Name: The Guilty Men
Start: 2026-03-12T19:00:00+00:00
Location: Artisan Tap, 552 Hartshill Rd, Stoke-on-Trent

The band’s debut single ‘Susan’s Back Drinking’ was released in August 2024 and picked up airplay on over 50 UK radio stations. The video for ‘Susan’ was filmed in Colorado, and was directed by Award-winning filmmaker Nigel Dick, known for producing the Britney Spears video ‘…Baby One More Time’, Band-Aid, ‘Do They Know It’s Christmas?’, Oasis, ‘Wonderwall’, and videos for R.E.M, Cher, McCartney, Tears for Fears and more.
When released in September 2024, “Invisible Confetti” entered the Amazon Top 50 Rock Album chart. The group then set out on a mini UK tour in December 2024, visiting major cities including Glasgow, Birmingham, Newcastle Upon Tyne and Sheffield.
‘Dangerous Girl’ penned by Clive Gregson became the second single from the album. Released in January 2025 and again received good radio support in the UK. This was followed by a very successful 20-date UK tour including some sold out shows. Criss crossing across the country the guys clocked up over 4,000 miles!
The Guilty Men are currently in the studio writing and recording new songs for their second album and will be playing more UK live dates during October and November 2025.
The band is made up of five of the finest musicians from the Northwest of England. Between them, they have played over 10,000 gigs on planet Earth, recorded thousands of songs and made countless radio and TV appearances. To say they’re experienced would be an understatement!
The story starts in 1979, in Manchester, England. Clive Gregson and Neil Cossar met through a mutual friend, John Martin, the bassist in The Cheaters… Neil was the band’s guitarist. Clive was the leader of Any Trouble. The Cheaters had a PA, Any Trouble owned a van. It made sense to pool resources, often with both bands on the same bill… happy days!
Any Trouble signed to Stiff Records, The Cheaters signed to EMI. Both bands released several albums and played thousands of shows. Both bands ran their course… Clive then went on to a successful partnership with singer Christine Collister, released over 20 solo albums, and spent 15 years in Nashville working as a session musician and producer. Clive has toured and recorded with various artists including Richard Thompson, Eddi Reader, Dennis Locorriere and Nanci Griffith. Neil became a radio DJ, formed a Music PR company and launched the online brand This Day in Music, before becoming a music book publisher.
Cut to 2021… lifelong friends Clive and Neil are catching up over lunch and thought it might be fun to try and write some songs together… Several weeks and quite a few songs later, they decided to expand the enterprise from a songwriting workshop to a full blown band. Clive recruited keyboardist Jez Smith and bassist Craig Fletcher from John Lees’ Barclay James Harvest… and the lineup was completed with the addition of legendary drummer, Paul Burgess, who has played with 10cc since 1973, (as well as working with Jethro Tull, John Cooper Clarke, The Icicle Works, Chris Farlowe, Joan Armatrading and Chuck Berry). They named the band The Guilty Men… and headed into the recording studio.
Cut to 2024… and The Guilty Men’s debut album “Invisible Confetti” is ready to roll. 13 brand new songs recorded in the old-fashioned way: everybody playing live in the studio, intent on catching the moment. Most of the songs were laid down in no more than 2 or 3 takes… and with four featured lead vocalists, the album covers a lot of musical bases. “Invisible Confetti” rocks… with nods to Americana, country, folk, pop, psychedelia… it’s an exhilarating ride from start to finish.