On paper, Money should have been incredibly successful.
Not only were they charismatic youngsters capable of writing ambitious yet never boring hard rock at a time when such things were in the ascendant, but they also hailed from Birmingham, home to NWOBHM godfathers Judas Priest, and the mighty Black Sabbath.
The story of their rise to near-success is a familiar one: gruelling tours of the UK’s toilets and eventual label interest, followed by mismanagement and poor promotion.
This is a real shame, because the thing which impressed most about their sole album First Investment (1979), was the potential for greatness the band had.
First Investment was a great album. The songs are both catchy and complex, full of echoes of Led Zeppelin, Deep Purple, Rush and Queen, but with an earthier, more modern atmosphere.
The production (by Chris Tsangarides – who also contributed keyboards to the LP) lacked the surface gloss which Money’s music seemed so suited to, but the lack of frills only serves to highlight further how strong the band’s songwriting was. A near-perfect forgotten gem of NWOBHM.
The band broke up after releasing one further 7″ EP, Fast World (1980), which contained the tracks, Fast World, Small Time Criminal and the nine-minute epic, Another Case Of Suicide.
David West-Mullen
Vocals
John Overton
Guitar, vocals
Larry Phillips
Bass, vocals
Tony Boden
Drums, vocals
Ray Fullard
Drums
Spence Scrannage
Drums
