The ”Lost UK Jewels” Vol.10 ; GRAFFITI UK ; Obsession +1 *0dayrox EXCLUSIVE*

As requested, here’s in exclusive at 0dayrox another installment from Steelheart Memories Records ”The Lost UK Jewels series”: Vol.10 ; GRAFFITI UK ; Obsession +1” fully remastered from the master tapes and including a previously unreleased studio track, a release strictly limited to 500 copies and already out of print.
After a slew of demos and singles – all of which can be found in Volume 4 of the “Lost UK Jewels” series, also featured at 0dayrox – the Oxford based AORsters Graffiti, found themselves at a crossroads in their career. With several high profile gigs at the Marquee and dates in America having raised their profile, the band – Rick Chase, Tony Stock, Adam Armstrong and Marcus Flynn – still found themselves without a record deal.
Decamping to Phoenix Plaza Studios, in Wokingham, Graffiti set about recording a set of songs that would eventually turn into their “Obsession” CD, a collection of AOR / melodic rock tunes far to the common style in this genre.

With the studio being owned by Mike Winkelmann, their manager of the time, the recording process was a leisurely one, as Rick Chase explains: “Because the studio belonged to our Manager, we had the luxury of not rushing the album. Hopefully this shows in the quality of the recordings. I can’t remember how long it took to record, but it wasn’t just a matter of days!”.

This was back in ’94 and it would be a further two years before “Obsession” would see the light of day. In the meantime it was decided to release a five-track EP, “The Good Old Bad Old Days”, and with no record deal in sight they once again went down the independent route, as Chase takes up the story. “I remember that we were relieved to at last have some kind of backing to enable us to have a release. Our gigs were doing incredibly well, having played all over the place; we felt it was time to get a CD out there”.

With a sound very much of its time – the likes of Thunder, Extreme et all play a big part in their sound – the EP was favourably reviewed, but it was a slight departure from the predominantly AOR sound of their earlier days, as Chase reflects: “We did find ourselves producing some heavier tracks, though I think this was more of a natural progression than something we set out to achieve”.

Alongside the EP tracks, six more songs – “Writing On The Wall”, “Body Language”, “Dedication”, “United We Stand”, “Love Nor Money” and a cover of “That’s The Way I Like It” by KC and the Sunshine Band – were also cut at the same sessions.
It would be these and the tracks from the EP that would eventually surface, as “Obsession”, in Germany of all places. “This was something that was left to our Manager at the time”, recalls Chase. “We didn’t seem to have much control of what was happening with the release unfortunately. Though Germany is of course a great place to have your album released, in fact some people mistook us for a German band!”

Having little control over the album also meant no control over the artwork as Chase recollects: “The original artwork was beyond our control. We weren’t allowed to see any proofs, and the end result was awful. It didn’t reflect the style of music we played, and to top it all, the sleeve notes contained thanks to people we didn’t even know!”

With the KC and the Sunshine Band cover “That’s The Way I Like It” being omitted from this reissue by explicit request from the band (but we added it as 0dayrox extra), extensive research and a bit of detective work has revealed an old song, “Big Noise”, which has been added here as a bonus track.
Recorded at the same sessions for the “Big Noise” EP, but left of the eventual 12″ single, Chase has fond memories of this track: “We were experimenting with the sound & using new techniques, and no matter what type of song we recorded, we don’t think the Graffiti sound was lost, thank goodness.”

This remastered reissue comes with new booklet including rare photos, a new cover artwork and a bonus track, completing the Graffiti recorded legacy.
Highly Recommended

Only at 0dayrox

01 – That’s The Way I Like It
02 – Obsession
03 – Body Language
04 – Good Old Bad Old Days
05 – Writing On The Wall
06 – Dedication
07 – Automatic
08 – Your Touch
09 – United We Stand
10 – Always
11 – Love Nor Money
12 – Big Noise (Unreleased studio bonus track)
0dayrox extra:
That’s The Way I Like It

Rick Chase – Vocals
Tony Stock – Keyboards, Synths
Marcus Flynn – Guitar
Adam Armstrong – Drums
Jerry Cunningham – Bass

out of print