Humble Pie are one unfortunate band. Apart from being undermined by terms such as "one of the first supergroups in rock", they met with less success than they deserved. The band initially consisted of Steve Marriott (lead singer, guitarist, keyboardist of the great mod band The Small Faces), Peter Frampton (lead guitarist and vocals, from the sixties popsters The Herd), Greg Ridley (bassist and vocalist, from superb rockers The Spooky Tooth) and Jerry Shirley (drums, from Valkyrie). Their first single, "Natural Born Boogie (or Bugie)" made some notable success in the U.K. in 1969 and was followed by the debut album As Safe As Yesterday Is, which reached No 16. Their Second album, Town And Country never had any success, as well as their third album Humble Pie, for a different company now, A & M Records. Rock On, released in 1971, showcases the band at their rockiest, though it was destined to denote the split of the original line-up with Peter Frampton leaving to pursue solo career. That year, they also released the live album Rockin' The Fillmore, to promote Rock On. After several line-up changes, Humble Pie disbanded in 1975 (there had been some reunions in the 80s) and in 1991 Steve Marriott sadly passed away in 1991 in a fire.

Humble Pie are a band that showcases both dexterity and composing ability, matched by all the members; however, Marriott and Frampton were the one who penned the most memorable songs. All members sing and they actually share vocals in most of the tracks, but Marriott's bluesy voice is beyond any comparison. Twin guitars are present and Frampton's solos in predominantly Dorian Mode give a jazzy feeling in an otherwise heavy rock band. Mod elements and soul influences are to be found, too.


In a few words, Rock On does exactly what it says on the tin. Enjoy!

(Note: this is a vinyl rip)

Humble Pie - Rock On.rar