Description

GRIT

“Grit”

Format: 
LP 

Cat No.: 
SOMM059

Label: 
SOMMOR

First ever reissue of this ultra-rare acetate (two copies pressed) from 1972!

Featured in Hans Pokora’s book with the 
maximum scale rarity.

Psychedelic hard-rock with 
furious drumming and 
stunning lead guitar by this 
unknown until now London based band. This, the 
first ever reissue, includes the four tracks 
from the original 
acetate (taken from the master tape)plus 
two bonus tracks taken from lo-fi, crude rehearsals: “1000 Miles” (A Grit original) and a killer demo version of “Mineshaft”.

Free Digital Download card includes the full album plus another 
3 digital only bonus tracks, also taken from rehearsal tapes, including 
cool cover versions of Chicken Shack and Burnin’ Red Ivanhoe.

*Master tape sound, insert with detailed liner notes and photos.

*Includes free download card with bonus tracks

Born from the ashes of a London band called 
Merlyn, 
Grit consisted of  Frank Martinez (lead guitar, vocals), Paul Christodoulou (bass/vocals),  Tom Kelly (drums, vocals) and Jeff Ball (vocalist).

Frank, nicknamed “Spider”, has an interesting story: at the beginning of his musical career 
he auditioned for Joe Meek at his Holloway Road studio. Later, he also played with a band called 
Grand Union – who supported 
Pink Floydin 1968 – and with members of the 
John Dummer Band. An electronic wizard, Frank also worked building amps and electronic equipment at Nolan Amps, MIDAS, etc. He built the Twin Stacks and PA’s that later would form part of Grit’s equipment.

Tom Kelly came from a band called 
Connexion and Paul Christodoulou had played in 
Merlyn along with Frank. After some attempts, the definitive line-up of Grit was born when Frank and Paul convinced drummer Tom Kelly to join them, after assisting to a 
Nazareth concert. They also recruited powerful singer Jeff Ball after an ad in 
Melody Maker.

On Christmas Eve, 1972, Grit recorded a demo at SWM Studios and 
two copies of a one-sided 12” acetate were pressed for promo purposes. It featured four self penned songs: the killer “Mineshaft” (
pure underground fuzz hard-rock) and two lengthy numbers: “Child and The Drifter” (with some 
furious drumming, 
stunning leads and 
hard-prog moves) and the 
hard-psychedelic “What Do You See In My Eyes” / “I Wish I Was”.

Armed with the acetates, the band visited some music agents in London but nobody was interested. But while looking for a manager, they found a company who secured them a Greek tour. This was a true adventure and they managed to appear on television and play with big names from the Greek psych-prog scene like 
Socrates and 
Peloma Mpoklou in big festivals. Sadly, due to a family problem, Frank had to leave the band and return to England. That was the end for Grit.

40 years later, one of the two copies of the original Grit acetate was found at a flea market in Germany, which led to its inclusion in the 
7001 Record Collector Dreams book by famous 
collector Hans Pokora. The band still remained a mystery until 2019, when, by pure chance, Alex Carretero from Guerssen found Frank Martinez and he opened his vault, which included 
the original master tape of the Grit acetate and 
several tapes with rehearsals from Grit and Merlyn.

So, we’re proud to present the 
first ever vinyl release of one the rarest artifacts from the UK 60s-70s underground scene, including an 
insert with rare photos / memorabilia and detailed liner notes.

Tracklist:
A1. Mineshaft – A2.The Child and the Drifter – B1. What Do I See In My Eyes / I Wish I Was – B2. 1000 Miles (Rehearsal)* – B3. Down In The Mine (Mineshaft) (Rehearsal)* – Across The Windowsill (Rehearsal)** – When The Train Comes Back** – What Do You See In My Eyes / I Wish I Was (Rehearsal)**

*LP bonus tracks
**Digital only bonus track