Lord Sutch and Heavy Friends

by Nick BurtonAn infamous album by London scene maker Screaming Lord Sutch, who, among other things, claimed to be a genuine Earl and to have started the long hair craze of the '60s, and ran for Parliament on the youth ticket. His infamy bought him some heavy friends indeed for his first LP. Jimmy Page (who produced and played), John Bonham, Jeff Beck, Nicky Hopkins and Noel Redding are all on hand to support Sutch's R&B retreads ("Baby Come Back" is a steal of Roy Head's "Treat Her Right"). The album is regarded as a kind of Plan 9 from Outer Space of rock LPs: it's bad, but endearingly so, with Sutch's growling vocals providing the laughs. Many Led Zeppelin fans -- who bought this album when it was released on the heels of the first two Zep records -- have never forgiven Page for it.