Tea -

Tea was a Swiss hard-rock band that released the 1974–76 Vertigo albums Tea, The Ship, and Tax Exile.

Members: Marc Storace (vocals, percussion), Turo Paschayan (bass, 12 string guitar, vocals), Volker Armand (guitar, vocals), Philippe Kienholz (keyboards, vocals), Roli Eggli (percussion, drums)

Background

Tea formed in 1971 as a powertrio when bassist-vocalist Turo Pashayan teamed with drummer Roli Eggli and guitarist Armand Volker. They chose their band name from the combined initials of Turo and Armand’s forenames and Eggli’s surname.

Eggli played in Alaska Range, a psych-rock trio behind the 1970 CCA single “Castles In the Air.” Volker hailed from Tusk, which cut the 1970 Harvest single “Child of My Kingdom” with keyboardist Philippe Kienholz. The original trio toured Switzerland, Germany, and the Netherlands.

In 1972, Tea hired Marc Storace, a Maltese former cruise-ship singer fresh from a nine-month stint with Deaf. As a quartet, they toured France and Italy with a notable gig at the Florence Space Electronic Club. After their 1973 appearance on the Swiss music program Hits-a-Gogo, Tea welcomed Kienholz. As a reconstituted five-piece, Tea linked with the Vertigo division of Phonogram.

Tea

Tea released their self-titled debut album in October 1974 on Vertigo.

The album presents guitar-led hard rock with symphonic flourishes across six group-written songs, performed by Storace, Paschayan, Eggli, Volker, and Kienholz, who includes Hammond and Mellotron.

“Cool in the Morning” simmers through organ-led verses and brief string-shaded chords. “Surfer” surges around a hard-edged lead and a riff-locked backbeat. “Hazy Colours” lingers over thick-toned organ and short string tones before the chorus lands with heavier accents. “Glorimont” crests through longer section turns and a contoured lead line. “Hatred or Love” tightens into a shorter verse-and-refrain cut. “Lady” settles the final stretch into slower vocal address and broader ensemble entries.

A1. “Cool In the Morning” (5:40)
A2. “Glorimont” (8:09)
A3. “Hatred or Love” (3:35)

B1. “Surfer” (5:57)
B2. “Hazy Colours” (6:30)
B3. “Lady” (7:00)

Tea recorded the album at Dierks Studios in Stommeln, West Germany, with producer/engineer Dieter Dierks and assistant engineer Heiner Friesz. The front sleeve uses an underwater band photograph beneath repeated Tea lettering; the back sleeve continues the blue-green water field with the tracklist and repeated logotypes.

Vertigo issued the non-album “Good Times” as a July 1974 UK single (b/w “Judy”). The label used the same pairing for German and French issues during the same year.

The Ship

Tea released their second studio album, The Ship, in September 1975 on Vertigo.

The Ship and its followup retain the debut lineup with seven Tea/Dierks-linked titles and one song popularized by The Lovin’ Spoonful, “Summer In The City.”

“Breakdown” barrels through heavy-footed accents and brief string shading. “Through Scarlet” clips into shorter vocal phrases and hard stops. “The Ship” arcs across a longer form with broad-backed ensemble entries and a chant-like title line. “See You Again” glides through cleaner verse movement and a steadier refrain. “I’d Never Have Bothered” swells through extended section turns and low-set chord pressure. “Summer in the City” pounds the familiar refrain with brass and strings set against a tighter backbeat.

