Tygers of Pan Tang

Who would have thought that the Tygers of Pan Tang would still be making records and playing shows over 40 years after their initial inception? Certainly not main man and sole surviving original member Robb Weir. ‘I was a fan of heavy rock who wanted to make his own music’ he said recently. ‘Last year when I walked on stage in Dusseldorf in front of 4,000 people it occurred to me that it had gone rather well!’

The original band, who made 4 albums for MCA records, survived the unexpected departure of Jess Cox to run Neat records and later John Sykes, who was bound for Thin Lizzy and Whitesnake. What they didn’t survive was their greatest commercial success with the album ‘The Cage’ and the arguments with their record company that would follow. However, Weir, ever the optimist, formed a new version of the band to both play the old material and write songs that would represent this ‘new’ Tygers. The backbone of the band – Craig Ellis, drums together with Jack Meille, vocals and Gav Gray, bass – have now been together for considerably longer than the first Tygers and were recently joined by Francesco Marras on guitar. Lengthy auditions had to ensure that Francesco could walk in the same shoes as his illustrious predecessors. Anyone coming to see the band will hear how successful that process was.

With the recent renewal of their contract with Mighty Music, the label that has released their last two albums, and a return to live work, Robb and the band cannot wait to get back on the road. Expect a setlist peppered with tunes from the early albums including the now recognised gem ‘Spellbound’ together with the best of their recent catalogue.