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As this year there was no home game for Hereford United on Bank Holiday Monday in 1971 so instead Edgar Street held a music event. (click on pic to slightly enlarge)
Mott the Hoople, who led the line-up, was a Herefordshire group and according to Wikipedia a combination of two 'beat bands'.
The Soulents were from Ross-On-Wye, and boasted Pete "Overend" Watts on guitar, and Dale "Buffin" Griffin on drums. The Buddies were from Hereford, and featured Mick Ralphs on guitar and Stan Tippins on vocals. By 1966, the trio of Ralphs, Tippins, and Watts (now on bass) had come together in a band called The Doc Thomas Group. By 1968, drummer Dale Griffin and organist Verden Allen had joined the band.
Although the group toured and recorded in Italy as The Doc Thomas Group, their gigs in the UK were played first as The Shakedown Sound, and later as Silence. Silence recorded demos at Rockfield Studios in Monmouth.
In early 1969 the group came to the attention of Guy Stevens at Island Records, who liked the group but not with Tippins as lead singer. Advertisements were placed ("Singer wanted, must be image-minded and hungry"), and Ian Hunter was eventually selected as lead singer and piano player. Tippins assumed the role of road manager.
Stevens changed the band's name to "Mott the Hoople" from a novel of the same name by Willard Manus; the book is about an eccentric who works in a circus freak show. Their debut album, Mott the Hoople (1969), was a cult success.
David Bowie had long been a fan of the band. He wrote "All the Young Dudes" for them instead. Released as a single in July 1972, it was a success in the UK, with the band using Tippens - who by this time was their tour manager - to sing backing vocals during live gigs.
