Last Resort Discography

Posted : admin | On 20-04-2021

Stepaside

Last Resort Discography
The Last Resort Discography
The Last Resort Discography Download

From: Dublin
Active: 1971-83

The final tracks follow in the same vein as the rest of the album. I was so surprised when I heard this album I came in with my mind already made up. And this album changed my mind song by song. My hat is off to The Last Resort, and this very good album. I have to say I hate it when I am wrong and was wrong about The Last Resort and this album. The Last Resorrs is a British Oi! Band, established in 1980, Herne Bay, Kent, England and named after the famous East London skinhead shop. Band Members Edit. Graham Saxby - Vocals Charlie Duggan - Guitar Andy Benfield - Drums Roi Pearce - Bass Discography Edit. 1982: A Way of Life - Skinhead Anthems (LP, CD 1993 on Captain Oi. The new single 'The Last Resort (On Earth)' by German hardstyle producer & DJane Miss N-Traxx is a europhic Hardstyle track with a topic that seems more than contemporary these days. Listen to the text and enjoy the melodic part with a breeze of powerful kicks.

Last Resort Discography

Style: Rock (from country rock to powerpop)
Lineup (1971):

Bobby Kelly - guitar/vocals
Jimmy Faulkner - guitar
Basil Hendricks - steel guitar
Chris Meehan - keyboards
Bob Bolton - bass
Ritchie McCabe - drums

Lineup (mid-70s):

Bobby Kelly - guitar/vocals
Brendan Bonass - guitar
Chris Meehan - keyboards
Bob Bolton - bass
Robbie Brennan - drums
Outside the Dáil, L-R Brendan Bonass, Robbie Brennan, Bob Bolton, Dave MacAnaney, Bobby Kelly

Lineup: (1977-78)

Paul Ashford - bass/vocals
Brendan Bonass - guitar
Deke O'Brien - guitar
Dave MacAnaney (McInaneny?) AKA Dave Kodak AKA The Great Gonzo - keyboards
Robbie Brennan - drums
Sportsmans Inn, 1977

Lineup: (1978-81)

The Last Resort Discography

Paul Ashford - bass/vocals
Brendan Bonass - guitar
Mark Costigan - guitar
Dave MacAnaney AKA Dave Kodak AKA The Great Gonzo - keyboards
Robbie Brennan - drums

Bio:
Named after a Dublin suburb, Stepaside was formed in 1971 by Bob Bolton and Bobby Kelly after the break up of the Chosen Few. Bolton has previously been with Some People, Uptown Band and The Stellas, while Kelly had been with The Hootenannys, The Greenbeats and The Sands. They recruited Basil Hendricks (steel guitar), Jimmy Faulkner (electric guitar), Chris Meehan (piano) and Ritchie McCabe (drums) for the first lineup.
This original Stepaside was a country rock band active up until ca 1977.Basil Hendricks AKA Henriques was a reknowned pedal steel player who'd played with showbands (e.g. The Virginians). He recorded a solo LP of Hawaiian music in 1973, released on Tara Records in Ireland. He left Stepaside to join another showband. This was during the country music boom inthe showband world. Ritchie McCabe was replaced by Robbie Brennan, who'd played with Boltonin the Chosen Few. When Jimmy Faulkner left to form Hotfoot, Brenny Bonass (also ex Chosen Few) joined on guitar. This lineup played boogie, blues and country rock. In a newspaper review from the period, journalist Fachtna O'Kelly mentions many covers played during their set at Toner's pub in Dublin, including 'Just Another Tequila Sunrise', 'Drift Away', 'She's A Barmaid In The Honky-Tonk Downstairs', 'Great Balls of Fire' and the Doobie Brothers 'Country Grove'.

MacAnaney, Bolton & Kelly ca 1976

Chris Meehan left to become a barrister and was replaced by Dave MacAnaney (ex Rootzgroop, The Negatives) on piano.This is the lineup who toured with Kevin Johnson in 1976. By now the band was attractingrecord company attention, and they were approached by Solomon & Peres, theBelfast music business mogols who'd signed Van Morrison's Them. Wary of theirfearsome reputation, Bob Bolton did not want to sign with them. After a live performance on BBC Northern Ireland in 1977, Solomon and Peres offered them a 3 year contract. All bar Bolton were eager to sign and his led to Bolton leaving Stepaside and joining the Swarbriggs band. Solomon & Pere withdrew their offer.Bolton was replaced by Gerry O'Donavan. Bobby Kelly had left the band by this point too.

