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GLD was formed
in 1992 when previous collaborators Louis David (keyboards), Julian
Hunt (guitars) and Martin Wilson (vocals), playing under the name
Shadowland, were joined by a new rhythm section, Sean Spear (bass) and
Mark Robotham (drums). Due to the existence of another new band called
Shadowland a name change was required and GREY LADY DOWN was chosen,
derived from a Charlton Heston film, in the belief that it would be
unusual enough not to have been used before.
From the outset GREY LADY DOWN strove for a more direct and aggressive, but still accessible, progressive rock style than many of their contemporaries. This resulted in the band quickly establishing itself as a highlight on their native Oxford gig circuit. At this time the band was also shifting hundreds of units of their eponymously titled demo tape in places as diverse as Canada, Peru and Japan. With this
international recognition and ambitions reaching beyond the confines
of the their local scene the band went into the Phoenix Studios,
Wokingham, in April 1993 and recorded seven songs, destined for later
CD release. A busy gig schedule followed the recording session
culminating in a performance at London's legendary Marquee Club on 5
October 1993. Subsequently the band signed a two-album record deal
with Griffin/Cyclops, for the USA and UK, and the Phoenix recordings
were released on 7 February 1994 as 'THE CRIME'. 'THE CRIME' received
huge critical acclaim, The band's ensuing live shows included supports for such established progressive rock acts as Pendragon, Jadis and The Enid, thus exposing themselves to a wider audience, and enhancing the band's already considerable live reputation. Wondrous Stories commented: "What a brilliant set by GREY LADY DOWN. Probably the biggest audience this year were treated to a gig of quality by surely a band of the future". As reward for this effort GREY LADY DOWN finished off the year in fine style winning The Classic Rock Society's 'Best New Band' award and taking third place in the 'Best Album' category with The Crime. The year 1994 found GREY LADY DOWN writing material for a second album. Having finalised these new songs in a live environment the band once again went into the studio, this time at The Warehouse, Oxford, in the spring of 1995 with producer Tim Turan. The result of this endeavour was 'FORCES'. Released in June 1995, again to great critical acclaim, this album established GREY LADY DOWN amongst the Premier League of British progressive rock acts. Scoring a rare 6 out of 6 in Wondrous Stories, the magazine spoke of "…a tremendous album…they'll sell a bucket load", whilst Frontiers commented "'FORCES' is a massive improvement on 'THE CRIME' and should see GLD making the step up to true rock heavyweights". To promote the album the band gigged extensively including a Friday night headliner at a packed Marquee Club, which came to the attention of the management of a major West End venue. Impressed that a "non- mainstream" band could do so well at the Marquee, GLD was invited to play a Christmas gig at the Astoria Theatre. This show proved to be Louis David’s farewell performance with the band and an able replacement was found in the shape of Mark Westworth who’s keyboard style complemented Louis’ beautifully but also added a new dimension to the fast maturing GLD sound. Further recognition of the bands growing stature on the progressive scene came again at the Classic Rock Society awards. FORCES was voted second 'Best Album' of the year and GREY LADY DOWN placed 4th in the 'Best Band' category, ahead of such prog luminaries as Marillion and Pendragon. The band was also confirmed as being the best selling outfit on the Cyclops label. To capitalise on their burgeoning international reputation, the band undertook its most ambitious project to date. In the autumn of 1996, with label-mates Tristan Park from the USA, GREY LADY DOWN embarked on a string of dates in Europe (including return visits to the Astoria and Uden in Holland) before crossing the Atlantic to perform shows in New York, Boston and Baltimore. Before going to the US however personal pressures came to bear on Julian Hunt and sadly he had to quit the band. Short-term replacement, Steve Anderson (of Sphere) was such a success that he was asked to join the band permanently, which he gladly accepted.
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Reviews of the US
shows stated; "Saw GREY LADY DOWN at Mama Kin (Boston) and what a
show…I was stunned by the guitarist - a real wizard!" and
"The final US GREY LADY DOWN show at Orion Studios in Baltimore
was BRILLIANT!…This will rank as one of the most memorable rock
shows I've ever attended." With a new line-up and the success of
their first US tour still ringing in their ears GREY LADY DOWN set
about writing material for their third album.
With some material already written with Julian Hunt and with the two new members, the band were brimming with ideas. The rest of the material for the album was written at an unprecedented rate and the band soon found themselves back in The Warehouse studio, again, with Tim Turan wearing the producer's hat, in the Easter of 1997. The outcome of this was a collection of seven songs with a harder edge than the previous albums. As GLD were the biggest selling band on the label, Cyclops were more than happy to commit to a continuing relationship with the band and 'FEAR' was released in the summer of 1997. Rave reviews followed the release of FEAR with comments like "In the grand tradition of a myriad of riveting instrumentation and intense vocals FEAR is indeed their finest so far", and "It is evident that their sound is more aggressive and urgent and has moved in a direction of their own. Certainly this is their best album to date and shows a band on the way up" (Alternate View, USA). Another successful tour followed the release of FEAR including a further international collaboration, this time with American band Mastermind and Japanese all-girl instrumental trio Ars Nova, at The Orange in Kensington, London. After a short summer break the band was on the road again with another show at the Orange, this time with US prog band Timothy Pure and two European performances in Germany (supporting Canadian Progressive Rock stalwarts Saga) and Holland. Another successful year was rounded off in style at Classic Rock Society awards, with FEAR coming ahead of a host of long established acts such as Jadis and even Marillion in the best Album Category. Nineteen ninety-eight was a traumatic year for GREY LADY DOWN with Steve Anderson developing an ear problem that forced him, under doctor's orders, to quit the band. Fortunately Julian Hunt was able to step back into the role. After a short tour however further pressures on the personal lives of the band came to bear so it was decided, sadly, to call it a day on 28 March. The flood of letters received by the band lamenting their demise prompted them to put on one last performance at the Astoria, on 11 July. The show was a huge success and as their record label had suggested that they record the performance, Cyclops released a double live CD of the show entitled "THE TIME OF OUR LIVES" in the following November. This, however, is
not the end of the story. A chance meeting between Mark Westworth and
Julian Hunt at a party found two out of work Initially calling themselves TRINITY the five-piece started to write and rehearse intensively and it was soon apparent that the sound of the new material was distinctly GLD. After much discussion it decided to resurrect the old name. With Phil Millichamp replacing Martin Wright in the summer of 1999 the band are at present busily writing new material for a fourth GREY LADY DOWN studio album. All CDs are released by and are available through... Grey Lady Down, PO
Box 207, Banbury, Oxon Or Email GLD Or Cyclops
Records, 33a Tolworth Park Road, Tolworth, Surrey KT6 7RL England.
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