String Driven Thing was formed in Glasgow in 1967 as a three part harmony folk band by husband and wife duo Chris and Pauline Adams, together with guitarist John Mannion, and after playing the folk circuit for a few years they released their self-titled album on the independent Concord label in 1970. The group moved to London in 1972 and Chris Adams began to steer the band towards an electric folk-rock genre where his song writing abilities, which often feature hard-bitten and bitter observations capturing the harsher side of life, would be seen to better effect. By 1972 he had recruited classically trained violinist Graham Smith and Colin Wilson on bass, but soon afterwards Mannion left, citing musical differences. Adams then secured a deal with Tony Stratton-Smith's Charisma label and another eponymous album was released in 1972, produced by Shel Talmy at London's IBC Studios. With Smith's high octane violin and Pauline Adams' distinctive lispy vocals, the band toured the UK and Europe with Charisma stablemates Lindisfarne and Genesis, and this exposure raised their profile and led to TV appearances and an American tour. A second Charisma album, 'The Machine That Cried', was recorded in February 1973 at IBC, but now with the addition of a drummer, Billy "The Kid" Fairley, and although reviews of this much bleaker and rockier offering were mixed at the time, it is now regarded as a forgotten classic, with standout tracks including 'Heartfeeder' and 'Sold Down The River'. By 1974 the constant touring was taking its toll and Wilson was replaced by Bill Hatje on bass, then Billy Fairley gave way to Colin Fairley (formerly of Beggars Opera but no relation), but soon afterwards, disillusioned with life on the road, the Adamses quit and returned to their native Glasgow. With their departure the band disintegrated, but Charisma recruited three musicians to continue touring with Smith and Fairley, and so with singer Kim Beacon, guitarist Andy Roberts and bassist James Exel joining the band they released two more albums, 'Please Mind Your Head' and 'Keep Yer 'And On It', with Roberts and Exel collaborating for much of the songwriting. String Driven Thing put out a number of stand-alone singles on the Charisma label, the most famous of which is the Chris Adams-penned 'It's A Game', not because it was a hit for them, but because a cover of it by The Bay City Rollers in 1977 became a chart hit in the US, Japan and Germany. This album collects those singles and a rare b-side, along with some early demos and previously unreleased studio recordings, all of which show what an under-rated band they were, and do check out 'The Machine That Cried' as it really is a superb album.
Track listing
01 Eddie (single 1972)02 Old Love New Love (demo 1971)03 Winter Is Coming (demo 1972)04 Regent Street Incident (demo 1972)05 Jack Diamond (demo 1972)06 Argyle Street (demo 1972)07 River Of Sleep (out-take 1973)08 If Only The Good (previously unreleased) 09 It's A Game (single 1973)10 Are You A Rock And Roller (b-side of 'It's A Game')11 Part Of The City (aka The City At Night) (previously unreleased)12 I'll Sing One For You (single 1974)13 Cruel To Fool (single 1976)