'Ireland's No.1 Country Rock Group'.
Advert for a gig at Leisureland, Galway on 26 October 1976.

Deke O'Brien (ex Nightbus, Bees Make Honey, etc), joined Stepaside in mid 1977, revitalising the band. Brendan Bonass, Bobby Kelly, and Robbie Brennan had all played on the Nightbus LP.Also in 1977, Gerry O'Donavan was replaced by Tommy Moore and then Paul Ashford.This lineup recorded the band's debut single 'Good Morning Little Schoolgirl' released on Mulligan Records in 1977. It's a rather tame effort and soldpoorly. A second single on Mulligan was cancelled.

Supporting Rory Gallagher at Macroom, 24 June 1978

In June 1978 the band appeared on the bill at Macroom, supporting Rory Gallagher. In September 1978 the band's set was largely comprised of country rockmixed with pub rock, as is borne out by a live broadcast on Ken's Klub on RTE Radio that has survived on tape.Deke O'Brien left by the end of 1978 but probably appears uncredited on later Stepasiderecordings. The band continued with Mark Costigan on board. The music moved ina new wave / powerpop direction, as is evident by the self-released second single'We've Got You Surrounded', released in April 1979. A clever piece of new wave pop, this was far superior to the debut of two years earlier and bode well for the future.

The Mansion House Christmas Bop, Thursaday 27 Dec 1979

By mid 1979 Stepaside were playing energetic, R'n'B infused powerpop/rock which more-or-less fit the new wave bill but which owed as much to Bob Seger as it did to Elvis Costello. They weren't considered authentic new wave in some quarters though they'd have fitinto the Chiswick or Stiff roster easily enough. They completed recording their debut LPby October 1979. The original title was 'The Last Resort', but it was finally released as 'Sit Down And Relapse' a month or so later on their own Sidestep label.It's a very good powerpop LP with some great tracks.
In January 1980 they signed a deal with Gale Records (anyone know anything about Gale Records?) and embarked on a lengthy tour in March. Gale released a single 'Sit Down And Relapse' and theLP of the same name in the UK in April. Both sold poorly. Both were released in Ireland on the bandsown Sidestep label a few months later in Ireland where they fared better. They made several Irish TVappearances around this time. Gale and Sidestep released a few more single releasesfollowed, but none made any impact outside Ireland. Stepaside disbanded circa early 1981.
Guitarist Brendan Bonass led a new lineup in 1981 with Mick O'Hagan (bass/vocals), Denis Woods (keyboards) and Niall Power (drums).They were managed by boyband impresario/svengali Louis Walsh. They did some very glam, heavy on the eyeliner publicity photos and recordeda single for Spider Records which barely came out when the label crashed.This single is now one of the harder to find Stepaside releases, especially with the poster. This band had split by 1983.
Singer/bassist Paul Ashford fronted The Sharks in 1981 and later released mediocre solo material. His backing band often included Brennan & Costigan.
Stepaside reformed for occasional gigs in the new millenium with the lineup Ashford, Bonass, Brenna & Costigan. Paul Ashford passed away in January 2011.

Dates
• 24 June 1978 - Macroom Festival

The Last Resort Discography Download

• 4 & 12 December 1979 - supporting Dire Straits at the National Stadium
Discography

• Good Morning Little Schoolgirl / Deep Feeling
7' - Mulligan Records - LUNS 007 - IRL - April? 1977 - no PS

• Ken's Klub RTE Radio Broadcast September 1978

Notes: Recorded before a live audience, the performanceincluded a couple of interview segments with DJ Ken Stewart. The lineupwas Deke O'Brien (guitar and lead vocals), Brendan Bonass (lead guitar), Dave MacAnaney (piano), Paul Ashford (bass, vocals) and Robbie Brennan (drums).

• title?
7' - Mulligan Records - LUNS 010 - IRL - 1978? unreleased?

