Chris Wright – lead vocals

Jim Searle – lead guitar

Alfred Fripp – rhythm guitar

Jan Frewer – bass, vocals

Phil Kenton – drums

West London band Wainwright’s Gentlemen are most notable for containing several musicians who went on to fame and fortune in the late 1960s and early 1970s – Ian Gillan (Deep Purple) and Brian Connolly and Mick Tucker (The Sweet).

Formed as Unit 4 in early 1963, the band’s original formation comprised lead guitarist Jim Searle, rhythm guitarist Alfred Fripp (who had previously played with Hayes, Middlesex high school band, Paul & The Alpines) and bass player/singer Jan Frewer. Soon after, the trio were joined by lead singer Chris Wright and drummer Phil Kenton.

Taking on Jan’s father, John, as the group’s manager, the musicians began gigging at youth clubs and social clubs in the Hayes, Harrow and Wembley areas.

During late 1963, however, the band changed name to Wainwright’s Gentlemen after the musicians discovered that there was another Unit 4 on the west London scene (future Brinsley Schwartz Ian Gomm’s group).

In early 1964, Wainwright’s Gentlemen became resident band at Hayes Beat Club in Hayes, Middlesex and also landed a residency at two coffee bars in London’s West End – Le Chat Qui Peche in Regent Street and the Cave St Germain in Poland Street.

Having entered the Mecca Dancing and Walls Ice Cream nationwide Beat Group contest, Wainwright’s Gentlemen appeared at Hammersmith Palais on 9 January 1964 in their area competition, beating several groups, including The Detours, who later became The Who.

Wainwright’s Gentlemen returned to the Hammersmith Palais on 6 February for the ‘Hall Final’, which the band won.

Unfortunately, when the national finals were held at the Lyceum on the Strand on 4 May, the group finished fifth out of 13 bands.

Later that year, Wainwright’s Gentlemen secured a recording test at Jackson Sound Studios in Rickmansworth but the session was not successful.

In mid-October, the band added Annette Culley as a second singer. She may have been the same Annette who sang with The Keymen.

Wright, who worked at Dawe Instruments in Acton, Middlesex, invited tenor sax player Dave Brogden from The Midnites to join the group in early November 1964 but the very night he auditioned and joined Wainwright’s Gentlemen, Wright had a falling out with Jan Frewer’s father and departed.

Selected gigs:

9 January 1964 – Mecca Dancing and Walls Ice Cream’s nationwide Beat Group Contest, Hammersmith Palais, Hammersmith, west London

10 January 1964 – Bedsitter Club, Holland Park, west London

11 January 1964 – Le Chat qui Peche, Regent Street, central London

6 February 1964 – Hall Final of Mecca Dancing nationwide Beat Group Contest, Hammersmith Palais, Hammersmith, west London

21 February 1964 – Bedsitter Club, Holland Park, west London

28 February 1964 – Bedsitter Club, Holland Park, west London

7 March 1964 – The Scene, Florida Room, Brighton, West Sussex

9 March 1964 – Bedsitter Club, Holland Park, west London

30 March 1964 – Hi-Fi Hop, Walton Playhouse, Walton-on-Thames, Surrey

30 April 1964 – Bedsitter Club, Holland Park, west London

4 May 1964 – Mecca Dancing nationwide Beat Group Contest finals, Lyceum Ballroom, Strand, central London with others

23 May 1964 – Hi-Fi Hop, Walton Playhouse, Walton-on-Thames, Surrey

6 June 1964 – Assembly Hall, Walthamstow, north London

9 June 1964 – Hi-Fi Hop, Walton Playhouse, Walton-on-Thames, Surrey

12 June 1964 – Long’s Ballroom, Bishop’s Stortford, Hertfordshire with Manfred Mann

27 June 1964 – Hi-Fi Hop, Walton Playhouse, Walton-on-Thames, Surrey

6 July 1964 – Attic Club, 1a High Street, Hounslow, Middlesex with Rory Blackwell & His Monsters

25 July 1964 – Assembly Hall, Walthamstow, north London

31 July 1964 – Whitehall, East Grinstead, West Sussex with The Shades

8 August 1964 – Bedsitter Club, Holland Park, west London

25 September 1964 – Attic Club, 1a High Street, Hounslow, Middlesex with Ken Gordon & The Downsiders

4 October 1964 – Kihoty Club, Guildford, Surrey with The Aces and The Shieks

24 October 1964 – Witham Public Hall, Witham, Essex (Billed as Annette with Wainwright’s Gentlemen)

 Ian Gillan – lead vocals

Annette Cully – lead vocals

Jim Searle – lead guitar

Alfred Fripp – rhythm guitar

Dave Brogden – tenor saxophone

Jan Frewer – bass, vocals

Phil Kenton – drums

Within days of Dave Brogden joining on tenor saxophone, Wainwright’s Gentlemen brought in Chris Wright’s replacement – Ian Gillan, lead singer with Hayes, Middlesex group, The Javelins.

The new formation remained steady until early March 1965. Brogden’s diary shows that the musicians traveled to Jackson Sound Studios in Rickmansworth on a number of dates in February (3^rd, 10^th, 15-16^th, 19^th and 28^th) presumably to cut material. However, his original date sheet puts the recording dates for the three tracks that the band cut as 3^rd, 8^th and 15^th March.

Wainwright’s Gentlemen recorded three tracks – “Ain’t That (Just Like Me)”, which has since surfaced on Acid Jazz’s Rare Mod 3 CD compilation; “Que Sera Sera”; and “Slow Down”.

At the start of March, Dave Brogden gave three months’ notice that he was leaving Wainwright’s Gentlemen to join west London group Jean & The Statesides. His first contribution to his new band was at EMI Abbey Road studio on 17 June. He would remain with The Statesides until 26 September when Phil Kenton got in touch to join him in an Irish show band at an Irish dance hall in Balham, south London (see later entry).

Around the same time, Ian Gillan started to get itchy feet and covertly started his own band Ian & The Dragsters who gigged intermittently while he remained with Wainwright’s Gentlemen until late April. Dave Brogden played with Gillan’s band on nights when Wainwright’s Gentlemen weren’t gigging.

Selected gigs:

7 November 1964 – Star & Garter, Windsor, Berkshire

8 November 1964 – La Dolphin Club, Baker Street, central London

12 November 1964 – Wistowe House dance hall, Hayes, Middlesex

14 November 1964 – Dreamland, Margate, Kent with Tony Lindell & The Cruisers

15 November 1964 – Star & Garter, Windsor, Berkshire

16 November 1964 – Seagull Hotel, Southall, Middlesex

21 November 1964 – Assembly Hall, Walthamstow, north London

22 November 1964 – Star & Garter, Windsor, Berkshire

25 November 1964 – USAF Ruislip, Ruislip, Middlesex

26 November 1964 – Wistowe House dance hall, Hayes, Middlesex

29 November 1964 – Star & Garter, Windsor, Berkshire

30 November 1964 – Seagull Hotel, Southall, Middlesex

1 December 1964 – Hammersmith Town Hall, Hammersmith, west London

3 December 1964 – Locarno Ballroom, Streatham, southwest London

6 December 1964 – Star & Garter, Windsor, Berkshire

7 December 1964 – Seagull Hotel, Southall, Middlesex

10 December 1964 – Wistowe House dance hall, Hayes, Middlesex

12 December 1964 – Hammersmith Town Hall, Hammersmith, west London

13 December 1964 – Start & Garter, Windsor, Berkshire

17 December 1964 – Locarno Ballroom, Streatham, southwest London

18 December 1964 – Willesden Grammar School Youth Club, Willesden, northwest London

19 December 1964 – Hotel in Holborn, central London

20 December 1964 – Star & Garter, Windsor, Berkshire

22 December 1964 – Overseas Visitors Club, Fulham, west London

23 December 1964 – Ventures Youth Club, Greenford, Middlesex

24 December 1964 – Plaza Ballroom, Guildford, Surrey with The Downsiders

26-27 December 1964 – Star & Garter, Windsor, Berkshire

28 December 1964 – Seagull Hotel, Southall, Middlesex

31 December 1964 – Whitehall, East Grinstead, West Sussex

1 January 1965 – Ventures Youth Club, Greenford, Middlesex

2 January 1965 – Watford Town Hall, Watford, Herts

3 January 1965 – Star & Garter, Windsor, Berkshire

7 January 1965 – Wistowe House dance hall, Hayes, Middlesex

8 January 1965 – Ashford Golf Club, Ashford, Middlesex

9 January 1965 – Unknown venue in West Wickham, Kent

10 January 1965 – Star & Garter, Windsor, Berkshire

11 January 1965 – Seagull Hotel, Southall, Middlesex

14 January 1965 – Wistowe House dance hall, Hayes, Middlesex

15 January 1965 – London School of Economics, central London

16 January 1965 – Dreamland, Margate, Kent with Twinkle and The Gonks

17 January 1965 – Locarno Ballroom, Leicester

20 January 1965 – Ballroom in Dartford, Dartford, Kent

21 January 1965 – Clay Pigeon, Eastcote, Middlesex

23-24 January 1965 – Star & Garter, Windsor, Berkshire

27 January 1965 – Hall in Carpenter’s Park (this could be Carpenders Park, Watford)

28 January 1965 – Wistowe House dance hall, Hayes, Middlesex

29 January 1965 – Hoover Social Club, Alperton, Middlesex

30 January 1965 – Hi-Fi Hop, Weybridge Hall, Weybridge, Surrey

31 January 1965 – Star & Garter, Windsor, Berkshire

1 February 1965 – Seagull Hotel, Southall, Middlesex

5 February 1965 – Ealing Club, Ealing, Middlesex with Unit 5

6 February 1965 – Annunciation Club, Wembley, Middlesex

7 February 1965 – Star & Garter, Windsor, Berkshire

11 February 1965 – Wistowe House dance hall, Hayes, Middlesex

13 February 1965 – Tottenham Town Hall, Tottenham, north London

14 February 1965 – Kodak Social Club, Hemel Hempstead, Herts

17 February 1965 – London School of Economics, the Strand, central London

18 February 1965 – BOAC Social Club, Northolt, Middlesex

20 February 1965 – Railway Hotel, Greenford, Middlesex

21 February 1965 – Star & Garter, Windsor, Berkshire

22 February 1965 – Seagull Hotel, Southall, Middlesex

23 February 1965 – Kodak Social Club, Harrow, Middlesex

25 February 1965 – Wistowe House dance hall, Hayes, Middlesex

25 February 1965 – Clay Pigeon, Eastcote, Middlesex (advertised in newspaper)

26 February 1965 – Kookey Nook, Windsor, Berkshire

27 February 1965 – Whetstone Hotel, Finchley, north London

28 February 1965 – Star & Garter, Windsor, Berkshire

Ian Gillan – lead vocals

Annette Cully – lead vocals

Jim Searle – lead guitar

Alfred Fripp – rhythm guitar

Dennis ??? – tenor saxophone (or Dave Brogden intermittently)

Jan Frewer – bass, vocals

Phil Kenton – drums

During early March 1965, Wainwright Gentlemen’s employed a tenor sax player called Dennis to cover for Dave Brogden, who was unable to commit to the band fully (he was working covertly and intermittently with Gillan’s band The Dragsters). Dennis, however, only lasted around a month until late March.

Even though he was leaving in mid-June to join Jean & The Statesides, Dave Brogden agreed with Jan Frewer to continue to perform with Wainwright’s Gentlemen from 1 April to 24 September whenever he was able to honour gigs (see gigs with *).

After a gig on 26 April, lead singer Ian Gillan left Wainwright’s Gentlemen to concentrate on his own group, Ian Gillan & The Dragsters. However, soon after performing a gig on 20 May with his band, Gillan joined Episode Six and later found fame with Deep Purple.

Alfred Fripp departed on the same date as Ian Gillan and joined south London band Jaymes Fenda & The Vulcans. Fripp would briefly return to Wainwright’s Gentlemen around mid-1966 when Frewer was injured in a car accident and covered bass duties until Frewer recovered.

Selected gigs:

4 March 1965 – Clay Pigeon, Eastcote, Middlesex

18 March 1965 – Clay Pigeon, Eastcote, Middlesex

1 April 1965 – Clay Pigeon, Eastcote, northwest London *

2 April 1965 – Leonian Hall, Harrow, northwest London *

3 April 1965 – Blythe Hotel, Sevenoaks, Kent *

4 April 1965 – Windsor, Berkshire (most likely Star & Garter)

5 April 1965 – Seagull Hotel, Southall, west London

8 April 1965 – Wistowe House dance hall, Hayes, west London

9 April 1965 – Café de Artiste, Fulham, southwest London

10 April 1965 – Scala, Dartford, Dartford, Kent *

11 April 1965 – Windsor, Berkshire (most likely Star & Garter)

12 April 1965 – Co-op Hall, Wealdstone, northwest London *

15 April 1965 – Clay Pigeon, Eastcote, northwest London

16 April 1965 – Café de Artiste, Fulham, southwest London

17 April 1965 – Cinema in Watford, Watford, Herts *

18 April 1965 – Kodak Social Club, Hemel Hempstead, Hertfordshire

19 April 1965 – Dreamland Ballroom, Margate, Kent with Tony Rivers & The Castaways

22 April 1965 – Wistowe House dance hall, Hayes, west London

23 April 1965 – Café de Artiste, Fulham, southwest London

25 April 1965 – Southall Community Centre, Southall, west London

26 April 1965 – Seagull Hotel, Southall, Middlesex (Gillan and Fripp’s last gig)

Annette Cully – lead vocals

Jim Searle – lead guitar

Jan Frewer – bass, vocals

Phil Kenton – drums

+

Dave Brogden – tenor sax (intermittently)

The stripped back line-up played just over a week’s worth of gigs with Brogden helping out when he could make the commitment. However, around 10 May, Jan Frewer’s father brought in two new musicians – keyboard player Tyni Manning and new tenor sax player Robert Schole.

Selected gigs:

29 April 1965 – Clay Pigeon, Eastcote, northwest London

30 April 1965 – Café de Artiste, Fulham, southwest London

2 May 1965 – Windsor, Berkshire (most likely Star & Garter)

3 May 1965 – Wimbledon Palais, Wimbledon, southwest London * (this was mentioned in a newspaper cutting, dated 19 May)

6 May 1965 – Wistowe House dance hall, Hayes, west London

7 May 1965 – Café de Artiste, Fulham, southwest London *

8 May 1965 – Venue in Reading, Berkshire (possibly Olympia Ballroom) *

9 May 1965 – Windsor, Berkshire (most likely Star & Garter)

Annette Culley – lead vocals

Jim Searle – lead guitar

Tyni Manning – keyboards

Jan Frewer – bass, vocals

Robert Schole – tenor saxophone

Phil Kenton – drums

The new line-up was short-lived and could have only lasted a month or so (possibly until 4 June) despite being promoted (and photographed) in the Harrow Weekly Post on 19 May.

Selected gigs:

13 May 1965 – Clay Pigeon, Eastcote, northwest London

15 May 1965 – St Mary’s College (most likely in Twickenham, west London)

16 May 1965 – Star & Garter, Windsor, Berkshire

20 May 1965 – Wistowe House dance hall, Hayes, west London

21 May 1965 – Old Leonian Hall, Harrow, northwest London (may have been Café de Artiste in Fulham, southwest London instead)

22 May 1965 – Star & Garter, Windsor, Berkshire

23 May 1965 – gig in Mudeford (Dorset?)

27 May 1965 – Clay Pigeon, Eastcote, northwest London

28 May 1965 – Café de Artiste, Fulham, southwest London

29 May 1965 – Starlite (but was this Greenford, northwest London)

30 May 1965 – Windsor, Berkshire (most likely Star & Garter)

2 June 1965 – Clay Pigeon, Eastcote, northwest London with Tony Rivers & The Castaways (Melody Maker says 3 June)

3 June 1965 – Wistowe House dance hall, Hayes, west London

4 June 1965 – Café de Artiste, Fulham, southwest London

Annette Culley – lead vocals

Jim Searle – lead guitar

Jan Frewer – bass, vocals

Phil Kenton – drums

+

Dave Brogden – tenor saxophone (intermittently)

As agreed with Jan Frewer, Dave Brogden continued to occasionally gig with Wainwright’s Gentlemen (see below gigs with *) when he wasn’t working with The Statesides, who he officially joined on 17 June. This agreement to sit in with Wainwright’s Gentlemen lasted until late September.

Brogden remembers that a few days after 26 September, Wainwright Gentlemen’s drummer Phil Kenton got in touch (possibly because there was a hiatus in Wainwright Gentlemen’s gigs) and said he’d been offered an extremely well paid gig with an Irish show band performing at an Irish dance hall in Balham. The group also needed a sax player and the residency, which guaranteed three nights a week, started on 1 October.

The sax player left The Statesides and Kenton departed Wainwright’s Gentlemen to join the Irish show band but Kenton only lasted the weekend before being replaced by an Irish drummer. Kenton briefly returned to Wainwright’s Gentlemen but was clearly getting itchy feet to move on.

Brogden meanwhile lasted a few more weeks before the Irish show band stopped working and he returned to The Statesides on 29 October.

Selected gigs:

5 June 1965 – Assembly Hall, Walthamstow, north London with The Prophets *

6 June 1965 – Windsor, Berkshire (most likely Star & Garter)

10 June 1965 – Clay Pigeon, Eastcote, northwest London

11 June 1965 – Café de Artiste, Fulham, southwest London *

12 June 1965 – LSE, Malden (Surrey?)

13 June 1965 – Windsor, Berkshire (most likely Star & Garter)

15 June 1965 – gig in Dagenham, Essex

17 June 1965 – Wistowe House dance hall, Hayes, west London

18 June 1965 – Café de Artiste, Fulham, southwest London

19 June 1965 – Star & Garter, Windsor, Berkshire *

20 June 1965 – Star & Garter, Windsor, Berkshire

24 June 1965 – Clay Pigeon, Eastcote, northwest London

25 June 1965 – Café de Artiste, Fulham, southwest London

26 June 1965 – Kodak Hall, Hemel Hempstead, Herts

27 June 1965 – Windsor, Berkshire (most likely Star & Garter)

3 July 1965 – Café de Artiste, Fulham, southwest London *

5 July 1965 – Hermitage Ballroom, Hitchin, Herts

9 July 1965 – Café de Artiste, Fulham, southwest London *

24 July 1965 – Hi-Fi Hop, Weybridge Hall, Weybridge, Surrey

6 August 1965 – Café de Artiste, Fulham, southwest London *

13 August 1965 – Café de Artiste, Fulham, southwest London *

21 August 1965 – The Savoy Rooms, Catford, Kent with Trendsetters Ltd

28 August 1965 – Gari Ballroom, Great Yarmouth, Norfolk with John’s Court

11 September 1965 – Queen of Harts (location not known) *

18 September 1965 – Club de Dance, Colchester, Essex *

22 September 1965 – Clay Pigeon, Eastcote, northwest London *

24 September 1965 – Café de Artiste, Fulham, southwest London

Annette Cully – lead vocals

Val Cockayne – lead vocals

Jim Searle – lead guitar

Peter Cockayne – keyboards

Jan Frewer – bass, vocals

Phil Kenton – drums

Around late September, the band appeared to have stopped gigging briefly, which was when Kenton landed the gig with the Irish show band. When that didn’t work out, he returned to Wainwright’s Gentlemen who had brought in a second (female) singer Van Cockayne and her husband Peter on keyboards during the drummer’s absence.

It isn’t clear how long the Cockaynes stayed with Wainwright’s Gentlemen but possibly until November-December (and long enough to be photographed).

Peter Cockayne recalls that Mick Tucker joined shortly before the couple  departed Wainwright’s Gentlemen. However, it’s also plausible that Tucker just auditioned when Kenton left to work with the Irish show band and the group held on to his details as a future replacement when Kenton did finally depart sometime in late 1965.

Selected gigs:

9 October 1965 – Hi-Fi Hop, Weybridge Hall, Weybridge, Surrey

11 December 1965 – Acre Hall, Northwood, northwest London

Annette Cully – lead vocals

Gordon Fairminer – lead guitar

Jim Searle – lead guitar

Tony Hall – tenor saxophone

Jan Frewer – bass, vocals

Mick Tucker – drums

Lead guitarist Gordon Fairminer, who had played with Ian Gillan in The Javelins and who joined Wainwright’s Gentlemen immediately after the Cockaynes left, remembers that Mick Tucker came to see the group play at the Clay Pigeon in Eastcote on one occasion and that he joined soon after. Tucker had started out in an instrumentals band with future Wainwright’s Gentlemen and Sweet guitarist Frank Torpey.

