Riff Raff -

Riff Raff was an English jazz-rock band that released the 1973–74 RCA albums Riff Raff and Original Man. Pre-contract, they recorded an album that later appeared as Outside Looking In. Keyboardist Tommy Eyre made three subsequent albums with Zzebra.

Members: Bud Beadle (saxophone), Aureo de Souza (drums), Tommy Eyre (keyboards, vocals), Pete Kirtley (guitar, vocals), Roger Sutton (bass, vocals), Steve Gregory (woodwind), Joanna Newman (vocals), Joe O’Donell (viola)

Background

Riff Raff originated in 1971 as Strabismus when keyboardist Tommy Eyre and bassist Roger Sutton teamed with two members of Crikey: drummers Rod Coombes and Joe Czarnecki (aka Joe Peters).

Tommy Eyre and Roger Sutton first worked together in Aynsley Dunbar’s Blue Whale and entered the 1970 formation of Mark-Almond. Eyre played beforehand in Joe Cocker’s Grease Band, where he organized the Beatles cover “With a Little Help from My Friends,” then recorded with Dunbar’s Retaliation and Juicy Lucy. Sutton entered professional work in his teens with Julie Driscoll, Brian Auger & the Trinity, where he co-wrote both sides of their 1967 single “Tiger.” He subsequently worked with Johnny Almond’s Music Machine before crossing paths with Eyre.

The pair also maintained Strabismus, a studio project with singer Alan Marshall, guitarist Martin Ball, saxophonist Ritchie Dalton, and the Coombes/Peters dual-drum axis. Sutton left Mark-Almond before the group’s third album, followed soon after by Eyre. They revived the studio project with Newcastle guitarist Pete Kirtley, who proposed the name Riff Raff. Kirtley, a recent Alan Price sideman, played in the Happy Magazine follow-through Griffin with drummer Alan White, saxophonist Bud Beadle, and Skip Bifferty singer Graham Bell.

Eyre initially recruited Grease Band drummer Kenny Slade and brought Marshall into the new lineup. Marshall withdrew on management advice, while Slade left because the material’s irregular meters did not suit him. Riff Raff hired Brazilian drummer Aureo de Souza, a former Paul Horn and Nucleus player. Kirtley and Sutton assumed the principal singing roles, and the quartet selected The Manor in Oxfordshire for its first RCA album.

Outside Looking In – Their Unreleased Debut Album

In 1972, Riff Raff recorded their first album, later released by Disconforme as Outside Looking In – Their Unreleased Debut Album.

The CD combines seven Strabismus performances with four recordings by the developing Riff Raff lineup, all presented with Coombes/Sutton originals. The first unit comprised Eyre, Sutton, vocalist Alan Marshall, guitarist Martin Ball, drummer Rod Coombes, saxophonist Ritchie Dalton, and second drummer Joe Peters. Kirtley and Kenny Slade appear on the four bonus tracks with de Souza.

“Outside Looking In” surges with sustained ensemble energy. “The Blind Man” broadens into a choral middle passage. “Feeling Paranoic” threads directly from “Bach B. Minor Prelude.” “Buthelezi” links from “Feeling Paranoic” and quickly erupts into a drum solo. “So You Want to Be Free” stretches through blues-tinged passages. “Child of the Summer” glides on supple jazz phrasing beneath a soul-inflected lead. “Morning” drifts through reflective songcraft before flute and guitar meet in duet. “The Garden” settles into reflective, peaceful passages.

1. Strabismus – “Outside Looking In” (9:12)
2. Strabismus – “The Blind Man” (8:16)
3. Strabismus – “Bach B. Minor Prelude” (2:58)
4. Strabismus – “Feeling Paranoic” (0:43)
5. Strabismus – “Buthelezi” (3:42)
6. Strabismus – “So You Want to Be Free” (10:52)
7. Strabismus – “Changes” (3:23)
8. Riff Raff – “Child of the Summer” (5:59)
9. Riff Raff – “For Every Dog” (4:05)
10. Riff Raff – “Morning” (5:57)
11. Riff Raff – “The Garden” (6:59)

Sessions occurred in June 1972 at Morgan Studios in London, apart from “The Blind Man,” which the musicians recorded to two-track at Guildford Cathedral during June.

The Disconforme edition pairs new notes by Eyre with the original account by Sounds writer Jerry Gilbert.