Some sources claim this was to be the second Stepaside single 'Too Long On The Road' in which case it probably never existed as a Mulligan releaseas the band issued it themselves in April the following year; another theoryput to me by someone close to the band is that it was a repress of the debut single given away with initial copies of the Nightbus LP, but as that came out in 1976 this seems very unlikely! See Deke O'Brien for more details.

• We've Got You Surrounded / Too Long On The Road
12' - World Records - STEP1 - IRL - April 1979 - PS (printed inner bag)

Issued in a very fragile printed bag, like an LP inner sleeve,and very hard to find in good condition as a result. A few hundred copies pressed.

• Sit Down And Relapse / Mail Order Love
7' - Sidestep Records - SID 001 - IRL - November 1979 - no PS
7' - Gale Records - GALE-2 - UK - April 1980 - no PS

• Sit Down And Relapse
LP - Sidestep Records - STEP 001 - IRL - early 1980 - laminated (slick) cover
K7 - Sidestep Records - STEPC 001 - 1980
LP - Gale Records - GALELP 01 - UK - April 1980 textured matt cover
CD - Break Music - BREAK 002 - IRL - 1993/94
K7 - Break Music - BREAK 003 - IRL - 1993/94
CD - Chart Records - CHCD093 - IRL - 2003 - digitally remastered

Notes:
Stepaside's debut LP was ready for release in October 1979 but it was a few months beforeit came out. The original title was 'The Last Resort'. All CD reissues to date are on budget labels and sound it, so be warned! The Break Music CD is reputedly awful - I haven't heard it, but if it sounds anything as bad as the cassette edition, the people responsible need horse whipping. The digitally remastered Chart Records issue doesn't sound right either in my opinion. Whether its a remastering problem or a manufacturing defect I cannot say, but it sounds tinny, thin and trebly, and gets worse with each track. It's particularly noticeable on 'Last Resort' which sounds diabolical IMO. It was re-mastered by Robin Robbins of Bob Seeger's Silver Bullet Band in his studio and apparently sounded terrific at the time, but it hasn't translated well to the finised CD for some reason. At time of writing (June 2008), there is no substitute for an original vinyl LPpressing.

• The Last Resort / Yellow Chair
7' - Sidestep Records - SID 002 - July 1980 - no PS

• The Last Resort / Give Me Something
7' - Gale Records - GALE-7 - UK - 1980 - no PS

• Scoff at the Sportsman's EP
7' - Scoff Records - DT005 - IRL - November 1980 - PS
Split live single with Male Caucasians, recorded at The Sportsman's Inn, Dublin.

Stepaside

• Yellow Chair (new version) / Play The Game
7' - Spider Records - WEB 044 - IRL - 1981 - PS - 500 copies, some with poster

New version of the A-side recorded at Windmill Lane by the 1981 lineup of Mick O'Hagan (vocals),Brendan Bonass, Dennis Woods (keyboards) and Niall Power (drums).500 copies were pressed and were due for release when Spider Records went bust. The records were then dumped at the back of Warner Bros offices in Dublin, soit was never officially released. Copies are in circulation however, so it didgo on sale. Even so it's a tough find these days.

• various artists - Stock 'N Trade
LP - Scoff Records - DTLP30 - 1983
See Compilations section for full track listing.

• various artists - Sunflower Nights
2xCD - Hospice Foundation - HFCD001 - 2 May 2008
See Compilations section for full track listing.

• Classic Irish Rock
2xCD - Chart Records - CHCD093/CHCD0?? IRL - 2005

The blurb says: Two Great Irish Rock Albums In One Box. One disc is the 2003 Chart Records issue of Stepaside's Sit Down And Relapse album. The other disc is Brush Shiels 'Fields Of Athenry' album.

• Straitjacket
DL - Criminal Records - none - IRL - 2012- download album

Blurb...'Legendary Irish Rockers, Stepaside's new Album 'Straitjacket' is a rare collection of previously unreleased studio recordings, including one live cut. A special recording of their anthem,'The Last Resort' features Ronnie Drew'....END BLURB

Help!

We need your help to correct and/or complete this entry. If you can provide more information about this band, have scans, photos or any other memorabilia we can use, or spare copies of any releases,then please get in touch.

See Also: Paul Ashford, Mark Costigan, Nightbus, Deke O'Brien, The Sharks