A1. “Breakdown” (7:14) – Kienholz / Storace
A2. “Through Scarlet” (4:41) – Kienholz / Paschayan / Volker / Storace
A3. “The Ship” (6:48) – Kienholz / Storace

B1. “See You Again” (4:01) – Dierks / Paschayan / Volker / Storace
B2. “I’d Never Have Bothered” (7:58) – Dierks / Kienholz / Storace
B3. “A Dog Called Joe” (3:18) – Volker / Paschayan
B4. “Crystal Rivers” (2:47) – Eggli / Volker / Paschayan / Storace
B5. “Summer In the City” (2:49) – John Sebastian / Steve Boone / Mark Sebastian

Dieter Dierks produced The Ship at Dierks Studios in Stommeln. The album appeared in a fully laminated sleeve with a printed lyric and credit insert. The front sleeve uses a sailing-ship illustration inside a circular sea-and-sky field, with the title above and a large Tea logo below.

Vertigo lifted “Summer In the City” as a 1975 German single (b/w “Hold Me, Save Me”). Their version appears on Spirit of Yesterday – Hits Today, a 1976 German Philips two-record compilation of recent Sixties covers by Rod Stewart (“Twistin’ the Night Away”), Spirit (“Hey, Joe”), Sensational Alex Harvey Band (“Runaway”), Rita Jean Bodine (“Dancing In the Street”), Graham Parker & The Rumour (“Kansas City”), Synergy (“Classic Gas”), Nazareth (“Love Hurts”), and their vocalist Dan McCafferty (“Out of Time”).

Tax Exile

Tea released their third studio album, Tax Exile, in 1976 on Vertigo.

Tax Exile contains three songs each by keyboardist Philippe Kienholz, bassist Turo Paschayan, and guitarist Armand Volker, while singer Marc Storace wrote the penultimate track, “Free and Easy.”

“Let’s Play The Music” punches through compact verse motion and a blunt refrain. “Alexandra” strides on clipped accents and a polished chorus. “Young Family” chops the album into a shorter, dry-edged cut. “Winter Days” leans into slower verse movement and string-synth shading. “Mind Your Own Business” hardens the backbeat under a direct lead line. “Just Be Yourself” answers the sung line with a synth tone shaped close to flute register.

A1. “Let’s Play the Music” (4:06) – Kienholz
A2. “Alexandra” (3:32) – Paschayan
A3. “Young Family” (2:45) – Kienholz
A4. “Winter Days” (3:27) – Volker
A5. “Mind Your Own Business” (4:42) – Volker

B1. “Everything” (2:50) – Paschayan
B2. “Guilted Cage” (4:18) – Paschayan
B3. “Just Be Yourself” (4:10) – Volker
B4. “Free and Easy” (4:08) – Storace
B5. “The Place Where the Money Grows” (4:08) – Kienholz

Dieter Dierks produced and engineered Tax Exile at Dierks Studios in Stommeln. The front sleeve uses a band photograph outside a large building, with a vintage car at the left edge and a large Tea logotype above the group.

Vertigo lifted “Alexandra” as a 1976 single (b/w “Winter Days”).

Postlude

Tea toured Tax Exile throughout Switzerland, Germany, and Italy, then closed the year with four concerts in Malta. In 1977, they played their final Seventies concerts in Switzerland with support from up-and-comers Krokus. Venus Records issued the 1978 compilation Best of Tea Vol. I, which includes the previously unreleased “Queen” and the 1975 B-side “Hold Me, Save Me.”

Marc Storace moved to London and formed the NWOBHM group Eazy Money, which placed “Telephone Man” on Metal for Muthas Volume II: Cut Loud. He joined Krokus in time for their 1980 fourth album Metal Rendez-vous, relegating their singer–bassist Chris von Rohr to an instrumental function.

Armand Volker produced the Munich-based schlager acts Spider Murphy Gang and Münchener Freiheit. Philippe Kienholz did session work for numerous artists, including Walter Lietha, Yello, and Andreas Vollenweider.

In 2009, Storace reunited with Eggli and Volker for the Tea retrospective disc Reloaded, showcased at the Mascotte Club in Zurich.

Eggli later worked as producer and musical director for This Is Rock – Die Show mit der Geschichte und den Songs der Rock Giants, which opened with December 29 and 31, 2018, performances at Bern’s Allmend.

Discography: