A folk-rock trio consisting of two men and one woman, Tony, Caro and John committed the exceedingly scarce All on the First Day to tape in 1972. The group drew considerable influence from the whimsical, leprechaun-inflected folk-rock style pioneered by the Incredible String Band, although the songs penned by Tony Doré—who also handled most lead vocals—tended toward more straightforward melodic structures than those of the ISB. His singing likewise echoed the timbre found on the Scottish ensemble’s earliest releases. The trio frequently augmented their core male-female vocal blend and the straightforward electric-guitar, acoustic-guitar and bass configuration with occasional psychedelic flourishes: electronic treatments, delicate percussion accents, flageolet passages, wah-wah effects and violin lines. Even so, the album maintains a distinct identity. Its tone, at once gently sardonic and lightheartedly playful, combined with sturdy melodies that fluidly merge major and minor keys, renders the music more accessible to listeners accustomed to mainstream rock and pop than the work of the Incredible String Band or contemporaneous acts such as Forest and Dr. Strangely Strange.
Tony Doré and bassist John Clark first encountered each other during boyhood in Derby, England, where they performed together in both rock outfits and on the folk circuit. After enrolling at university in 1967 they pursued divergent musical paths, only to reconnect in 1970 when Clark relocated to London and joined Tony and Caro Doré, who had already been performing together at university folk clubs. The tracks that comprise All on the First Day were captured on rudimentary equipment—Clark’s own tape recorder—and mono overdubs could be achieved solely by simultaneously re-recording the backing track. The resulting LP was pressed privately in an edition of 100 copies and attracted scant attention. Adding Simon Burrett on lead guitar, Jonny Owen on harmonica and Rod Jones on keyboards, the core members continued briefly under the name Forever and Ever, though that ensemble produced no recordings. As careers and domestic responsibilities intervened, the original trio ceased live performances yet periodically resumed studio work together.
Shadoks Music re-released All on the First Day in 2002, appending five bonus tracks recorded around the same period or shortly thereafter. The reissue broadened the band’s cult following and introduced their music to fresh listeners. Beach House drew sufficient inspiration from the catalog to adapt “The Snowdon Song” for their 2006 debut album, retitling the piece “Lovelier Girl” and resolving royalty matters with the surviving members after bassist Clark’s passing in 2005. Drag City issued Blue Clouds, a set of outtakes and live recordings from the All on the First Day era, in 2012. In 2017 Gaarden and Tapete again reissued the original album, this time without additional tracks but accompanied by fresh liner notes contributed by Tony Doré. To celebrate the release, Tony and Caro embarked on their first tour in four decades, once more accompanied by Simon Burrett and Jonny Owen.
