Nightstalker

Mick Grafton and Steve Sammon, were the lead guitarist and lead singer of Nightstalker, from Wolverhampton, in the early 80's, having recorded two demo tapes. We had a chat to remind a little bit of those times with Nightstalker, and the early days in Cloven Hoof.

Q. - Hello, tell us a little bit about your beginnings in the hard rock and heavy metal world, what were you're main influences, what lead you to be a vocalist and guitar player?

Steve - I never had any ambition to be a vocalist I just loved listening to Black Sabbath, UFO, ACDC, Led Zep, the early Deep Purple line-up and then I also got into Coverdale & Hughes on the Stormbringer album in 74’, I just loved the harmonies between Glenn & David, I guess that spurred me on to maybe one day sing in a band.

Mick - I started playing guitar at the age of 16. My main rock influences were Deep Purple, Pink Floyd, UFO and Led Zeppelin. My metal influences were Black Sabbath and Judas Priest.

Q. - You were the lead singer and guitar player for Cloven Hoof, for a short time, in 1979, how did that happen?

Steve - I was a roadie for a local band called “Dust” and ended up being their sound and lighting engineer which I loved, we were gigging 4-5 times a week all over the Midlands, and then just before they split I was asked to be the lighting engineer for “Alvin Stardust” which I politely declined.  Then as I recall I met Mick at a party and he told me they were looking for a vocalist for their band and would I be interested in an audition, I said sure nothing to lose right? And I passed the audition, the rest is history.

Mick - I was the lead guitarist in CH as the band was formed by myself and the bassist Lee Payne. We put an advert in a newspaper and found Kevin Poutney, the drummer, and later I met Steve Sammon at a party, and he passed the audition. We recorded the first CH demo on a 4 track which had 2 original songs entitled “Return of the Passover” and “Nightstalker”. There was also a cover of the Judas Priest song “Delivering the goods”.

Q. - Did you play live with Cloven Hoof? What memories do you keep from those days?

Steve - No, we never played live whist I was with them, it seemed that Lee wanted to build on writing more songs before we actually started playing live.

Mick - We didn’t play any gigs with the first line-up, but I re-joined CH in the mid 80s and we did a few gigs in that period. We always went down well live and I have good memories of those gigs particularly when Lee jumped off the riser and went straight through the stage at the Tonypandy Naval club! We were all in stitches apart from Lee who found the whole situation embarrassing.

Q. - Nightstalker was formed by Steve Sammon on lead vocals and Mick Grafton on lead guitar, in 79, how did you get in touch with the other members? Tell us a bit about the beginning of the band.

Steve - As I recall Mick & I put an advert in the local press and that’s how we met Adrian Terry on guitar and Glenn Mason on drums then I think Mark (Bassist) came along shortly after.  Glenn and Adrian were from a band called Dr Max and Mark from Venom.

Mick - We found the other members from a newspaper ad and they were originally from a band called Dr Max after they lost their original vocalist Liam Doherty who later joined ‘'Idol Rich’ and ‘Love and War’. The bass player, Rod Wigley, dropped out so we recruited the ex-Venom bass player Mark Fitzpatrick. So, we ended up recruiting Adrian Terry on guitar and Glen Mason on drums from Dr Max.

Q. - What were your main influences at the beginning of the band?

Steve - We didn’t go all out metal at the beginning but we soon realised we were all into fast heavy melodic riffs and so a bit of metal madness started to creep in due to bands like Van Halen and the Maiden coming of age.

Mick - We were well into fast guitar riffs and the general NWOBHM vibe at the time. Bands like Iron Maiden and Van Halen were breaking through at the time, so they were an influence on our style.

Q. - When did you start playing gigs and what venues did you play?

Steve - We started to gig in the early 80s mainly at local pubs and clubs, (anywhere they would have us) we also support for more established bands until we could establish our own followers.

Mick - We gigged in the early 80s around our local area playing pubs and clubs and opened for bands too.

