Spider

This British boogie group was formed on Merseyside in 1976 by the Burrows brothers. The band comprised bassist/vocalist Brian Burrows, drummer Rob E. Burrows and guitarists Sniffa and Col Harkness. After incessant gigging around the north-west, they relocated to London and were eventually signed by RCA Records in 1983. They debuted with Rock 'N' Roll Gypsies, a fuel-injected collection of boogie-based rockers, identical in almost every respect to the style of Status Quo. From then on, they were regarded as a poor-man's Quo. The album sold miserably and RCA dropped them. Picked up by A&M Records, they released Rough Justice, a semi-concept affair concerning a courtroom trial. Spider were the defendants, being accused of playing heavy metal rock 'n' roll. Another flop, it left the band without a label once more. Undaunted they plodded on, with Stu Harwood replacing Sniffa on guitar in 1986. Moving to the Mausoleum label, they produced Raise The Banner the same year. Musically they had not progressed, and the market for low-tech, three-chord boogie proved an ever contracting one. Outdated, and out of luck, they broke up shortly after the album was released. Brian Burrows is now a cartoonist and record sleeve designer.