The Hardly Middle Class Band was not just about music, it was about attitude. Five guys, hardly middle class, writing some great tunes and laying ’em down. Rock, with a touch of jazz and a good feel.
LaGrange Illinois not exactly a world renouned place for musicians to meet, but that is where the band known as Hardly Middle Class begins. All the members of Hardly Middle Class (HMC) lived in LaGrange in the late 1960s and 1970s. All attended Cossitt Avenue Middle School and Lyons Township High School (LTHS).
As described elsewhere on this website, John Robbins, Jay Anderson and Jimmy Coman met in high school and performed together in 1971 and 1972. In 1977 they reunited.
Pat Herlehy, Mike O’Connor and Kevin O’Connor had played together for several years at the El Crusto Rusto Studio on South Stone Avenue in LaGrange. Although several years younger than Jay, Jim and John, their musical styles all meshed well together.
Jim was trying to get a band together with Jay Anderson in 1977. John eventually joined in, as did Mike O’Connor and Pat Herlehy. That band became HARDLY MIDDLE CLASS with the following line-up:
Jay Anderson: bass guitar, acoustic guitar, vocals
Jimmy Coman: lead guitar, vocals
Pat Herlehy: lead guitar, vocals
Mike O’Connor: drums, vocals
John Robbins: keyboards, rhythm guitar, vocals HARDLY MIDDLE CLASS (HMC) played in and around the Chicago area for a little over a year, achieving a reputation as a good solid rock band with a sound that drew influences from Steely Dan, the Doobie Brothers and the Mother’s Of Invention. During many jam sessions, Kevin O’Connor sat in on bass and guitar (hence his contributions to the recordings on the Hardly Middle Class CD). Unfortunately, HMC was not commercially successful. But, during their short time together they managed to produce a stunning collection of recordings. These recording have been unavailable for years, but are finally available in 2006 on the CD Hardly Middle Class “Overcooked”