Riff Raff

Riff Raff released their self-titled album in June 1973 on RCA Victor.

Saxist Bud Beadle joins the quartet of de Souza, Eyre, Sutton, and Kirtley. The last three intersperse song contributions; Sutton co-wrote “Little Miss Drag” with two outsiders.

“Your World” unfurls through Rhodes-and-guitar interplay as Roger Sutton overlays a second unison part. “For Every Dog” steadies uniform accompaniment beneath an angular theme. “Dreaming” spirals through modal improvisation and unusual chord turns. “You Must Be Joking” surges through open improvisation before ensemble parts converge on a recurring return. “La Même Chose” coils around theatrical drama and sustained tension.

A1. “Your World” (7:36) – Sutton
A2. “For Every Dog” (3:42) – Kirtley
A3. “Little Miss Drag” (3:12) – Sutton, Richardson, Thorpe
A4. “Dreaming” (4:30) – Kirtley

B1. “Times Lost” (4:14) – Eyre
B2. “You Must Be Joking” (7:30) – Kirtley
B3. “La Même Chose” (12:00) – Sutton, Eyre

Riff Raff self-produced the album at The Manor in Shipton-on-Cherwell, Oxfordshire. Ex-July singer Tom Newman engineered the sessions in sequence with Tubular Bells by Mike Oldfield.

Eddy Offord remixed the tracks at a studio in Victoria, London. His current work with Yes included the 1973 releases Yessongs and Tales from Topographic Oceans.

Dave Field designed the sleeve, which presents the five musicians within a monochrome circular montage beneath cursive title lettering.

RCA Victor issued the non-album traditional song “Copper Kettle” as a July 20, 1973 single (b/w “You Must Be Joking”). Ken Burgess produced the A-side, with an arrangement credited to Riff Raff.

Original Man

Riff Raff’s second-released album, Original Man, appeared in June 1974 on RCA Victor.

Reedist Steve Gregory entwines Beadle with flute and clarinet lines. Sutton adds cello, while Eyre embraces string synthesizer. Violist Joe O’Donnell appears on the title track; Joanna Newman sings the bass vocal on “In the Deep.”

“Original Man” simmers slowly until extended solos gather near its conclusion. “Havakak” darts across intricate uptempo passages under a sharply contoured guitar figure. “Goddamm the Man” trades horn replies with answering lead figures over a mid-tempo blues-funk pattern. “In the Deep” settles into a slower, spacious soul-jazz atmosphere.

“The Waster” sways beneath broad brass charts and conga inflections. “Tom’s Song” suspends piano chords against string-synth harmonies through unsettled harmonic friction. “Speed” circles at mid-tempo before winding solos crest near its conclusion.

A1. “Original Man” (7:40) – Kirtley
A2. “Havakak” (6:06) – Kenny Craddock, Kirtley, Colin Gibson
A3. “Goddamm the Man” (6:09) – Sutton
A4. “In the Deep” (3:59) – Kirtley

B1. “The Waster” (5:09) – Sutton
B2. “Tom’s Song” (4:22) – Eyre
B3. “Speed” (9:16) – Sutton

Sessions began in April 1974 at Escape Studios in Egerton, Kent, where Riff Raff co-produced the album with onetime Tomorrow fifth-wheel Ken Burgess, who worked in sequence on the Keith West solo debut. Mixdowns occurred at Advision Studios, London, under Martin Rushent, a recent Curved Air and Groundhogs soundman with concurrent credits behind Snafu and Premiata Forneria Marconi.

Burgess and engineer Tony Taverner also worked together on the 1974 Escape sessions for the self-titled album by Zzebra, which Eyre joined post-Riff Raff and appeared on their 1975 album Panic.

Foster & Knowles designed the sleeve with artwork by Septober Energy illustrator Dick Whitbread. The front places a seated nude figure beneath a barred window, with a second face visible beyond the opening.

Breakup and Later Activity

Prospective American agreements dissolved during the period surrounding Original Man. British authorities declined to extend de Souza’s work permit, which required the drummer to return to Brazil. Kirtley rejoined Alan Price, while Eyre and Sutton resumed session work.

Eyre joined Zzebra and continued through recordings by the Sensational Alex Harvey Band, Gerry Rafferty, John Martyn, Greg Lake, and Gary Moore. Kirtley also worked with Griffin associates Alan White and Colin Gibson on later sessions, while Sutton continued as a bassist and songwriter.

Discography: