG+/VG+ Comments: promo sticker on cover; white label promo copy Available: 1 Catalog ID: 2225 Price: $30.00
Genre: rock Rating: 4 stars **** Title: High Street Company: A&M Catalog: SP
4504 Country/State: UK Grade (cover/record): VG+/VG+ Comments: promo sticker on cover; white label promo copy Available: 1 Catalog ID: 2225 Price: $30.00
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They formed in
1972, initially working under the name "Flesh." By the
time they were signed by A&M Records they'd morphed into Hustler. Produced by Peter
Gage, 1974's "High Street" was one of those mid-'70s
blues-rock albums that was actually quite good, but ultimately couldn't
distinguish itself from the onslaught of similar sounding outfits.
With all five band members contributing
Given those comments, I'm surprised to see I gave this one four stars ... About all I can say is that it's one of those mid-'70s rock albums that I grew up and has wormed its way into my head and heart.
"Main
Street" track listing: 1.) Just Leave a Good Man (Mickey Llewellyn - Kenny Lyons) - 4:14 rating: **** stars Technically this was a pretty pedestrian slice of blues-rock, but the combination of a seriously catchy refrain, Kenny Lively's lead guitar, and Kenny Daughters' bubbly synthesizers kicked this one out of the pack. 2.) Piranhas (Mickey Llewellyn - Tony Beard) - 5:30 rating: *** stars It opened up with a tasty Lively guitar riff that bore a slight resemblance to the start of Focus' 'Hocus Pocus'. From there 'Piranhas' found the band taking a stab at a more progressive sound. You weren't going to mistake this for ELP, but the combination of Steve Haynes rugged vocals and Kenny Daughters' extended keyboard sections have always reminded me of a mash-up of Deep Purple and Uriah Heep. A tune that grows on you if given a chance. You can actually get a taste for the band's live act. In 1974 they undertook a US and UK tour opened for Queen. on their "Sheer Heart Attack" tour. YouTube has several clips taken from a pair of November 1974 performances at London's Rainbow Theatre. 'Piranhas' is the second song on the 18 minute clip, starting around the six minute mark: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yS810FFt6NA 3.) Let the Wind Blow (Steve Haynes) - 3:39 rating: **** stars For anyone who thought these guys were a one dimensional hair band, 'Let the Wind Blow' would have come as a major surprise. Penned by lead singer Haynes who displayed an unexpectedly sweet soul-tinged voice, this was a pretty and radio friendly ballad that would have made a dandy single. 4.) Uptight Tonight (Steve Haynes) - 3:40 rating: **** stars 'Uptight Tonight' found the band returning to standard blues-rock that bore more than a little to the the Paul Rogers/Free/Bad Company school of performances. Along those lines, this one was actually quite good. The Rainbow performance clip starts around the 11:30 minute mark. At least to my ears the live version beats the studio version by a mile. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yS810FFt6NA 5.) Get Outta' Me 'ouse (Mickey Llewellyn) - 3:08 rating: *** stars Just when you thought you'd gotten your ears around the band's sound, along came 'Get Outta' Me 'ouse'. Penned and sung by the late (Mickey Llewellyn, this one traded in their radio-friendly sheen for a song that sounded like a castoff from Status Quo. Easy to see why Llewellyn only got an occasional shot at the vocal spotlight, though the lyrics were pretty funny. I'm guessing the song's very English sound was the reason A&M tapped it as a single in the UK. In the States the best the band could do was a promo release. Interestingly, the 45 featured several edits to the lyrics - example "scruffy little bleeder" was changed to "scruffy little geezer". The Rainbow performance clip starts around the 16:30 minute mark. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yS810FFt6NA
- 1974's 'Get Outta' Me 'ouse' b/w 'Happy Days' Firefly/A&M catalog number AMS 5001) - 1974's 'Get Outta' Me 'ouse' (mono) b/w 'Get Outta' Me 'ouse' (stereo) (A&M catalog number 1691)
(side
2) It took forever to actually kick into gear, but if you could get through almost a minute and a half of "street' sound effects, there was actually a sound here. Other than some nice Llewellyn lead guitar, I can't say 'Jack the Lad' was anything special, but if you were into mindless AC/DC hard rock, this one might have been up your alley. 2.) Midnight Seducer (Kenny Lyons - Mickey Llewellyn) - 4:05 rating: ** stars The keyboard and bass sound again recalled something out of the Deep Purple, or Uriah Heep catalogs. Just like the title, this one wasn't particularly original or enjoyable. 3.) Miranda (Tigger Lyons) - 5:03 rating: **** stars Another Free/Bad Company styled blues-rocker ... Again, not particularly original, but still enjoyable. The Rainbow performance clip starts with an energetic performance of 'Miranda': https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yS810FFt6NA 4.) The Hustler (Steve Haynes) - 5:17 rating: ** stars The closer was also the album's most pedestrian and forgettable performance. Yeah it was meant to be somewhat dark and threatening, but with the whispered female backing vocals intruding throughout, it came off as almost comical. Daughter's electric keyboard solo and the over-the-top orchestration just made it worse. Easy to imagine a classic Saturday Night Live line-up having fun with this one.
A&M sent them on the road, opening for Queen and Status Quo, but it did little for sales.
Still an active musician until the end, Llewellyn suffered a fatal heart attack in January 2014.
Anyone interested in checking out the band's live chops should check out the Rainbow performances: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yS810FFt6NA
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BACK TO BADCAT PAYMENT INFORMATION
to the writing chores, the majority
of the collection reflected the band's due to blues-rock bands like Free and
Bad Company. On tracks like 'Piranhas'
and 'Midnight Seducer'
those blues-rock efforts occasionally included a bit of Deep Purple, or
Uriah Heep heavy metal/progressive moves. With Steve Hayes
handling most of the lead vocals, the band had an excellent singer, though
he ultimately lacked that certain characteristic that would distinguish him
from the rest of the competition. The same could be said for
lead guitarist Mickey
Llewellyn. Exemplified by performances on tracks like
'Just Leave a Good Man' and 'Jack the Lad', Llewellyn was an accomplished,
economical player, but there wasn't much
to distinguish him from dozens of other talented players. Would you be
surprised to hear me say the same thing about the Tony Beard and Kenny
"Tigger"
Lyons rhythm section? The album's most interesting track was
also the strangest song. Written and sung by Llewellyn with a heavy
cockney accent, 'Get Outta' Me 'ouse' sounded like some sort of Status Quo,
or Slade outtake. It certainly lacked the polish found on the rest of
their FM certified catalog and while it wasn't the album's best performance
(that would go to 'Miranda'), it was the most interesting. 