Volume 1 remained the first and only album by the London power trio Incredible Hog, recorded in early 1973 at Mayfair Sound Studios and produced by Roger Watson. The band, formed a year earlier with singer and guitarist Ken Gordon, bassist Jim Holmes and drummer Tony Awin, struggled to secure gigs amidst the blues boom. They therefore set up their own club, where they performed their raw, bluesy-psychedelic hard rock live. While their dynamic performances caused a buzz on the local scene, the record companies failed to take notice of them. With some effort, they finally secured a record deal with the small, unknown label Dart. Released in mid-1973, the album failed to resonate with the public despite praise from critics at the time and was completely ignored. This was compounded by the record company’s virtually non-existent promotional efforts. By the end of 1973, the band had finally given up in discouragement.

The album was released in its original version with three different covers. The original English version from Dart Records featured a cheeky pig sticking out its tongue, while the German edition released by Telefunken showed an image of a full-grown pig with sexual innuendo. The French version released by Columbia presents a pig from behind with men’s heads underneath. All three editions are extremely rare and are highly sought-after by collectors as original 1973 editions.