Strawbs
The Strawbs were an English rock band formed in London in 1963 by Dave Cousins and Tony Hooper. Over 25 musicians have been members across its history, with Cousins being the leader, principal songwriter, and longest serving member of the band. Other notable members were Ron Chesterman, Rick Wakeman, Richard Hudson, John Ford, Blue Weaver, Dave Lambert, Chas Cronk, and Rod Coombes.
The group started out as a bluegrass duo called the Strawberry Hill Boys, but recruited additional members and evolved towards folk and electronic rock. In 1968, after a period recording with vocalist Sandy Denny, the group were the first act to sign with American label A&M Records. They had initial UK chart success as a five-piece with their third release, the live album Just a Collection of Antiques and Curios. The Strawbs adopted a progressive rock-oriented direction for the rest of the decade and reached their commercial peak with Grave New World and Bursting at the Seams, of which the latter featured "Part of the Union" and "Lay Down" which reached No. 2 and No. 12 in the UK, respectively. Following Hero and Heroine and Ghosts and continued touring, mostly in the US and Canada, the group split 1980.
Cousins began a parallel career in the UK radio industry, but revived the Strawbs in 1983 and the band performed and recorded albums in various capacities and line-ups over the next four decades. Their final concert took place at the Fairport's Cropredy Convention in August 2023, after which Cousins retired due to ongoing health problems. He died in July 2025 at the age of 85, thus ending the band.
History
1963–1968: Early period
The band formed as the Strawberry Hill Boys in early 1963 by Dave Cousins and Tony Hooper. Cousins had met Hooper on his first day at Thames Valley Grammar in Twickenham, and the two shared musical interests, being fans of the Foggy Mountain Boys and Earl Taylor and the Stoney Mountain Boys. This, in addition to them rehearsing in the flat of Susie Shahn, daughter of American painter Ben Shahn, in Strawberry Hill, London in south west London, led to the duo naming themselves in a similar fashion. They started out as a bluegrass group with sets formed of Flatt and Scruggs and The Stanley Brothers covers with Cousins on vocals, guitar, dulcimer and banjo, and Hooper on vocals and guitar. Eventually Cousins began writing his own songs, becoming the principal songwriter and leader of the band.Their first gig took place at a folk club in Clapham. Soon after Cousins and Hooper successfully auditioned for a live BBC radio session in Maida Vale that was broadcast in April 1963. Their pass allowed them to secure further radio work, including a spot in June on Saturday Club which featured the Beatles. In the following month, the group supported the Rolling Stones for several gigs at the Eel Pie Island jazz club where Cousins worked as a cloakroom attendant. During this early period Arthur Phillips joined the band playing mandolin and "Talking" John Berry on double bass, but the group settled in 1966 as a trio of Cousins, Hooper, and newcomer Ron Chesterman. In June 1967, the band shortened their name to the Strawbs for a concert in which they wanted to display the name on stage. Their musical direction evolved around this time, moving from bluegrass towards folk and pop.
In mid-1967, the Strawbs recruited vocalist Sandy Denny after Cousins had spotted her performing at the Troubadour in Earl's Court. The four recorded several demos which caught the attention of Danish label Sonet Records, after Cousins had given a copy to a friend who was a DJ in Denmark. They accepted an invitation to record an album for the label in Copenhagen, which took place in July 1967 with producer Gustav Winckler. The result was All Our Own Work, consisting mostly of Cousins' material with Denny contributing the song "Who Knows Where the Time Goes?". The band failed to attract interest from labels for a UK release, and Denny parted ways to join Fairport Convention.
