....Where The Groupies Killed The Blues

Lucifer's Friend had their roots in Hamburg in a group called The German Bonds. Founded by organist Peter Hecht and bassist Dieter Horns, they were a typical 60s beat group, releasing a few singles to no acclaim; however, they also all worked as studio musicians in the bustling Hamburg music scene. By 1970, with guitarist Peter Hesslein and drummer Joachim Rietenbach, they teamed up with two singer, Englishman John Lawton and Tony Cavanna, and released an album of heavy rock for Decca Records as Asterix. Shedding Cavanna and gaining producer and former Rattle Herbert Hildebrandt, they recorded their debut album proper—which carried the band's new name, Lucifer's Friend. It's an excellent album of heavy rock, rivaling similar works from Deep Purple or Uriah Heep, and best encapsulated with the stone-classic track "Ride the Sky." Their second album, …Where The Groupies Killed The Blues, changed musical direction, something the band would continue to do throughout their career. Released in 1972, it features lyrics and music from John O'Brien-Docker, founder of The City Preachers (a band that morphed into Frumpy). Not surprisingly, the acoustic "Burning Ships" opens the album, with Lawton's robust voice to the fore. "Prince of Darkness" sports a heavy riff, but Hecht's piano tempers any potential sonic onslaught. "Hobo" is an instant classic, while "Mother" features Horns on bass-fiddle; the tense, shifting arrangement goes from hard blues to symphonic. "Summerdream" shows Hecht's hand at orchestration, but it's the diverse structure of "Rose on the Vine" that's the album's highlight. It's an interesting record: one that attempts to embrace the burgeoning progressive with mostly excellent results. Like many of their releases, the album did see a US release on Passport Records (with an improved track order), but not until almost three years after it was recorded. Lucifer's Friend carried on throughout the 70s, releasing several albums of mainstream hard rock; but Lawton left the band in 1977 to join Uriah Heep.