In June 1973, a little trio from Cardiff in Wales called Budgie released their third album “Never Turn Your Back on a Friend.” Recorded at the legendary Rockfield Studios, this album firmly cemented their legacy as a dynamic force to be reckoned with in the Hard Rock movement of the early seventies. With their music being covered by the likes of Van Halen, Iron Maiden and Metallica, it is clear that Budgie have left an enduring mark upon the music world as we know it.
“Never Turn Your Back on a Friend” built upon the hard rocking and progressive elements of their first two records, helped along nicely by the now legendary opening song “Breadfan.”
Tragically in 2022, their lead singer, bassist and founding member Burke Shelley passed away at the age of 71. Now in 2023, exactly fifty years after it’s original release, we plan to pay tribute to this awesome album.
Watch the preview through the YouTube player below:
So what is this release all about?
Pale Wizard Records is a labour of love for its co-founders Tim Hilleard and Dan Flitcroft. We release music that we love and find interesting. In 2021 we released our first “50 Years Later” LP which was a tribute to the classic Alice Cooper album “Killer.” This was followed up with last year’s tribute to Bowie‘s incredible “Ziggy Stardust.” We intend for the “50 Years Later” series to continue paying tribute to amazing albums that deserve attention. We enlist a fantastic roster of hard-working bands from the underground heavy rock scene. Some of which we’ve shared the stage with ourselves, some of which we have previously admired from afar. We aim to release at-least one “50 Years Later” LP per year, charting classic albums right through the 1970’s and beyond. In fact, we have already begun work on the release for 1974, can anyone guess what that will be?!
Who’s involved?
We’re thrilled to announce this epic lineup of acts to be taking part in this release:
Admiral Sir Cloudesley Shovell
Each band will be taking on one of the songs in their own style. All of the songs have already been completed and we’re so pleased with how they sound! We will be featuring different bands throughout the Kickstarter campaign so you can get to learn more about them and also hear their connections and feelings regarding this project and Budgie.
Who is the artist?
We’re delighted to announce that Sara-Jane Swettenham has once again undertaken all the art and record design for this project. The beautiful interpretation of the Budgie (which features on the original Roger Dean sleeve and others besides) was hand drawn in charcoal. She has also produced a number of other pieces which will be included in the CD and vinyl packaging that we are keeping secret for now so as not to spoil the excitement!
What are the rewards?
The album will be released on digital, CD and a number of different vinyl colours in June 2023 (exactly 50 years later!). There doesn’t appear to be a universally accepted exact date in June for the original release, so we’ll just say June for now! This Kickstarter campaign is to help raise the funds to manufacture the records and pay for the associated licensing involved. We have put together some cool packages including some Kickstarter exclusive rewards which won’t be available at any other time.
Below are the colour vinyl variants on offer. Bare in mind, the Kickstarter Exclusive Version will not be available at any other time so don’t hang around if you want that one.
The Kickstarter page: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/palewizard/budgie-never-turn-your-back-on-a-friend-50-years-later