Farewell, Tom Hark! Fans grieve for singer ‘Boring’ Bob Grover

Tributes have been paid to the Brighton singer and guitarist Bob Grover who is reported to have died on Christmas Eve.

Grover, who lived in Hanover, was the frontman of the Piranhas and at the forefront of the thriving punk scene in Brighton in 1977.

Among the long-gone venues they played were the Alhambra, the Vault, Jenkinson’s, the Richmond and the Northern.

He was known as Boring Bob Grover but, as the many tributes have made clear, he was really lovely Bob Grover, generous with his time, energy and talents.

He wrote his own lyrics for the infectious instrumental 1950s kwela song Tom Hark and turned it into a classic that remains familiar from a thousand sport stadiums across the country and around the world.

The Piranhas’ version reached number 2 in the pop charts in 1980, with the single selling more than 250,000 copies, and the band appeared on Top of the Pops on BBC1. They were in the charts again two years later with Zambezi.

In 2005, Grover gave his blessing for a reworked version of Tom Hark with words by Attila the Stockbroker in support of Brighton and Hove Albion’s campaign for a stadium at Falmer.

The song was released by a specially formed Brighton band, Seagulls Ska, and – as Tom Hark (We Want Falmer) – reached number 17 in the UK singles chart.

It was released by Skint Records – the football club’s sponsor – and raised money for Albion’s Alive and Kicking Fund as well as awareness for the stadium campaign with a public inquiry about to begin.

Grover and the Piranhas played Tom Hark at Falmer for the first league match at the new ground in August 2011.

John Baine, 67, from Southwick, better known as the punk poet Attila the Stockbroker, posted on Facebook: “Very sad news. Just heard that Bob Grover of the Piranhas has died.

“Lovely bloke: knew him for nearly 50 years. One of the very first Brighton punk bands in 1977, part of the legendary Vault scene and on the first Vaultage album.

“Saw them there, then many times at their legendary Alhambra ‘residency’, followed them to the Marquee in London, booked them at Kent Uni and decades later the new version for Glastonwick.

“Great, fun band, with some serious messages too: their first album was an absolute classic.

“And, of course, I rewrote the lyrics of their Tom Hark hit as a rallying call as part of the campaign for our new stadium at Falmer.

“And as Seagulls Ska, we (my band Barnstormer, Too Many Crooks, actor Ralph Brown and a choir of BHAFC activists including the legendary Paul ‘Out Of Tune’ Samrah) got to Number 17 in the charts on 15 January 2005 with Tom Hark (We Want Falmer) and would have been on Top Of The Pops if Busted hadn’t split up.

“We raised a lot of money and awareness for our campaign. RIP, Bob.”

Former Piranhas member John Helmer said: “Gutted to hear my old bandmate, the legend Bob Grover, died over Christmas. Short of words just now to describe how I feel.”

Peter Bywaters, from another local band Peter and the Test Tube Babies, posted: “We are extremely saddened to hear about the death of Brighton legend and old friend Bob Grover, singer of the Piranhas.

“It was the Piranhas who probably influenced us the most and they certainly helped us a lot in the early days.

“I remember when Derek (Derek ‘Strangefish’ Greening) and I would hitch from Peacehaven to Brighton every Sunday to watch them at the Alhambra. I think our first ever gig was supporting them at the Richmond in early 1978.

“They were a fantastic band and very much loved. Bob was such a lovely guy too.

“We would like to express our condolences to Bob’s family and close friends. You will be greatly missed Bob.”

The Piranhas’ original drummer Richard Adland, known as Dick Slexia, died of lung cancer in 2018.

Yesterday and today, tributes were also paid to Grover on North Stand Chat.