Stretch recorded ‘Forget The Past’ without Elmer. Their former singer was not best pleased. “I don’t think it went very well. They did one album and a few gigs. I must admit that I was angry, so I was delighted when they got chronic reviews. It was very unspiritual of me, but I felt let down. Kirby and I should have stuck it out together. We had always worked well together, so I was kind of angry with him.”
Kirby explains: “It felt like the skids were under us. The whole thing went sour. We’d had initial success but two and a half years later we weren’t getting anywhere. Elmer and I parted company and I tried to change direction with Stretch and make another album. I tried my best but it with hindsight it didn’t work.”
The final version of Stretch included future Iron Maiden drummer Nicko McBrain. Kirby: “What a drummer! He really was dynamite. We made the album and did some gigs but it lost momentum and Stretch folded up in 1979.” Says Elmer: “Stretch was a good band, although it was hard to appreciate at the time because we were going through such emotional difficulties and we were very self-critical.” Clearly Stretch had reached breaking point.
Tracks
1. Re-Arranging (Steve Emery) - 4:02
2. Cruel To Be Kind (Kirby Gregory, John Cook) - 4:46
3. Forget The Past (Kirby Gregory, John Cook) - 5:43
4. Ain't Got No Reason (Steve Emery) - 4:48
5. Take Me Away (Kirby Gregory) - 3:34
6. You're Too Late (Steve Emery) - 4:16
7. School Days (Kirby Gregory) - 8:17
8. Fooling Me (Kirby Gregory) - 5:42
Stretch
*Kirby Gregory - Vocals, Guitar
*John Cook - Keyboards
*Chris Mercer - Saxophone
*Fran Byrne - Drums
*Nicko McBrain - Drums
*Steve Emery - Bass
Good Band,
ReplyDeleteNever heard this album before, so many thanks "MARIOS"...
ReplyDeleteDid they record any of their Fake Fleetwood Mac concerts?
ReplyDeleteFantastic! Thank you very much for uploading this album.
ReplyDelete