Chrome Molly

History

Chrome Molly got their start in 1982. After an early demo, the band settled on a lineup featuring Steve Hawkins on vocals, John Antcliffe on guitar, Nic Wastell on bass, and Chris Green on drums. Following the 1984 release of the "You Said" EP on Bullet Records, Mark Godfrey took over on drums from Chris Green. This change happened before the band recorded their debut album, You Can't Have It All...or Can You?, which came out in 1985. The music press gave it a warm welcome; reviewers at the British newspaper Music Week awarded it their highest rating and hoped the band would grow into something bigger.

Their second album, Stick It Out, arrived in 1987. After that, Tim Read replaced Antcliffe on guitar, and the group signed with I.R.S. Records. I.R.S. put out the third album, Angst, in April 1988. It featured a cover of Squeeze's "Take Me I'm Yours." That same year, they joined Alice Cooper as the support act on his Raise Your Fist And Yell tour, with guitarist Andrew Barrott added to the lineup. The band's third and final single for I.R.S. was "Shooting Me Down," written by Slade's Jim Lea and Noddy Holder and produced by Lea. BBC Radio 1 played it, but a dispute between I.R.S. and distributor MCA Records hurt its chances. The band then moved to the Music for Nations label for their fourth album, Slaphead, in 1990. Chrome Molly split up in 1991, though they did get together a few times as the Van Halen tribute act Von Halen.

The band reformed in 2009 with early members Hawkins, Antcliffe, and Wastell, joined by Greg Ellis. They announced a new album, Gunpowder Diplomacy. In 2010, Lemon Recordings, a sublabel of Cherry Red, reissued the first two albums. The band went back into the studio with producer Toby Jepson of Little Angels, and Gunpowder Diplomacy came out in 2013 on earMUSIC. Johnny Antcliffe left in December 2014, and John Foottit replaced him in 2015. That August, the band returned to the studio with Jepson again to record their sixth studio album. Hoodoo Voodoo was released in January 2017 on Edel Records. In September, former member Andy Barrott returned to the lineup, replacing Sam Flint. Barrott had been a member in the 1980s and had previously played with Geddes Axe, Baby Tuckoo, and the Dukes of Bordello.