A New Leaf Turns the High Tempo: Leaf Hound

Leaf Hound

The Eel Pie Club at The Cabbage Patch, Twickenham, Thursday 17th November

 Review by Cliff Tapstand

 Hard rock is back at the Cabbage Patch ! Leaf Hound are a rock band originally formed in the early 1970’s, with vocalist Peter French, and in 1971 produced an album, Growers of Mushroom, which Q Magazine identified as the most collectable rock album of all time.  Sadly the band split up, and went their separate ways, with Peter joining Atomic Rooster.

Photograph by Pat Stancliffe

Peter re-formed the band in 2004 and they have become regular performers at the Eel Pie. On Thursday 17^th November their line-up was Peter on vocals, Luke Rayner on guitar, Pete Herbert on bass and Jim Rowland on drums.  The band played hard rock at high tempo and high volume, and are just as entertaining to watch as they are to listen to.  It is easy to believe that Peter is widely regarded as one of the best rock vocalists in the business.

Photograph by Pat Stancliffe

Luke Rayner is a highly talented left handed guitarist who tackles the most intricate guitar breaks with a calmness that underlines the confidence he has in his own ability. Calmness, however, is a word that you could never use to describe a Pete Herbert performance.  He is the consummate showman, and one that you cannot keep your eyes off.  His acrobatic performance is amazing, taking up half the stage, often leaping four or five feet in the air, and never missing a beat.  Completing the rhythm section is Jim Rowland, driving the beat onward with both subtlety and power.  The overall result is a wall of sound enriched by Peter’s powerful vocals.

They performed tracks from Growers of Mushroom, including Freelance Fiend and Work My Body, and from their album Live in Japan, tracks including Barricades, Stop, Look and Listen and Evil.

The evening closed with a rousing singalong version of The Kinks’ All Day and All of the Night.

The Eel Pie Club is a resurrection of the legendary Eel Pie Island Music venue in the heart of Twickenham. Starting out as a Music Hall, it became a jazz club in the Mid 1950’s, and then became the south-west London’s answer to the explosion of rhythm ‘n’ blues music coming out of Liverpool, spear-headed by the Beatles.

Many, now famous bands and solo artists, started out on the island, including, The Rolling Stones, The Who, Rod Stewart, Long John Baldrey, and a band still playing at The Eel Pie Club, The Down Liners Sect.

Resurrected 16 years ago, and run by Gina Way and Warren Walters, the Club’s home is at the Cabbage Patch public house, Twickenham where rhythm ‘n’ blues and rock music can be heard live every other Thursday throughout the year.

 Cliff Tapstand.

November 2016