Chilli Willi and the Red Hot Peppers were one of the main

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...

pub rock groups of the early 1970s. Later managed by

Jake Riviera Jake Riviera (born Andrew Jakeman, February 1948, in Edgware, Middlesex, England) is a British music business entrepreneur, best known for his management of such performers as Elvis Costello and Nick Lowe and as co-founder (with Dave Robinson) o ...

, who first worked for the band as a

roadie The road crew (or roadies) are the technicians or support personnel who travel with a band on tour, usually in sleeper buses, and handle every part of the concert productions except actually performing the music with the musicians. This ca ...

, they reached their peak as part of the "Naughty Rhythms Tour" of 1975, along with other stalwarts of the same scene, Dr. Feelgood and Kokomo, each band alternately headlining on different dates.

History

The band has its origins in a folk-rock duo formed by ex-Junior's Blues Band members Martin Stone and Philip C. Lithman. Lithman moved to San Mateo in 1971 to work with a precursor to The Residents, leaving Stone to play with

Savoy Brown Savoy Brown (originally Savoy Brown Blues Band) were an English blues rock band formed in Battersea, south west London, in 1965. Part of the late 1960s blues rock movement, Savoy Brown primarily achieved success in the United States, where t ...

and

Mighty Baby Mighty Baby were an English band formed in January 1969 from the ashes of The Action. They released two albums, ''Mighty Baby'' (which appeared in December 1969, but had been recorded almost a year earlier) and ''A Jug of Love'' (October 197 ...

. The duo reunited in 1972 and recorded ''Kings of the Robot Rhythm'' that same year with vocalist

Jo Ann Kelly Jo Ann Kelly (5 January 1944 – 21 October 1990) was an English blues singer and guitarist. She is respected for her strong blues vocal style and for playing country blues guitar. Early life Kelly was born in Streatham, South London, England ...

and various members of Brinsley Schwarz. That same year, the duo expanded, adding Paul "Dice Man" Bailey,

Paul "Bassman" Riley Paul Riley (born 3 October 1951, Islington, London) is an English bassist, singer and record producer. He was a member of Chilli Willi and the Red Hot Peppers and Roogalator in the 1970s. Biography His career in music began at the beginning of ...

, and Pete Thomas to the line-up. During the next two years, Chilli Willi & The Red Hot Peppers became a popular live act in Britain, and recorded two

John Peel Sessions John Robert Parker Ravenscroft (30 August 1939 – 25 October 2004), known professionally as John Peel, was an English disc jockey (DJ) and radio presenter. He was the longest-serving of the original BBC Radio 1 DJs, broadcasting regularly fr ...

for

BBC Radio 1 BBC Radio 1 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC. It specialises in modern popular music and current chart hits throughout the day. The station provides alternative genres at night, including electronica, dance, ...

, on 9 April 1973 and 25 July 1974. In 1974, they released their final album, ''Bongos Over Balham'', which sold poorly; the band split in 1975. After the band's breakup, Thomas became the drummer for Elvis Costello's backing band,

The Attractions The Attractions were an English backing band for the English new wave musician Elvis Costello between 1977 and 1986, and again from 1994 to 1996. They consisted of Steve Nieve (keyboards and ukulele), Bruce Thomas (bass guitar), and Pete Tho ...

; Riley played with

Graham Parker Graham Thomas Parker (born 18 November 1950) is an English singer-songwriter, who is best known as the lead singer of the British band Graham Parker & the Rumour. Life and career Early career (1960s–1976) Parker was born in Hackney, East L ...

; Bailey formed Bontemps Roulez; and Stone played with the

Pink Fairies Pink Fairies are an English rock band initially active in the London (Ladbroke Grove) underground and psychedelic scene of the early 1970s. They promoted free music, drug use, and anarchy, and often performed impromptu gigs and other stunts, ...

, before concentrating on his book business but has since played with

Wreckless Eric Eric Goulden (born 18 May 1954), known as Wreckless Eric, is an English rock/ new wave singer-songwriter, best known for his 1977 single " Whole Wide World" on Stiff Records. More than two decades after its release, the song was included in ''M ...

. Lithman moved to

San Francisco San Francisco (; Spanish for " Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the fourth most populous in California and 17th ...

where he began to work with the now fully formed Residents starting from their third album ''

Fingerprince ''Fingerprince'' is the third studio album by American art rock group the Residents, released in 1977. It was allegedly intended to be a three-sided record titled ''Tourniquet of Roses,'' but due to financial difficulties in fulfilling such a proje ...

'', under the name Snakefinger.

Discography

Albums

*''Kings of the Robot Rhythm'' (Revelation, 1972) *''Bongos Over Balham'' (

Mooncrest Mooncrest Historic District is a historic district in Moon Township, Pennsylvania, USA. This community was built during World War II as housing for defense workers. Mooncrest residents produced armor plate, munitions, and ships at the nearby ...

, 1974) *''I'll Be Home'' (

Proper Proper may refer to: Mathematics * Proper map, in topology, a property of continuous function between topological spaces, if inverse images of compact subsets are compact * Proper morphism, in algebraic geometry, an analogue of a proper map for ...

, 1996) -

compilation Compilation may refer to: *In computer programming, the translation of source code into object code by a compiler **Compilation error **Compilation unit *Product bundling, a marketing strategy used to sell multiple products *Compilation thesis M ...

*''Real Sharp'' (The Last Music Company, 2017)

Live

*''

The Amazing ZigZag Concert The Amazing Zig Zag Concert was a rock concert held at The Roundhouse on April 28, 1974 to celebrate the fifth anniversary of Zig Zag Magazine. Described as "one of the gigs of the decade", the concert "has taken on legendary proportions over the ...

'' (2010) Road Goes on Forever (RGF/ZZBOX1974) Disc 2 of 5-CD Box set also featuring Starry Eyed and Laughing,

Help Yourself Help is a word meaning to give aid or signal distress. Help may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Films * ''Help'' (2010 film), a Bollywood horror film * ''Help'' (2021 theatrical film), a British psychological thriller film * '' ...

, John Stewart and

Michael Nesmith Robert Michael Nesmith or Mike Nesmith, (December 30, 1942 – December 10, 2021) was an American musician, songwriter, and actor. He was best known as a member of the pop rock band the Monkees and co-star of the TV series ''The Monkees'' (1966� ...

Singles

"Breathe a Little" (

, 1975)

References

Other sources

* Vladimir Bogdanov, Chris Woodstra, ''All Music Guide to Country: The Definitive Guide to Country Music - Page 143'', 2003, Backbeat Books, * Peter Buckley, ''The Rough Guide to Rock - Page 465'', 2003, Rough Guides, {{DEFAULTSORT:Chilli Willi and The Red Hot Peppers English rock music groups Musical groups from London British blues musical groups British rhythm and blues musical groups British pub rock music groups Musical groups established in 1971 Musical groups disestablished in 1975 Proper Records artists