The Galileo 7

It could be argued that the Galileo 7, being Allan Crockford‘s first spotlight-hugging role in a third-of-a-century showbizz career, was long overdue. Seemingly content to be Graham Day’s ever-reliable four-string sidekick in The Prisoners, Prime Movers, Solarflares, and The Forefathers, The Galileo 7 now showcases his six-string, singing and songwriting skills. It’s a little known fact that Allan was originally the Prisoners’ guitarist, with Graham on bass. They switched, not because Graham was a better guitarist (at the time he wasn’t), but because he was more of a showman (as we shall see on Saturday night) and (as Al admits) a great singer. Whether Allan could always knock out superbly delicious psychedelic pop songs, or it’s a newly-found gift, we may never know.

The band has been together (with a slight change of personnel) since the turn of the decade, following his stint as joint frontman of The Stabilisers, and features Allan’s wife Viv Bonsels (late of the Fireflies) on keys, Paul Moss (from Groovy Uncle) on bass and the awesome Moon-like sticksmanship of Mole (The Embrooks, Higher State & Baron Four).

More known globally for its approach to garage music, Medway is not without its psychedelic champs. The Dentists and, of course, The Prisoners, were heavily influenced by the psych sounds of The Doors, The Byrds and Love, and The Nice, Hendrix and Syd’s Floyd respectively. More overtly psychedelic sounding than both, the Galileo 7 take as much influence from the more modern feel of Julian Cope, XTC and The Three O’Clock, than the 60s originals.

Also on Allan’s CV is bassman with the epitome of the tag ‘legendary’ Gruffmen (with Russ Wilkins, Sexton Ming and saxman Martin Waller), the original Headcoats & JTQ, the Medway ‘Hippie Supergroup’ Thee Auntie Vegetable (Sexton Ming, Bruce Brand, Jamie Taylor and Ian Smith), Phaze, Goodchilde, plus ‘George Martin’ on the Dentists’ debut single and album.

As previously mentioned here, the band has out a new 7″ single and a new CD and have just returned from a hugely successful (discounting the hand-shut-in-a-van-door incident) 10 date tour of France, from which we have this brand new video of the single Cruel Bird. Dig!