When Fairminer joined (circa December 1965), Wainwright’s Gentlemen also brought in tenor saxophone player Tony Hall, who had started out playing with early ‘60s west London band Peter Nelson & The Travellers. As Peter’s Faces, this group had made some recordings.

Fairminer and Searle began playing harmony solos on guitar, which was innovative for its time.

The new line up remained stable until around early July 1966 when the musicians auditioned for another male singer and brought in Brian Connolly, who had previously sung with The Troop from Harefield, northwest London.

During this period, former member Alf Fripp briefly filled in for Jan Frewer on bass when he had a car accident.

Selected gigs:

25 June 1966 – Dorothy Ballroom, Cambridge with Bob Kidman & His Band, The Paramounts, Mood Indigo and The Astrobeats

Annette Cully – lead vocals

Brian Connolly – lead vocals

Gordon Fairminer – lead guitar

Jim Searle – lead guitar

Tony Hall – tenor saxophone

Jan Frewer – bass, vocals

Mick Tucker – drums

Sometime around late September Annette Cully and Jim Searle both departed; the latter became a classical guitarist.

Selected gigs:

30 July 1966 – Borough Assembly Hall, Aylesbury, Bucks with The Reasons

24 September 1966 – Victoria Ballroom, Cambridge (featuring Annette)

Brian Connolly – lead vocals

Gordon Fairminer – lead guitar

Tony Hall – tenor saxophone

Jan Frewer – bass, vocals

Mick Tucker – drums       

The remaining members – Brian Connolly, Tony Hall, Gordon Fairminer, Jan Frewer and Mick Tucker – recorded two demo tracks at Regent’s Sound in early 1967, which surfaced on an acetate on E-bay a few years back – “You Look So Tame” and “One of a Kind”.

The Hounslow Post reported its 14 July 1967 issue, page 10, that Julie was singing with the band but there is no other information on who she might be.

Selected gigs:

1 October 1966 – Harrow County School for Boys, Harrow, London with The Stalkers

12 November 1966 – Sperry FC, Bracknell, Berkshire

19 November 1966 – Winter Gardens, Banbury, Oxfordshire with The Cinette Sounds

4 March 1967 – Harrow Boys County School, Harrow, London with The Mustangs

8 April 1967 – Sperry FC, Bracknell, Berkshire with The Movement

10 June 1967 – Sperry FC, Bracknell, Berkshire with The Rite Amount

11 August 1967 – Les Jeux Interdits, Cambridge

2 October 1967 – Harrow County Boys School, Harrow, London with Two of Each

1 November 1967 – Les Jeux Interdits, Cambridge

8 November 1967 – Les Jeus Interdits, Cambridge

Brian Connolly – lead vocals

Frank Torpey – lead guitar

Tony Hall – tenor saxophone

Jan Frewer – bass, vocals

Mick Tucker – drums

Around November 1967, former Tribe lead guitarist Frank Torpey came in for Gordon Fairminer.

However, Torpey (who’d started out in a band with Mick Tucker in 1962) only lasted a handful of months and by late January 1968, Frewer’s friend Robin Box had succeeded him on lead guitar. Torpey notes in his diary that his final gig took place on 20 January at a hospital but he doesn’t have any more details. The gigs below are from his diary (where he has firm details).

Selected gigs:

17 November 1967 – Bedford College, Regent’s Park, central London

18 November 1967 – London University, London

25 November 1967 – Gillingham, Kent (possibly Aurora Hotel)

2 December 1967 – Harrow County Boys’ School, Harrow, northwest London with Two of Each

9 December 1967 – Croydon, south London (no details)

15 December 1967 – Ealing Town Hall, Ealing, west London

23 December 1967 – Clay Pigeon, Eastcote, northwest London

31 December 1967 – Private party

Brian Connolly – lead vocals

Robin Box – lead guitar

Tony Hall – tenor saxophone

Jan Frewer – bass, vocals

Mick Tucker – drums

Tucker and Connolly weren’t happy with Torpey’s dismissal and in early February 1968 they left the band. The pair reunited with Torpey and together with bass player Steve Priest from another west London band, The Army, they formed The Sweet.

Remaining members Robin Box, Jan Frewer and Tony Hall brought in drummer Roger Hills and toured Germany for three months as Rupert’s Spoon.

Selected gigs:

17 February 1968 – Ship Hotel, Weybridge, Surrey with The Effect

1 June 1968 – Aurora Hotel, Gillingham, Kent with The Web and The Foundations

Back in the UK in mid-1968 (and minus Frewer who later went on to roadie for The Sweet), Robin Box, Tony Hall and Roger Hills found work backing The Flowerpot Men whose members included Hall’s ex-colleagues from Peter’s Faces.

Later that year, Hall left to join Simon K & The Meantimes before joining Geno Washington & The Ram Jam in mid-1970. In early 1971, however, he reunited with Robin Box and Roger Hills in White Plains.

In later years Hall went on to work with the Houseshakers, Screaming Lord Sutch, Flying Fox and Chas & Dave among others and also did session work for Shakin’ Stevens and Sheena Easton.

Huge thanks to Dave Brogden (who very kindly shared his diary entries), Jan Frewer, Alf Fripp, Val Cockayne, Phil Cockayne, Frank Torpey and Tony Hall for helping with the story. I’d also like to credit Mark Lay’s book on the band’s early years.

This is an extensively updated version of an article that was originally published on the Strange Brew website.  I’d like to thank Jason Barnard for all of his help and support over the years.

Gigs above were sourced from many newspapers and magazines. This is not a complete list but includes Melody Maker, Middlesex County Times & West Middlesex Gazette, Walthamstow Guardian, Hayes Gazette, Yarmouth Mercury, Hertfordshire Express, Woking Herald, Cambridge News, Surrey Advertiser and Evening Argus.

Copyright © Nick Warburton. All Rights Reserved. No part of this article may be reproduced or transmitted in any from or by any means, without prior permission from the author.

I have tried to ensure the accuracy of this article but I appreciate that there are likely to be errors and omissions. I would appreciate any feedback from anyone who can provide any additions or corrections. Email: Warchive@aol.com

Born in Kingston, Jamaica on 5 July 1939, Owen Gray (aka Grey) is one of the true reggae and ska greats but was also the author of a handful of superb soul/mod 45s, recorded in the UK and France between 1965-1969.

Very little is known about this period and so we’d welcome any additional information that readers can provide in the comments section below, particularly around the recording of these individual singles, any unreleased recordings and the personnel on the tracks.

Owen arrived in England in May 1962 and was a prolific recording artist. Like Jimmy Cliff, he’s best known for his reggae recordings but he was an exceptionally gifted soul performer and worked with some top British musicians during the mid-to-late 1960s. His backing bands included The Sound System, The Krew, Tony Knight’s Chessmen and Maximum Breed.

His first venture into soul appears to have been with two singles on the small Aladdin label (see below).

Released on 12 March 1965, Owen Gray’s “Gonna Work Out Fine” c/w “Dolly Baby”, was the first of two 45s on the label, the first produced by Denny Cordell.

His second release “Lindy Lu” was backed by a great version of “Can I Get a Witness”, which has since become a Northern Soul favourite.

In mid-to-late 1965, he moved labels and to Island Records for three singles. The first coupled “Shook, Shimmy & Shake” with “I’m Going Back” and was followed by “Paradise” c/w “Bye Bye Love”. Little is known about the background to both of these releases and the personnel on the recordings.

However, in January/February 1966, Chris Blackwell linked Owen with west London Mod outfit, The Sound System.

The band had morphed out of The All-Nite Workers and featured guitarist Tony St Clair; bass player Ron Thomas; keyboard player Mick Fletcher; sax players Mel Wayne and Dave Mahoney; and drummer Phil Wainman, who later went on to produce The Sweet among others.

Together, they backed Owen on a lone 45, a rousing version of “You Don’t Know Like I Know” backed by “Take Me Serious”, which appears to have been penned by Ron Thomas, who later went on to work with The Heavy Metal Kids, among others.

Owen Gray & The Sound System also gigged around the London club circuit in the first few months of 1966 before Blackwell linked them up with Jimmy Cliff and renamed them The New Generation. Later that year, the group became singer Gary Hamilton’s second version of The Hamilton Movement.

Left without a band, Owen joined forces with The Krew who’d just lost their two lead singers Beryl Marsden and Steve Aldo.

Led by scouser and future Wings sideman Howie Casey on sax, the group also featured fellow Liverpudlian Tommy Murray on lead guitar (who was later replaced by Ted Tunnicliffe); Glaswegian Archie Legget; Yorkshireman Eddie Sparrow on drums; and Londoner Alan Reeves on keyboards.

Owen Gray and The Krew moved to France in April 1966 and played several clubs in the ski resorts, notably the Bus Palladium in Courcheval, before landing a residency at exclusive Paris nightclub Le Bilboquet.

While playing in Paris in July that year, the musicians recorded an EP for Barclay Records’ subsidiary label, Riviera, comprising popular soul covers and strong Owen Gray originals, “Everything’s Alright” and “Somebody Stole My Girl”.

However, by the end of 1966, Owen Gray was back in London and back on the soul circuit, playing the clubs that were popular with the burgeoning Caribbean community such as Paddington’s Cue Club.

Back on Island Records, he recorded one of his finest soul outings, the stupendous “Help Me” coupled with “Incense”, which were produced by Chris Blackwell and Jimmy Miller respectively.

Issued in January 1967, the single should have been a massive hit but inexplicably it failed to chart and is now a much sought-after collectors’ item.

A few months later, Owen was back with another London band, this time Tony Knight’s Chessmen, led by drummer Tony Brown. The singer remained with the group until about September 1967.

During Owen’s time with The Chessmen, the musicians passing through included noted sax players Dave Coxhill and Stan Sulzmann and future John Mayall’s Bluesbreaker Keith Tillman.

In July 1967, the band travelled out to Italy to play the Piper Club in Viareggio.

Little is known about his soul projects from this point on, although he did work with singers Ruby and Youth backed by The Shell Shock Show during late 1967 and early 1968.

However, during 1968, he started to do studio work on the Old Kent Road with producer David Hadfield.

For the recordings, he was backed by Freddy Mack’s former band, The Mack Sound, who were going by the name Maximum Breed.

Future Butts Band and Gonzalez keyboard player Roy Davies was among the musicians in this talented band.

Several singles were issued during this period, including “Sitting in the Park” and “Dream Lover” but by now, Owen was starting to focus his efforts on the reggae audience.

Copyright © Nick Warburton. All Rights Reserved. No part of this article may be reproduced or transmitted in any from or by any means, without prior permission from the author.

I have tried to ensure the accuracy of this article but I appreciate that there are likely to be errors and omissions. I would appreciate any feedback from anyone who can provide any additions or corrections. Email: Warchive@aol.com

Readers will be familiar with the American early 1970s rock band Jo Jo Gunne, helmed by former Spirit members Jay Ferguson and Mark Andes.

However, the first band to use the name Jo Jo Gunne was in fact a little known British R&B outfit, formed at Debrome school in Feltham, Middlesex in early-to-mid 1965.

The original line up comprised:

Ronny Butterworth – lead vocals

Simon Spackman – lead guitar

Don Bax – rhythm guitar

Alan Townsend – bass

Doug Gordon – drums

However, later that year the musicians made the decision to move in a more soul direction and took on a new lead singer, Pete Pennycate, to accommodate the new configuration.

Spackman moved from lead guitar to keyboards to allow newcomer Renwick MacDonald to join from local rivals Themselves. Butterworth and Townsend focused on trumpets and Bax took up the bass.

By early 1966, Jo Jo Gunne comprised: 

Pete Pennycate – lead vocals

Renwick MacDonald – lead guitar

Simon Spackman – organ

Don Bax – bass

Alan Townsend – trumpet and trombone

Ronny Butterworth – trumpet

Doug Gordon – drums

During June 1966, the band won Melody Maker’s National Beat Competition, which was held at Brighton’s Regent Ballroom. Also, during August, they took part in the London Palladium competition.

Over the next 18 months, this line up (minus Butterworth who dropped out around November 1966 to play with Twickenham band, The All Night Workers) played the following gigs:

5 October 1965 – Nurses Club, Jolly Gardeners, Isleworth, west London

19 March 1966 – London Cavern, Holland Park, west London with supporting group

25 March 1966 – Cellar Club, Kingston upon Thames, southwest London

2 April 1966 – Cellar Club, Kingston upon Thames, southwest London

12 April 1966 – 100 Club, Oxford Street, central London with The Pretty Things

17 April 1966 – Imperial Ballroom, Nelson, Lancashire with The Generation

14 May 1966 – Cellar Club, Kingston upon Thames, southwest London

28 May 1966 – Zeeta House, Pontiac, Putney, southwest London

11 June 1966 – Cellar Club, Kingston upon Thames, southwest London

18 June 1966 – Zeeta House, Pontiac, Putney, southwest London with The Roger Harris Show

6 August 1966 – Cellar Club, Kingston upon Thames, southwest London

12 August 1966 – Cellar Club, Kingston upon Thames, southwest London

17 September 1966 – Borough Assembly Hall, Aylesbury, Bucks with The Future Set

10 October 1966 – Borough Assembly Hall, Aylesbury, Bucks with The Future Set and The Choozey Beggars (this needs confirmation as this may be December instead)

6 January 1967 – Tiles, Oxford Street, central London with Alvin Cash & The Crawlers (billed as Jo Jo Gunn)

13 January 1967 – The Flamingo, Wardour Street, Soho, central London with Derek Savage Foundation (billed as Jo Jo Gunn)

27 January 1967 – Brackley Town Hall, Brackley, Northamptonshire

28 January 1967 – White Bicycle, Maple Ballroom, Northampton with The Crew (billed as Jo-Jo-Gunn)

17 February 1967 – Upper Cut, Forest Gate, east London with The New Pirates and The Afex

18 February 1967 – Flamingo, Wardour Street, Soho, central London with The All Night Workers

22 February 1967 – St Michael’s Youth Centre, Sydenham, southeast London (billed Jo Jo Gun)

24 February 1967 – Upper Cut, Forest Gate, east London with David Essex and Mood Indigo (billed as The Jo-Jo Gunns)

5 March 1967 – New Yorker Discotheque, Swindon, Wiltshire with The Iveys and The Inspiration

10 March 1967 – The New All Star Club, 9a Artillery Passage, E1, east London

According to an article in the Hounslow, Brentford and Chiswick Post, dated 5 May, Jo Jo Gunne split up in late April with Simon Spackman joining McDonald’s former band Themselves in early May while Pete Pennycate went solo.

The newspaper’s 16 June issue adds more information. It notes that bass player Don Bax was working with The Penny Blacks, the same band that would feature soon-to-be-joining members Alan Barratt, Paul Maher and Tom Marshall.

In late August 1967, Jo Jo Gunne reformed with Alan Barratt replacing Pete Pennycate on lead vocals.

Barratt had started out singing with The Penny Blacks, which also included lead guitarist Tom Marshall; rhythm guitarist John Day; bass player Dave Arnold; and drummer Paul Maher.

When Barratt joined Jo Jo Gunne that summer he also brought Paul Maher with him (who took over from Doug Gordon) and recent recruit Don Bax.

Simon Spackman and Renwick MacDonald joined the new version (presumably both from Themselves, who soon changed name to Virgin Sleep). Original member Alan Townsend also rejoined.

According to Alan Barratt, the new version debuted on 8 September 1967 at the California Ballroom in Dunstable, Bedfordshire.

In late 1967, Jo Jo Gunne signed a deal with Don Arden’s Starlight Agency after Amen Corner’s singer Andy Fairweather-Low recommended the band to the infamous promoter.

Amen Corner and Jo Jo Gunne had shared a billing at the California Ballroom in Dunstable on 29 September 1967 alongside rival west London band, The All Night Workers.

The All Night Workers would maintain a close link with Jo Jo Gunne and several musicians would play with both bands.

The first of these was original member, trumpet player Ronny Butterworth, who re-joined Jo Jo Gunne from The All Night Workers around late September/early October 1967.

The revamped line up now comprised:

Alan Barratt – lead vocals

Renwick MacDonald – lead guitar

Simon Spackman – organ

Don Bax – bass

Alan Townsend – trumpet and trombone

Ronny Butterworth – trumpet

Paul Maher – drums

However, around late October lead guitar player Renwick MacDonald left and another former Penny Blacks member, lead guitarist Tom Marshall joined the line up for the rest of 1967 and into spring 1968.

When Marshall left around February/March 1968 to join The Playground (and subsequently Harmony Grass and Capability Brown), Spackman moved from organ to lead guitar and keyboard player Ken Carroll joined Jo Jo Gunne.

Carroll had spent the past few months playing with a band called Deep Purple, which had been formed in late 1967, some six months before the more famous version (although there were a few other local groups across England that used the name before 1968).

The following concert dates are taken from this period:

8 September 1967 – California Ballroom, Dunstable, Bedfordshire with James and Bobby Purify and The Yum Yum Band

23 September 1967 – Hemel Hempstead Pavilion, Hemel Hempstead, Herts with The Chris Allen Band

29 September 1967 – California Ballroom, Dunstable, Bedfordshire with Amen Corner and The All Night Workers

1 October 1967 – Starlight Ballroom, Crawley, West Sussex with The Move (spelt Jo Jo Gun)

14 October 1967 – Luton Boys Club, Luton, Bedfordshire with The Vistas (spelt Jo Jo Gunn)

15 October 1967 – Starlight Ballroom, Crawley, West Sussex with The Jimi Hendrix Experience (they may have been replaced by The Doves at short notice)

20 October 1967 – Pavilion, Southend, Essex with The Mindbenders and Tiles Big Band (Southend Standard lists this gig as 21 October 1967)

21 October 1967 – Wimbledon Palais, Wimbledon, southwest London with Tony Rivers and The Castaways (possibly one of MacDonald’s final gigs)

27 October 1967 – London School of Economics, central London with Elmer Gantry’s Velvet Opera (possibly one of Marshall’s first gigs)

5 November 1967 – Kettering Working Men’s Club, Kettering, Northamptonshire with The Barry Lee Show (billed as Jo Jo Gunn)

11 November 1967 – California Ballroom, Dunstable, Bedfordshire with The Symbols and The Fifth Dynasty (spelt Jo Jo Gunn)

12 November 1967 – Starlight Ballroom, Crawley, West Sussex with Modes Mode

17 November 1967 – Southlands College, Roehampton, southwest London with The Nashville Teens

24 November 1967 – California Ballroom, Dunstable, Bedfordshire with The Shevelles and The Crew

8 December – Boston Gliderdrome, Lincolnshire with Jimmy James & The Vagabonds and Reformation (billed as Jo-Jo Gun Band)

16 December 1967 – Walton Hop, Walton-on-Thames, Surrey

19 December 1967 – Boston Gliderdrome, Lincolnshire with Jimmy James & The Vagabonds, Reformation and Ray Bones (billed as Jo Jo Gunn)

24 December 1967 – Starlight Ballroom, Crawley, West Sussex with The Exits

31 December 1967 – Starlight Ballroom, Crawley, West Sussex with Precisely This

9 January 1968 – Walton Hop, Walton-on-Thames, Surrey

21 January 1968 – Starlite Ballroom, Greenford, west London with Ronnie Jones & The Q Set

26 January 1968 – Elbow Room, Aston, West Midlands

28 January 1968 – Carlton Club, Erdington, West Midlands with Chris Farlowe & The Thunderbirds

10 February 1968 – Starlight Ballroom, Crawley, West Sussex with The Doves

11 February 1968 – Starlight Ballroom, Crawley, West Sussex with The Who

13 February 1968 – Walton Hop, Walton-on-Thames, Surrey

24 February 1968 – Cliffs Pavilion, Southend, Essex with The Human Instinct and Almond Marizpan (billed as Jo Jo Gunn)

25 February 1968 – Starlight Ballroom, Crawley, West Sussex with The Human Instinct

28 February 1968 – Hemel Hempstead Pavilion, Hemel Hempstead, Herts with The Herd

2 March 1968 – Nags Head, Motown Club, Wollaston, Northamptonshire with Mick’s Soulotek (billed as Jo Jo Gunn)

9 March 1968 – Locarno Ballroom, Swindon, Wiltshire (billed as Jo Jo Gunn)

9 March 1968 – Starlight Ballroom, Crawley, West Sussex with Modes Mode

10 March 1968 – Starlight Ballroom, Crawley, West Sussex with The Fabulous Temptations (this is The Fantastics)

25 March 1968 – Kettering Working Men’s Club, Kettering, Northamptonshire with The Crusaders (billed as Jo Jo Gunn)

30 March 1968 – Clouds, Derby (billed as Jo-Jo Gunn Group)

30 March 1968 – Walton Hop, Walton-on-Thames, Surrey

31 March 1968 – Starlight Ballroom, Crawley, West Sussex with The Original Drifters (Paul Maher filled in for The Original Drifters’ ill drummer)

13 April 1968 – Clouds, Derby (billed as Jo Jo Gunn)

15 April 1968 – Ship Hotel, Weybridge, Surrey

8 May 1968 – Hemel Hempstead Pavilion, Hemel Hempstead, Hertfordshire with Captain Beefheart & The Magic Band

25 May 1968 – Starlite Ballroom, Greenford, west London

1 June 1968 – Walton Hop, Walton-on-Thames, Surrey

3 June 1968 – Hatchetts Playround, Piccadilly, central London

Having signed to Decca Records, Jo Jo Gunne recorded their debut single, R & H Barter’s “Every Story Has An End” c/w  Don Bax and Alan Townsend’s “Should Live Like That” (Decca F 12807), which was released on 12 July 1968 but failed to chart.

