Tobruk

There Are Two Artists By This Name 1. - An American Five-Piece Who Lived & Recorded In Brazil And Released The Album "Ad-Lib" In 1972 On The Cash-Box Record Label. Members Brian Anderson Slide Guitar Lead Vocals Key Wilson Organ Piano Moog Lois Gee Brahman Lead Guitar Effects Ronnie Wells Bass Vocals Billy Rogers Drums Backing Vocals 2. - Tobruk - A Melodic Hard Rock Band Formed In 1980 In Bedfordshire England. Vocalist Stuart Neale Aka Snake - 26 April 1963 – 20 December 2006 RIP Guitarist Nigel Evans Drummer Tim Bryant And Keyboard Player Jem Davis From The Bedford-Based Band Stranger Joined Forces With Guitarist Mick Newman. After The Addition Of A New Rhythm Section Consisting Of Bassist Steve Woodward And Drummer Al Vallance They Relocated. The Band Relocated To Birmingham Adopted The Name Tobruk And Commenced Touring. They Released A 7" Single "Girl With The Flyaway Hair" In 1981. This And A Demo Brought Them Exposure On The Friday Rock Show In October 1982. They Gigged To Promote Their Next Single "Wild On The Run 7"" With The Track "The Show Must Go On" On The B Which Was Released On Neat Records Around September 1983. Woodward Who Was A Founding Member And Main Songwriter And Eventually Also Vallance Left The Band In 1983 After A Tour With Diamond Head Just As EMI Subsidiary Parlophone Was Showing Interest In The Band. A New Rhythm Section Was Recruited When Drummer Eddie Fincher And Bassist Mike Brown Joined. Vallance Went On To Stints In Sons Of Eden And Proteus. Woodward Currently Plays Guitar And Sings In The Bedford Band Thr3e. The Band's Management At The Time Light And Sound Design Hired Out The Birmingham Odeon Rigged It With Expensive Lights And Sound And Invited Various Talent Scouts. This Led The Band To Sign A Deal. After Signing To EMI Parlophone In 1984 Tobruk Went On A Club Tour Before Playing Some Dates With Diamond Head. They Also Toured The UK Supporting UFO. They Then Ventured To Philadelphia To Start Recording Their Debut Album Also Titled 'Wild On The Run' At Warehouse Studios. Lance Quinn From Lita Ford And Bon Jovi-Fame Co-Produced The Album With The Band. The Album Was Released In May 1985 And Tours Followed Supporting UFO Tokyo Blade And Manowar. Wild On The Run Was Originally Only A Nine-Track Release But Exceptional Melodic Songs Were Abound Like The Title Track And One Of The Catchiest Tracks Of The Era In “Falling ” Making It Even Today A Release Worth Owning. Tobruk’s Songwriting Was Poised To Make Waves At Least In The USA As Bon Jovi Had Already Started To Do So. Tobruk’s 1985 Debut “Wild On The Run” Is An Amazing Album Of Melodic Hard Rock With No Duds All Cuts-Cut Deep Like A Knife Which Should Appeal To All Fans Of Bon Jovi Europe Treat Fate And The Rest Of The “kids” Out There Who Like Their Music Melodic Yet Hard Rockin’ As Hell. The Band's 1985 Single "Falling" Gained Some Airplay. The 7" Single Release Contained A Prize Draw Competition In Which The Prize Was A Parachute Jump I.E. Free-'falling' With The Band At Bovingdon Green Airfield In Buckinghamshire. The Winner 23-Year-Old John Michael Dunn Later Known As John Michael Richards Of Thatto Heath St.Helens Merseyside Lancashire Had To Sign A Disclaimer/waiver Relinquishing Parlophone Records Of Any Responsibility For Death Injury Or Loss. John Richards Became A Prominent Rock DJ On Radio In Northwest England. Unfortunately The Band Could Not Break In The UK As They Sounded Too American. The Album's Sales Disappointed And The Band Left Parlophone Around 1987. A Second Album Was Released Through FM Revolver Called 'Pleasure Pain'. Unfortunately The Band Couldn’t Break The Hold Of Their “Motherland” Even After Releasing A Follow-Up Release. Panic Soon Escalated And Members Started To Leave The Band For “richer Pastures.” Although The Band Came To The Fore During The Tail-End Of The New Wave Of British Heavy Metal Movement Their Sound Was More Melodic And Polished. By This Stage The Band Started Falling Apart With Snake And Fincher Leaving The Band To Join The Band Idol Rich. Tobruk Tried To Soldier On And Recorded Some Demos With Ex-The Alliance Vocalist Tony Martin But Nothing Came Of It And The Band Split For Good. Martin Went On To Join Black Sabbath. Nigel Spent Some Time Touring With Shy. Snake Also Had A Stint In An Early Incarnation Of The Wildhearts But Never Recorded Officially With Them Although Some Demos Were Produced. Mike Brown Played Bass In A Short-Lived Band With Alan Kelly Drummer Ex-Shy Called Why The Rabbit Shortly After Tobruk Broke Up. Jem Davis And Fincher Started The Band Midnight Blue With One-Time Yngwie Malmsteen And Rainbow Singer Doogie White And Recorded "Take The Money And Run' Circa 1994. Davis Also Toured With UFO And Had Stints In Praying Mantis And FM. Phoenix Music Re-Issued A Tobruk Retrospective In 2001 With Rare Tracks And Video Footage Called 'Recaptured. Rip Tide Records Also Re-Released Wild On The Run On CD In That Year. Sadly In December Of 2006 Tobruk Vocalist Stuart ‘Snake’ Neale Passed Away From Congestive Heart Failure. Majestic Rock Records Saw It Fit To Re-Release The Underground Classic Wild On The Run Album With Some Added Bonuses. It Includes The Original Debut Single Released In 1983 On Neat Records In “Wild On The Run” Along With “The Show Must Go On.” Also Included Is A Second EP Disc Of A Live Radio Performance From 1985. The Live Performance Includes “Wild On The Run ” “Alley Boy ” “Breakdown ” “Falling ” “Running From The Night ” And “She’s Nobody’s Angel.” The Bass In The Live Sound Recording Is Sometimes “boomy ” But Overall The Sound Quality Makes The Disc Worth Owning For Tobruk Fans Especially With The Inclusion Of “Alley Boy ” Which Was On The Follow-Up Studio Release Pleasure And Pain. This Re-Release With The Inclusion Of The Original Single The Live EP Disc And A Nice CD Booklet Containing A Band Biography And Previously Unseen Live Photos Is A Respectful Dedication To Stuart Neale’s Memory. It’s Also A Must Buy For Any Tobruk Or Early Bon Jovi Fan And Serves As A Strong Reminder Of A Band Who Deserved A Better Fate. read less