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Client Quotes
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Slow Ride featuring Tony Stevens
Born into the circus, his father was a blind lion-tamer and his mother was an underwater arm-wrestler. He toured until he was four and then had to go to school. At the age of seven, and always being surrounded by music at hand, he lived in the middle of a record store. He asked his dad for a classical guitar (he still thinks John Williams is looking for it). At eight, going electric was what drew him to a pawn shop. He took down his Ferrari, Versace suits and his Tiny Tim records and swapped them for a $20.00 electric guitar (he had no idea of finances at this age.) He got a job entertaining the hard of hearing until he bought an amp for his guitar. (They realized that he couldn’t play and he got the sack). At the ripe old age of 11, he formed a band with two school chums called ‘The Invaders’ (They called themselves that, because once you heard them, you felt that your body had been invaded by Salmonella). The boys went on to higher shows. They moved the funeral home (where they had a residency) to the 3rd floor. At thirteen the boys added a real singer and guitarist to the line-up and became a blues band..."The Down and Outs" had arrived. Playing weddings, birthdays and working mens' clubs, the boys found out the meaning of "Blues". Willesden, North London wasn’t ready for ‘The Blues’. His school days came to an end at 15-1/2 when he was caught in the ‘side room’ at school giving mouth to mouth to one of his classmates (a nice looking girl). Not wanting to go back to the circus, he scouted high and low trying to find a niche and then he arrived… Carnaby Street, selling clothes in swinging London. Meeting "Sonny and Cher", Bob Dylan and Mick Jagger gave him that extra boost to keep on playing. At 16, his old bass player (Tony was playing Lead Guitar at the time), who was now playing drums, phoned him and said that a television producer was putting together an English version of the ‘Monkeys’ and they needed a Bass player. So down to the pawn store again, and there it was...'Dirty Dan’ the Danelectro. The band met with the TV people until one day they were told that the director had run off with the money. So ‘Zebedee’ was born. Two guitars, bass & drums. They wrote much of their own material. Unfortunately, the band was short-lived and Tony spent hours wandering from bands to clothes shops and back again. It was a cold October day, when Tony saw an add in the "Melody Maker " (an English music paper), for Savoy Brown. With his bass guitar over his back, and his old Citroen Light 15, he went to the audition and ‘low and behold’ they told him to ‘Bugger Off’...But after he promised to pay them $100 per show, they let him into the band. He enjoyed five major tours with Savoy, and enjoyed being asked to write songs for the "Looking In" album. At the end of 1970, Roger Earl, Tony, and Dave Peverett said good-bye to Kim Simmonds and formed Foghat. 1971 was a great year of bonding with each other and Rod Price to form the known sound of "Foghat." Around 1975 it was Tony’s turn to ‘walk the plank’ and delve into acting. He got a part in "Rock Follies", a hit English TV show, about three girls in the Rock Business. He enjoyed two years in the show and from there he joined with some friends and formed the band "Nobody’s Business". They made a LP in Nice, France, which was released in Japan. The band went to Ibiza, Spain in 1977 to play at the opening of new large club. Tony fell in love with the island, and is still living there. Nobody’s Business fell to the wayside and Tony formed a band with Scottish Blues Singer, Maggie Bell, named "Midnight Flyer’, managed by Peter Grant (Led Zeppelin’s manager). They recorded an album at Ringo Starr’s studio (John Lennon’s old house) produced by Mick Ralphs (Bad Company). The band toured with Bob Seger in Europe and then was asked to do a tour of Europe and the U.S. with AC/DC. In 1981, Midnight Flyer set off on, what was to become, their ‘SwanSong’ tour. AC/DC were a hard act to open for, but Midnight Flyer held their own for 1/3 of the shows. "I still have the bruises and lumps from where bottles him me at the other 2/3 shows." In 1982 Midnight Flyer said good-night and two girls under the wings of AC/DC management asked if the players in the old ‘Flyer’ band would be interested in playing with the two ‘Aussie Beauts’. Well "after I put my tongue back in my head, ‘Cheetah’ was born." Playing a major tour with ‘Saxon’ in England and major European festivals, the ‘Flyer’ band enjoyed a year of fun, but all good things had to end. In 1984, Tony was asked to join Roger Chapman, a major force in Europe. Roger was the former lead singer with ‘Family’. He played for nearly four years enjoying major festivals in Western Europe and also Eastern block countries where he found a wonderful sense of friendship and love of music. After Roger Chapman, Tony followed his acting desires and enrolled in an acting school and an agency. He got small parts in major soaps in the UK, "The Bill", and "East Enders" and did other comedic and dramatic work. In 1993 he answered the call from Foghats’ former manager, Tony Outeda, in regards to putting the original band back together. With eight years hard work, and the sad and untimely loss of "Lonesome Dave" the band has re-energized themselves with the addition of Bryan Bassett on guitars and Charlie Huhn on vocals... In 2003 the new band still with the original members Tony Stevens and Roger Earl made their first album together entilied 'Family Joules' on their own Besh Records label. This featured the writing talent of Tony Stevens, Charlie Huhn and Bryan Bassett. In 2004 they released their first DVD, entitled THE OFFICIALl BOOTLEG DVD, again on their BESH Label. At the beginning of 2005 Tony had enough of the petty bickering and meglomanian that was rife within the band and decided to branch out with his own newly formed group SLOWRIDE carrying on the FOGHAT tradition. The new lineup features Eddie Zyne, Billy Livesay and Tommy Hall. When asked how he felt about the situation he replied "he couldn't be happier". He is now surrounded with people that enjoy music rather than politics. He hopes to have a new album out, with the new lineup, ready before the end of 2006. Onwards and Upwards....
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