Gravy Train was a progressive rock group from England, formed in Manchester in March 1969 by singer and guitarist Norman Barrett, they were active from 1969 to 1975. J. D. Hughes (sax, fl, keyb, voc), bassist Les Williams and drummer Barry Davenport, along with Barrett, had previously played in three different bands in the north of England. The quartet secured a record deal with Vertigo, a progressive sub-label of Philips/Phonogram that was still relatively new at the time. In 1970, they recorded their self-titled debut album at Olympic Sound Studios in London, produced by Jonathan Peel.

It was released at the end of the year with a cover design by Hipgnosis and impressed with high-quality psychedelic, partly bluesy hard rock, characterised by heavy guitar riffs, flute and saxophone sounds, and some keyboard elements. Largely instrumental, it offers a rather unique synthesis of styles such as Canterbury prog, heavy metal, avant-garde improvisations and folk. Despite their successful live performances, sales figures remained modest, which prompted them to adopt a significantly more commercial approach for their second album, (A Ballad Of) A Peaceful Man. Their often-overlooked debut album, as a English Vertigo first pressing, is now considered a hard-to-find collector’s item.