Delivery 1970s ‘Home made Ruin.’ © Singing and writing about pollution in the early 1970s
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Roy Babbington • Lol Coxhill • Carol Grimes • Phil Miller • Steve Miller • Pip Pyle
This reissues a very rare 1970 album, out of print for at least 25 years, which was the first professional band by musicians who would find fame in a number of other bands: Steve Miller-piano (Caravan), Phil Miller-guitar (Matching Mole, Hatfield & The North, National Health), Roy Babbington-bass (Nucleus, Soft Machine), Pip Pyle-drums (Gong, Hatfield & The North, National Health), Carol Grimes-vocals + Lol Coxhill-sax. Contains the original album, a non-lp single, a great alternate take & a couple of live tracks, all sounding unbelievably better than the rather poor sounding original lp on the wall of your favorite collector shop with a $250.00 price tag. Also includes a full history of the band, written by Mike King [author of the Robert Wyatt chronology “Wrong Movements”] & rare photos from Steve Miller’s personal archives. An usual & appealing blend of blues rock, psychedelia, & strong traces of Canterbury style greatness to come.
Biography by Jim Powers
Although this band was originally based in London, it is seminal to the Canterbury progressive/psychedelic family tree, as all of the members save for vocalist Carol Grimes fanned out to various Canterbury groups upon its untimely demise. Delivery was formed as a R&B band by two boyhood chums, guitarist Phil Miller and drummer Pip Pyle, during the English blues boom of the late ’60s. The band usually backed visiting American blues acts with a fluctuating lineup until singer Carol Grimes joined.
Soon acquiring a record contract, things seemed to be going well for Delivery until its label rushed the band through its recording sessions, then delayed the album’s release for months. Upon the release of Fool’s Meeting, the record company attempted to promote Grimes as a solo act, the English equivalent to Janis Joplin. The company also fed silly rumors to the press such as Grimes making a habit of eating gravel!
Despite favorable reviews, the band fell apart due to poor record sales and lack of steady financial backing. Grimes went solo and the rest of the members joined various Canterbury-related groups. Pip Pyle became Gong‘s drummer, Phil Miller became a founding member of Matching Mole with Robert Wyatt, pianist Stephen Miller joined Caravan, bassist Roy Babbington joined the Soft Machine, and Lol Coxhill played saxophone with Kevin Ayers. In 1972, the Miller brothers and Pip Pyle attempted to reform Delivery with Caravan bassist Richard Sinclair. Stephen Miller declined joining the band, and with Dave Stewart as keyboardist, the reformed Delivery instead took the name Hatfield and the North. Delivery‘s sole album has recently been reissued.
Album information:
01. Blind To Your Light 02. Miserable Man 03. Home Made Ruin 04. Is It Really The Same 05. We Were Satisfied 06. The Wrong Time 07. Fighting It Out 08. Fools Meeting 09. Harry Lucky (Bonus Track) 10. Home Made Ruin (Alternate Take) (Bonus Track) 11. Is It Really The Same (Live) (Bonus Track) 12. Blind To Your Light (Live) (Bonus Track) 13. One For You (Bonus Track)
Band information:
Delivery was a British blues/progressive rock musical group, formed in the late 1960s. The band was one of the wellsprings of the progressive rock Canterbury scene.
Founded in 1966 as Bruno’s Blues Band by guitarist Phil Miller, his elder brother, pianist Steve Miller, drummer Pip Pyle and bassist Jack Monck, the band gigged around London for a few years. In 1968, saxophonist Lol Coxhill joined them, and the band’s name was changed to Steve Miller’s Delivery. In 1969, the band teamed up with blues singer Carol Grimes and bassist Roy Babbington replaced Monck. The resulting line-up recorded and released one album: Fools Meeting. Although Grimes wanted to appear as a band member, the record company released the album under “Carol Grimes and Delivery”. In 1971, Pyle left the band to join Gong and was replaced by Laurie Allan (who also later joined Gong). Soon after that, the band broke up.
Phil Miller went on to found Matching Mole with Robert Wyatt and Dave Sinclair, but a new Delivery line-up was assembled in the spring of 1972 consisting of the Miller brothers, Pyle and Richard Sinclair (bass and vocals), then Steve Miller’s bandmate in Caravan. The band played a few live shows in August/September that year, but with Steve Miller being replaced by Dave Sinclair (from Matching Mole and Caravan), the band changed its name to Hatfield and the North. A final Delivery performance took place in November 1972 for the BBC’s Radio One In Concert series, with an unusual line-up bringing together the Miller brothers, Pyle, Babbington, Coxhill and Sinclair, the latter on vocals only.