Q. - Do you recall the songs you were playing in the beginning? Did you play any covers too?

Steve - Yes, we performed mainly our own songs, but some members thought we would get more gigs doing more mainstream stuff with a couple of covers thrown in.

Mick - We were doing a mixture of covers and our own material. You have to bear in mind that it was nearly 40 years ago so I wouldn’t be able to give you a set list!

Q. - When did you record your demo tapes? What do you recall from these recording season at the studio at Birmingham, and at the radio session in Wolverhampton?

Steve - Not sure on the date of the demo in Birmingham Early 80’s anyway, but I remember it was a quick get in, record 3 tracks and get out……….. Studio time was expensive even then.  Then we got an interview invitation from Beacon radio in Wolverhampton so on the back of that we recorded 3 more songs in their studio.

Mick - All I can remember is that it was the early 80s we did a recording season at the studio at Birmingham and got our radio session off the back of that in which we were interviewed and we recorded 3 songs live in the radio station’s studio.

Q. - Did you sell the demo at shows, send it to fanzines? What feedback did you receive from this demo?

Steve - No, we didn’t sell any of the demo tapes, but I think we sent one of the tracks “Spirits of the frontline” to one of the musical papers NME or Melody Maker Metal chart and we made No 6 just behind Motorhead………lol

Mick - It was a different world then we didn’t do any merchandise or sell our demo. We were just 5 guys in it for the ride.

Q. - Did you try to approach a record deal at that time for Nightstalker?

Steve - No, we were just enjoying what we were doing.

Mick - We sent cassettes off to various record companies but never really pushed ourselves any further than that. We should’ve recruited a manager!

Q. - When did "Nightstalker" split up exactly? What happened that lead to the split?

Steve - We split in the early 80’s, I left the band because my heart had gone out of it, I loved the guys and still do, we had a great time and I wouldn’t change a thing, but musical differences played a big part in me leaving.

Mick - It was literally the old cliché, musical differences. We all had good personal relationships but there were some members that wanted to do more covers than originals and the band lost its spark.

Q. - What do you think that lacked to "Nightstalker" to have a successful career?

Mick - To have a successful career in the music industry is a rarity and requires 110% commitment, originality, and being in the right place at the right time. We had day jobs and distractions so you can’t have both.

Steve - As mick has already said commitment is No1 in the music business then its 99% luck after that.

Q. - What other bands did you play after Nightstalker? Tell us a bit about it please.

Steve - I never joined another band after Nightstalker, in fact I left the music business completely and trained to be a Graphic Designer, I now live in Spain doing just that.

Mick - As I mentioned I did about a year with Cloven Hoof in the mid 80s. I later joined a band called “Shock Promise” with Liam Doherty whom I mentioned earlier along with Andy Smith on drums. We were playing quite a few support slots with “Dumpy’s Rusty Nuts” and Dumpy asked Andy and I if we would like to join the band. DRN were very popular and used to sell out the Marquee club in London on 2 consecutive nights. They had a cult following so we joined DRN and I played with them during the late 80s early 90s

Q. – And what do you feel about the interest in Nightstalker after all these years?

Steve - To be honest a little bewildered, but it’s great to think that our music that was made so long ago is still appreciated.

Mick - It’s good to know that even after all these years that the music we wrote still hasn’t jaded and is exposed to a whole new audience.

Q. - What do you think of this recent revival of the N.W.O.B.H.M., and all these bands reforming?

Steve - I think it’s great, I’m still a big N.W.O.B.H.M and I always will be.

Mick - It’s good to know that the NWOBHM still has a pulse and is enjoyed by a new generation. It’s also great that these bands are reforming after such a long time but seeing as our band is spread across England, Spain and Australia, we are not going to reform.

Q. - Would you like to say anything more, to end up this interview?

Steve - Just thanks for taking an interest in Nightstalker and our long forgotten music, and I hope the people who listen to the cd enjoy it as much as we did.

Mick - Thanks for sharing an interest in “Nightstalker” and opening the door for a new audience to enjoy our music.

Thank you for your time, and wish you all the best for the future!