Just after the recording, Carroll introduced a second singer in to the band, Mick Wheeler, who’d previously worked with Ronny Butterworth in The All Night Workers during 1966-1967 and then in Carroll’s short-lived Deep Purple in late 1967-early 1968. When Wheeler joined, he also doubled up on congas.

The revised line up comprised:

Alan Barratt – lead vocals

Mick Wheeler – lead vocals, congas

Simon Spackman – lead guitar

Ken Carroll – organ

Don Bax – bass

Alan Townsend – trumpet and trombone

Ronny Butterworth – trumpet

Paul Maher – drums

Around mid-July, Jo Jo Gunne were offered the opportunity to play some gigs in Saint-Tropez in France but Ronny Butterworth didn’t participate and dropped out just before the continental trip.

From 2 August to 5 September 1968, the band (minus Butterworth who has since died) played a nightly residency at the Club St Hilaire de la Mer in Saint-Tropez before returning to the UK.

On their return Ken Carroll left the band and went on to play with Johnny Johnson & The Bandwagon. He currently works with Samtana.

The following gigs were advertised with the above line up:

12 June 1968 – Samantha’s, Bournemouth, Dorset (possibly one of Wheeler’s first gigs)

22 June 1968 – Locarno Ballroom, Swindon, Wiltshire with Hoffman’s Biscuits (billed as Jo Jo Gunn)

28 June 1968 – Hatchetts Playground, Piccadilly, central London

29 June 1968 – Broken Wheel, Retford, Nottinghamshire

6 July 1968 – St Albans City Hall, St Albans, Hertfordshire with The Rocky

12 July 1968 – Supreme Ballroom, Ramsgate, Kent (billed as Jo Jo Gunn)

20 July 1968 – Eastbourne Town Hall, Eastbourne, East Sussex with The Soul Stars

27 July 1968 – Red Cross Hall, East Grinstead, West Sussex (this needs confirmation)

28 July 1968 – Beau Brummel Club, Nantwich, Cheshire with The Scorpions (billed as Jo Jo Gunn) (one of Butterworth’s final gigs)

3 August 1968 – Walton Hop, Walton-on-Thames, Surrey (unlikely to have happened if they went to France)

10 August 1968 – Clockwork Orange, Chester, Cheshire with Headline News (billed as Jo Jo Gunn) (unlikely to have happened if they went to France)

11 August 1968 – Victorian Club, Liverpool (unlikely to have happened if they went to France)

31 August 1968 – Walton Hop, Walton-on-Thames, Surrey (unlikely to have happened if they went to France)

7 September 1968 – Walton Hop, Walton-on-Thames, Surrey (one of Carroll’s final gigs)

18 September 1968 – Samantha’s, New Burlington Street, central London (billed as Jo Jo Gunn)

20 September 1968 – Victoria Hall, Falkirk, Scotland (billed as Jo Jo Gunn)

22 September 1968 – Kinema Ballroom, Dunfermline, Scotland (this needs confirmation) (billed as Jo Jo Gunn)

2 October 1968 – Hatchetts Playground, Piccadilly, central London

12 October 1968 – St Albans City Hall, St Albans, Hertfordshire

Around mid-November 1968, Simon Spackman also left (and has since died) and west London guitar hero Dave Wendels (ex-Cliff Bennett & The Rebel Rousers, Lulu’s backing band, The Luvvers, Tom Jones’s backing band, The Squires and The Krew) joined the band.

This new line up transformed the group and played dozens of successful gigs around the UK, including Mr Smiths in Manchester, Bournemouth Winter Gardens, Pantiles in Bagshot, Surrey plus London venues like Hatchetts Playground in Piccadilly, the Valbonne Club, Samantha’s, the Scotch of St James and Sibylla’s.

They also supported Three Dog Night on a Scottish tour. In Scotland they supported Geno Washington and the Ram Jam Band, as well as playing The Electric Garden (Radio 1 club) in Glasgow.

The new line up played the following:

3 November 1968 – Cosmo, Carlisle, Cumbria with Pete Kelly Solution (Paul Maher says it was cancelled)

5 November 1968 – Sibylla’s, central London (billed as Jo Jo Gunn)

7 November 1968 – 100 Club, Oxford Street, central London with PP Arnold (billed as Jo Jo Gunn)

7 November 1968 – Willesden College of Technology, Willesden, northwest London with PP Arnold (possibly one of Spackman’s final gigs)

16 November 1968 – Fellowship Inn, Eltham, southeast London (possibly one of Wendels’ first gigs)

23 November 1968 – Cromer Links Pavilion, Cromer, Norfolk with Kiss (billed as Jo Jo Gunn)

24 November 1968 – Crystal Palace Hotel, Crystal Palace, south London

25 November 1968 – Sibylla’s, central London (billed as Jo Jo Gunn)

14 December 1968 – Walton Hop, Walton-on-Thames, Surrey

16 December 1968 – Hatchetts Playground, Piccadilly, central London

23 December 1968 – Corby Civic Centre, Corby, Northamptonshire with Size Seven and State Express (billed as Jo Jo Gunn)

24 December 1968 – Walton Hop, Walton on Thames, Surrey (billed as Jo Jo Gunn)

However, around January 1969 longstanding member Alan Townsend departed (and has since died) and Dennis Fisher came in on trumpet.

Townsend spent several months working with The All Night Workers before subsequently working with The Roy Young Band later in the year and doing a multitude of sessions.

By now, the line up comprised:

Alan Barratt – lead vocals

Mick Wheeler – lead vocals, congas

Dave Wendels – lead guitar

Don Bax – bass

Dennis Fisher – trumpet

Paul Maher – drums

This configuration recorded the band’s second single – Potter and Dee’s “Beggin’ You Baby” c/w  “Bad Penny” (Decca F 12906), which was released on 25 April 1969.

The band played the following dates:

7 January 1969 – Whisky a Go Go, Wardour Street, Soho, London (billed as Jo Jo Gunn)

11 January 1969 – Royal Lido Ballroom, Prestatyn, Wales with Strawberry Cartoon (billed as Jo Jo Gunn Soul Band)

15-16 January 1969 – Hatchetts Playground, Piccadilly, central London

25 January 1969 – St Albans City Hall, St Albans, Hertfordshire

27-28 January 1969 – Hatchetts Playground, Piccadilly central London

17 February 1969 – Hatchetts Playground, Piccadilly central London

18 March 1969 – Alex’s Disco, Salisbury, Wiltshire

27 March 1969 – Hatchetts Playground, Piccadilly central London

5 April 1969 – St Albans City Hall, St Albans, Hertfordshire

When “Beggin’ You Baby” flopped, Jo Jo Gunne split with Don Arden. According to Barratt, the singles were too poppy and did not represent the band’s live set, which was funkier/soul orientated material.

After the band proposed an album of its own material and Decca turned the opportunity down, Jo Jo Gunne split from the label.

Around Easter, Jo Jo Gunne signed with Laurie O’Leary who landed them a three-month residency in Freeport, Grand Bahamas, where they played nightly in the House of Lords club, returning in July. Wheeler has kept the outgoing flight from England, which was on the 10 April.

The following dates were advertised but were not possible as they weren’t in the UK:

9 May 1969 – Rush Common House, Abingdon, Oxfordshire with Status Quo and Fire (billed as Jo Jo Gunn)

25 May 1969 – Railway, Wealdstone, northwest London

26 May 1969 – Hatchetts Playground, Piccadilly, London

5 June 1969 – Blaises, Kensington, west London (billed as Jo Jo Gunn)

11 June 1969 – Revolution, central London (billed as Jo Jo Gunn)

21 June 1969 – Pavilion Ballroom, Bournemouth, Dorset with Finnians Fogg

3 July 1969 – Revolution, central London

10 July 1969 – Blaises, Kensington, west London

On their return in early-to-mid July, Dennis Fisher and Don Bax departed and the remaining quartet of Alan Barratt, Mick Wheeler, Paul Maher and Dave Wendels formed a short-lived version with Manchester bass player Dave Bowker (now David Booker) who’d previously worked with Ivan Meads, The Richard Kent Style, Kirk St James and Sponge among others. Booker had met the musicians in the Bahamas while playing with Sponge.

The group travelled to Cologne in July/August and played the Storyville Club but on their return, Wendels and Booker both left and played with Billy J Kramer, a week-long engagement at Batley Variety Club.

Wendels then joined The Roy Young Band while Booker joined O’Hara’s Playboys after auditioning unsuccessfully for Badfinger (Joey Molland got the job).

The short-lived line-up played the following dates:

23 August 1969 – Marine Court, St Leonards, East Sussex with Sunshine Sky

6 September 1969 – Civic Hall, Guildford, Surrey with Marshall Hammond

Longstanding lead singer Alan Barratt was offered a backing vocal spot with The Roy Young Band but declined. He also departed around this time and later went on to sing with The Good Old Boys with Nick Simper from the original Deep Purple.

Mick Wheeler and Paul Maher then put together an entirely new version of Jo Jo Gunne.

Mick Wheeler – lead vocals

George Williams – lead guitar

Barney Barnes – organ

Billy Ball – bass

Paul Maher – drums

In early 1970, Wheeler’s former band mate from The All Night Workers, Malcolm Randall briefly took over the drum stool before Phil Chesterton came in full-time.

This new line up continued into the early 1970s and returned to Saint-Tropez for a residency. The group subsequently morphed into a later version of The Love Affair, long after its lead singer Steve Ellis had left.

Huge thanks to Alan Barratt, Paul Maher, Mick Wheeler, Ken Carroll, Tom Marshall, Ronny Butterworth, David Booker and Dave Wendels for their help in piecing the story together.

I’d like to thank Alan Barratt, Tom Marshall, Mick Wheeler and Paul Maher for providing photos.

Thanks also to Jason Barnard at Strange Brew who originally posted this article. This is a substantially revised and updated version.

Concert dates were taken from a number of sources, mainly local and regional newspapers.  Thanks to Alan Barratt for providing some live dates from late 1967-early 1968 from his personal diary. Most of the London dates were taken from Melody Maker.

Copyright © Nick Warburton. All Rights Reserved. No part of this article may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, without prior permission from the author.

To contact the author, email: Warchive@aol.com

Dave Whitaker (lead vocals/congas)

Del Grace (lead guitar)

Bruce Duckworth (rhythm guitar)

Mick Fletcher (keyboards)

Dave Rolfe (baritone sax)

Mick Lye (tenor sax)

Rodney Peters (aka Carl Lee) (drums)

Formed as Carl Lee & The Epitaphs in Welling, southeast London around 1963/1964, they changed name to The Epitaph Soul Band in 1965 and often played at the Black Prince Hotel in Bexley. Len Fletcher who ran the club was their manager.

Del Grace says the band’s line-up was fluid with musicians coming and going. The spelling may not be correct for some of the players listed above.

Bruce Duckworth didn’t stay long and they stuck with only one guitarist after he departed. At one point Del Grace’s friend Andy Clark came in on baritone sax and Mick Holland joined on bass.

The band’s van was involved in a horrific crash on Rochester Way, which effectively ended the band’s career.

Afterwards Mick Fletcher joined The Sound System who backed Jimmy Cliff before working with Hamilton & The Hamilton Movement, The Rifle (reuniting with Del Grace) and The Amboy Dukes.

Malcolm Magaron (lead vocals)

Del Grace (lead guitar)

Mick Fletcher (keyboards)

Terry Hewitt (bass)

Pete ? (drums)

This short-lived  band was called The Rifle and was the brainchild of  former Carl Douglas & The Big Stampede guitarist Del Grace, who put together an earlier line up in late 1967 to play a lucrative ski resort gig in Verbier, Switzerland over the Christmas period.

Malcolm Magaron had started out fronting Malcolm Magaron & The Blueshealers who were regulars at the Bag O’Nails in late 1966, which is probably where he first met Del Grace as Carl Douglas’ band worked there extensively during the same period.

Mick Fletcher, who’d worked with Del Grace in The Epitaph Soul Band during 1963-1965 period, joined after working with Hamilton & The Hamilton Movement.

When the band split up, Del Grace did some recordings for Liberty Records. Mick Fletcher joined The Amboy Dukes and Malcolm Magaron sang with The Les Humphries Singers.

We’d love to hear from anyone who can add any additional information in the comments section below.

Thanks to Del Grace for the photos.

Ed Pilling (vocals)

Brian Pilling (guitar, vocals)

Mick Hopkins (guitar, vocals)

Tony Clarkson (bass, vocals)

Jimmy Skidmore (drums)

1966

December English-born, Canadian raised brothers, singer Ed Pilling (b. 13 January 1948, Kingstanding, Birmingham, England) and guitarist Brian Pilling (b. 26 December 1949, Kingstanding, Birmingham, England) return to their place of birth to form a rock group. Having first emigrated in 1957, the Pillings have moved back and forth between Birmingham and Toronto several times as the family finds it hard to settle.

Eldest brother, Ed Pilling, who returns to Kingstanding, Birmingham on his own in 1964 and stays with an aunt, witnesses the exploding rock scene in the Midlands and decides to take up drums.

Returning to Toronto in mid-1965, he spends a year playing in high school band, The Pretty Ones with brother Brian Pilling and bass player Greg Godovitz.

Determined to make it in their country of birth, the brothers return to England but Ed is forced to leave his drums behind due to the transportation costs.

Back in Birmingham, Ed Pilling reunites with an old school friend from Kingstanding, Ted Clarkson, whose older brother is rhythm guitarist Tony Clarkson (b. 15 July 1945, Kingstanding, Birmingham, England).

Clarkson has been active on the local scene since 1962 when he started playing rhythm guitar with Guitars Incorporated (aka The GIs). The following year he joins The Wild Cherries, whose singer is the late Nicky James.

After playing in several local groups, Clarkson joins James’s new group, The Nicky James Movement in January 1965 where he meets former Diplomats guitarist Mick “Sprike” Hopkins (b. 3 January 1946, Great Barr, Birmingham, England).

Hopkins’s first notable group is Gerry Levene & The Avengers, which features future Move guitarist Roy Wood and future Moody Blues drummer Graeme Edge, and is signed to Decca Records. While Hopkins is a member, the group records enough material for an album (but it is never released) although Decca does issue a lone single, Dr Feelgood, backed by It’s Driving Me Wild (featuring only Levene).

In May 1964, however, Hopkins replaces Denny Laine in his group, The Diplomats when Laine forms The Moody Blues and they record some demos. As members of The Nicky James Movement, Clarkson and Hopkins appear on a lone single for Columbia Records – Stagger Lee backed by I’m Hurtin’ Inside, released in November 1965.

Clarkson leaves to play bass guitar in several local bands, including The Hooties, but reunites with Hopkins in June 1966 when the pair form a new group, The Way of Life with brothers, singer Reg Jones and guitarist Chris Jones, former members of The Chucks.

Another Nicky James Movement member, future Led Zeppelin drummer John Bonham completes the line up and The Way of Life become a popular live attraction in Birmingham.

Around December 1966 Ted Clarkson brings the Pilling brothers round to the family home and, impressed by their charisma and musical abilities, Clarkson agrees to form a new band with them called The Wages of Sin.

1967

January Clarkson recommends his The Way of Life cohort Mick Hopkins as a lead guitarist. When Ed Pilling is unable to get hire purchase to buy a drum kit and decides to concentrate on lead vocals, Clarkson and Hopkins try and entice John Bonham to join the fledgling group but he prefers to stay with The Way of Life and will subsequently join Robert Plant in The Band of Joy in 1967.

Clarkson contacts drummer Jimmy Skidmore, who has been playing in local group, The Delmore Lee Sound with keyboard player Norman Haines. Skidmore agrees to join on drums when Haines leaves to take up an offer with Locomotive, whose line up, at one point, includes future Traffic member, Chris Wood.

February The Wages of Sin sign to John Singer’s Agency and he lines the band up with a month’s worth of work in West Germany, playing at the Palleten club in Fulda, which is near an American army base. While there, the group records for the local Palleten label and cuts a version of Hey Joe (recently made famous by The Jimi Hendrix Experience) backed by a cover of Cream’s N.S.U. The single becomes a rare collector’s item and is only released in West Germany.

March Back in the West Midlands at the start of the month, The Wages of Sin begin to work around the local area, appearing regularly at top venues like the Morgue, the Carlton Club (aka Carlton Ballroom) and the Cedar Club.

(13) The group appears at the Hereford Lounge in the Bull’s Head in Yardley.

(16) The Wages of Sin perform at the Station Inn in Selly Oak.

(21) They play at the Carlton Club, Erdington.

(22) The Wages of Sin support John Mayall’s Bluesbreakers with The Finders Keepers at Queen’s Ballroom, Wolverhampton

(24) The band makes an appearance at the Selly Park Tavern in Selly Park.

(27-28) The Wages of Sin play two nights at the Hereford Lounge in the Bull’s Head, Yardley.

April (1) They open for London band, The Neat Change at the Carlton Club, Erdington.

(2) Travelling to nearby Coventry, they perform at the Sportsman’s Arms, Allesley.

(3) The Wages of Sin play at the Hereford Lounge in the Bull’s Head, Yardley.

(6) The group appears at the Station Inn, Selly Oak.

(11) They open for The Montanas at the Cedar Club, Birmingham.

(14) The musicians appear at the Bolero Club, Wednesbury, West Midlands

(17) The Wages of Sin open for Lulu and The Luvvers at the Cedar Club.

(24) The band appears at the Hereford Lounge in the Bull’s Head, Yardley.

(29) The group performs at the Bulls Head, Hanford, Staffordshire.

May (1) The Wages of Sin appear at the Bull’s Head in Hay Mills.

(4) The band plays at Station Inn in Selly Oak.

(7) The musicians appear the Carnaby Club in Coventry, West Midlands.

(12) The Wages of Sin perform at the Hereford Lounge at the Bull’s Head in Yardley.

(15) The group makes an appearance at the Holly Bush pub in Quinton. The same night singer/songwriter Cat Stevens performs at Birmingham’s Cedar Club and this may be the evening that he first hears about the group with whom he works with later in the year.

(20) The band appear at the Black Horse in Kidderminster, Worcestershire.

(24) The Wages of Sin play at the Hen and Chickens in Yardley with The Ugly’s.

(25) The next night, the band plays at the Station Inn in Selly Oak.

(27) The musicians appear at the Golden Torch, Tunstall, Staffordshire with The Powerhouse.

(30) The Wages of Sin perform at the Bolero Club, Wednesbury, West Midlands.

June (3) They return for another show at the Station Inn in Selly Oak. The group is also billed to perform at the Golden Torch, Tunstall, Staffordshire with The Powerhouse.

(5) The Wages of Sin perform at the Holly Bush pub in Quinton. Soon afterwards, The Wages of Sin return to Germany to play a second residency at the Palleten club in Fulda. The group begins to introduce more psychedelic material, including a cover of The Beatles’ Lucy In The Sky With Diamonds.

July (1) The band returns to the West Midlands and plays at the Station Inn in Selly Oak.

(5) The Wages of Sin appear at the Mackdown in Kitts Green with The Modernaires.

(7) They perform at the Hereford Lounge in the Bull’s Head, Yardley.