1968–1971: Signing with A&M and rise
In 1968, Horizon Records owner Dave Hubert took the album to an enthusiastic Herb Alpert and Jerry Moss, co-founders of American label A&M Records. They signed the band to a five-year deal in June, their first British group on the label. Cousins recalled the confusion from management who thought they were an American act. The group's debut single, "Oh How She Changed" with "Or Am I Dreaming" on the B-side, was released in June 1968. This was followed by "The Man Who Called Himself Jesus" in November, featuring a spoken introduction by actor Richard Wilson. It was produced by Gus Dudgeon and Tony Visconti, who reprised their roles on the band's debut studio album Strawbs, released in May 1969. It features Nicky Hopkins on piano, John Paul Jones of Led Zeppelin fame on bass, and a string section. A&M had sent the band $15,000 to help with production costs, only to find after recording that the sum was in fact to cover three albums. Later in 1969, A&M released the sampler record Strawberry Sampler Number 1.Dragonfly was recorded in Copenhagen and London with Visconti returning as producer. Released in February 1970, the new material featured parts from Visconti on recorder, Paul Brett on guitar, Bjarne Rostvold on drums, and Rick Wakeman on piano. Wakeman was already a noted session musician in London having worked for Dudgeon and Visconti, and also played in a pub band in East London. In the following month Cousins recruited Wakeman as a full time keyboardist, in time for a series of appearances at a rock circus in Paris. Following the departure of Chesterman around this time, Cousins and Hooper recruited Richard Hudson on drums and John Ford on bass. The new five-piece had their London debut at the Queen Elizabeth Hall on 11 July 1970 which was recorded as their third album, Just a Collection of Antiques and Curios. Melody Maker reported on the successful concert with the headline "Tomorrow's superstar" in reference to Wakeman and his virtuosity on piano and organ. Wakeman stayed with them for one further album, From the Witchwood, then departed to join Yes. Wakeman spoke about the split: "We were beginning to compromise a lot on ideas... and I don't think it was helping what was eventually coming out. We ended up lacking challenge. Complacency set in, and for the last couple of months we just weren't working."
1971–1973: Commercial peak
Wakeman was replaced by Welsh keyboardist Blue Weaver, formerly of Amen Corner and Fair Weather, following a chance meeting with Cousins. He enjoyed the creative freedom the group presented him and contributed to the songwriting. This line-up recorded Grave New World in late 1971 which marked the band distancing themselves further from their folk roots towards progressive rock. Cousins wrote "Benedictus", the opening track, about Wakeman's departure after Visconti had introduced Cousins to the Chinese text I Ching as he thought about the future of the band.Strawbs co-founder Hooper departed after touring Grave New World, as the band had far outgrown his original vision for it and wanted to pursue production work. He was replaced by electric guitarist Dave Lambert, who had jammed with the band at their appearance at the Cambridge Folk Festival that summer. His arrival coincided with a move towards a harder rock style on the next album, Bursting at the Seams. The first single, "Lay Down", went to No. 12 in the UK in late 1972 and became their first hit. The second single, "Part of the Union" was put out as the second in January 1973 and fared even better, reaching No. 2. The band promoted the single with an appearance on Top of the Pops, propelling them to a wider audience. The album, also released in January 1973, went to No. 2 and remains the band's best performance on the UK album chart. Despite the harder rock direction being far removed from the band's acoustic folk origins, Cousins said in 1974 that "The River" and "Down by the Sea" were "the most sincere songs that I've ever written".
During the band's 1973 North American tour, their manager informed Cousins that the rest of the group wanted him to leave. It led to what Cousins described as a "bloodbath" and resulted in Hudson and Ford departing at its conclusion. Cousins said the spat was over the group's musical direction, with Hudson and Ford wanting to pursue hit singles while Cousins was in favour of expansive arrangements. The pair formed Hudson Ford, followed by The Monks and High Society.
1973–1980: Progressive rock period and disbanding
Cousins and Lambert quickly rebuilt the band, recruiting Renaissance keyboardist John Hawken, Stealers Wheel drummer Rod Coombes, and Chas Cronk on bass. Hawken was reluctant to play any instrument except the piano at first, but soon took to the Mellotron and Moog synthesizer which expanded the group's sound into progressive rock. Their first single, "Shine on Silver Sun", was released in August 1973 to introduce the new line-up to the public. It went to No. 34 in the UK, and was promoted with an appearance on Top of the Pops. Later that year they recorded Hero and Heroine in Copenhagen, featuring material that Cousins had written on the previous US tour which was a productive period for him. Released in March 1974, the album went to No. 35 in the UK. Rolling Stone reporter Ken Barnes wrote: "Strawbs moved from folkier days to a lush, stately and mellotron-dominated sound, with similarities to Yes, King Crimson and the Moody Blues. They wrote more compelling songs than the former two, and possessed more lyrical/musical substance than the latter."The follow-up, Ghosts, and tended to concentrate on the North American market with relatively little touring in the UK. Nomadness, recorded without Hawken, was less successful, and was their last for A&M Records.
Signed to the Deep Purple–owned Oyster label, they recorded two more albums with two keyboardists replacing Hawken – Robert Kirby, also known for his string arrangements and John Mealing of jazz-rock group If. Coombes was replaced by Tony Fernandez for a further album, Deadlines, this time on the Arista label. Although recording was complete on a further album, Heartbreak Hill, featuring Andy Richards on keyboards, Cousins' decision in 1980 to leave the band to work in radio effectively signalled the band's demise, and the album remained in the vaults for many years.