Mud – The Glam-Stomp Kings of the 1970s

Band Overview

Formed: 1966 in Carshalton, Surrey, England

Classic line-up (1973–1976 peak):

Les Gray – lead vocals

Rob Davis – guitar

Ray Stiles – bass

Dave Mount – drums

Style & Sound

Pure Chinnichap bubblegum-glam: stomping drums, handclaps, infectious choruses, cheeky lyrics, and massive sing-along appeal. Mud were one of the most commercially successful British glam acts of the 1970s, scoring 15 Top 40 singles between 1973 and 1976, including three UK No. 1s.

Essential UK Singles (with peak positions)

Tiger Feet – No. 1 (Jan 1974)

The Cat Crept In – No. 2 (Apr 1974)

Rocket – No. 6 (Jul 1974)

Lonely This Christmas – No. 1 (Dec 1974)

The Secrets That You Keep – No. 3 (Feb 1975)

Oh Boy – No. 1 (May 1975)

Moonshine Sally – No. 16 (Jul 1975)

L-L-Lucy – No. 10 (Nov 1975)

Cut Across Shorty / We’ve Got to Know – No. 35 (Feb 1976)

Shake It Down – No. 12 (Sep 1976)

Essential Albums

Mud Rock (1974) – No. 1 UK

Mud Rock Volume 2 (1975) – No. 6 UK

Use Your Imagination (1975) – No. 33 UK

Mudpack (compilation, 1977) – strong seller in budget bins

Collectibility & Rarities

Original UK RAK picture sleeves (especially Tiger Feet, Lonely This Christmas, Oh Boy) – £15–£50 mint

Dutch & German variants with unique picture sleeves – £20–£80

The 1977 “Mud Giants” RAK Replay 3-track maxi (Tiger Feet / Oh Boy / Dyna-mite) – £10–£40

French & Australian misprint sleeves – sought after by completists

Signed items (Les Gray especially) – £100–£300+

Quick Facts

Produced almost exclusively by Nicky Chinn & Mike Chapman (same team behind Sweet, Suzi Quatro, Smokie).

“Lonely This Christmas” is still a staple Christmas song on UK radio.

Mud were one of the few glam acts to survive into the late 1970s with consistent chart success.

The band continued in various forms after Les Gray’s death in 2001; Ray Stiles still tours with a Mud line-up.

Recommended Starting Points

Tiger Feet (the definitive glam stomp)

Lonely This Christmas (holiday classic)

Oh Boy (perfect 1950s revival)

Mud Rock (1974) album (the peak glam sound)

Do you collect Mud singles or LPs? Which track is your favourite? Let me know in the comments!

Sources:

Information is drawn from my personal knowledge and supplemented by web sources, including Discogs, 45cat, AllMusic, Rate Your Music, Wikipedia and BBC Official Charts Company