(10) The group appears at the Holly Bush pub in Quinton. Soon afterwards they start using the name Yellow Rainbow for some gigs because there is another band from Cambridge called The Wages of Sin.

(15) Billed as The Yellow Rainbow, the musicians appear at the Adelphi Ballroom, West Bromwich, West Midlands with The Uglys.

(16) Billed again as Yellow Rainbow, the band performs at the Beloro Club, Wednesbury, West Midlands.

(17) The Wages of Sin perform at the Regent Club in Langley Green with The Ugly’s and The Stax Movement.

(19) The musicians appear at the Hen and Chickens in Langley Green with The Wellington Kitch Jump Band.

(21) The Wages of Sin perform at Gotham City in the Crown and Cushion in Perry Barr with The Second Thoughts.

(22) The band appears at the Elbow Room in Aston, West Midlands.

(25) The Wages of Sin play at the Bolero Club, Wednesbury, West Midlands.

(28) The group plays at the Bull’s Head in Yardley. Aware of the more progressive musical scene emerging and to avoid confusion with the other group called The Wages of Sin, they change their name Yellow Rainbow, which inspires Hopkins’s former Gerry Levene & The Avengers band mate, Roy Wood to write a song for The Move using the same title.

August (7) Yellow Rainbow play at the Holly Bush pub in Quinton, West Midlands.

(12) They appear at the Queen’s Beat Club in Erdington.

(14) The band plays at the Regent Club in Langley Green with The Montanas.

(18) Yellow Rainbow appear at the Penthouse in Birmingham with Strictly for The Birds.

(26) Billed as The Wages of Sin, they play at the the Co-op in the Rainbow Suite, Birmingham with The Age.

(28) Billed once again as Yellow Rainbow, they appear at the Boor’s Head in Perry Barr.

(30) Yellow Rainbow perform at the Hen and Chickens in Langley Green.

September (2) The Wages of Sin play at the Blackhorse, Kidderminster, Worcestershire (but not clear if it’s the same band).

(4) The band appears at the Holly Bush in Quinton.

(14) Yellow Rainbow make an appearance at the Queen’s Beat Club in Erdington.

(16) The group plays at the Station Inn in Selly Oak.

(25) Yellow Rainbow appear at the Boor’s Head in Birmingham.

(30) They play at the Bull’s Head in Yardley, West Midlands.

October (2) Yellow Rainbow play at the Holly Bush pub in Quinton. This may be the evening that Cat Stevens’s brother and manager David Gordon approaches the musicians and invites them to London to record and work as Cat Stevens’s backing band. Despite having a year’s worth of bookings in Birmingham, the group accepts and is put on a retainer. Before moving to London, Yellow Rainbow fufil a number of local bookings.

(3) The musicians perform at the Bolero in Wednesbury, West Midlands.

(7) They appear at the Swan in Yardley Green with Chances Avenue.

(8) One of the band’s final gigs in the West Midlands is at the Crown and Cushion in Perry Barr. Soon afterwards, Yellow Rainbow relocate to London where Cat Stevens renames them Zeus.

November (10) Zeus plays a solo set at Middle Earth with The Soft Machine and Sensory Armada. They spend the next few days rehearsing at the Marquee with Stevens in preparation for a forthcoming show in France.

(17-18) Backing Cat Stevens, Zeus performs at the Palais des Sports in Paris on a show that also features The Spencer Davis Group, The Soft Machine, Dantalion’s Chariot, Keith West and Tomorrow. The show is recorded and broadcast on French TV.

December Back in the UK, Stevens records and produces Zeus covering two of his compositions at Pye Studios, which are subsequently shelved.

(18) Zeus appears at the Marquee in London, opening for The Nice.

1968

January (20) Cat Stevens and Zeus appear at the Winter Gardens Weston-Super-Mare.

Within weeks, Stevens contracts TB and is forced to lay low while he recuperates.

Although the band is on a retainer, there is little work and in February the Pilling brothers decide to return to Toronto where they will subsequently form Fludd with former Pretty Ones bass player Greg Godovitz. Fludd record their debut album for Warner Brothers in August 1971 and will have several notable Canadian hits in the early 1970s, including Turned 21.

The Pilling brothers’ departure scuppers the band. Skidmore subsequently joins The Norman Haines Band while Clarkson responds to an advert in NME and becomes a member of The World of Oz, whose debut single is released on 14 August 1968.

The band records three popsike singles for Deram between 1968-1969, including the catchy The Muffin Man and an eponymous lone album. A fourth single appears in the Netherlands where The World of Oz is a popular attraction. When the group breaks up, Clarkson briefly becomes a roadie for The Moody Blues, working part of their 1971 world tour.

Hopkins, meanwhile, joins Birmingham group, The Lemon Tree in June 1968 and appears on their second Parlophone single It’s So Nice To Come Home, which is produced by Andy Fairweather-Low.

He then forms Copperfield who record two singles in 1969-1970. The first, Any Old Time, is for the Instant label and is produced by Andrew Loog Oldham, while the second, I’ll Hold Out My Hand, is for Parlophone. Kenny Jones of The Small Faces plays drums on Any Old Time.

In January 1971, Hopkins replaces Jeff Lynne in The Idle Race and appears on the group’s final single for Regal Zonophone, Dancing Flower, and a lone album, Time Is.

1971

December Hopkins answers a call from the Pilling brothers to fly to Toronto and join Fludd. He appears on one single, Get Up, Get Out and Move On, which reaches #34 on the Canadian charts, before returning home to Birmingham after six months to put together Barefoot, resident band at the Rum Runner in Birmingham.

Hopkins later finds a degree of fame with heavy rock band, Quartz. Hopkins later records in his own studio in Birmingham with friends from his 1960s group, Copperfield.

Fludd, meanwhile, enjoyed further Canadian hits with Cousin Mary and What An Animal among others before Brian Pilling succumbs to cancer on 28 June 1978, aged just 29.

The group later evolves into Saga. Ed appears with a new version of Fludd in Toronto on 30 April 2009 with Foot In Cold Water.

My personal thanks go to Ed Pilling, Mick Hopkins and Tony Clarkson for helping to pull the story together.

The live dates were taken from many different sources, including Melody Maker and The Birmingham Evening Mail, the Express & Star, the Evening Sentinel, Kidderminster Times and Stourport News and Coventry Evening Telegraph.

Thank you also to Vernon Joynson and his excellent book, The Tapestry of Delights and Laurie Hornsby’s Brum Rocked On!

Copyright © Nick Warburton. All Rights Reserved. No part of this article may be reproduced or transmitted in any from or by any means, without prior permission from the author.

This historically important Birmingham group is best known for featuring future Led Zeppelin drummer John Bonham and bass player Dave Pegg, who went onto Fairport Convention and Jethro Tull among others.

The Way of Life #1 (June 1966-September 1966)

Reg Jones – lead vocals, harmonica
Chris Jones – lead guitar, rhythm guitar, vocals
Mick ‘Sprike’ Hopkins – lead guitar, vocals
Tony Clarkson – bass, vocals
John Bonham – drums, vocals

Singer Reg Jones had started out as front man with local outfit, The Counts while his younger sibling Chris played guitar with The Chantelles in the early 1960s. Reg Jones later joined his brother in The Chantelles.

In 1963, Chris Jones joined future The Way of Life member Danny King’s band, Danny King & The Jesters, which also featured bass player Chris ‘Ace’ Kefford, who went on to The Move and drummer Barry Smith (aka Barry St John), who joined The Way of Life in 1968.

In 1965, the Jones siblings reunited in The Chucks. However, after nearly 18 months together, The Chucks split up after returning from West Germany in April 1966.

The siblings next decided to form a new band. They had already asked lead guitarist Mick ‘Sprike’ Hopkins and bass player Tony Clarkson to join.

Hopkins was something of a local legend, having previously worked with Gerry Levene & The Avengers (with Roy Wood and Graeme Edge), The Diplomats and The Nicky James Movement among others.

Clarkson also had an impressive, local pedigree; he’d worked with Guitars Incorporated, The Wild Cherries and The Nicky James Movement (where he met Hopkins). He’d also briefly played with drummer Bugsy Eastwood in a short-lived outfit called The Hooties that became The Exception in late 1966.

One Sunday (either 12 or 19 June but the latter is more likely), the quartet auditioned about 20 drummers at the Club Cedar where the new outfit had a gig that night.

John Bonham, who’d worked with Clarkson and Hopkins in The Nicky James Movement, turned up and landed the job.

Bonham had worked with a number of West Midlands bands during the early-mid 1960s, including Terry Webb & The Spiders, The Blue Star Trio, The Senators and Steve Brett & The Mavericks before signing up with The Nicky James Movement in late 1965 (where he met Clarkson and Hopkins). Bonham then briefly gigged with Pat Wayne & The Beachcombers before turning up at the Club Cedar for the audition.

The Way of Life was augmented for its first few gigs by Nicky James on second lead vocals but he did not stay long.

Notable gigs

19 June 1966 – Club Cedar, Birmingham, West Midlands (debut)

21 June 1966 – Carlton Club, Erdington, West Midlands

24 June 1966 – Sydenham Pub, Sydenham, West Midlands

25 June 1966 – Hereford Lounge, Bull’s Head, Yardley, West Midlands

1 July 1966 – Hereford Lounge, Bull’s Head, Yardley, West Midlands

8 July 1966 – Hereford Lounge, Bull’s Head, Yardley, West Midlands

9 July 1966 – Carlton Club, Erdington, West Midlands with The Falling Leaves

14 July 1966 – Station Inn, Selly Oak, West Midlands

15 July 1966 – Sydenham Pub, Sydenham, West Midlands

16 July 1966 – Hereford Lounge, Bull’s Head, Yardley, West Midlands

23 July 1966 – Carlton Club, Erdington, West Midlands with The Times

28 July 1966 – Bel Air Club, Castle Bromwich, West Midlands

29 July 1966 – Sydenham, West Midlands

30 July 1966 – Station Inn, Selly Oak, West Midlands

2 August 1966 – Carlton Club, Erdington, West Midlands

5 August 1966 – Carlton Ballroom, Erdington, West Midlands with Little People

12 August 1966 – Hereford Lounge, Bull’s Head, Yardley, West Midlands

20 August 1966 – Carlton Ballroom, Erdington, West Midlands with Long Stack Humphries

22 August 1966 – Hereford Lounge, Bull’s Head, Yardley, West Midlands

10 September 1966 – Carlton Club, Erdington, West Midlands with The Outer Limits

21 September 1966 – Mackadown, Kitts Green, West Midlands with The Modernairs

24 September 1966 – Station Inn, Selly Oak, West Midlands

The Way of Life #2 (September 1966-January 1967)

Reg Jones – lead vocals, harmonica
Chris Jones – lead guitar
Mick ‘Sprike’ Hopkins – lead guitar, vocals
Tony Clarkson – bass, vocals
Malc Poole – drums

John Bonham was sacked for playing too loudly and his friend Malc Poole, who’d worked with the Jones brothers in The Chucks from January-April 1966, took his place behind the drum kit. Poole has also played with The Incas and The Seed during 1966.

In December 1966, The Way of Life signed with the Rik Gunnell Agency and recorded some tracks in London.

However, the following month John Bonham convinced the Jones brothers to re-employ him.

Poole subsequently joined The Hush (who shared the bill with The Way of Life at Tiles in London in mid-February 1967). Later, in 1968, the drummer replaced Cozy Powell in Youngblood.

The drummer moved down to London in 1969 and worked with a succession of outfits, including Warhorse and The Foundations. He later played with Rick Wakeman but died on 21 May 2015.

Notable gigs

30 September 1966 – Bell Hotel, Northfield, West Midlands (Poole’s debut)

5 November 1966 – Mews, Moseley, West Midlands with Locomotive

18 November 1966 – Walsgrave Hotel, Coventry

25 November 1966 – Midnight City, Digbeth, West Midlands with Elkie Brooks and The End

27 November 1966 – Ship & Rainbow, Wolverhampton, West Midlands with New Station Road

2 December 1966 – Mad House, Friendship Hall, Erdington, West Midlands

3 December 1966 – Civic Hall, Nantwich, Cheshire with The Times

4 December 1966 – The County Arms, Blaby, Leicestershire

9 December 1966 – Carlton Club, Erdington, West Midlands

10 December 1966 – Hereford Lounge, Bull’s Head, Yardley, West Midlands

11 December 1966 – Carlton Club, Erdington, West Midlands

Mid December 1966 – the band opened a new club in Liege, Belgium (most likely the New Inn Club)

24 December 1966 – Bolero, Wednesbury, West Midlands with Thernays Fugitives

31 December 1966 – California Ballroom, Dunstable, Bedfordshire with The Quiet Five

4 January 1967 – Hereford Lounge, Bull’s Head, Yardley, West Midlands

5 January 1967 – Carlton Club, Erdington, West Midlands

7 January 1967 – Winter Gardens, Banbury, Warwickshire with The Methods

9 January 1967 – The Belfry, Wishaw, West Midlands

11 January 1967 – Heartbeat, Birmingham, West Midlands (possibly Mac Poole’s final gig)

There is a good article on The Way of Life in the Bedworth & Foleshill News, 13/1/1967, page 2

The Way of Life #3 (January-February 1967)

Reg Jones – lead vocals, harmonica
Chris Jones – lead guitar, rhythm guitar, vocals
Mick ‘Sprike’ Hopkins – lead guitar, vocals
Tony Clarkson – bass, vocals
John Bonham – drums, vocals

Tony Clarkson’s younger brother had gone to school with Birmingham-born, Canadian-raised siblings, Ed and Brian Pilling, who had returned to the West Midlands from Toronto to form a group. Introduced to Clarkson, the trio decided to put together The Wages of Sin and lined up gigs in West Germany.

Clarkson enticed Mick Hopkins away from The Way of Life. John Bonham was also invited but decided to stay with the Jones brothers.

The Wages of Sin would become Yellow Rainbow and then Zeus, becoming Cat Stevens’s backing band. Clarkson would subsequently play with The World of Oz among others, while Hopkins would play with The Lemon Tree, Copperfield, The Idle Race, Fludd and Quartz among others.

Notable gigs

12 January 1967 – London gig (according to Birmingham Evening Mail)

13 January 1967 – Penthouse, Birmingham, West Midlands

16 January 1967 – Caravelle Club, Birmingham Airport, Birmingham, West Midlands

20 January 1967 – Royal Oak, Hockley Heath, West Midlands

21 January 1967 – Elbow Room, Aston, West Midlands

26 January 1967 – Station Inn, Selly Oak, West Midlands

28 January 1967 – Penthouse, Birmingham, West Midlands

28 January 1967 – Ship & Rainbow, Wolverhampton, West Midlands with The Confederates

29 January 1967 – Gotham City, Birmingham, West Midlands

30 January 1967 – Heartbeat, Birmingham, West Midlands

31 January 1967 – Carlton Club, Erdington, West Midlands

4 February 1967 – Le Carnaby Club, Leicester, Leicestershire

The Way of Life #4 (February-September 1967)

Reg Jones – lead vocals, harmonica
Chris Jones – lead guitar
Danny King – bass, lead vocals
John Bonham – drums, vocals

Chris Jones assumed the lead guitar role and Danny King was brought in on bass and second lead vocals.

Danny King was a respected singer on the local scene and had led a succession of groups since the early 1960s starting with Danny King & The Dukes. After fronting Danny King & The Royals and Danny King & The Jesters (with Chris Jones), he formed Danny King & The Mayfair Set. During 1966, King left to sing with Locomotive.

Shortly after joining The Way of Life, the quartet traveled down to London and played the Bag O’Nails in Soho.

During the summer of 1967, The Way of Life, added Bugsy Eastwood from The Exception as a second drummer, but he did not stay long.

Notable gigs

18 February 1967 – Tiles, London with The Hush and The Question

25 February 1967 – The White Bicycle, Maple Ballroom, Northampton with Premier Slam Band

11 March 1967 – California Ballroom, Dunstable, Bedfordshire with The Quiet Five and The Essex Five

13 March 1967 – The Belfry, Wishaw, West Midlands with Manchester’s Playboys (billed as The New Way of Life)

17 March 1967 – Graven Hill Theatre, Bicester with The Methods

25 March 1967 – The Mews, Moseley, West Midlands

5 April 1967 – Mackadown, Kitts Green, West Midlands with The Exception (billed as The New Way of Life with Danny King)

8 April 1967 – Ettingham Park Hotel, Alderminster, Stratford on Avon, Warwickshire

The Express & Star advertised a gig with Idle Race, Sight and Sound and Chicago Hush, which related to Monday 17/4/67

25 April 1967 – Watersplash Night Club, Walsall Wood, West Midlands

21 May 1967 – Plaza Ballroom, Bearwood, West Midlands with The Gravy Train and The Fugitives

17 June 1967 – Handsworth Plaza, Handsworth, West Midlands with The Kinks

19 June 1967 – Plaza Ballroom, Bearwood, West Midlands

21 June 1967 – Hen & Chickens, Langley, West Midlands with The ‘N’ Betweens and Priority

5 July 1967 – Industrial Club, Norwich, Norfolk

1 August 1967 – Bolero Club, Wednesbury, West Midlands

18 August 1967 – Caesar’s Place, Stratford-upon-Avon, Warwickshire with The Idle Race

3 September 1967 – Frank Freeman Dancing Club, Kidderminster, Worcestershire with Small Change

5 September 1967 – Bolero Club, Wednesbury, West Midlands

The Way of Life #5 (September-October 1967)

Reg Jones – lead vocals, harmonica
Chris Jones – lead guitar
Dave Pegg – bass, vocals
John Bonham – drums, vocals (replaced briefly by Phil Brittle)

After Danny King left, Dave Pegg came in from The Exception, a band that had shared the stage with The Way of Life at least once earlier in the year.

Pegg had an impressive pedigree, having previously worked with The Trespassers, Dave & The Emeralds, The Crawdaddies and Roy Everett & The Blueshounds before backing Jimmy Cliff for a few months from November 1965-February 1966.

He then hooked up with The Uglys in mid-February 1966 before joining The Exception later that year.

Laurie Hornsby’s book Brum Rocked On!, notes that the new line up rehearsed at the Warstock pub.

Dave Pegg’s diary notes that the line-up’s first gig took place at the Swadley Youth Club. The bass player recalls that he played about 20 gigs with Bonham before the drummer left.

According Harry Barber’s book on The Band of Joy, drummer Phil Brittle took over briefly before leaving to join the fourth line up of The Band of Joy in late September. He only stayed a very short while however, before John Bonham took his place and met his future Led Zeppelin colleague, Robert Plant.

Notable gigs

15 September 1967 – Swadley Youth Club, Swadley, West Midlands (Dave Pegg’s debut)

17 September 1967 – Crown & Cushion, Perry Barr, West Midlands

28 September 1967 – Cofton Country Club, Rednal, West Midlands with The Rest

29 September 1967 – Bolero Club, Wednesbury, West Midlands

18 October 1967 – British Services Club (Perry Common British Legion?)

23 October 1967 – Queen’s Head, Erdington, West Midlands (Dave Pegg’s final gig)

The Way of Life #6 (October 1967-circa January 1968)

Reg Jones – lead vocals, harmonica
Chris Jones – lead guitar
Jon Fox – lead guitar, vocals
Danny King – bass, vocals
John Panteney – (Pank) drums

Dave Pegg left in late October 1967 to join The Ian Campbell Folk Group and later found fame with Fairport Convention and Jethro Tull.

The Jones siblings brought back Danny King to replace Dave Pegg on bass and recruited Jon Fox on second lead guitar and vocals.

Fox had started out with his own outfit, Jon Fox & The Hunters in the early 1960s. He subsequently became a member of Johnny Neal & The Starliners before forming The Varsity Rag in 1967.

The Way of Life also found a new drummer, John Panteney, who had worked with The Chantelles (after the Jones siblings had moved on) in the mid-1960s. He then played with several other local acts before agreeing to join The Way of Life.

However, it was yet another short-lived version. By early 1968, Fox had moved on to form Cathedral while Panteney joined Paradox with future Magnum singer Bob Catley.

