Artist:    Overend Watts

Title:      He’s Real Gone

File:       Rock/Pop

Released to digital sales sites on October 3rd 2025

Released shortly after the former Mott The Hoople/British Lions bassist’s death in 2017, this is an inventive and diverse solo set of semi-autobiographical compositions that pick through Overend Watts’s life for inspiration.

While it’s very much ‘solo’ in that, backing vocals, guitar and programming from Phil Hendricks apart, everything is performed by Watts, from dulcimer to banjo, keyboards, percussion and synth-guitar to vocals, yet the production values are such that ‘He’s Real Gone’ comes across as a polished, band effort.

Pop, prog rock, psych are all here, the songs invested on occasion with a wry humour (carp fishing is here!), marked by Overend changing deftly the album title from after opening track “She’s Real Gone” upon realising he would not be alive to see the finished product released.

“… closes out with an original demo of “Born In ’58” featuring Dale Griffin and Morgan Fisher, which still hits as hard now as it did on the Mott’s The Hoople album back in 1974. Strangely, if unsurprisingly, it also fits the devil may care attitude of this album perfectly.”  Sea of Tranquillity

TRACKS

 

  1. She’s Real Gone (4:16)
  2. The Dinosaw Market (5:52)
  3. Caribbean Hate Song (3:29)
  4. He’d Be A Diamond (3:31)
  5. The Legend Of Redmire Pool (3:59)
  6. Prawn Fire On Uncle Sheep Funnel (6:10)
  7. Belle Of The Boot (5:10)
  8. There’s Berkeley Power Station (5:08)
  9. The Magic Garden (3:59)
  10. Endless Night (3:06)
  11. Rise Up (4:08)
  12. The Search (5:00)
  13. Miss Kingston (2:40)
  14. Born Late 58 (demo) (4:24)