TANNED LEATHER

Tanned Leather biography

TANNED LEATHER are a German Psychedelic/ Space rock band that released 2 albums in the 1970s that have become quite obscure and difficult to find. The band lineup consisted of Alf Gardner on lead vocals, Herbert Ihle on harmony vocals, Dicky Mude on harmony vocals, Andy Marx on guitars, Rainer Pietsch on bass, Jim Cannon on drums, and there was a collaboration with Hans Jurgen Fritz from TRIUMVIRAT, playing piano as a guest musician on the debut.

Their debut "Child of Never Ending Love" was released in 1972 on Germanafon Labels. "Saddle Soap" was released in 1976 on EMI Labels with the same lineup but no guest musicians.

The band began music life as THE SINGING END and then morphed into TANNED LEATHER. EMI contracted them for several record productions under the new band name. They recorded several singles as well as the two albums. Rainer Pietsch became involved as arranger in many important international productions, such as VANGELIS, ELO and QUEEN. He died of a heart attack in 1998. Herbert Ihle works as a studio and tour singer. Alf Gardener alias Wolfgang Emperhoff lives in Munich and works for Ralph Siegel. He has refined countless Siegel productions as a background vocalist.

The band should appeal to those into Space Rock psychedelic 1970s sounds, and, although difficult to get, the albums have been hailed as excellent examples of the musical genre.


---AtomicCrimsonRush (Scott Tuffnell)---