Toe Fat were an English

rock Rock most often refers to: * Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids * Rock music, a genre of popular music Rock or Rocks may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wales ...

band, active from June 1969 to 1971, notable for including two future members of

Uriah Heep Uriah Heep may refer to: * Uriah Heep (character), a character in the Charles Dickens novel ''David Copperfield'' *Uriah Heep (band), a British rock band active since 1969 *''Uriah Heep Live ''Uriah Heep Live'' is a double live album by Britis ...

and a future member of Jethro Tull.

Career

Formed in June 1969, the band was fronted by former Rebel Rouser Cliff Bennett and, in the course of its two-year, two-

album An album is a collection of audio recordings issued on compact disc (CD), Phonograph record, vinyl, audio tape, or another medium such as Digital distribution#Music, digital distribution. Albums of recorded sound were developed in the early ...

career, featured lead guitarist and keyboardist

Ken Hensley Kenneth William David Hensley (24 August 1945 – 4 November 2020) was an English singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist and producer, best known for his work with Uriah Heep during the 1970s. He wrote or co-wrote the majority of Uriah ...

; bassist

John Glascock John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Testament Works * Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John * First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John * Second E ...

(who replaced original bassist John Konas (Joseph Stanley Konas)); and drummer

Lee Kerslake Lee Gary Kerslake (16 April 1947– 19 September 2020) was an English musician, best known as the longtime drummer and backing vocalist for the rock band Uriah Heep and for his work with Ozzy Osbourne in the early 1980s. Biography Early life a ...

. After the first album, Kerslake and Hensley were replaced by

Brian Glascock Brian Glascock (born 17 July 1948) is an English rock drummer for The Gods, Toe Fat, Carmen, Captain Beyond, Soy Cowboy, and primarily for The Motels. He also played on albums by Dolly Parton, Iggy Pop, and Joan Armatrading. He performed in ...

(drums) and

Alan Kendall Alan Kendall (born 9 September 1944) is an English musician and was the lead guitarist for the Bee Gees, in an unofficial capacity from 1971 until 1980, and again from 1987 until 2001. Career His first recording was "Don't Play That Song (You ...

(guitar) respectively. The band was founded by Bennett, a former

pop Pop or POP may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Music * Pop music, a musical genre Artists * POP, a Japanese idol group now known as Gang Parade * Pop!, a UK pop group * Pop! featuring Angie Hart, an Australian band Albums * ''Pop'' (G ...

star A star is an astronomical object comprising a luminous spheroid of plasma held together by its gravity. The nearest star to Earth is the Sun. Many other stars are visible to the naked eye at night, but their immense distances from Earth make ...

, after the dissolution of the Cliff Bennett Band. He teamed with the former

Gods A deity or god is a supernatural being who is considered divine or sacred. The ''Oxford Dictionary of English'' defines deity as a god or goddess, or anything revered as divine. C. Scott Littleton defines a deity as "a being with powers great ...

' keyboard player Hensley, who drafted in fellow ex-Gods' members Kerslake and Glascock. The name was decided over dinner when Bennett and his manager attempted to create the most disgusting band name possible. Toe Fat was signed to the

record label A record label, or record company, is a brand or trademark of music recordings and music videos, or the company that owns it. Sometimes, a record label is also a publishing company that manages such brands and trademarks, coordinates the prod ...

, Rare Earth, in the US. In the UK, the band signed with

EMI EMI Group Limited (originally an initialism for Electric and Musical Industries, also referred to as EMI Records Ltd. or simply EMI) was a British transnational conglomerate founded in March 1931 in London. At the time of its break-up in 2012, ...

, who released their first album on the

Parlophone Parlophone Records Limited (also known as Parlophone Records and Parlophone) is a German–British record label founded in Germany in 1896 by the Carl Lindström Company as Parlophon. The British branch of the label was founded on 8 August 19 ...

label, and the second on

Regal Zonophone Regal may refer to: Companies * Regal Beloit, usually referred to as Regal, an American manufacturer of electric motors * Regal Cinema (disambiguation), several cinemas of that name * Regal Cinemas, a major American theater chain * Regal Cinemas ...

. The eponymously titled first album flopped commercially, but gained considerable critical praise. Such was the stir that after their first

single Single may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * Single (music), a song release Songs * "Single" (Natasha Bedingfield song), 2004 * "Single" (New Kids on the Block and Ne-Yo song), 2008 * "Single" (William Wei song), 2016 * "Single", by ...

