Scots band’s only single is £1k hit 35 years on

Kenny Hanlon, centre, in 1979 with Rough Edge, the band he was with before Glory Hunters. Picture: Hemedia

Rock group Glory Hunter did not live up to their name in their brief lifetime, when their biggest claim to fame was coming second to an ELO tribute band at a talent contest in Perth.

The four members pooled their resources to record their debut single Thoughts of Destiny in 1979 but split just weeks later amid “personality problems” and that most classic excuse for band break-ups, “musical differences”.

But the little-known outfit from Livingston, West Lothian, has finally achieved rock immortality, as their single has become a ‘holy grail’ target for vinyl collectors.

Kenny Hanlon, 59, from Livingston, with his record. Picture: Hemedia

Only 1,000 copies were pressed, and examples rarely come up for sale. One sold for £1,090 on eBay in 2011 and another has just been listed at collectors’ site 991.com for £895.

It is currently listed as the most valuable single on their books, ahead of classics by the Beatles, the Rolling Stones, Jimi Hendrix and Bruce Springsteen, and described as “rarer than hen’s teeth” by one expert.

Grandfather and father-of-five Kenny, 59, the original lead singer, said: “I suppose I should be chuffed, but to be honest I’m more mystified.

“I’ve absolutely no idea why a single by an unknown band from Scotland that fell apart a few weeks after recording their only single should be so valuable.

“When I first saw the record had sold for over £1,000 on eBay I thought it was a wind-up. I couldn’t take it in.

“We had 1,000 copies pressed and we paid for the whole thing ourselves. We didn’t have a record deal or anything.

“We sold a few copies at gigs but the band split up before we had a chance to get a distribution deal.”

Kenny was about 24 when he joined the band in early 1979, which comprised Derek Hawthorne on guitar, Tam Mollins on bass and Stuart Tennant on drums.

They played a handful of concerts and took part in a Scottish Rock Band of the Year competition in Perth, where they came second.

Kenny said: “We were quite organised and we decided to finance the single ourselves. We paid for the studio time, the pressing, everything.

“But there were already tensions within the band when I joined and a few weeks after the single came out the bass player and the drummer left.

“Let’s just say there were a few musical differences and personality problems going on.”

Jon Ashby of 991.com said: “There is very little information for this release. It was an extremely limited press and sold by the band only at their gigs and comes in a plain company sleeve as there were no picture sleeves produced.

“Very few rock fans have even heard of Glory Hunter. They were categorised in a movement which became known as the New Wave of British Heavy Metal, which was spearheaded by Iron Maiden.

“It’s unusual for such a little-known band to become so collectible. Copies of this single are rarer than hen’s teeth.”