It just sounded like a nice name and shows that we are all going to be equal in the group – not Steve Marriott and Peter Frampton and two backing musicians. “I’ve been fooling around with the bass for about four years, trying to find a style that satisfies me,” he told Chris Welch. That certainly wasn’t what they were expecting, as Ridley had made clear when they announced their arrival in a Melody Maker article on May 3, 1969. That summer, it also brought a substantial hit single, as Marriott’s “Natural Born Bugie” climbed to No.4 on the UK charts.

They signed to Andrew Loog Oldham’s Immediate label (“Happy To Be Part Of The Industry Of Human Happiness,” as their slogan ran), and that year brought not one but two albums, As Safe As Yesterday Is and Town and Country. One of the early supergroups, their line-up also included drummer Jerry Shirley and, of course, former “Face Of ‘68” Peter Frampton from The Herd. Then in 1969 came the invitation from Steve Marriott to be part of his new adventure in Humble Pie.

How to play spooky on bass