What about The Winkies?
Fronted by Canadian vocalist Phil Rambow, a sort of Ian Hunter-ish, rock n'roll troubadour type figure, and featuring guitarist Guy Humphrys on Keef-style riffs, the Winkies played the rock pub and club circuit in that period of the mid 1970's when many English rock fans were starting to lose their appetite for the excesses of prog and stadium rock and pub-rock was thriving by providing a back-to-basics, return-to-roots alternative. Essentially a r n'b, rock n'roll band, they had a leanness to their sound and a meanness to their attitude (not to mention Faces-style satin jackets and scarves) that set them apart from most of the cheesecloth shirt brigade. I can remember a couple of blistering gigs at the Marquee, around 1974/1975. Bizarrely, I've always felt, they first came to prominence in the UK as Eno's backing band, and I think there's an Eno Peel session with them on it. Of their own stuff, tracks to look out for are ‘Trust in Dick' and ‘Davey's Blowtorch' from their eponymous first and only album, the cover of which, incidentally, features a crotch-level shot of some blokes (the band?) in too-tight swimming trunks. Unfortunately they split (the band, not the trunks) soon after the release of the album in 1975. They were never going to change the world, but I do feel that they deserved more of a go of it, something along the lines of the Feelgoods or Graham Parker - maybe sign to Stiff, put out a couple of decent albums towards the end of the decade.

I wonder if he is too recent/not "Unsung" enough. BUT here goes:

Matthew Jay was a Welsh singer-songwriter who began to make waves right at the start of the new millennium. After a couple of EPs, he released his only album, Draw in 2001. Ironically in retrospect, many reviewers at the time drew comparisons with Nick Drake and Eliot Smith, although - to my ears - his songs are closer to David Gray, Beth Orton or Turin Breaks. The uptempo single from the album, Let Your Shoulder Fall was a moderate radio hit, but didn't really trouble the charts. It is a nicely captures Jay's charms: a keening choir boy voice, a strong melody and lyrics, accompanied by sparse piano and some light electronic treatments portraying the feeling of a bittersweet love affair. Other good tracks on the album include Call my Name Out: after some backward tape effects, an insistent acoustic guitar motif kicks in and the song builds up to a guitar and piano driven stomp reminiscent of Stephen Stills around the time of his first album.

Given consequent events it is too easy (and simplistic) to look for warning signs, but certainly the short expletive strewn, Four Minute Rebellion certainly contains a lot of disillusioned bile:

"Three more inches of hair
Is a whole fucking world
Of rebellion
Happy happy, I will forget
So many things which are bad
Which leaves me only with good thoughts"

In 2003, after being dropped by EMI, Jay died from a seven storey fall from a North London apartment block. Although the exact circumstances leading up to the fall are still not clear, suicide was one of the main probabilities. Coincidently, this tragic event occurred two weeks before Elliot Smith's death.

Although there have been a few quality posthumous releases, including an album, unlike many performers - particularly good looking young males - that die in such circumstances, Matthew Jay has not attracted much of a cult following. It's a pity as his music IS worth rediscovering.

Glasgow band, let down by a terrible name, I reckon. Great debut album on Island in the late 80s called Mother Nature's Kitchen - 12 songs, every one a classic.

Saw them live once when they were doing a series of dates at The Borderline in about '89 and it's still one of my top gigs. I thought they were going to be huge, but I think selling out Barrowlands was probably as good as it got. Shame.

I'va already done one for someone else, any one feel like stepping up for the power pop, Todd Rundgren-produced, harmony-tastic makers of Love Junk?

Love and Money? Jocelyn Square by them was fantastic

Ive submitted a little paragraph giving kudos to 'Life Without Buildings''. Any one recall them?

I always thought 'That Petrol Emotion' were destined for greatness, but what do I know?

At the risk of sounding like someone who has just come in on the Tardis, can I put up a hand for Golden Earring at this point? Despite having been around for as long as the Rolling Stones, despite having had two significant international hits (the ubiquitous "Radar Love" and -less well known these days - "Twilight Zone"), and despite apparently still being reasonably popular in Europe, they seem to be on nobody's radar in England. At all. Ever.

This is a bit of a mystery to me. These guys have done well over 30 albums, many of which are a good deal better than anything ever done by Oasis (sorry, showing my prejudices here). They sing moderately witty, "swaggeringly Stones like" rock songs in an English which is not acutely embarrassing. And they arguably have a number of bonafide rock classics buried in their monumental back catalogue.

I would still vote for "Long Blonde Animal" (an album possibly known in Europe as "Prisoner Of the Night")as one of the best powerpop records ever made, not that anyone seems to discuss powerpop anymore. I have affection for several other albums as well, "Moontan", "N.E.W.S.", "The Hole" and "The Naked Truth" in particular.

More intriguingly, Golden Earring have a number of elements in their make up that I would argue reward the fan. For one thing, they have actually changed quite a bit over the years. The prog-rock (quite good) of Moontan evolved into the power pop (even better) of "Long Blonde Animal" which evolved into a more stately (but not ponderous) kind of rock and roll that to these ears at least, effortlessly glides past most of the work done by the elderly rockbands of America.

