Middle Of The Road are the epitome of a bubblegum pop group, although that wasn't the aim when the group was first formed in April 1970 by vocalist Sally Carr, drummer Ken Andrew, guitarist Ian McCredie, and his bassist brother Eric McCredie. They had already played together under the name Part Four since 1967, and later in Latin American style under the name Las Caracas, and it was under this name that they won the UK TV talent show 'Opportunity Knocks'. They moved to Italy in 1970 because they had not found the success they wanted in the UK, and it was there that they met Italian music producer Giacomo Tosti, who gave the band their distinctive sound, and with it their international break. The group had their first and biggest hit record in the UK with their debut UK single, 'Chirpy Chirpy Cheep Cheep', reaching No. 1 in the UK Singles Chart in June 1971, and staying there for four more weeks. Originally the band were reluctant to record the song, feeling that if anyone in the UK heard it, they would never be able to hold their heads up in public ever again, but Carr thought it was really catchy and finally persuaded the rest of the group to come on board. Following the worldwide success of 'Chirpy Chirpy Cheep Cheep', it was obvious to Tosti that more, similar material was needed to follow up this first hit, and so writers and arrangers Mario and Giosy Capuano joined the production team.
'Tweedle Dee Tweedle Dum' followed in much the same style, and was another huge hit in the UK, but their next single, 'Soley Soley', broke the mould of nonsense songs, as it was written by a Spanish songwriter, Fernando Arbex, with lyrics co-written by Carr. It was recorded in Madrid and became the summer hit in Europe that year, reaching No. 2 in the UK after a belated release in time for Christmas. 'Sacramento' and 'Samson And Delilah' were their last main hits in the UK, and this might have been partly caused by the oil crisis of the period. With vinyl being short supply, their UK record label apparently turned its back on 'the foursome from Italy', the band’s perceived country of origin, with the result being that the UK public were given no further opportunity to follow the Scots group. In 1974, early Bay City Rollers member Neil Henderson joined the band on guitar, and he wrote and co-wrote songs for the group, including the singles 'Rockin' Soul' and 'Everybody Loves A Winner', but the moment had passed and they failed to trouble the UK charts. However, they were still extremely popular in Europe, and released a further four albums in Germany via Ariola Records. Although most of their early music was written by outside writers such as the Capuanos and Marchetti/Stott, members of the group were allowed to contribute to the odd b-side or album track, and these tend to be some of their best work, as they weren't trying to have a hit single with them. As well as that, the Capuanos could sometimes come up with something that showed them in a completely different light, such as the lovely 'Louise' (My Little Ship)', and so if you only know the band from their annoyingly catchy singles, then this album shows another side to Middle Of The Road, which might just surprise you.
Track listing
01 On This Land (Capuano/Capuano/Stott)
02 Lingering Sounds (Marchetti/Stott)
03 Far Away (Wales/O'Reagan)
04 Winter's Sun (I McCredie)
05 Read Between The Lines (I McCredie/Henderson)
06 The Sun In Your Skin (Marchetti/Stott)
07 Sacremento (Rubirosa/Capuano/Capuano/Stott)
08 Louise (My Little Ship) (Capuano/Capuano/Stott)
09 Gone's The Time (I McCredie)
10 It's The Rain (Henderson/Peebles)
11 Eve (McCredie/McCredie/Carr)
12 Writing On The Wall (I McCredie)
13 To Remind Me (Capuano/Capuano/Carr)
14 Give It Time (Capuano/Capuano/Carr)