Notable gigs

28 October 1967 – The Woolpack, Wolverhampton, West Midlands with The Crew

7 November 1967 – Industrial Club, Norwich, Norfolk

21 November 1967 – Bolero, Wednesbury, West Midlands

27 November 1967 – Plaza Ballroom, Bearwood, West Midlands with Lynda and The Blend

4 January 1968 – Birdland, West Bromwich, West Midlands

28 January 1968 – Bolero, Wednesbury, West Midlands

The Way of Life #7 (January-November 1968)

Reg Jones – lead vocals, harmonica
Chris Jones – lead guitar
Danny King – bass, lead vocals
Barry Smith – drums

The Jones brothers rebuilt the group by bringing in drummer Barry Smith, who’d worked with them previously in The Chucks during 1965.

Smith had started out with former The Way of Life bass player/singer Danny King in his early 1960s band, Danny King & The Royals. Later on, he worked with Danny Burns & The Phantoms.

The final incarnation recorded some material for Polydor Records before splitting up in late 1968.

The Jones brothers continued to play live on the local scene. Reg Jones died in 2004 and Chris Jones passed away in March 2014.

Notable gigs

2 February 1968 – Casino, Leicester, Leicestershire

3 February 1968 – Industrial Club, Norwich, Norfolk

24 February 1968 – Staffs Volunteer, Bushbury, Wolverhampton, West Midlands

2 March 1968 – Bull’s Head, Yardley, West Midlands

3 March 1968 – Queen’s Beat Club, Erdington, West Midlands

9 March 1968 – Crown and Cushion, Perry Barr, West Midlands with Capital Systems

17 March 1968 – Crown & Cushion, Birmingham with The Peeps

21 March 1968 – Queen’s Beat Club, Erdington, West Midlands

23 March 1968 – Station Inn, Selly Oak, West Midlands

25 March 1968 – Holly Bush, Quinton, West Midlands

27 March 1968 – Chesterfield Club, Castle Bromwich, West Midlands

31 March 1968 – Station Inn, Selly Oak, West Midlands

1 April 1968 – Bulls Head, Yardley, West Midlands

9 April 1968 – Chalet Country Club, Rednal, West Midlands with Fanny Flickers

13 April 1968 – Willenhall Baths Assembly Hall, Willenhall, West Midlands with Lovin’ Kind

18 April 1968 – Station Inn, Selly Oak, West Midlands

Sources:  most of the West Midlands gigs were sourced from the Birmingham Evening Mail, which is an amazing resource for music journalists. Other magazine/newspaper sources included Melody Maker, Eastern Evening News, Express & Star, Coventry Evening Telegraph, Banbury Guardian and Leicester Mercury.

Thanks to Dave Pegg and Mac Poole (who both shared dates from their diaries), Mick Hopkins, Tony Clarkson, Jon Fox, Harry Barber, Laurie Hornsby and John R Woodhouse, who runs the Brumbeat website.

Mick Bonham’s book John Bonham: The Powerhouse behind Led Zeppelin was another great resource.

Huge thanks to Jason Barnard who originally posted this article on the Strange Brew website. This is a significantly updated version.

Copyright © Nick Warburton. All Rights Reserved. No part of this article may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, without prior permission from the author.

This little known soul act was active from around spring 1967 through to the end of 1969 and had an extremely fluid line-up with tonnes of musicians coming and going.

The only musicians I’ve been able to link to the group are guitarist Fred D’Albert who’d been in Tony Knight’s Chessmen; trumpet player Pat Higgs from Bluesology, Hamilton & The Hamilton Movement and Geno Washington’s Ram Jam Band; and South African sax player Mike Faure, who’d played with tonnes of groups at home before moving to the UK, including Freedom’s Children.

I’d be grateful for any further personnel in the comments below as well as stories and notable gigs.

The band was billed as both The Cat Soul Packet and The Cat Road Show, but mainly the latter.

An early mention in Melody Maker from April 1967 reveals the group was initially a 14-piece act but on another UK tour in August that year, there were 12 members. A show in September 1969 lists only nine members.

As well as starring singer US Flattop, the band also featured several guest singers over years, including Lorna and Lesley in late 1967,  Jacqui and Sue in summer 1968 and Leroy and Jacqui in late 1968.

I have found the following gigs from Melody Maker and would welcome any additions:

15 June 1967 – Public Hall, Epping, Essex

16 June 1967 – Hemel Hempstead Pavilion, Hemel Hempstead, Herts

17 June 1967 – Iron Curtain, Birmingham

18 June 1967 – Blue Room, Edmonton, north London

25 August 1967 – California Ballroom, Dunstable, Beds

15 June 1968 – Civic Hall, Guildford, Surrey

22 June 1968 – La Bamba, Tunbridge Wells, Kent

28 June 1968 – Hemel Hempstead Pavilion, Hemel Hempstead, Herts

6 July 1968 – Alex Disco, Salisbury, Wiltshire

30 August 1968 – City Hall, St Albans, Herts

31 August 1968 – Town Hall, Torquay, Devon

2 September 1968 – Richmond Athletic Ground, Richmond, west London

14 February 1969 – Cue Club, Paddington, central London

15 March 1969 – Burton’s, Uxbridge, west London

Guitarist Mick Abrahams formed Blodwyn Pig in his home town Luton, Bedfordshire in the first few weeks of January 1969 after leaving Jethro Tull in early December 1968.

Bass player Andy Pyle had previously been a member of Abrahams’ pre-Jethro Tull group, McGregor’s Engine while sax/flute player Jack Lancaster was from Manchester and was working with the group Sponge when he got the call.

The trio advertised for a drummer and Ron Berg who’d been working with White Rabbit (singer Linda Lewis fronted them at one point) answered and got the job.

In his autobiography, What is a Wommett?, Mick Abrahams says that Blodwyn Pig rehearsed for a week before making their debut at the Cooks Ferry Inn in Edmonton, north London.

Melody Maker lists this as 27 January and notes that the quartet was billed as The Mick Abrahams Blues Band. In fact, Abrahams’ new group was billed under his own name rather than Blodwyn Pig for its first few gigs.

The following is an incomplete gig list of Blodwyn Pig 1969 gigs which are all listed in Melody Maker unless otherwise noted.

I’d welcome any additions. The band is billed as Blodwyn Pig unless noted.

Notable gigs:

27 January 1969 – Cooks Ferry Inn, Edmonton, north London (debut) Billed as Mick Abrahams Blues Band

Melody Maker’s 1 February issue, page 4, reports the new band and name under its news extra section

1 February 1969 – Van Dike, Plymouth, Devon (Jonathan Hill’s book, Van Dike – The Life & Times of a Plymouth Club 1968-1972). Billed as Mick Abrahams Band

7 February 1969 – Bedford College, Regent’s Park, central London with Chicken Shack. Billed as Mick Abrahams Band

13 February 1969 – Red Lion, Leytonstone, east London. Billed as Mick Abrahams

21 February 1969 – Blues Loft, Nag’s Head, High Wycombe, Bucks

Melody Maker’s 22 February issue, page 6, says the band made its Marquee debut last week but I have not found a listing elsewhere. Monday night (17 February) was audition night so this is the possible date

22 February 1969 – Mothers, Erdington, West Midlands with Keef Hartley

3 March 1969 – Cooks Ferry Inn, Edmonton, north London. Billed as Mick Abrahams

15 March 1969 – London College of Printing, Elephant & Castle, south London with Chicken Shack and Jellybread. Billed as Mick Abrahams Band

28 March 1969 – Hornsey Wood Tavern, Hornsey Wood, north London. Billed as Mick Abrahams Blodwyn Pigg

29 March 1969 – The Village, Dagenham, east London with Killing Floor and Yellow Dog. Billed as Mick Abrahams

2 April 1969 – Rambling Jack’s Blues Club, the Railway Hotel, Bishop’s Stortford, Herts (Steve Ingless’ book The Day Before Yesterday – Rock, Rhythm and Jazz in the Bishop’s Stortford area from 1957 to 1969)

15 April 1969 – Fishmonger’s Arms, Wood Green, north London. Billed as Mick Abrahams Blodwyn Pig

18 April 1969 – The Marquee, Wardour Street, Soho, central London with Circus (Tony Bacon’s book, London Live)

19 April 1969 – London College of Printing, Elephant & Castle, south London with Climax Chicago Blues Band and Smiley

20 April 1969 – Mothers, Erdington, West Midlands with Dr K’s Blues Band (Poster)

22 April 1969 – Bluesville ’69 Club’s Cherry Tree, Welwyn Garden City, Herts

23 April 1969 – Blues Loft, Nag’s Head, High Wycombe, Bucks

25 April 1969 – Northern Poly, Holloway Road, north London with Elmer Gantry

29 April 1969 – The Marquee, Wardour Street, Soho, central London (Tony Bacon’s book, London Live)

9 May 1969 – Bedford College, Regent’s Park, central London with Free

20 May 1969 – The Marquee, Wardour Street, Soho, central London with Grail (Tony Bacon’s book, London Live)

30 May 1969 – The Marquee, Wardour Street, Soho, central London with Sam Apple Pie (Tony Bacon’s book, London Live)

2 June 1969 – Cooks Ferry Inn, Edmonton, north London

11 June 1969 – Blues Loft, Nag’s Head, High Wycombe, Bucks

16 June 1969 – The Pavilion, Bath (Poster) Billed as Mick Abraham’s Blodwyn Pig

22 June 1969 – Mothers, Erdington, West Midlands with The Taste

27 June 1969 – The Marquee, Wardour Street, Soho, central London with Groundhogs (Tony Bacon’s book, London Live)

28 June 1969 – Bath Festival of Blues, Bath with Fleetwood Mac, Led Zeppelin, John Mayall, Chicken Shack, Nice, Ten Years After and many, many others. Billed as Mick Abraham’s Blodwyn Pig

29 June 1969 – Albert Hall, Knightsbridge, central London with Led Zeppelin and The Liverpool Scene. Billed as Mick Abraham’s Blodwyn Pig

30 June 1969 – Cooks Ferry Inn, Edmonton, north London

6 July 1969 – Farx, the Northcote Arms, Southall, west London

11 July 1969 – The Marquee, Wardour Street, Soho, central London with Andromeda (Tony Bacon’s book, London Live)

11 July 1969 – Brunel University Students’ Union, Brunel University, London with The Soft Machine, Aaardvark and Good Earth. Billed as Mick Abraham’s Blodwyn Pig

25 July 1969 – The Marquee, Wardour Street, Soho, central London with Circus (Tony Bacon’s book, London Live)

Melody Maker’s 9 August issue, p12, has a good write up entitled ‘Blodwyn Pig continue with the heavy sound’.

9 August 1969 – Malvern Winter Gardens, Malvern, Worcestershire with Clouds (Poster)

15 August 1969 – The Marquee, Wardour Street, Soho, central London with Grail (Tony Bacon’s book, London Live)

20 August 1969 – Rambling Jack’s Blues Club, the Railway Hotel, Bishop’s Stortford, Herts (Steve Ingless’ book The Day Before Yesterday – Rock, Rhythm and Jazz in the Bishop’s Stortford area from 1957 to 1969) Concert was cancelled due to summer recess

22 August 1969 – Blues Loft, Nag’s Head, High Wycombe, Bucks

25 August 1969 – King’s Hall, Romford Market, Romford, east London

29 August 1969 – The Marquee, Wardour Street, Soho, central London with Samson (Tony Bacon’s book, London Live)

18 September 1969 – Social Club, Aylesbury, Bucks

21 September 1969 – Farx, the Northcote Arms, Southall, west London. Billed as Mick Abrahams Blodwyn Pig

22 September 1969 – The Village of the Damned Blues Club, Aurora Ballroom, Brompton, Gillingham, Kent with support (Poster)

30 September 1969 – The Marquee, Wardour Street, Soho, central London with Ground (Tony Bacon’s book, London Live)

This short-lived band was formed in Lewisham, southeast London around 1967 and featured:

Ray Marshall (guitar/vocals)

Ronnie Clayden (keyboards/harmonica)

Graham Marshall (bass)

Chris Stevens (drums)

+ 

Sax player

The group played regularly on the club scene throughout 1968 and 1969 before Clayden left to join The Kool.

I’d welcome any more information on the group.

Thanks to Ronnie Clayden for band line-up. 

When Dexys Midnight Runners’ topped the UK charts in 1981 with their “Geno” tribute, a new generation of fans discovered American soul singer Geno Washington, who had fronted British R&B/soul outfit The Ram Jam Band from 1965-1970 and enjoyed moderate chart success.

Originally the brainchild of lead guitarist Pete Gage, who now lives in Australia, this period covers the original formation before Geno Washington restructured the group in April 1967.

I have tried to list all of the gig sources at the end of this article.

Geno Washington & Les Blues

24 October 1964 – Town Hall, Clacton, Essex with Georgie Fame & The Blue Flames and The Limelighters

Geno Washington & The Ram Jam Band #1

(March 1965-July 1966)

Geno Washington – lead vocals

Pete Gage – lead guitar, vocals

Geoff Pullum (aka Jeff Wright) – organ, vocals

John Roberts – bass

Lionel ‘Rocky’ Kingham – tenor saxophone

Buddy Beadle – baritone saxophone

Herb Prestidge – drums

Guitarist Pete Gage (b. 31 August 1947, Lewisham) had been playing with Dalston, London group, The Zephyrs in late 1964, and had penned the A-side of their single, “She’s Lost You” (released in February 1965), when he ran into Geno Washington in Southend while moonlighting with R&B outfit, The Fairies.

At the time Geno Washington was fronted Les Blues, a band that he had formed in 1963 while working as a US airman, based at USAF Bentwaters, near Woodbridge, Suffolk. The group comprised pianist Koll Patterson, bass player Tony Coe, guitarist Morton Lewis and drummer Gerry Gillings.

Pete Gage had met Washington at USAF Bentwaters on several occasions over the past year and encouraged the American to become a professional singer.

Together with his school friend Jeff Wright (b. Geoffrey Keith Pullum, 8 March 1945, Irving, Scotland), Gage considered the option of “buying” Washington out of the US Armed Forces and then constructing a backing group around the singer.

In early 1965, Pullum introduced Nuneaton-born drummer Herb Prestidge and his friend, Coventry-born bass player John Roberts, who’d both previously worked with the keyboardist in Germany in Sonny Stewart & The Dynamos.

Prestidge had started out with Nuneaton band, The Barracudas around 1961 before playing with Max Hollyman & The Demons for two years, where he met John Roberts. They both met Geoff Pullum while playing with Sonny Stewart & The Dynamos in 1964.

After extensive auditions, Gage and Pullum recruited tenor sax player, Calcutta, India-born Lionel ‘Rocky’ Kingham and Clapham-born, baritone sax player Buddy Beadle to complete their Ram Jam Band, named after an old coaching inn at Stretton near Oakham on the A1 in Rutland.

The idea was to create a UK-based Stax-style soul outfit (with an African-American singer and a backing group like Booker T & The MGs with an added horn section) that British audiences could experience live.

Geno Washington, however, remained unavailable in early 1965, and so The Ram Jam Band tried out singer Kenny Bernard (whom Gage had previously recorded with) but he was more pop that soul. The musicians next tried singer Kenrick Des Etages (aka Ebony Keyes) whose vocals were a perfect match for the band. However, Keyes was more Caribbean than Stax-soul and so the musicians next performed three gigs with singer John Holder before linking with Jamaican singer Errol Dixon.

Together with Dixon, the band cut a lone single “Shake Shake Senora” c/w “Akinia”. Also, through the Jamaican’s contacts with Rik and John Gunnell and their Soho club, the Flamingo on Wardour Street, the musicians landed their first gigs at the prestigious venue around March 1965.

By this point, Geno Washington had demobbed from the US Armed Forces and was due to return to Indiana in the United States. Gage bought the singer a return ticket to the UK on condition that he would come back and replace Errol Dixon as front man.

In the meantime, Gage approached the Gunnell brothers with the proposition that Washington would take over from Dixon. When the American returned in mid-April, the group auditioned for the siblings and were immediately booked to play at the Flamingo.

The original line up was responsible for recording three singles – “Water” c/w “Understanding” (Piccadilly 7N 35312) in April 1966 (the group’s biggest hit, climbing to #39 in the UK charts); “Hi! Hi! Hazel” c/w “Beach Bash” (Piccadilly 7N 35329) in July 1966 (a UK #45 hit) and “Que Sera Sera” c/w “All I Need” (Piccadilly 7N 35346) in September 1966 (a UK #43 hit).

Two tracks also appeared on an EP, “Hi!” (Piccadilly NEP 34054) released in January 1967 and comprising the A-sides of the first two singles plus later recordings.

Selected gigs:

24 April 1965 – Flamingo, Wardour Street, Soho, central London with The Checkmates (first listing at Soho club)

25 April 1965 – Flamingo, Wardour Street, Soho, central London with Herbie Goins & The Night Timers

4 May 1965 – Flamingo, Wardour Street, Soho, central London with The Shevells

8 May 1965 – Flamingo, Wardour Street, Soho, central London with Tony Knight’s Chessmen

9 May 1965 – Riverside Club, Cricketers Hotel, Chertsey, Surrey

15 May 1965 – Flamingo, Wardour Street, Soho, central London with Georgie Fame & The Blue Flames

16 May 1965 – Flamingo, Wardour Street, Soho, central London with John Mayall’s Bluesbreakers

22 May 1965 – Witchdoctor Club, St Leonards-on-Sea, East Sussex

23 May 1965 – Royal Star Ballroom, Maidstone, Kent

28-29 May 1965 – Flamingo, Wardour Street, Soho, central London with The Soul Sisters and Brian Auger Trinity

30 May 1965 – Blue Moon, Hayes, west London

7 June 1965 – Flamingo, Wardour Street, Soho, central London with Chris Farlowe & The Thunderbirds

11-12 June 1965 – Flamingo, Wardour Street, Soho, central London with Doris Troy and Chris Farlowe & The Thunderbirds

13 June 1965 – Flamingo, Wardour Street, Soho, central London

15 June 1965 – Flamingo, Wardour Street, Soho, central London

18 June 1965 – Flamingo, Wardour Street, Soho, central London with Solomon Burke and The Mike Cotton Sound

19 June 1965 – Flamingo, Wardour Street, Soho, central London with Chris Farlowe & The Thunderbirds

20 June 1965 – Witchdoctor Club, St Leonards-on-Sea, East Sussex

23 June 1965 – Le Disque A Go Go, Bournemouth, Dorset

25 June 1965 – Flamingo, Wardour Street, Soho, central London with Herbie Goins & The Night Timers

27 June 1965 – Flamingo, Wardour Street, Soho, central London

3 July 1965 – Flamingo, Wardour Street, Soho, central London with Herbie Goins & The Night Timers

4 July 1965 – ‘Rhapsody at Racks’, Guildford, Surrey with The Graham Bond Organisation and The Herd

6 July 1965 – Klook’s Kleek, West Hampstead, north London with Dedicated Men’s Jug Band

9 July 1965 – Flamingo, Wardour Street, Soho, central London with Inez & Charlie Foxx and Tony Knight’s Chessmen

12 July 1965 – The Cavern, Liverpool with Richmond Group and Exit

16 July 1965 – Flamingo, Wardour Street, Soho, central London with Inez & Charlie Foxx and John Mayall’s Bluesbreakers (billed without Geno)

18 July 1965 – Bromel Club, Bromley Court Hotel, Bromley, southeast London with Inez & Charlie Foxx (billed without Geno)

