The Groundhogs are an iconic blues and progressive rock band characterised by improvised screaming guitar solos, which achieved several top chart albums (Thank Christ For The Bomb, Split, Who Will Save The World & Hogwash) through the 1970’s.
Tony ‘TS’ McPhee is the talent behind ‘The Groundhogs’, and his outstanding writing and phenominal guitar skills have formed and pushed at the outskirts of British blues and rock for the last fourty odd years. Despite the album success, The Groundhogs retain a cult status, you are either absolutely passionate about them or have never heard of them.
In the early 1960s Tony was invited to join his mates band, 'The Dollarbills' a local pop band, he persuaded them to start playing Blues and R&B after he had seen Cyril Davies and the All-Stars playing at the Marquee club and suggested 'Groundhogs' as a name for the band, after a John Lee Hooker album track.
Tony and the band played all of the gigs on the blossoming blues circuit and then were fortunate to be asked to back Hooker on the final week of his first British tour. John enjoyed the company of the band and preferred to travel with them in their Commer van and asked the “Number one British blues bandâ€, to back him on later British tours. At around the same time the Hogs also backed Champion Jack Dupree who later told Melody Maker that they were 'the best band he'd ever played with'. In 1965 the Hogs backed Hooker on an album which was initially called John Lee Hooker, but which has also been re-released as 'Hooker & the Hogs', & 'The London Sessions'.
The first album 'Scratchin' the Surface' (1968) was a blues album with line up bass player Pete Cruickshank, drums Ken Pustelnik and Steve Rye on Harmonica. The second album 'Blues Obituary' saw the departure of Steve Rye and a more 'progressive' approach. Tony was now growing in confidence and wrote all of the songs for the third album 'Thank Christ for the Bomb', which entered the charts after John Peel played one of the tracks 'Soldier' on his Sunday afternoon Radio show and it sold 30,000 copies.
The follow-up 'Split' went straight in the charts and would have made number one, however the record company had not re-stocked in time! Despite this ridiculous cock-up the album re-entered the charts, stayed for 6 months, sold 100.000, became 6th best-selling album of 1971 & Tony was voted 5th best guitarist. Also in that year they toured with the Rolling Stones and Glyn Johns, who was recording the Stones recorded the Groundhogs set, this was first used as a promo for the States (rare item as only 100 were produced) and released later as 'Live at Leeds'.
Tony and the Groundhogs have released over 20 new albums since then, notably 'Who Will Save The World?' in 1972, which was a UK Top Ten entry, reaching No. 8 and staying in the charts for 9 weeks. The famous comic strip style album cover was designed by Marvel Comics artist Neal Adams of 'Spiderman' Fame. 'Solid' was released in 1973, this was also the year which saw a resurgence in Tonys solo career with the release of 'The Two sides of Tony McPhee'. The album featured one side with a collection of blues and electric solo numbers and side two, an innovative synthesizer based work called 'The Hunt', which expressed his disgust and hatred of blood 'sport'. In 1974 the band disbanded, till 1975 and two albums 'Crosscut Saw' and 'Black Diamond' were released in 1976.
The Groundhogs lead by Tony McPhee (despite some short lay-offs and various line ups) have been gigging ever since.
Collaborators Tony McPhee & the Groundhogs have worked with many people over the last 40 years the following list is made up of those with which there has been recorded work.
John Lee Hooker Jo Anne Kelly Dave Kelly Champion Jack Dupree Eddy Boyd Big Joe Williams Hapshash & the Coloured Coat John Dummer Band Andy Fernbach Mike Batt Billy Boy Arnold Blue Cheer Amon Duul Yorkshire Chamber Choir Dick Heckstall-Smith
