Mick's Cats and Rooster Blues

Mick Hampshire lives in a boat moored on the River Medway, and has been making noise since ’81, making a nice stamp in the shape of Mickey and The Milkshakes, which led onto The / Thee Milkshakes. The Milkshakes were a very prolific group, with joint song-writing from Mick Hampshire and Billy Childish, drums bashed by Bruce Brand, and bass notes hit by Mark Gilbert / John Gawen / Russell Wilkins. A female variation followed the band, The Delmonas, which included Mick’s long-term partner, and musical collaborator, Miss Ludella Black. Following the demise of The Milkshakes, Mick has also released his musical wonders under Micky and the Salty Sea Dogs, and Mickey and Ludella. Mick currently raids sound systems with The Masonics, a stripped- back trio of guitar, bass and drums, mixing 60s Beat, Garage and Instrumental vibes, but with a Punk ethic, and has been since ’91... Not happy solely to wield a Burns guitar at an amazed audience, Mick is also a very talented painter and abstract artist. Some of his works can be seen on some of his record sleeves - including this very record! Armed only with his Grimshaw semi-acoustic guitar (unamplified), Mick played and sang through a single microphone, and the sound was crisply collected by a mobile recording device under the direction of long-term friend Kevin Younger (The High Span, Armitage Shanks, Ye Ascoyne d’Ascoynes, etc), in a back room. This twelve song recording is a one-take operation, and shows that there’s no stopping this man...