Hobo With A Grin is the debut solo album by Steve Harley of Steve Harley & Cockney Rebel, released in 1978. The album was produced by Harley, except for “Roll the Dice” which was produced by Michael J. Jackson. Jackson also acted as additional producer on the album.
In July 1977, Harley disbanded Cockney Rebel and began working on his debut solo album, which was largely completed by early 1978. In February of that year, Harley flew to Los Angeles to finish working on the album, which had been given the working title Couples. Of the album’s nine tracks, six were recorded at Abbey Road Studios in London, and the other three were recorded in Los Angeles at Sunset Sound or Record Plant. Using a range of session musicians and ex-Cockney Rebel members, the album featured contributions from a range of personnel, including Jim Cregan, George Ford, Duncan Mackay, Stuart Elliott, Gloria Jones and Marc Bolan, as well as American musicians such as Tom Moncrieff, Bob Glaub, Bill Payne, Roy Kenner, Bobby Kimball and Michael McDonald. A mixture of older songs, written when Cockney Rebel were still active, were recorded, alongside some newer material. The album was mixed at Sunset Sound and mastered at Capitol Mastering.
Soon after the album was completed, Harley decided to leave Britain and live in Los Angeles. He had been first attracted to the city when recording and mixing the Love’s a Prima Donna album there in 1976. Purchasing a house in Beverly Hills, he stayed there for nearly a year to gain new experience and inspirations. When Hobo with a Grin emerged in July 1978, it was revealed the album cost £70,000 and took 18 months to make, and yet proved to be Harley’s biggest flop. The album failed to make any chart appearance, as did its two singles. The first, “Roll the Dice”, was released in July, while the second, a remixed version of “Someone’s Coming”, was released in February 1979.
Tracks
1 Roll The Dice (Steve Harley; Jo Partridge) 3:31
2 Amerika The Brave (Steve Harley) 4:56
3 Living In A Rhapsody (Steve Harley; Duncan Mackay; Jim Cregan) 4:22
4 I Wish It Would Rain (Barrett Strong; Norman Whitfield) 3:20
5 Riding The Waves (For Virginia Woolf) (Steve Harley) 4:35
6 Someone\’s Coming (Steve Harley; Jo Partridge) 4:36
7 Hot Youth (Steve Harley; Duncan Mackay) 2:52
8 (I Don\’t Believe) God Is An Anarchist (Steve Harley) 7:24
9 Faith, Hope And Charity (Steve Harley) 4:01
10 Spaced Out (bonus) (Steve Harley) 3:01
11 That\’s My Life In Your Hands (Live, bonus) (Steve Harley; Hugh Nicholson) 3:39
Musicians
1 Roll The Dice
Bass | Bob Glaub |
Drums | Rick Shlosser |
Guitar | Jo Partridge |
Acoustic Guitar | Fred Tackett |
Harpsichord | Duncan Mackay |
Piano | Bill Payne |
Piano | Duncan Mackay |
Synthesizer | Duncan Mackay |
Percussion | Michael J Jackson |
Background Vocals | Bill Champlin |
Background Vocals | Bobby Kimball |
Background Vocals | Michael McDonald |
Background Vocals | Rosemary Butler |
Background Vocals | Tom Kelly |
Vocals | Steve Harvey |
2 Amerika The Brave
Drums | Ricky Fataar |
Guitar | Jo Partridge |
Guitar | Marc Bolan |
Keyboards | Duncan Mackay |
Synthesizer | Duncan Mackay |
Percussion | Chris Karan |
Percussion | Luis Jordan |
3 Living In A Rhapsody
Guitar | Jim Creegan |
Acoustic Guitar | Jim Cregan |
Piano | Bill Payne |
Synthesizer | Duncan Mackay |
Background Vocals | Yvonne Keeley |
Vocals | Steve Harley |
4 I Wish It Would Rain
Bass | Alan Jones |
Drums | Ricky Fataar |
Guitar (solo) | Tom Moncrieff |
Guitar | Ian Bairnson |
Acoustic Guitar | Ian Bairnson |
Organ | Bill Payne |
Piano | Duncan Mackay |
Background Vocals | John Townsend |
Background Vocals | Rosemary Butler |
Background Vocals | Roy Kenner |
Vocals | Steve Harley |
5 Riding The Waves (For Virginia Woolf)
Bass | Bob Glaub |
Drums | Rick Shlosser |
Guitar (solo) | Jo Partridge |
Guitar | Greg Poree |
Acoustic Guitar | Jo Partridge |
Keyboards | Duncan Mackay |
Piano | Bill Payne |
Synthesizer | Duncan Mackay |
Background Vocals | Bill Champlin |
Background Vocals | Bobby Kimball |
Background Vocals | Tom Kelly |
Vocals | Steve Harley |
6 Someone\’s Coming
Bass | George Ford |
Drums | Stuart Elliott |
Guitar | Jo Partridge |
Acoustic Guitar | Jo Partridge |
Piano | Duncan Mackay |
Congas | Lindsay Elliott |
Percussion | Jim Isaacson |
Background Vocals | Gloria Jones |
Background Vocals | Yvonne Keeley |
Vocals | Steve Harley |
7 Hot Youth
Double Bass | Herbie Flowers |
Guitar | Jo Partridge |
Acoustic Guitar | Jo Partridge |
Piano | Duncan Mackay |
Percussion | Luis Jordan |
Vocals | Steve Harley |
8 (I Don\’t Believe) God Is An Anarchist
Bass | Reginald McBride |
Drums | Paul Humphrey |
Guitar | Greg Poree |
Acoustic Guitar | Greg Poree |
Organ | Duncan Mackay |
Piano | Bill Payne |
Congas | King Errisson |
Percussion | Chris Karan |
Percussion | Luis Jordan |
Percussion | Simon Morton |
Background Vocals | Barry St John |
Background Vocals | Yvonne Keeley |
Vocals | Steve Harley |
9 Faith, Hope And Charity
Drums | Jim Isaacson |
Keyboards | Duncan Mackay |
Piano | Michael J Jackson |
Synthesizer | Duncan Mackay |
Background Vocals | Gloria Jones |
Background Vocals | Yvonne Keeley |
Vocals | Steve Harley |
Liner Notes
Producer – Steve Harley
Producer – Michael J Jackson (Track 1)
Producer (Additional) – Michael J Jackson
Arranged By (Strings, Horns) – Jimmy Horowitz (Track 3)
Arranged By (Strings) – Jimmy Horowitz (Tracks 4, 6)
Engineer – Jim Isaacson, John Haeny (Tracks 1, 5)
Engineer – Tony Clark (Tracks 2, 3, 6, 7, 9)
Engineer – Peter James (Track 4)
Engineer – Gary Ladinsky (Track 8)
Engineer (Assistant) – Paul Black (Track 1)
Engineer (Assistant) – Haydn Bendall (Tracks 3, 6, 7, 9)
Engineer (Remix, Additional Recording) – Jim Isaacson
Mixed By – Michael J Jackson
Design – John Kosh
Photography By – Jim Shea
Recorded at Sunset Sound, EMI Studio/Abbey Road and Record Plant (LA)
Mixed at Sunset Sound Recorders, Hollywood, California.