Scottish band 'Writing On The Wall' made it big on the underground rock scene in the late 1960's through a highly dramatic stage act.
They regularly played the Middle Earth club, went on tour with the likes of Ten Years After, held a lengthy residency at the Marquee where they were supported by up and coming acts such as Wishbone Ash. As others retreated to "be-denimed slothfulness" Writing On The Wall became more theatrical, featuring choreographed fights, dressing up as a Caveman, a High Priest, a Monk and a Witchfinder, and the destruction of a Bubble car in support of the recently introduced breathalyser test.
Melody Maker felt sufficiently disturbed to comment that the band had "the reputation of being violent to frightening extremes". However John Peel was suitably impressed and the band recorded two Top Gear sessions for Radio 1.
Disc One of our release are the LP ('Power Of The Picts') and single as released on the Middle Earth label in 1969. For Disc Two we have compiled the 'best of' the remaining tracks and demos the band laid down up to their break-up in 1973 which survived on acetates. This includes the six and a half minute version of their most fully realised creation, the, by turns, menacing and elegiac Buffalo (a truncated and muted version of which was released by Dawn in 1972).
Disc 1 - Power Of The Picts
It Came On A Sunday / Mrs Cooper's Pie / Ladybird / Aries / Bogeyman / Shadow Of Man / Tasker's Successor / Hill Of Dreams / Virginia Water / Child On A Crossing / Lucifer Corpus / 1-9 Power Of The Picts LP 1969 / 10-11 Single A/B 1969
Disc 2 - Buffalo
Buffalo / Felicity Jane / Nobody Knows / Henry Dawson / Tripsy Lady / Bellyful Of Rock (Live) / Man Of Renown (Live) / Dianes Big Daddy / Live And Learn / Dream Yourself A Hero / Fishers Of Men Recorded 1971/72 / Except 2 - 1968 / 5,6,7- 1973
