Dear Fans: I got most of the way through preparing this for release on BandCamp before it suddenly dawned on me that the bassist here was Neil Murray－not Richard (who left NH the week before). Yikes. I guess I might as well Share It with Richard's best fans anyway, as some of you might be National Health fans too.
-Robert



This stripped-down National Health line-up was essentially Hatfield and The North... with Neil playing bass.
www.guitars101.com/threads/national-health-1977-11-16-hull-uk-master.733817/#post-3468337
www.giginjapan.com/national-health-77live-at-hull-uk/

The "Also Sprach" at the beginning is off Portsmouth Sinfonia's debut album released in '73.
www.discogs.com/master/32830-Portsmouth-Sinfonia-Plays-The-Popular-Classics

The music scene in England was changing rapidly, and so-called "progressive" bands were most certainly NOT in style. This was the advent of punk and new wave, so record companies had very little interest in bands like National Health. Fortunately there were still enough fans of the two wonderful Hatfield and the North albums to follow keenly the exploits of Dave Stewart, Phil Miller and Pip Pyle who were the common links between the two bands.

By the time that they performed at Hull University, National Health had transitioned from a seven-person band with twin guitars and keyboards (and a singer) down to a tight instrumental quartet. The bassist for the Hull gig was Neil Murray, who appeared on the first album, but was soon to be replaced by John Greaves for the next tour in the Spring of 1978.

The material that was played was unfamiliar to the audience since the band's first album had yet to be released. However the musicians had already moved on, and most the selections contained here appeared ultimately on 'Queues And Cures', which was the band's second album. The exceptions were the rousing finale, "Tenemos Roads", which appeared on their debut album, and also a piece that traced back to the earliest days of the band in 1975. "The Lethargy Shuffle and the Mind-Your-Backs Tango" is a quirky, humorous track that was unreleased until 1995's 'Missing Pieces' where it appears in demo form with the original line-up.

The concert was recorded secretly (along with other shows like Phil Manzanera's 801, and also Van Der Graaf) with a pair of microphones hidden in the ceiling of the Hull refectory (dining hall) where the concerts took place. The 801 show was in fact released later as an official bootleg, although the vocals did not fare that well in the mix. Thanks to Alan James for booking the band, Ian for the recording (this is directly from the master cassette recording), Alan Gibbs for the BBC recording, and Tom Shyman for the mastering. Most of all, thanks to the band for a great concert!
- David Ashcraft