Tush (band)

Tush were an English rock band from London active during the 1970s, and featured current Def Leppard guitarist Phil Collen.

Formed in 1975 by George Junor (guitar), Mickey Tickton (bass) and Bob White (drums) under the name "Satisfaction", the band soon changed their name to "Tush", inspired by the ZZ Top song. The band recruited Tony Miles (guitar and vocal) to help provide a fuller and more contemporary sound.

The band dissolved when George decided to return to his native Scotland for family reasons in late 1977. Mickey Tickton promptly reformed the band with new members, although maintaining the name "Tush". Phil Collen, a guitarist in the punk rock band Lucy, had been a fan of the old band and approached Mickey about joining when he heard about his plans. The new line up consisted of Jeff Hepting (vocals), Phil Collen (guitar), Mickey Tickton (bass) and Fred Ball (drums).Jeff Hepting was soon sacked and replaced by Tony Miles, before "irreconcilable musical differences" between Phil and Mickey led to the permanent end of the band.

Tush played a mixture of rock covers and original songs, mainly written by George, Mickey and Tony. One song in particular, "Home", penned in 1976 by Mickey Tickton, was later used by Phil Collen's band Girl. For Girl the song was given new lyrics and the title changed to "Overnight Angels". The music and arrangement were virtually identical to "Home". Mickey was not credited on the Girl song.

Very little recorded material of Tush remains except for some tracks demo'ed by the original line-up in 1976. The original songs on the tape are: "Home", "Sweet Texas Baby" and "She's Gone".

Jeff Hepting, Phil Collen, Pete Webb (the bassist from "Lucy") and Fred Ball (later the vocalist for XFX) later played together in the band Dumb Blondes, managed by Victor Andretti - the former Tush manager.

So where are they now, as of 2008:

- George is living in Inverness, Scotland and working as a manager for a regional learning and development organisation. He continues to play in a local band, The Cut.

- Mickey Tickton is living in West Wales, earning a living as a local pest controller and continues to play in local bands.

- Bob(Robert)White, gave up playing drums and sold his kit to his older brother Jim (who still plays and teaches)in 1977 when he devoted his time to his new family. In 1983 he met a girl from New Zealand and after several visits migrated there in 1991. He now lives in Auckland and works as a Immigration Advisor and Director. Bob still has a copy of a live tape recorded live at the Spread Eagle pub in Hackney circa 1976 the night Tony Miles played with the band for the first time.

- Tony Miles is living in Cambridgeshire, England, working in software development and continues to play guitar in [http://www.freewebs.com/droogz Droogz]

- Phil Collen is living in the USA, having previously worked as a dispatch rider in the UK and now continues to play in Def Leppard and other projects.

- Fred Ball's, Jeff Hepting's and Vic Andretti's current whereabouts and circumstances are unknown.