Early Years
It was formed in 1972 by childhood friends Dave Murray and Adrian Smith. Along with bassist John Hoye and various drummers, they learned their first songs and entered a few local talent competitions and played their first gig's in Hoye's school.
Early in 1974 Murray decided to leave and join a 'proper' band and Smith and Hoye met up with guitarist Maurice Coyne who was a friend of a friend. After a jam session in Hoye's school hall, they decided to form a band and Evil Ways was reborn. A drummer Barry Tyler then joined the band. After gigging around local pubs they decided that they needed a singer/frontman, and recruited Dubliner David Hall.
By this time Evil Ways were playing regularly at most of the well known London venues. In August 1976 they were signed by Nomis/Morgan (owned by Simon Napier-Bell) who changed the band's name to Urchin, and got them a recording contract with DJM Records. Their first single was going to be 'Without Love', written by Dave Hall, with "Rocka Rolla" (the Judas Priest song) as the B-side. They were recorded in a studio in Denmark Street, London but were never released. Soon after, Hoye left the band and was replaced by Alan Levett (an old school friend of Tyler's).
Read more about this topic: Urchin (band)
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