Nottingham progressive blues band circa 1969.

Steve Hurd – Bass
Steve Otter – Drums
Ray Straw – Vocals
Harold Burgon – Guitar

After John Dunn had left “The Dunn Thing” in 1967 the remaining four became “Life Without Mother”.
Steve Otter had previously played with The Dolomites in the sixties, the singer was Ray Straw and a guitarist Harold Burgon whose sister Loraine went out with Alvin Lee.
The Cellar at Milton’s Head was a popular place for progressive blues based musicians at the end of the sixties and formative gigs by the group were played there. The Milton’s Head Hotel was an old but grand building which stood where the entrance of the Victoria Centre is now.

Gigs at the Crown Hotel in Mansfield, The Boat club on the banks of the River Trent and the Co-op in Ilkeston kept them busy but by the end of the year they dispersed to go their own ways.

In April 1969 a gig in aid of the N.T.C. and compered by Dave Cash (A notable DJ who had worked for the Pirate stations, Radio Luxembourg and eventually Radio One) was held at the Co-op in Ilkeston and featured seven bands local to Nottingham and Derby. From Nottingham where Life Without Mother, Almost Grown and Lord Colin Staples. Harvey Stuart was billed as being from London but had for a time played in a group in Nottingham with Colin Staples in 1967/68so we can assume he had relocated to London at some point. From Derby were Land of Love and The Incas. The Incas were the forerunners of Pug-Ma-Ho who featured Keith Gotheridge who later joined Harry Stephenson’s Plummet Airlines in the seventies. We might assume that the group “Davy Jones Locker” although billed as coming from Wales had some connection with the local area.

.Life Without Mother added Alan Gascoigne in 1970 and they changed their name to “Merlin’s Wake” and later headed for London and joined one of Screaming Lord Sutch’s many group line ups before returning to Nottingham to form Desperate Dann with Mick Wheat and Steve Otter later in the seventies. Ray Straw ended up working for the Evening Post.

1968

1969

Read about Life Without Mother in the context of the Desperate Dann, Tim Disney, Al Gascoigne story here.