18 July 1965 – Flamingo, Wardour Street, Soho, central London with Inez & Charlie Foxx (billed without Geno)

21 July 1965 – Flamingo, Wardour Street, Soho, central London (billed without Geno)

31 July 1965 – New Georgia, Uxbridge, west London

31 July 1965 – Flamingo, Wardour Street, Soho, central London with Tony Colton & Big Boss Band

1 August 1965 – Blue Moon, Hayes, west London

1 August 1965 – Flamingo, Wardour Street, Soho, central London

6 August 1965 – Flamingo, Wardour Street, Soho, central London with The Byrds

8 August 1965 – Witchdoctor Club, St Leonards-on-Sea, East Sussex

11 August 1965 – Manor House, north London

20 August 1965 – Dungeon Club, Nottingham

25 August 1965 – Flamingo, Wardour Street, Soho, central London with Cliff Bennett & The Rebel Rousers

26 August 1965 – Klook’s Kleek, West Hampstead, north London

27 August 1965 – Flamingo, Wardour Street, Soho, central London with The Shevells

29 August 1965 – Flamingo, Wardour Street, Soho, central London

4 September 1965 – Flamingo, Wardour Street, Soho, central London with Chris Farlowe & The Thunderbirds

5 September 1965 – Flamingo, Wardour Street, Soho, central London

8 September 1965 – Flamingo, Wardour Street, Soho, central London

10 September 1965 – Flamingo, Wardour Street, Soho, central London with Lou Johnson

15 September 1965 – Manor House, north London

18 September 1965 – Flamingo, Wardour Street, Soho, central London with The Peddlers

19 September 1965 – Bromel Club, Bromley, southeast London (billed without Geno)

21 September 1965 – Gala Ballroom, Norwich, Norfolk

22 September 1965 – Manor House, north London

25 September 1965 – Flamingo, Wardour Street, Soho, central London with Zoot Money Big Roll Band

30 September 1965 – Ritz Club, Skewen, Wales with Cops ‘N’ Robbers and The Kingpins

10 October 1965 – Nottingham Boat Club, Nottingham

17 October 1965 – Agincourt Ballroom, Camberley, Surrey

24 October 1965 – Orford Cellar, Norwich, Norfolk

28 October 1965 – Klook’s Kleek, West Hampstead, north London

4 November 1965 – Klook’s Kleek, West Hampstead, north London

8 November 1965 – Basingstoke Town Hall, Basingstoke, Hants

12 November 1965 – Orford Cellar, Norwich, Norfolk

18 November 1965 – Klook’s Kleek, West Hampstead, north London

21 November 1965 – Sunshine Floor, Tavern Club, Dereham, Norfolk with Beat Ltd

25 November 1965 – Klook’s Kleek, West Hampstead, north London

26 November 1965 – Club A Go Go, Newcastle Upon Tyne

28 November 1965 – The Dungeon, Nottingham

29 November 1965 – Cooks Ferry Inn, Edmonton, north London

2 December 1965 – Bird Cage, Eastney, Hants

12 December 1965 – Beachcomber, Nottingham (cancelled)

16 December 1965 – Klook’s Kleek, West Hampstead, north London

18 December 1965 – Orford Cellar, Norwich, Norfolk

29 December 1965 – Farnborough Town Hall, Farnborough, Hants with support

1966

6 January 1966 – Klook’s Kleek, West Hampstead, north London

8 January 1966 – King Mojo, Sheffield, South Yorkshire

9 January 1966 – Tavern Club, Dereham, Norfolk with Little Mick’s Mode

13 January 1966 – Klook’s Kleek, West Hampstead, north London

15 January 1966 – Twisted Wheel, Manchester with The Drifters

27 January 1966 – Klook’s Kleek, West Hampstead, north London

30 January 1966 – Agincourt Ballroom, Camberley, Surrey

1 February 1966 – Bird Cage, Eastney, Hants

3 February 1966 – Klook’s Kleek, West Hampstead, north London

9 February 1966 – Orford Cellar, Norwich, Norfolk

10 February 1966 – Klook’s Kleek, West Hampstead, north London

20 February 1966 – King Mojo, Sheffield, South Yorkshire

26 February 1966 – Club A Go Go, Newcastle Upon Tyne with The Downbeats

2 March 1966 – Farnborough Town Hall, Farnborough, Hants with The Emerlads

4 March 1966 – Bluesville, Ipswich, Suffolk

6 March 1966 – Nottingham Boat Club, Nottingham

12 March 1966 – Ram Jam, Brixton, south London with The Peter B’s

16 March 1966 – Orford Cellar, Norwich, Norfolk

2 April 1966 – Bird Cage, Eastney, Hants

4 April 1966 – Dereham Tavern, Dereham, Norfolk with The Sullivan James Band

8 April 1966 – Flamingo, Wardour Street, Soho, central London with The Peter B’s and Georgie Fame & The Blue Flames

8 April 1966 – Ram Jam, Brixton, south London

9 April 1966 – Assembly Hall, Barking, east London with Long John Baldry & The Steam Packet and John Mayall’s Bluesbreakers

14 April 1966 – Mister McCoys, Middlesbrough

17 April 1966 – Black Prince Hotel, Bexley, southeast London

19 April 1966 – Klook’s Kleek, West Hampstead, north London

20 April 1966 – Target Paul’s Row, High Wycombe, Bucks

21 April 1966 – Starlight Ballroom, Crawley, West Sussex with The Fleur De Lys

23 April 1966 – King Mojo, Sheffield, South Yorkshire with The Vibrations and Jackie Williams & The Excitements

27 April 1966 – Orford Cellar, Norwich, Norfolk

1 May 1966 – Bluesville, Ipswich, Suffolk

6 May 1966 – Ram Jam, Brixton, south London

8 May 1966 – Carousel Club, 1 Camp Road, Farnborough, Hants

11 May 1966 – Tower Ballroom, (Great Yarmouth?) with Ye Highwaymen

16 May 1966 – Atlanta Ballroom, Woking, Surrey with support

17 May 1966 – Gala Ballroom, Norwich, Norfolk

22 May 1966 – Agincourt Ballroom, Camberley, Surrey

29 May 1966 – Central R&B Club, Central Hotel, Gillingham, Kent

29 May 1966 – Mister McCoys, Middlesbrough

30 May 1966 – Blues Festival, Quebec Park, East Dereham, Norfolk with Zoot Money & The Big Roll Band, Jimmy James & The Vagabonds, The Sullivan James Band and Sounds Reformed

7 June 1966 – Klook’s Kleek, West Hampstead, north London

15 June 1966 – Agincourt Ballroom, Camberley, Surrey

20 June 1966 – Atlanta Ballroom, Woking, Surrey

25 June 1966 – Ram Jam, Brixton, south London

27 June 1966 – The Hop, Woodhall Community Centre, Welwyn Garden City, Hertfordshire

29 June 1966 – Orford Cellar, Norwich, Norfolk

1 July 1966 – Corn Exchange, Newbury, Berkshire

2 July 1966 – Marcam Hall, March, Cambridgeshire

3 July 1966 – Black Prince Hotel, Bexley, southeast London

5 July 1966 – Odeon Ballroom, Chesterfield

6 July 1966 – Corn Exchange, King’s Lynn, Norfolk

7 July 1966 – Civic Hall, Guildford, Surrey

9 July 1966 – Burton’s, Uxbridge, west London

10 July 1966 – Ram Jam, Brixton, south London

14 July 1966 – Ricky Tick, Windsor, Berkshire

15 July 1966 – California Ballroom, Dunstable, Bedfordshire with The Mark Barry Group

16 July 1966 – Flamingo, Wardour Street, Soho, central London with 5 Proud Walkers

17 July 1966 – Dereham Tavern Club, Dereham, Norfolk with The Style

Geno Washington & The Ram Jam Band #2

(July 1966-August 1966)

Geno Washington – lead vocals

Peter Gage – lead guitar, vocals

Geoff Pullum (aka Jeff Wright) – organ, vocals

Rick Parsons – bass

Lionel ‘Rocky’ Kingham – tenor saxophone

Buddy Beadle – baritone saxophone

Herb Prestidge – drums

John Roberts (aka Robbo to the group) had contracted TB earlier in the year and had spent six months in a clinic in Warwick. During his absence, Gage asked his friend John Baldwin (aka John Paul Jones) to cover initially on condition that Roberts would regain his place when he was better.

Rick Parsons, who had previously played with The Noise, was announced as the new bass player in the music press on 16 July but did not stay long. He joined after seeing an advert in Melody Maker and had also been a member of The Pitmen from West London.

When Parsons’s replacement Peter Carney (see later entry) proved to be an excellent bass player, it became clear that John Roberts would not re-join and he went on to play with Jimmy James & The Vagabonds where he reunited with Herb Prestidge and Lionel Kingham.

Selected gigs:

18 July 1966 – Atlanta Ballroom, Woking, Surrey (billed as Ram Jam Band)

19 July 1966 – Town Hall, High Wycombe, Bucks

21 July 1966 – Ricky Tick, Stoke Hotel, Guildford, Surrey

22 July 1966 – Youth Centre, Stanford-Le-Hope, Essex

23 July 1966 – Toft’s, Folkestone, Kent

24 July 1966 – Agincourt Ballroom, Camberley, Surrey (billed as Ram Jam Band)

26 July 1966 – Civic Hall, Grays, Essex

26 July 1966 – Klooks Kleek, West Hampstead, north London

28 July 1966 – Ricky Tick, Harpenden Town Hall, Herts

30 July 1966 – Burton’s, Uxbridge, west London

31 July 1966 – Ricky Tick, Hounslow, west London

3 August 1966 – Orford Cellar, Norwich, Norfolk

4 August 1966 – Bedford Corn Exchange, Bedford, Bedfordshire

5 August 1966 – Starlite, Greenford, west London

Geno Washington & The Ram Jam Band #3

(August 1966-February 1967)

Geno Washington – lead vocals

Peter Gage – lead guitar, vocals

Geoff Pullum (aka Jeff Wright) – organ, vocals

Peter Carney – bass, vocals

Lionel ‘Rocky’ Kingham – tenor saxophone

Buddy Beadle – baritone saxophone

Herb Prestidge – drums

West Londoner Peter Carney had a long pedigree, having started out with Ealing band, The Krewsaders in 1962. After played with The Flexmen and touring Poland with The London Beats, he joined Tony Knight’s Chessmen in late 1965.

The new bass player remembers that his first outing with the band was a live radio session at BBC Radio 1 with Herman’s Hermits at the Playhouse Theatre in central London.

This line up was responsible for recording (albeit it with a studio bass player) a lone single, “Michael (The Lover)” backed by arguably the group’s best outing, the Pete Gage/Geno Washington co-write “(I Gotta) Hold On To My Love” (Piccadilly 7N 35359) in January 1967 (a UK #39 hit).

Geno Washington & The Ram Jam Band also cut two tracks – “Always” and Pete Gage’s “If I Knew”, which appeared on the EP “Hi!” (Piccadilly NEP 34054), also released in January 1967.

For the “If I Knew” session, Geno Washington learnt the song from a demo sung by Ebony Keyes (aka Kenrick Des Etages). Gage says that the group may have also cut “Never Like This Before” at the same session and that they definitely recorded two songs – “Tell It Like It Is” and “Girl I Want To Marry You”, which were held back and later released as a single (Piccadilly 7N 35403) during September 1967.

While producer John Schroeder preferred to use a session bass player for the studio sessions, Peter Carney did feature on the band’s live recordings and he appears on the debut LP Hand Clappin’, Foot Stompin’, Funky Butt…Live! recorded live at Pye’s Marble Arch Studios with an invited studio audience. The LP broke the UK Top 5 and stayed on the charts for 38 weeks.

Selected gigs:

6 August 1966 – Ram Jam, Brixton, south London with The Gass

6 August 1966 – Burton’s, Uxbridge, west London

7 August 1966 – Winter Gardens, Bournemouth, Dorset with Georgie Fame & The Blue Flames, Chris Farlowe & The Thunderbirds, Zoot Money’s Big Roll Band, The Alan Price Set and The Train (Moon’s Train?)

8 August 1966 – The Hop, Woodhall Community Centre, Welwyn Garden City, Hertfordshire

12 August 1966 – Club A Go Go, Newcastle Upon Tyne

13 August 1966 – Elizabeth Club, Glasgow, Scotland

14 August 1966 – Carousel Club, 1 Camp Road, Farnborough, Hants

16 August 1966 – Town Hall, High Wycombe, Bucks (most likely 15 August)

16 August 1966 – Blue Lagoon, Newquay, Cornwall

17 August 1966 – Falcon Hotel, Eltham, Kent

18 August 1966 – Ricky Tick, Stoke Hotel, Guildford, Surrey

19 August 1966 – Newbury Corn Exchange, Newbury, Berkshire

19 August 1966 – Ricky Tick, Guildford, Surrey

20 August 1966 – Twisted Wheel, Manchester

21 August 1966 – Mojo Club, Sheffield, South Yorkshire

24 August 1966 – Carousel Club, Farnborough, Hants

25 August 1966 – Ricky Tick, Harpenden Town Hall, Harpenden, Hertfordshire

26 August 1966 – Ricky Tick, Hounslow, west London

26 August 1966 – Ram Jam, Brixton, south London

27 August 1966 – Ricky Tick, Windsor, Berkshire

28 August 1966 – Flamingo, Wardour Street, Soho, central London

29 August 1966 – Ram Jam, Brixton, south London

30 August 1966 – Burton’s, Uxbridge, west London

2 September 1966 – Il Rondo, Leicester

3 September 1966 – Dereham Tavern, Dereham, Norfolk

3 September 1966 – Sunshine Floor, East Dereham, Norfolk

4 September 1966 – Country Club, Kirklevington, Stockton-on-Tees

5 September 1966 – Majestic Ballroom, Reading, Berkshire

7 September 1966 – Bromel Club, Bromley Court Hotel, Bromley, southeast London

8 September 1966 – Public Hall, Epping, Essex

9 September 1966 – Beat Festival, Scunthorpe United Football Ground, Scunthorpe, North Lincolnshire with Georgie Fame & The Blue Flames, Chris Farlowe & The Thunderbirds, Cliff Bennett & The Rebel Rousers, Billy J Kramer & The Dakotas, The Troggs, The Creation, The Mindbenders and The Fenmen

9 September 1966 – Tiles, Oxford Street, central London with The Equals

25 September 1966 – Carousel Club, 1 Camp Road, Farnborough, Hants

27 September 1966 – Klook’s Kleek, West Hampstead, north London

28 September 1966 – Orford Cellar, Norwich, Norfolk

29 September 1966 – Public Hall, Harpenden, Hertfordshire

30 September 1966 – Ricky Tick, Newbury Corn Exchange, Newbury, Berkshire

1 October 1966 – Corn Exchange, Chelmsford, Essex

2 October 1966 – Ram Jam, Brixton, south London

5 October 1966 – Ricky Tick, Hounslow, west London (Fabulous 208 says Bedford)

6 October 1966 – Dorothy Ballroom, Cambridge, Cambridgeshire

7 October 1966 – Chelmsford Corn Exchange, Chelmsford, Essex

7 October 1966 – Town Hall, Stratford, east London

8 October 1966 – Drill Hall, Grantham, Lincolnshire with The Broodly-Hoo and Legay

9 October 1966 – Burlesque Club, Leicester

9 October 1966 – Starlite, Greenford, west London

10 October 1966 – Majestic Ballroom, Reading, Berkshire

12 October 1966 – Bromley Court Hotel, Bromley, London

13 October 1966 – Ricky Tick, Guildford, Surrey

14 October 1966 – California Ballroom, Dunstable, Bedfordshire

16 October 1966 – Black Prince Hotel, Bexley, southeast London

17 October 1966 – Agincourt Ballroom, Camberley, Surrey

18 October 1966 – Aylesbury Borough Assembly Hall, Aylesbury, Bucks

18 October 1966 – Public Hall, Harpenden, Hertfordshire

20 October 1966 – Finsbury Park, north London with The New Animals, Georgie Fame & The Blue Flames, Paul Butterfield Blues Band, Chris Farlowe & The Thunderbirds, Eyes of Blue

21 October 1966 – Odeon, Birmingham with The New Animals, Georgie Fame & The Blue Flames, Paul Butterfield Blues Band, Chris Farlowe & The Thunderbirds, Eyes of Blue

22 October 1966 – Odeon, Leeds, West Yorkshire with The New Animals, Georgie Fame & The Blue Flames, Paul Butterfield Blues Band, Chris Farlowe & The Thunderbirds, Eyes of Blue

23 October 1966 – Gaumont, Doncaster, South Yorkshire with The New Animals, Georgie Fame & The Blue Flames, Paul Butterfield Blues Band, Chris Farlowe & The Thunderbirds, Eyes of Blue

25 October 1966 – Odeon, Manchester with The New Animals, Georgie Fame & The Blue Flames, Paul Butterfield Blues Band, Chris Farlowe & The Thunderbirds, Eyes of Blue

26 October 1966 – Odeon, Liverpool with The New Animals, Georgie Fame & The Blue Flames, Paul Butterfield Blues Band, Chris Farlowe & The Thunderbirds, Eyes of Blue

27 October 1966 – Gaumont, Sheffield, South Yorkshire with The New Animals, Georgie Fame & The Blue Flames, Paul Butterfield Blues Band, Chris Farlowe & The Thunderbirds, Eyes of Blue

28 October 1966 – Colston Hall, Bristol with The New Animals, Georgie Fame & The Blue Flames, Paul Butterfield Blues Band, Chris Farlowe & The Thunderbirds, Eyes of Blue

29 October 1966 – Odeon, Cheltenham, Gloucestershire with The New Animals, Georgie Fame & The Blue Flames, Paul Butterfield Blues Band, Chris Farlowe & The Thunderbirds, Eyes of Blue

31 October 1966 – Gaumont, Southampton, Hants with The New Animals, Georgie Fame & The Blue Flames, Paul Butterfield Blues Band, Chris Farlowe & The Thunderbirds, Eyes of Blue

1 November 1966 – Odeon, Bolton, Greater Manchester with The New Animals, Georgie Fame & The Blue Flames, Paul Butterfield Blues Band, Chris Farlowe & The Thunderbirds, Eyes of Blue

2 November 1966 – ABC, Carlisle, Cumbria with The New Animals, Georgie Fame & The Blue Flames, Paul Butterfield Blues Band, Chris Farlowe & The Thunderbirds, Eyes of Blue

3 November 1966 – Odeon, Glasgow, Scotland with The New Animals, Georgie Fame & The Blue Flames, Paul Butterfield Blues Band, Chris Farlowe & The Thunderbirds, Eyes of Blue

4 November 1966 – Odeon, Newcastle upon Tyne with The New Animals, Georgie Fame & The Blue Flames, Paul Butterfield Blues Band, Chris Farlowe & The Thunderbirds, Eyes of Blue

5 November 1966 – Gaumont, Hanley, Staffordshire with The New Animals, Georgie Fame & The Blue Flames, Paul Butterfield Blues Band, Chris Farlowe & The Thunderbirds, Eyes of Blue

6 November 1966 – Odeon, Leicester with The New Animals, Georgie Fame & The Blue Flames, Paul Butterfield Blues Band, Chris Farlowe & The Thunderbirds, Eyes of Blue

