A few years after the demise of Colosseum, drummer Jon Hiseman recruted keyboard player Don Airey (later of Deep Purple), vocalist Mike Starrs, guitar player Gary Moore (ex-Thin Lizzy) and bass-player John Mole in order to form Colosseum II. In 1976 their first LP titled Strange New Flesh came out, but did not fare well with either critics or the public. After dropping the vocals, Colosseum II found their niche: an instrumental fusion of jazz, rock, symphonic and classic.