Pearloid Number 5 was a title suggested after a tale from college days. Hamstall studied musical instrument technology in London. A fellow student who claimed that he had 'held down' over 60 jobs in his lifetime (he was only 33 at the time) lunged at Hamstall over a pie and a pint in an East End boozer grabbing his shirt and exclaiming "Pearloid Number 5 mate". By all accounts, Hamstall's shirt buttons were of this precise designation. "I worked in a button factory" he continued, "Nobody worked there long, 'cos the plastics they used contained cyanide, but that's definitely a Pearloid Number 5".

He then went on to claim that another of his many jobs was that of bass player with the Tom Robinson band. "They chucked me ahht 'cos I weren't bent". Hard to believe since despite his protestations, neither was Tom Robinson as it turned out...