Artist: Stallium
Album: The Hard Life
Country: England
Released: 2007 (recorded in 1974-1979)
Genre: Heavy Progressive Rock
Format: MP3 CBR 320

In 1972, in the town of Hastings, located forty miles from the famous city of Canterbury, which gave its name to the direction of progressive rock, young musicians who were tired of performing only folk music and pop covers formed the band Stallion. Its members included Steve Demetri, Tich Turner, Tony Bridger and Steve Kinch. Demetri was influenced by the music of Genesis, King Crimson, Billy Cobham and Frank Zappa; Bridger perfected his guitar style by emulating Rory Gallagher and Jimi Hendrix; Turner was a fan of American R&B and listened to everything from Marvin Gaye to Little Feat. In 1974, Kinch left to accompany Hazel O'Connor (and in 1986 he showed up as part of Manfred Mann's Earth Band), and Roger Carey was recruited to replace him in Stallion. At the same time, the guys had the idea to attract a keyboardist to the group. During their performance at the Melody Maker rock band competition, Phil Thornton was in the audience, who after their performance broke into the dressing room and declared that he had a lot of new ideas and was needed by Stallion. The quintet soon entered the recording studio for the first time, and in early 1975 the Flyright label released their single Skinny Kid/In The Wake Of The Cobra. After the release of the single, Carey left the band, who later became a successful session musician specializing in jazz. He was replaced by Demetri's friend guitarist Phil Gill, who had never played bass before and learned to do so by copying Carey's parts from the single. Musically, the group gravitated more and more towards progressive rock, which did not suit Tich Turner, who preferred bright short songs that gave him the opportunity to demonstrate his skills as a showman on stage. In June 1975, the well-known Hastings singer and experimenter John Wilde joined the band. Accepted as a backing vocalist, he gradually rose to a leading position in the group. At the invitation of vocalist and producer Phil Cordell, "Stallion" took part in the recording of his single "I Will Return", released in July under the pseudonym "Springwater" and became a number one hit in Europe. This collaboration with Cordell was their first experience with a true professional and gave the guys a lot in terms of working on the sound of their music. However, Tony Bridger soon left the band, which was a big loss for the Stallion musicians. At Demetri's suggestion, the band included guitarist John Petri, whose family, like Demetri's, had moved to Hastings from Cyprus. A fan of Carlos Santana, he also played the bouzouki and other Greek folk instruments perfectly and greatly influenced the new sound of the group. The reputation of "Stallion" grew, the group took part in various festivals. Especially successful was the performance at the Watchfield Festival in the summer of 1975. In 1976, Stallion took part in the Melody Maker Rock Contest for the second time, this time becoming the winner and getting the right to perform at the Reading Festival. Moreover, soon on the recommendation of Noel Redding, the group signed a contract with Anastasia Productions. And a little later, "Stallion" began to participate in Saturday night shows at the legendary London "Marquee Club", where the musicians soon acquired a whole army of fans. Soon hard times began for progressive rock - the time of punk began. “Anastasia” had new heroes and the musicians of “Stallion” immediately felt it. Petri and Thornton were the first to leave the band, unable to withstand the new attitude from the management. Julian Carter joined the group, but attempts to find a new keyboardist did not lead to anything, but later, at the request of his colleagues, Thornton nevertheless returned to the group. However, in 1979, Stallion disbanded completely. Phil Thornton moved to Minotaur, worked with Glen Baker, later formed Expandis, collaborated as a session man with Sam Fox, Asher Quinn, Hawkwind, Sinead O'Connor. Steve Demetri played with Steve Kinch on "Head On" and later became a top British session drummer. Phil Gill was a member of the legendary band "England", together with Ray Fenwick played in the band "Escalator" and other bands.

Tracks:
01. If Life Were Death - 6:58
02. Arsony In The UK - 3:53
03. Fresh Out Of Borstal - 4:49
04. The Hard Life - 3:59
05. Open Door - 6:08
06. Creamed Genes - 5:39
07. The Way - 4:05
08. The Hard Life (Live At The Lyceum Sept, 1976) - 6:12
09. You Make Me Happy - 3:06
10. Cobra - 4:51
11. Skinny Kid - 4:43

Personnel:
John Wilde - lead vocals
Phil Thornton - clavinet, synthesizers, Hammond organ, piano, mellotron
Phil Gill - bass, acoustic guitar
Steve Demetri - drums
John Petri - guitar
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Tich Turner - flute, vocals
Roger Carey - bass
Tony Bridger - guitar