10 November 1966 – New Yorker Discotheque, Swindon, Wiltshire

11 November 1966 – Ricky Tick, Windsor, Berkshire

12 November 1966 – Toft’s, Folkestone, Kent

13 November 1966 – Starlite, Greenford, west London

22 November 1966 – Bedford Corn Exchange, Bedford, Bedfordshire

23 November 1966 – Carousel Club, 1 Camp Road, Farnborough, Hants

24 November 1966 – Bowes-Lyon House, Stevenage, Hertfordshire

25 November 1966 – Ram Jam, Brixton, south London

26 November 1966 – College of Technology, Loughborough

30 November 1966 – Orford Cellar, Norwich, Norfolk

1 December 1966 – Links International Club, Maxwell Park Youth Centre, Borehamwood, Herts (Simon Gee research)

4 December 1966 – Ram Jam, Brixton, south London

6 December 1966 – College of Technology, Headington, Oxfordshire

7 December 1966 – Public Hall, Heacham, Norfolk

8 December 1966 – Club A-Go-Go, Newcastle Upon Tyne

9 December 1966 – Durham University, Durham with Jimmy James & The Vagabonds (also billed to play Chelmsford this day)

9 December 1966 – Chelmsford Corn Exchange, Chelmsford, Essex with The Mooch

10 December 1966 – Ricky Tick, Windsor, Berkshire

12 December 1966 – Majestic Ballroom, Reading, Berkshire

13 December 1966 – Top Rank, Watford, Hertfordshire

14 December 1966 – Farnborough Town Hall, Farnborough, Hants

15 December 1966 – Reading University, Reading, Berkshire with Zoot Money’s Big Roll Band

16 December 1966 – Tiles, Oxford Street, central London

17 December 1966 – Ricky Tick, Hounslow, west London

18 December 1966 – Saville Theatre, Shaftsbury Avenue, central London with Creation and Sounds Incorporated

20 December 1966 – Burton’s, Uxbridge, west London

21 December 1966 – Town Hall, High Wycombe, Bucks

22 December 1966 – Guildhall, Southampton, Hants with Jimmy James & The Vagabonds

23 December 1966 – Flamingo, Wardour Street, Soho, central London

24 December 1966 – Ricky Tick, Newbury, Berkshire

26 December 1966 – Cavern Club, Durham

30 December 1966 – Ricky Rick, Windsor, Berkshire

31 December 1966 – Glenlyn Ballroom, Forest Hill, southeast London

I January 1967 – Ritz, Bournemouth, Dorset

2 January 1967 – Bluesville, Ipswich, Suffolk

3 January 1967 – Ricky Tick, Bedford, Bedfordshire

4 January 1967 – Club Cedar, Birmingham

6 January 1967 – Bluesville ’67, Manor House, north London

7 January 1967 – Burton’s, Uxbridge, west London

14 January 1967 – Starlight Ballroom, Boston Gliderdrome, Boston, Lincolnshire with The Symbols and The Nightbeats

17 January 1967 – Winter Gardens, Malvern, Worcestershire

19 January 1967 – Bird Cage, Eastney, Hants

20 January 1967 – California Ballroom, Dunstable, Bedfordshire with Force Four

21 January 1967 – Twisted Wheel, Manchester

24 January 1967 – Aberystwyth University, Aberystwyth

25 January 1967 – Ricky Tick, Newbury, Berks (also have Borough Assembly Hall, Aylesbury, Bucks today)

26 January 1967 – Guildhall, Southampton, Hants

27 January 1967 – Ram Jam, Brixton, south London

28 January 1967 – Gaeity, Ramsey, Cambridgeshire

29 January 1967 – Ricky Tick, Hounslow, west London

3 February 1967 – Leicester University, Leicester

4 February 1967 – Winter Gardens, Weston-Super-Mare, Somerset

5 February 1967 – Starlite Ballroom, Greenford, west London

5 February 1967 – Ram Jam, Brixton, south London

6 February 1967 – St Andrew’s Hall, Norwich, Norfolk

7 February 1967 – Town Hall, High Wycombe, Bucks

10 February 1967 – Dancing Slipper, Nottingham

10 February 1967 – Orford Cellar, Norwich, Norfolk

11 February 1967 – Ricky Tick, Thames Hotel, Windsor, Berkshire

12 February 1967 – Blue Moon, Hayes, west London

14 February 1967 – Ritz Ballroom, Bournemouth, Dorset with The Living Trust

16 February 1967 – Plaza, Newbury, Berkshire

17 February 1967 – Boulevard Club, Tadcaster, North Yorkshire and then Crystal Ballroom, Castleford, North Yorkshire

18 February 1967 – Twisted Wheel, Manchester

19 February 1967 – Clouds, Derby, Derbyshire

20 February 1967 – New Cellar Club, South Shields, Tyne & Wear

23 February 1967 – New Yorker Discotheque, Swindon, Wiltshire

24 February 1967 – Ram Jam, Brixton, south London

25 February 1967 – University College, Gower Street, central London

26 February 1967 – Dereham Tavern, Dereham, Norfolk with The Rubber Band

1 March 1967 – Blue Moon, Cheltenham, Gloucestershire

3 March 1967 – Bluesville ’67, Manor House, north London

4 March 1967 – Ricky Tick, Hounslow, west London

5 March 1967 – Starlite Ballroom, Greenford, west London

Geno Washington & The Ram Jam Band #4

(March 1967-April 1967)

Geno Washington – lead vocals

Peter Gage – lead guitar, vocals

Geoff Pullum (aka Jeff Wright) – organ, vocals

Peter Carney – bass, vocals

Lionel ‘Rocky’ Kingham – tenor saxophone

Clive Burrows – baritone saxophone

Herb Prestidge – drums

Pete Gage had been looking to improve the band and had started discussions with Eddie Thornton from Georgie Fame & The Blue Flames about getting a really punchy brass section together. He also planned to use Clive Burrows from The Alan Price Set to arrange the songs instead of writing all of the arrangements himself.

Unhappy about the current situation, Buddy Beadle left to join The Amboy Dukes but would return in June 1968.

Clive Burrows, who’d started out with The Wes Minister Five, and had gone to work with Zoot Money’s Big Roll Band before joining The Alan Price Set in 1965, came on-board after a show at Klooks Kleek on 7 March.

The new line up started to cut some live recordings, which appeared on the band’s second LP, Hipsters, Flipsters, Finger-Poppin’ Daddies! (Piccadilly NPL/NSPL 38032). Released in September 1967, the album also featured live tracks by the next version of The Ram Jam Band, and peaked at #8 on the UK charts.

Selected gigs:

9 March 1967 – Winter Gardens, Weston-Super-Mare, Somerset

10 March 1967 – Albany Institute, Deptford, Kent with The Bonzo Dog Doo Dah Band and The Lee Hawkins Group

10 March 1967 – Goldsmith College, New Cross, south east London

11 March 1967 – Toft’s, Folkestone, Kent

11 March 1967 – ‘Beat Club’ German TV with The Smoke, The Jimi Hendrix Experience, The Who and Cliff Bennett & The Rebel Rousers.

12 March 1967 – Ricky Tick, Hounslow, west London

14 March 1967 – Burton’s, Uxbridge, west London

16 March 1967 – Community Centre, Southall, west London

16 March 1967 – Ealing Tech at Seymour Hall, Marble Arch, central London

17 March 1967 – Ricky Tick, Newbury, Berks

21 March 1967 – Burton’s, Uxbridge, west London

21 March 1967 – Goldsmiths College, New Cross, southeast London with The Bonzo Dog Doo Dah Band and The Drovers (possibly the Tuesday evening)

22 March 1967 – Bromel Club, Downham, southeast London

23 March 1967 – Sutton Baths, Sutton-in-Ashfield, Nottinghamshire

23 March 1967 – Chelmsford Corn Exchange, Chelmsford, Essex and The Coletrane Union

24 March 1967 – Night Owl, Leicestershire

25 March 1967 – Chelmsford Corn Exchange, Chelmsford, Essex

26 March 1967 – Ram Jam, Brixton, south London

27 March 1967 – Baths Hall, Ipswich, Suffolk

28 March 1967 – The Marquee, Wardour Street, Soho, central London with The Amboy Dukes

31 March 1967 – Gaeity Ballroom, Grimsby

1 April 1967 – Dreamland, Margate, Kent with Waygood Ellis Zone

3 April 1967 – Majestic Ballroom, Reading, Berkshire

5 April 1967 – Locarno, Stevenage, Hertfordshire

6 April 1967 – Club A Go Go, Newcastle Upon Tyne

7 April 1967 – California Ballroom, Dunstable, Bedfordshire with Stacey’s Circle

8 April 1967 – Bird Cage, Eastney, Hants

11 April 1967 – Town Hall, High Wycombe, Bucks (billed to be in Paris this same day)

11 April 1967 – Paris Olympia, Paris, France with The Rolling Stones, The Move and The Clan

13 April 1967 – Ricky Tick, Windsor, Berkshire

14 April 1967 – Brighton Arts Festival, Brighton, West Sussex with Paul Jones, The Move, Cliff Bennett & The Rebel Rousers, Jimmy James & The Vagabonds, Mike Stuart Span and others

15 April 1967 – King Mojo, Sheffield, South Yorkshire

16 April 1967 – Daily Express Record Star Show, Empire Pool, Wembley, west London with Cream, The Move, The Alan Price Set, The Kinks, Chris Farlowe & The Thunderbirds, The Troggs, Cliff Bennett & The Rebel Rousers and many others

Unhappy about the way the Gunnell brothers were treating the band, Pete Gage challenged the group’s management.

Rik Gunnell took Geno Washington to Paris (most likely on the weekend of 15-16 April) where he encouraged the singer to recruit new musicians to replace the guitarist, Geoff Pullum and Herb Prestidge.

The 16 April gig was most likely Gage, Pullum and Prestidge’s final show (although Disc & Music Echo’s 22 April issue does talk about the band being in France and Georgie Fame coming out to watch).

Gage and Pullum saw a lawyer to see how they could keep The Ram Jam Band name that they had created. However, they soon realised that they could not afford legal representation, especially one that could hope to match the Gunnells’ financial clout.

Herb Prestidge reunited with John Roberts in Jimmy James & The Vagabonds. Geoff Pullum moved into academia and is currently professor of general linguistics and head of linguistics and English language at Edinburgh University.

Pete Gage did production work (including Joe E Young & The Tonicks) initially before playing with Jimmy James & The Vagabonds in 1969. The following year, he formed and ran Dada and then formed and ran Vinegar Joe, recording with both acts.

After doing sessions for artists as diverse as Joan Armatrading, Elkie Brooks and Keef Hartley, he put another version of The Ram Jam Band together in the 1980s before moving into production. He currently resides in Australia.

Sources:

South East London Mercury, Bucks Free Press, Eastern Evening News, Evening Star (Ipswich), Guildford Advertiser, Hayes Gazette, Melody Maker, NME, Newcastle Evening Chronicle, Nottingham Evening Post, Dave Allen (Bird Cage gigs), Spencer Leigh (The Cavern, Liverpool), Fabulous 208, Wood Green and Southgate Weekly Herald, Lincolnshire Standard, Essex Chronicle and Crawley Advertiser.

Huge thanks to Pete Gage, Geoff Pullum, Peter Carney and Tony Coe for helping with the band history. Thanks to Buddy Beadle for the amazing photos.

These websites were also useful for gig info:

www.rockpopmem.com

www.swindonmusicscene.co.uk

www.california-ballroom.info/gigs/

http://manchestersoul.co.uk/TWheel/1966.html

http://dizzytigerstu.proboards.com/thread/880/witch-doctor-1964-1967

http://www.readysteadygone.co.uk/

http://chelmsfordrocks.com/cornexchange.html

Copyright © Nick Warburton. All Rights Reserved. No part of this article may be reproduced or transmitted in any from or by any means, without prior permission from the author. To contact the author, email: Warchive@aol.com

This is a much updated version of the original article which appeared on Strange Brew. Thank you so much Jason for first publishing the article on your site.

Chris Simmons (vocals)

Stuart Cowell (lead guitar/vocals)

Tom Tierney (bass)

Ron Reynolds (Hammond organ)

Jim Toomey (drums)

Jon was formed in late 1966 after Stuart Cowell left Gass. He’d previously worked with Ralph Denyer in The Rockhouse Band.

Tom Tierney had been a member of Lulu’s backing band, The Luvvers while Jim Toomey had been in The Arthur Brown Union.

Chris Simmons was the band’s original lead singer but he’s not pictured in either of the adverts featured in Melody Maker, to promote the release of Jon’s debut 45, which was issued in June 1967.

A second 45 appeared in August before Simmons departed and Stuart Cowell assumed lead vocals.

14 January 1967 – Flamingo, Wardour Street, Soho, London with The Amboy Dukes (Melody Maker)

27 January 1967 – Harvest Moon, Guildford, Surrey with The Great Expectations and Mood Indigo (West Surrey Advertiser)

13 April 1967 – Upper Cut, Forest Gate, London with Episode Six (Melody Maker)

2 June 1967 – Dolphin, Marine Court, St Leonards, East Sussex (Hastings & St Leonards Observer) Billed as John

8 July 1967 – Central R&B Club, Central Hotel, Gillingham, Kent (Chatham, Rochester & Gillingham News)

22 September 1967 – New Trades Club, Kettering, Northamptonshire (Northamptonshire Evening Telegraph)

7 October 1967 – Silver Blades, Streatham, London (Coulson & Purley Advertiser)

9 October 1967 – Marquee, Wardour Street, Soho, London with Robert Hirst & The Big Taste (Melody Maker)

11 December 1967 – Marquee, Wardour Street, Soho, London with Simon Dupree & The Big Sound (Melody Maker)

23 January 1968 – North Park Club, Kettering, Northamptonshire (Northamptonshire Evening Telegraph)

1 February 1968 – Marquee, Wardour Street, Soho, London with Marmalade (Melody Maker)

17 February 1968 – Walton Playhouse, Walton-on-Thames, Surrey (Woking Herald)

In late February, the band changed name to Still Life

After changing name, the group released a lone 45 as Still Life in February 1968 before Tierney switched over to rhythm guitar and Con Byrne joined on bass.

2 March 1968 – Hastings Pier, Hastings, East Sussex with Thackery (Hastings & St Leonards Observer)

9 March 1968 – Marquee, Wardour Street, Soho, London with The Open Mind (Melody Maker)

On 25 March, Still Life performed at the Marquee (supporting The Nice) where they were spotted by singer Warren Davis, who invited the band to joined forces with him in a new version of The Warren Davis Monday Band soon after.

Although the gig below was billed as Still Life, this was in fact performed by The Warren Davis Monday Band.

20 April 1968 – Hastings Pier, Hastings, East Sussex with Web Foundation (Hastings & St Leonards Observer)

You can read more about the band here.

Copyright © Nick Warburton. All Rights Reserved. No part of this article may be reproduced or transmitted in any from or by any means, without prior permission from the author. To contact the author, email: Warchive@aol.com

Formed by brothers Paul and Nigel Griggs, The Cortinas went through various line-ups before changing name to Octopus in November 1968.

Lead guitarist Paul Griggs had started out with Bobby Hale & The Halestones in June 1962.

He left this band in June 1963 to form Shelayne & The Cortinas with:

Pat Heley (lead vocals)

Paul Griggs (lead guitar/vocals)

Barry Banks (rhythm guitar)

Nigel Griggs (bass/vocals)

Roger Cook (drums) 

The band debuted in September 1963 but Heley and Banks, who were a couple, left in November and rhythm guitarist Paul Crowland joined in January 1964.

Paul Griggs assuming lead vocals and they became simply The Cortinas.

22 February 1964 – Cavendish Hall, Hatfield, Hertfordshire (Paul Griggs’ book: Diary of a Musician)

22 March 1964 – The Hilltop, Hatfield, Hertfordshire (Paul Griggs’ book: Diary of a Musician)

18 June 1964 – Breaks Youth Club, Hatfield, Hertfordshire with Tony Rivers & The Castaways (Paul Griggs’ book: Diary of a Musician)

27 June 1964 – ‘Beat Competition’, Westminster Lodge, St Albans, Hertfordshire with The Trekkas and The King Bees (Paul Griggs’ book: Diary of a Musician)

19 July 1964 – Hermitage Ballroom, Hitchin, Herts with Johnny Milton & The Condors (Hertfordshire Express)

22 August 1964 – Hermitage Ballroom, Hitchin, Herts with Mark Douglas & The Prowlers (Hertfordshire Express)

11 October 1964 – The Hilltop, Hatfield, Hertfordshire (Paul Griggs’ book: Diary of a Musician)

19 December 1964 – Hermitage Ballroom, Hitchin, Hertfordshire with Steve Marriot’s Moments (Paul Griggs’ book: Diary of a Musician) Hertforshire Express lists this as The Stormsville Shakers

1965

30 January 1965 – The Hop, Welwyn Garden City, Hertfordshire (Paul Griggs’ book: Diary of a Musician)

1 February 1965 – The Hop, Welwyn Garden City, Hertfordshire with Tony Rivers & The Castaways (Paul Griggs’ book: Diary of a Musician)

12-13 February 1965 – Battersea College, London with Georgie Fame & The Blue Flames (Paul Griggs’ book: Diary of a Musician)

Paul Crowland announced he was leaving on 11 March but stayed until replacement Cliff Franklyn had rehearsed sufficiently to take over.

29 March 1965 – Hermitage Ballroom, Hitchin, Hertfordshire with Screaming Lord Sutch (Paul Griggs’ book: Diary of a Musician)

12 April 1965 – The Hop, Welwyn Garden City, Hertfordshire with Tony Rivers & The Castaways (Paul Griggs’ book: Diary of a Musician) This was Cliff Franklyn’s debut show

2 May 1965 – Melody Maker Beat Competition Heat, Wimbledon Palais, Wimbledon, southwest London (Paul Griggs’ book: Diary of a Musician)

15 May 1965 – Porchester Hall, Bayswater, west London with Billy J Kramer & The Dakotas (Paul Griggs’ book: Diary of a Musician)

12 June 1965 – Hermitage Ballroom, Hitchin, Hertfordshire with The Five Sons of Adam (Hertfordshire Express)

15 August 1965 – Melody Maker Beat Competition Final, Wimbledon Palais, Wimbledon, south west London with St Louis Union, The Tudors, The Carolines and others (Paul Griggs’ book: Diary of a Musician)

28 August 1965 – Rhodes Centre, Bishop’s Stortford, Herts with The Paramounts (Steve Ingless book: The Day Before Yesterday)

25 September 1965 – Rhodes Centre, Bishop’s Stortford, Herts with Dave Curtiss & The Tremors (Steve Ingless book: The Day Before Yesterday)

6 November 1965 – Rhodes Centre, Bishop’s Stortford, Herts with Force Five (Steve Ingless book: The Day Before Yesterday)

1966

29 January 1966 – California Ballroom, Dunstable, Bedfordshire with Chris Andrews and The Roscoe Brown Combination (website: www.california-ballroom.info/gigs/)

Cliff Franklyn announced he was leaving on 3 February 1966. Mick King took his place as rhythm guitarist. 

12 March 1966 – Rhodes Centre, Bishop’s Stortford, Herts with Dave Dee, Dozy, Beaky, Mick and Titch (Steve Ingless book: The Day Before Yesterday) This was Mick King’s debut show

18 April 1966 – Barn Cellar, St Albans, Hertfordshire (Paul Griggs’ book: Diary of a Musician)

30 May 1966 – Victoria Ballroom, Cambridge with Desmonde Mode (Cambridge News)

11-12 June 1966 – Supreme Ballroom, Ramsgate, Kent (Paul Griggs’ book: Diary of a Musician)

13 June 1966 – Supreme Ballroom, Ramsgate, Kent with The Alan Price Set (Paul Griggs’ book: Diary of a Musician)

21 June 1966 – Sandridge Youth Club, near St Albans, Hertfordshire (Paul Griggs’ book: Diary of a Musician)

Roger Cook announced he was leaving but agreed to stay until replacement Dave Cooper (ex-Op Scene) was ready to take over.

22 July 1966 – Bees Club, Brentford FC, west London (Paul Griggs’ book: Diary of a Musician) This was Dave Cooper’s debut show

Mick King announced he was leaving in mid-August to join The Trespassers. Paul Griggs’ friends, guitarists Alan Shacklock (from Harlem Shuffle) and Mick Taylor (ex-Juniors) agreed to fill in until a replacement was found.

23 October 1966 – California Ballroom, Dunstable, Bedfordshire with Billy Fury and The Gamblers (Paul Griggs’ book: Diary of a Musician)

2 November 1966 – Hemel Hempstead Pavilion, Hemel Hempstead, Hertfordshire with Cream (Paul Griggs’ book: Diary of a Musician)

Rick Williams from The In-Sect took over on rhythm guitar, joining in late November.

17 December 1966 – Rhodes Centre, Bishop’s Stortford, Herts with Billy Fury & The Gamblers (Steve Ingless book: The Day Before Yesterday)

24 December 1966 – Woodhall Community Centre, Welwyn Garden City, Hertfordshire with The Creepers (http://www.coda-uk.co.uk/60’s_music_scene.htm)

1967

21 January 1967 – Rhodes Centre, Bishop’s Stortford, Herts with The Easybeats (Steve Ingless book: The Day Before Yesterday)

14 February 1967 – Woodhall Community Centre, Welwyn Garden City, Hertfordshire with Creepers (see website above)

Dave Cooper announced he was departing on 12 March but stayed on until late May.

1 April 1967 – Rhodes Centre, Bishop’s Stortford, Herts with The Action (Steve Ingless book: The Day Before Yesterday)

Gary (Nigel) Whinyates from Birkenhead auditioned in mid-April.

