Three brilliant albums by the Buff Medways, neatly contained in one box, complete with booklet! The albums are "Steady The Buffs", "1914", and "Medway Wheelers". Buffs leader Billy Childish kindly answered a few questions about the band_ Q: The Buff Medways were formed quickly after Thee Headcoats split. What was it like working with a new rhythm section? A: We were in the studio recording the last Headcoats pieces then swapped rhythm section halfway through and the Buffs recorded their first 45. So, a very quick change over, five minutes. Q: What bands would you say were the biggest influence on the Buffs' sound? A: The rhythm section really, wolf and Johnny (Barker) liked the Who, so I tried to write to suite them. (They had played in The Daggermen, and I produced their first 45 along with Big Russ, so I'd been a fan of The Daggermen, who were fans of the Milkshakes. Johnny and Wolf are good few years younger than me.) Q: Graham Day was previously in the Prisoners; can you remember the first time you met him? A: I met Graham through Bruce - he brought him and Allan round to a Milkshakes rehearsal. They had been fans of the Pop Rivets when they were kids. Graham joined the Buffs on bass when Johnny left. Graham also played drums for Thee Mighty Caesars when Bruce left that group. Q: Who had the idea of wearing military uniforms? Did you have a favourite one? A: That was also based on The Daggermen, via Jimi Hendrix (thou I did wear an old artillery jacket in Thee Headcoats at times). I quite like our summer kit (loosely Australian great war period). Though technically that was The Musicians of the British Empire. We changed the name when Graham couldn't make it to Australia and Julie had to learn the bass overnight. Q: Steady The Buffs and 1914 were originally released on Graham Coxon's Transcopic label. How did that come about? A: Graham used to come to Thee Headcoats' shows with the Huggy Bear mob, who were fans. Graham was dating one of them and asked if we'd do a 45 for his label. It got a bit officious with his then label manager who wanted me to sign a contract to "protect" Cocky. I said, "surely we were the ones who needed protecting." A few years down the line Thee Headcoats had split - Cocky had a new label manager, Jamie, who didn't need a contract, so we agreed to cut a 45 or two - then they wanted an LP as well. Q: A lot of people will have fond memories of The Buffs playing at The Dirty Water Club in Tufnell Park. What are your main memories of those gigs? A: Loading the old ambulance, driving, unloading - the playing bit in the middle - then loading, driving, unloading and bed at three in the morning. I was chief packer/driver. (I don't think Dick Scum - from Armitage Shanks - was driving us at that time), plus we had no roadies. Other bits - laughing a lot, flasks of tea, being fed hummus pitta bread by Julie as I drove us home. Q: Were The Buff Medways the greatest group ever to be named after a breed of chicken? A: According to all accounts indeed they were.

STEADY THE BUFFS
1 - Troubled Mind
2 - Dawn Said
3 - A Strange Kind of Happyness
4 - Archive From 1959
5 - Time's up
6 - Sally Sensation
7 - Vanessa Does Favours
8 - Strood Lights
9 - Misty Water
10 - Well Well
11 - You Piss Me Off
12 - Ivor

1914
1 - Unable to See the Good
2 - All My Feelings Denied
3 - Sonya Fagg
4 - Evidence Against Myself
5 - The Least Disappointing Man
6 - Just 15
7 - Nurse Julie
8 - Saucy Jack
9 - Mons Quiff (Instrumental)
10 - Barbara Wire
11 - You Are All Phonies
12 - Caroline

MEDWAY WHEELERS
1 - The Man I Am
2 - A Distant Figure of Jon
3 - Karen With a C
4 - 22 Weeks
5 - Dustbin Mod (Instrumental)
6 - Medway Wheelers
7 - (I'm a) Lie Detector
8 - Private View
9 - The Poet's Dream
10 - You're out the Band Sunshine
11 - Poundland Poets
12 - I'm Glad I'm Not Like David Wise