, "Workin' Nights", (the

B-side The A-side and B-side are the two sides of phonograph records and cassettes; these terms have often been printed on the labels of two-sided music recordings. The A-side usually features a recording that its artist, producer, or record company ...

was an early

Elton John Sir Elton Hercules John (born Reginald Kenneth Dwight; 25 March 1947) is a British singer, pianist and composer. Commonly nicknamed the "Rocket Man" after his 1972 hit single of the same name, John has led a commercially successful career a ...

composition "Bad Side of the Moon") they were booked for a

tour Tour or Tours may refer to: Travel * Tourism, travel for pleasure * Tour of duty, a period of time spent in military service * Campus tour, a journey through a college or university's campus * Guided tour, a journey through a location, directed ...

supporting

Derek and the Dominos Derek and the Dominos was an English–American blues rock band formed in the spring of 1970 by guitarist and singer Eric Clapton, keyboardist and singer Bobby Whitlock, bassist Carl Radle and drummer Jim Gordon. All four members had previou ...

in the US. The album was also notable for its cover designed by the recently formed graphic art company

Hipgnosis Hipgnosis were an English art design group based in London, that specialised in creating album cover artwork for rock musicians and bands. Their commissions included work for Pink Floyd, T. Rex, the Pretty Things, Black Sabbath, UFO, 10cc, ...

. The cover showed a beach scene with four people who have large toes superimposed over their heads. For the US release, a man and a topless woman in the background were replaced by the image of a sheep. The photo of the band on the back of the US album shows Cliff Bennett, Alan Kendall, John Glascock, and Lee Kerslake even though Alan Kendall did not play on the first album. This was an interim line-up, and Lee Kerslake would soon depart also before the second album was recorded. Hensley quit the band to form

. Alan Kendall replaced Hensley, before their second album, ''Toe Fat Two''. Bennett admitted in the sleeve notes of his ''Rebellion'' album that when asked he "probably should have joined them". Kerslake left to join the National Head Band, before also joining Uriah Heep in 1971. Glascock later joined Jethro Tull. Another ex-Gods man, Brian Glascock, became the new drummer. Jonathan Peel (not the DJ) produced ''Toe Fat 2'', after hearing them on several BBC radio sessions, including one for

Terry Wogan Sir Michael Terence Wogan (; 3 August 1938 – 31 January 2016) was an Irish radio and television broadcaster who worked for the BBC in the UK for most of his career. Between 1993 and his semi-retirement in December 2009, his BBC Radio 2 week ...

. However, this LP also flopped, despite more radio

airplay Airplay is how frequently a song is being played through broadcasting on radio stations. A song which is being played several times every day ( spins) would have a significant amount of airplay. Music which became very popular on jukeboxes, in ...

, and a reasonably successful US tour promoting it. Following these successive failures, their management and labels informed the group that they could no longer fund them. Bennett recorded ''Rebellion'', before quitting the

music industry The music industry consists of the individuals and organizations that earn money by writing songs and musical compositions, creating and selling recorded music and sheet music, presenting concerts, as well as the organizations that aid, trai ...

to become a

shipping magnate A business magnate, also known as a tycoon, is a person who has achieved immense wealth through the ownership of multiple lines of enterprise. The term characteristically refers to a powerful entrepreneur or investor who controls, through perso ...

. He used to occasionally tour with the Rebel Rousers. Alan Kendall and Brian Glascock went on to play with, and write for, the

Bee Gees The Bee Gees were a musical group formed in 1958 by brothers Barry, Robin, and Maurice Gibb. The trio were especially successful in popular music in the late 1960s and early 1970s, and later as prominent performers in the disco music era i ...

Former members

* Cliff Bennett – lead vocals, piano (1969–1971) *

– drums, backing vocals (1969–1970; died 2020) *

– guitars, backing vocals, keyboards (1969–1970; died 2020) * John Konas – bass, backing vocals (1969) *

– bass, backing vocals (1969–1971; died 1979) *

– guitars (1970–1971) *

– drums, backing vocals (1970–1971)

Discography

Studio albums

*'' Toe Fat'' (1970) *''Toe Fat Two'' (1970)

References

External links

Cliff Bennett's official site
* * {{Authority control 1969 establishments in England 1971 disestablishments in England English psychedelic rock music groups Musical groups established in 1969 Musical groups disestablished in 1971 Parlophone artists Motown artists