The Waltons (UK band)
Encyclopedia
The Waltons were an anarchic band
from the Isle of Wight
in the UK
. The socio-political post-punk
/rock 5-piece fronted by Tony Gregson (aka Tony Walton), had one minor hit with "Brown Rice" (the long grain mix) in the mid 1980s, and starred in an early Colin Nutley
movie shot on the island called Annika, about an Island boy falling in love with a Swedish exchange student.
Later to be joined by Sean the Riddler, on various keyboards and found hubcaps.
They were regular live performers on the Isle of Wight
but never quite succeeded in totally breaking away from the island. They allegedly came to blows in the late 1980s whilst touring the Netherlands
in an old hippy bus
driven by ex-paratrooper and traveller, Sam Ganja. They disbanded soon afterwards due to problems with drugs, alcohol and mental illness.
Band (music)
In music, a musical ensemble or band is a group of musicians that works together to perform music. The following articles concern types of musical bands:* All-female band* Big band* Boy band* Christian band* Church band* Concert band* Cover band...
from the Isle of Wight
Isle of Wight
The Isle of Wight is a county and the largest island of England, located in the English Channel, on average about 2–4 miles off the south coast of the county of Hampshire, separated from the mainland by a strait called the Solent...
in the UK
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
. The socio-political post-punk
Punk rock
Punk rock is a rock music genre that developed between 1974 and 1976 in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia. Rooted in garage rock and other forms of what is now known as protopunk music, punk rock bands eschewed perceived excesses of mainstream 1970s rock...
/rock 5-piece fronted by Tony Gregson (aka Tony Walton), had one minor hit with "Brown Rice" (the long grain mix) in the mid 1980s, and starred in an early Colin Nutley
Colin Nutley
Colin Nutley is an English director successful in the Swedish film industry.-Career:Nutley went to Portsmouth Art College and began his career in British television as a graphic designer. He then turned to drama and documentary film-making for ITV, BBC and Channel 4...
movie shot on the island called Annika, about an Island boy falling in love with a Swedish exchange student.
Original line-up
- Tony Walton - Lead vocals & rhythm guitar.
- Hank Torso - Lead guitar & tenor sax.
- Dave Cheesybits - Bass.
- Dread (Family Man) Jones - Drums & percussion.
- O.B. Lee - Alto saxophone.
Later to be joined by Sean the Riddler, on various keyboards and found hubcaps.
They were regular live performers on the Isle of Wight
Isle of Wight
The Isle of Wight is a county and the largest island of England, located in the English Channel, on average about 2–4 miles off the south coast of the county of Hampshire, separated from the mainland by a strait called the Solent...
but never quite succeeded in totally breaking away from the island. They allegedly came to blows in the late 1980s whilst touring the Netherlands
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
in an old hippy bus
Bus
A bus is a road vehicle designed to carry passengers. Buses can have a capacity as high as 300 passengers. The most common type of bus is the single-decker bus, with larger loads carried by double-decker buses and articulated buses, and smaller loads carried by midibuses and minibuses; coaches are...
driven by ex-paratrooper and traveller, Sam Ganja. They disbanded soon afterwards due to problems with drugs, alcohol and mental illness.
Releases
- "Dead Above The Neck" (cassette only) - 1985. This can be downloaded on mp3 from Myspace or as individual tracks from The House of Cheese
- "The Painting & The Photograph" (Feet on the Street, compilation albumCompilation albumA compilation album is an album featuring tracks from one or more performers, often culled from a variety of sources The tracks are usually collected according to a common characteristic, such as popularity, genre, source or subject matter...
) - 1985 - "Brown Rice" / "Pain Killing Time" (7")
- "Brown Rice" / "Long Grain mix" / "Pain Killing Time" (12")
- "Black Leather" (Vaguely Sunny, IOW Rock Anthology CD) - 1995
External links
- The Waltons on Myspace
- The House Of Cheese
- Waltons Article By Dr Brian Hinton.
- IOW Rock