While they have done frightening amounts of live albums (at least 6, all of which I have to admit I like) they have rarely put out a bad album. But the one thing that really intrigues me is that they have an absolutely phenomenal capacity to select album covers that are truly awful. I kid you not. They have never had a good one, with the possible exception of The Hole - which was just black, like Prince's Black Album. Can this explain their lack of acclaim? Can rubbish covers really consign you to the scrapheap forever?

Anyway, worth a visit. Same line up for thirty years, never sold out, quite accessible, liked by Pete Townshend - but unknown. Why?

The Cyril Dagworth Players made one album in 1976 on Pye produced by Tony Hatch and Des Parton.Line up consisted of Glenn ' Tally-Ho' Morgan, Cyril Dagworth(Des Parton), Roving Meg(George Glover), Wild Jock M'Clyde(Ron Smith), The Reverend Flash(John Wright) and Lord Joseph De Fagg(Peter Frampton).
They were almost like a rock version of the Bonzo's and I saw them a couple of times at the Shrewsbury College of Catering. The last time was a week or so before Des Parton hit the top of the charts with the cover of Stevie Wonder's 'Isn't She Lovely' as his alter ego of 'David Parton'.
The album has stood the test of time with 'Brixham Harbour' the stand out track. Des Parton had earlier composed the No.1 track, often found on 70's compilations called 'Sad Sweet Dreamer' for Sweet Sensation. According to Wikipedia he is still playing the Pubs and Clubs of North Staffordshire.
Peter Frampton is not the rock star of the same period.

I have devoted years of my life (to little effect, sadly) to spreading the word about The Chameleons, a brilliant band dogged - like so many others - by record company problems and management issues which meant they failed to capitalise on their promise (even with the patronage of Peel and eventually a deal with Geffen). At turns dour and melancholic, then upbeat and euphoric (um, well occasionally). Their signature sound revolved around fabulous ringing, chiming guitars, later borrowed by acts such as Kitchens Of Distinction and more recently you can hear their influence in the the likes of Editors and Interpol. First album Script Of The Bridge is slightly hobbled by a rather dated drum sound but the songs still stand up. Rarely a week goes by when I don't listen to something by the band. As a primer, check out Second Skin, Don't Fall, In Shreds, Perfumed Garden, Tears (the single version), Caution and Swamp Thing. As a general rule of thumb, I tend to find I am going to like a new acquaintance if I discover they hold a torch for The Chameleons. Their reunion in 2000 after 14 or so years apart is still probably the single most exciting live show I have seen.

Disparate Canadian outfit with predigious output.

I found them via Ryan Adams who collaborated with them last year on a live re-make of their 1988 album "Trinity" which also features Natalie Merchant and Vic Chesnutt.

If you're not sure if breathy, minimialist alt-country is for you, take a listen to their version of Lou Reed's "Sweet Jane" and I can almost guarantee you'll be converted.

What about Thirteen Moons? They were a fantastic Swedish band who released 3 brilliant albums between 1986 - 1993 and toured as support to Billy Bragg in '87 before disappearing off the radar.Anders Holm on guitar Mats Gunnarsson on sax and Goran Klintberg on vocals augmented by cellos, flugelhorns, suble synths, strings created some of my favourite music of the last 50 years.
Just listen to 'A True Story' the first track from their first album 'Little Dreaming Boy'with its delicate guitar intro followed by cello, synth and Goran Klintbergs vocals:- it's like Nick Drake being produced by Eno. Second album 'Origins' had lavish mini orchestrated instrumentals that sound like they were influenced by the old Robinson Crusoe TV theme played by the Prague Symphony Orchestra. Gorgeous, life affirming stuff.
Their final album 'You Will Find Mercy On Your Road' ended with the beautifully simple guitar and muted horn instrumental in memory of assassinated Swedish PM Olof Palme, full of longing and sadness.
Their albums are out of print , but a great compilation is available on itunes and is recommended to anyone with a taste for beautiful music that is both timeless and eternal.Given the ammount of great bands that have come out of sweden it is a crime that Thirteen Moons remain undiscovered and unsung.

If ever there has been a band bafflingly conspicuous by its absence from any collective hymn sheet of praise, then it is this one. Victims perhaps only of their own innate versatility, in the Stackridge canon can be found the lush, pastoral evocations of Vaughan Williams and Elgar; eccentricity; whimsy; 12 bar blues workouts; melodic pop tunes; songs about people falling in love with cows; alien invasions of Somerset and so much more.

So often classified as 'prog rock' or 'folk rock', in truth, Stackridge have never been either. This West Country band give truth to that cliche "they're unclassifiable". (There's always a reason why something becomes a cliche, y'know).

The first band to play at the first Glastonbury; a George Martin produced third album full of Beatleseque melodies and clever wordplay and still the public have thus far been largely unaware of their musicianly charms.

Reformed for the third time in 2007, with a forthcoming new CD on the way and playing at Glastonbury for the third time this summer, maybe it isn't too late for the public to clasp The 'Ridge to its bosom for the first time in '08? If they did, it'd be a hug they'd never want to break away from...

Key tracks: God Speed The Plough and Teatime (but there could be so many listed here).

Ade Macrow