19 April 1967 – Stevenage Mecca, Locarno, Stevenage, Hertfordshire (http://www.coda-uk.co.uk/60’s_music_scene.htm)

16 May 1967 – Sandridge Youth Club, Herts (Welwyn & Hatfield Advertiser)

24 May 1967 – Stevenage Mecca, Locarno, Stevenage, Hertfordshire with The Move (see website above) This was Dave Cooper’s final gig

13 June 1967 – Sandridge Youth Club, Herts (Welwyn & Hatfield Advertiser)

18 August 1967 – Woodhall Community Centre, Welwyn Garden City, Hertfordshire (Paul Griggs’ book: Diary of a Musician)

8 September 1967 – Woodhall Community Centre, Welwyn Garden City, Hertfordshire (see website above)

29 September 1967 – Woodhall Community Centre, Welwyn Garden City, Hertfordshire (see website above)

20 October 1967 – Square One, Cricketers Inn, Westcliff, Essex with Zoot Money & Dantalion’s Chariot (Southend Standard)

23 October 1967 – Whisky A Go Go, Wardour Street, Soho, London (Paul Griggs’ diary)

27 October 1967 – Woodhall Community Centre, Welwyn Garden City, Hertfordshire (see website above)

4 November 1967 – St Birinus Youth Club, St Birinus School, Didcot, Oxfordshire with The Crawdadds (Didcot Advertiser)

11 November 1967 – Nags Head, Motown Club, Wollaston, Northamptonshire (Northamptonshire Evening Telegraph)

24 November 1967 – Woodhall Community Centre, Welwyn Garden City, Hertfordshire (see website above)

10 December 1967 – Whisky A Go Go, Wardour Street, Soho, central London (Melody Maker) The band’s debut at the club

15 December 1967 – Andromeda, Colchester, Essex (Essex County Standard)

22 December 1967 – Old West End, Rushden, Northamptonshire (Northamptonshire Evening Telegraph)

23 December 1967 – Woodhall Community Centre, Welwyn Garden City, Hertfordshire (see website above)

26 December 1967 – Whisky A Go Go, Wardour Street, Soho, central London (Melody Maker)

31 December 1967 – Breaks Youth Club, Hatfield, Hertfordshire (Paul Griggs’ book: Diary of a Musician)

1968

21 January 1968 – Whisky A Go Go, Wardour Street, Soho, central London (Paul Griggs’ diary)

24 January 1968 – Pink Flamingo, Wardour Street, Soho, central London with The Alan Clark Soul Show and Canal St Philarmonic (Melody Maker)

4 February 1968 – Breaks Youth Club, Hatfield, Hertfordshire (Paul Griggs’ book: Diary of a Musician)

13 February 1968 – Sandridge Youth Club, Herts (Welwyn & Hatfield Advertiser)

14 February 1968 – Woodhall Community Centre, Welwyn Garden City, Hertfordshire with Herbal Remedy (Welwyn Times)

15 February 1968 – Penny Farthing, Leicester (Paul Griggs’ book: Diary of a Musician)

16 February 1968 – Cooks Ferry Inn, Edmonton north London (Paul Griggs’ book: Diary of a Musician) This was their club debut

24 February 1968 – Blue Ball Hotel, Risley, Derby (Derby Evening Telegraph)

2 March 1968 – Sandridge Youth Club, Herts (Welwyn & Hatfield Advertiser)

12 March 1968 – Sandridge Youth Club, Herts (Welwyn & Hatfield Advertiser)

21 March 1968 – Whisky A Go Go, Wardour Street, Soho, central London (Melody Maker)

22 March 1968 – St Albans Hall, St Albans, Hertfordshire with The Nashville Teens and West Coast Consortium (Paul Griggs’ book: Diary of a Musician/Welwyn and Hatfield Advertiser) Debut at the venue

23 March 1968 – Borough Assembly Hall, Aylesbury, Bucks with The Rocky Rivers Record Show (http://aylesburymusictown.co.uk/)

28 March 1968 – Whisky A Go Go, Wardour Street, Soho, central London (Melody Maker)

7 April 1968 – Chesterfield Club, Castle Bromwich, West Midlands (Express & Star)

13 April 1968 – Luton Boys Club, Luton, Bedfordshire with The Links (Luton News)

15 April 1968 – Rhodes Centre, Bishop’s Stortford, Herts with King George and Co (Steve Ingless book: The Day Before Yesterday)

16 April 1968 – Sandridge Youth Club, Herts (Welwyn & Hatfield Advertiser)

18 April 1968 – Whisky A Go Go, Wardour Street, Soho, central London (Melody Maker)

20 April 1968 – Marquee, Wardour Street, Soho, central London with Timebox (Tony Bacon’s book: London Live)

23 April 1968 – Penny Farthing, Leicester (Leicester Mercury)

26 April 1968 – Cooks Ferry Inn, Edmonton, north London (Paul Griggs’ diary)

27 April 1968 – Starlight Ballroom, Boston Gliderdrome, Boston, Lincolnshire with Tony Bishop’s Rock and Soul and Fanny Flicker’s Show (Lincolnshire Standard)

28 April 1968 – Whisky A Go Go, Wardour Street, Soho, central London (Melody Maker)

7 May 1968 – Sandridge Youth Club, Herts (Welwyn & Hatfield Advertiser)

11 May 1968 – Gig in Grantham, Lincolnshire with Chris Farlowe & The Thunderbirds (Paul Griggs’ book: Diary of a Musician)

12 May 1968 – Whisky A Go Go, Wardour Street, Soho, central London (Melody Maker)

23 May 1968 – Penny Farthing, Leicester (Leicester Mercury)

24 May 1968 – Sherwood Room, Nottingham (Derby Evening Telegraph)

26 May 1968 – Blue Ball Hotel, Risley, Derby (Derby Evening Telegraph)

31 May 1968 – Cooks Ferry Inn, Edmonton, north London (Paul Griggs’ diary)

2 June 1968 – Whisky A Go Go, Wardour Street, Soho, central London (Melody Maker)

7 June 1968 – Bracknell Sports Centre, Bracknell, Berkshire with O’Hara’s Playboys, The Barrier, The Crawdads and Freehold (Melody Maker)

8 June 1968 – St Albans City Hall, St Albans, Hertfordshire with O’Hara’s Playboys, The Barrier, The Crawdads and Freehold (Melody Maker)

9 June 1968 – Gig in Cambridge, Cambridgeshire with O’Hara’s Playboys, The Barrier, The Crawdads and Freehold (Melody Maker)

10 June 1968 – Marquee, Wardour Street, Soho, central London with The Nite People (Tony Bacon’s book: London Live)

12 June 1968 – King’s Lynn College, King’s Lynn, Norfolk with O’Hara’s Playboys, The Barrier, The Crawdads and Freehold (Melody Maker)

14 June 1968 – Bracknell Sports Centre, Bracknell, Berkshire with O’Hara’s Playboys, The Barrier, The Crawdads and Freehold (Melody Maker)

15 June 1968 – Sandridge Youth Club, Herts (Welwyn & Hatfield Advertiser)

15 June 1968 – St Albans City Hall, St Albans, Hertfordshire with O’Hara’s Playboys, The Barrier, The Crawdads and Freehold (Melody Maker)

16 June 1968 – Bedford Checkpoint, Bedford, Bedfordshire with O’Hara’s Playboys, The Barrier, The Crawdads and Freehold (Melody Maker)

17 June 1968 – St Albans City Hall, St Albans, Hertfordshire with O’Hara’s Playboys, The Barrier, The Crawdads and Freehold (Melody Maker)

18 June 1968 – Gig in Wellingborough, Northants with O’Hara’s Playboys, The Barrier, The Crawdads and Freehold (Melody Maker)

23 June 1968 – Marquee, Wardour Street, Soho, central London (Tony Bacon’s book: London Live)

30 June 1968 – Playboy Club, Park Lane, central London (Paul Griggs’ book: Diary of a Musician)

10 July 1968 – Rampton Psychiatric Hospital, Nottinghamshire (Paul Griggs’ book: Diary of a Musician)

12 July 1968 – 76 Club, Burton on Trent, Staffordshire (http://www.76club.org.uk/gigs.html)

13 July 1968 – Starlight Room, Boston, Lincolnshire with The Paberback Edition (Nottingham Evening Post)

23 July 1968 – Marquee, Wardour Street, Soho, central London with Tony Rivers & The Castaways (Paul Griggs’ diary)

24 July 1968 – Blaises, Imperial Hotel, Queen’s Gate, west London (Paul Griggs’ book: Diary of a Musician) This was a 1am show so the band arrived on 23 July

29 July 1968 – Rhodes Centre, Bishop’s Stortford, Herts (Steve Ingless book: The Day Before Yesterday)

10 August 1968 – White Tiles, Swindon, Wiltshire (Swindon Evening Advertiser)

11 August 1968 – Whisky A Go Go, Wardour Street, Soho, central London (Paul Griggs’ diary)

12 August 1968 – Dreamland Ballroom, Margate, Kent with The Delroy Williams Show (East Kent Times & Mail)

18 August 1968 – Cat-Balou, Grantham, Lincolnshire (Grantham Journal)

19 August 1968 – Marquee, Wardour Street, Soho, central London with Nite People (Tony Bacon’s book: London Live)

24 August 1968 – High Wycombe Town Hall, High Wycombe, Bucks (Bucks Free Press)

24 August 1968 – The Barn Ballroom, Little Bardfield Hall, Little Bardfield, Essex (Steve Ingless book: The Day Before Yesterday)

2 September 1968 – Ford Cortina Day, Mallory Park, Race Track, Leicester (Paul Griggs’ book: Diary of a Musician)

6 September 1968 – Woodhall Community Centre, Welwyn Garden City, Hertfordshire with Herbal Remedy (http://www.coda-uk.co.uk/60’s_music_scene.htm)

7 September 1968 – Marquee, Wardour Street, Soho, central London with Spice (Tony Bacon’s book: London Live)

8 September 1968 – Whisky A Go Go, Wardour Street, Soho, central London (Paul Griggs’ diary)

13 September 1968 – Cooks Ferry Inn, Edmonton,north London (Paul Griggs’ diary)

16 September 1968 – Dunstable Civic Hall, Dunstable, Bedforshire with Sly & The Family Stone (who didn’t turn up) (Luton News)

27 September 1968 – Cooks Ferry Inn, Edmonton, north London (Paul Griggs’ diary)

6 October 1968 – Whisky A Go Go, Wardour Street, Soho, central London (Paul Griggs’ diary)

12 October 1968 – High Wycombe Town Hall, High Wycombe, Bucks (Bucks Free Press)

25 October 1968 – Cooks Ferry Inn, Edmonton, north London (Paul Griggs’ diary)

6 November 1968 – St Albans City Hall, St Albans, Hertfordshire with Status Quo and Nerve (Paul Griggs’ book: Diary of a Musician/Welwyn and Hatfield Advertiser)

9 November 1968 – Marquee, Wardour Street, Soho, central London with Dream Police (Tony Bacon’s book: London Live)

10 November 1968 – Whisky A Go Go, Wardour Street, Soho, central London (Paul Griggs’ diary)

15 November 1968 – Nottingham University, Nottingham with Marmalade and The Nashville Teens (Paul Griggs’ book: Diary of a Musician)

23 November 1968 – Rhodes Centre, Bishop’s Stortford, Herts (Steve Ingless book: The Day Before Yesterday)

Octopus’ select gigs: 

21 November 1968 – Baldock Workingmen’s Club, Baldock, Hertfordshire (Paul Griggs’ book: Diary of a Musician) Debut as Octopus 

30 November 1968 – Marquee, Wardour Street, Soho, central London with Dream Police (Tony Bacon’s book: London Live)

18 December 1968 – Gig in Sutton in Ashfield, Nottinghamshire (Paul Griggs’ book: Diary of a Musician)

20 December 1968 – Cooks Ferry Inn, Edmonton, north London (Paul Griggs’ diary)

21 December 1968 – RAF Benson, Oxfordshire with Plastic Penny (Paul Griggs’ book: Diary of a Musician)

29 December 1968 – Whisky A Go Go, Wardour Street, Soho, central London (Paul Griggs’ diary)

31 December 1968 – Gig in Dunstable, Bedfordshire (Paul Griggs’ book: Diary of a Musician)

1969

1 January 1969 – Marquee, Wardour Street, Soho, central London with Yes (Tony Bacon’s book: London Live)

4-5 January 1969 – Stella Ballroom, Mount Merion, Republic of Ireland (Paul Griggs’ book: Diary of a Musician)

18 January 1969 – Marquee, Wardour Street, Soho, central London with Spice (Tony Bacon’s book: London Live)

8 February 1969 – Rhodes Centre, Bishop’s Stortford, Herts (Steve Ingless book: The Day Before Yesterday)

12 February 1969 – Marquee, Wardour Street, Soho, central London with Yes (Tony Bacon’s book: London Live)

15 February 1969 – Marquee, Wardour Street, Soho, central London with Spice (Tony Bacon’s book: London Live)

16 February 1969 – Adelphi, Slough, Berkshire (Windsor, Slough & Eton Express)

6-7 April 1969 (check) – Stella Ballroom, Mount Merion, Republic of Ireland (Paul Griggs’ book: Diary of a Musician)

12 April 1969 – Marquee, Wardour Street, Soho, central London with Procession (Tony Bacon’s book: London Live)

4 May 1969 – Tiffany’s, central London (Paul Griggs’ diary)

Gary Whinyates announced he was leaving on 22 May but stayed until late July.

8 June 1969 – Tiffany’s, central London (Paul Griggs’ diary)

28 June 1969 – Marquee, Wardour Street, Soho, central London with Procession (Tony Bacon’s book: London Live)

20 July 1969 – Shire Green Working Men’s Club, Sheffield, South Yorkshire (Paul Griggs’ book: Diary of a Musician)

21 July 1969 – Black Swan, Sheffield, South Yorkshire (Paul Griggs’ book: Diary of a Musician) This was Nigel Whinyates’ final show

Brian Glascock joined on drums at this point

19 August 1969 – Lyceum, Strand, central London (Paul Griggs’ book: Diary of a Musician)

29 August 1969 – St Albans City Hall, St Albans, Hertfordshire with Desmond Dekker (Paul Griggs’ book: Diary of a Musician) This was the band’s final gig at this venue

14 September 1969 – Tiffany’s, central London (Paul Griggs’ diary)

27 November 1969 – Baldock Working Men’s Club, Baldock, Hertfordshire (Paul Griggs’ book: Diary of a Musician)

24 December 1969 – Cooks Ferry Inn, Edmonton, north London (Paul Griggs’ diary)

31 December 1969 – Mansfield Palais, Mansfield, Nottinghamshire (Paul Griggs’ book: Diary of a Musician)

1970

31 May 1970 – Tiffany’s, central London (Paul Griggs’ diary)

After this gig, Rick Williams and Brian Glascock both left, the latter joining Toe Fat.

In early July, John Cook from The Mixed Bag joined on keyboards and Malcolm Green came in on drums. The new line-up debuted on 17 July 1970.

Brian Glascock briefly replaced Malcolm Green in early 1971 before Tim Reeves from The Fox took over in late April. However, Octopus split in mid-January 1972.

Paul Griggs’ book (noted above) provided a wealth of information on the comings and goings and is definitely worth purchasing.

The Syn evolved out of north London R&B group High Court, which featured guitarist turned lead singer Steve Nardelli and guitarist John Painter.

They changed name to The Syn in late 1965 but soon after brought in three members from rival north London R&B band The Selfs – Chris Squire (bass), Andrew Jackman (keyboards) and Martyn Adelman (drums).

By late 1965, The Syn comprised:

Steve Nardelli (lead vocals)

John Painter (lead guitar)

Chris Squire (bass/vocals)

Andrew Jackman (keyboards)

Martyn Adelman (drums)

29 March 1966 – London Cavern, Holland Park, west London (Melody Maker)

3 April 1966 – London Cavern, Holland Park, west London (Melody Maker)

11 June 1966 – Haymarket Lounge, Basingstoke, Hampshire (Hampshire & Berkshire Gazette)

11 June 1966 – Thorpedene Community Hall, Thorpe Bay, Essex with The Mustangs (Southend Standard) Is this gig possible with one above?

2 July 1966 – Thorpedene Community Hall, Thorpe Bay, Essex (Southend Standard)

Icelandic drummer Gunner Jokull Hakanarsson joined at this point when Martyn Adelman left. The band went to play the Valbonne near Cannes in the south of France for three weeks during the summer.

6 August 1966 – Salisbury City Hall, Salisbury, Wiltshire with The Shakedown Sound (Frogg Moody and Richard Nash’s book Hold Tight!)

20 August 1966 – Thorpedene Community Hall, Thorpe Bay, Essex (Southend Standard)

26 August 1966 – Marquee, Wardour Street, Soho, central London with The Gary Farr & The T-Bones (Tony Bacon’s book: London Live)

27 August 1966 – Cad-Lac Club, Brighton, West Sussex (Evening Argus)

12 September 1966 – Marquee, Wardour Street, Soho, central London with The VIPs (Tony Bacon’s book: London Live)

16 September 1966 – Cricketers Inn, Southend, Essex with The Attitude (Southend Standard)

18 September 1966 – Dungeon Club, Nottingham (https://dungeonmods.wordpress.com/)

23 September 1966 – Marquee, Wardour Street, Soho, central London with The Action (Tony Bacon’s book: London Live)

29 September 1966 – Marquee, Wardour Street, Soho, central London The Move (Tony Bacon’s book: London Live)

9 October 1966 – Sunday Club, Golden Torch, Tunstall, Staffordshire (Evening Sentinel)

10 October 1966 – Marquee, Wardour Street, Soho, central London with The Alan Bown Set (Tony Bacon’s book: London Live)

4 November 1966 – Quay Club, Newcastle upon Tyne (Newcastle Evening Chronicle)

Around late November Peter Banks replaced John Painter on lead guitar. According to Banks’ website, his debut was at the Marquee on 28 November.

28 November 1966 – Marquee, Wardour Street, Soho, central London with The Alan Bown Set (Tony Bacon’s book: London Live)

6 December 1966 – Marquee, Wardour Street, Soho, central London with Jimmy James & The Vagabonds (Tony Bacon’s book: London Live)

10 December 1966 – Lion Hotel, Warrington, Cheshire with The Fix and The Executives (Warrington Guardian)

13 December 1966 – Marquee, Wardour Street, Soho, central London with Eric Burdon & The Animals (Tony Bacon’s book: London Live)

16 December 1966 – Midnight City, Digbeth, West Midlands (Birmingham Evening Mail)

20 December 1966 – Marquee, Wardour Street, Soho, central London with The Spencer Davis Group (Tony Bacon’s book: London Live)

29 December 1966 – Marquee, Wardour Street, Soho, central London with Pink Floyd (Tony Bacon’s book: London Live)

30 December 1966 – Britannia Rowing Club, Nottingham (Nottingham Evening Post)

1967

1 January 1967 – Starlite, Greenford, west London with (Sonny Childe &) The TNT (Melody Maker)

3 January 1967 – Marquee, Wardour Street, Soho, central London with Tony Rivers & The Castaways (Tony Bacon’s book: London Live)

6 January 1967 – Starlite, Greenford, west London with TNT (Melody Maker)

7 January 1967 – Royal Links Pavilion, Cromer, Norfolk with The Ultimate (Julie Fielder book: What Flo Said Next)

17 January 1967 – Marquee, Wardour Street, Soho, central London with Zoot Money & The Big Roll Band (Tony Bacon’s book: London Live)

21 January 1967 – Golden Torch, Tunstall, Staffordshire with The Paper (Evening Sentinel)

24 January 1967 – Marquee, Wardour Street, Soho, central London with The Jimi Hendrix Experience (Tony Bacon’s book: London Live)

28 January 1967 – Birdcage, Eastney, Hampshire (Dave Allen research)

31 January 1967 – Marquee, Wardour Street, Soho, central London with Jimmy James & The Vagabonds (Tony Bacon’s book: London Live)

7 February 1967 – Marquee, Wardour Street, Soho, central London with The Spencer Davis Group (Tony Bacon’s book: London Live)

14 February 1967 – Marquee, Wardour Street, Soho, central London with Tony Rivers & The Castaways (Tony Bacon’s book: London Live)

19 February 1967 – Riverside Club, Cricketers Hotel, Chertsey, Surrey (Woking Herald)

21 February 1967 – Marquee, Wardour Street, Soho, central London with George Bean & The Runners (Tony Bacon’s book: London Live)

27 February 1967 – Golden Torch, Tunstall, Staffordshire with The Factotums (Evening Sentinel)

28 February 1967 – Marquee, Wardour Street, Soho, central London with The Alan Bown Set (Tony Bacon’s book: London Live)

16 March 1967 – Kilburn Polytechnic, Kilburn, north London with Cliff Bennett & The Rebel Rousers and Ronnie Jones & The Blue Jays (Melody Maker)

18 March 1967 – Golden Torch, Tunstall, Staffordshire with Zoot Money’s Big Roll Band and The Exception (Evening Sentinel)

31 March 1967 – Fiesta Hall, Andover, Hampshire (Andover Advertiser)

31 March 1967 – Hawkwell Village Hall, Hawkwell, Essex with Angus (Southend Standard)

1 April 1967 – Marquee, Wardour Street, Soho, central London with The Footprints (Tony Bacon’s book: London Live)

8 April 1967 – Marquee, Wardour Street, Soho, central London with The Love Affair (Tony Bacon’s book: London Live)

14 April 1967 – Starlite, Greenford, west London with The Creation (Melody Maker)

15 April 1967 – Marquee, Wardour Street, Soho, central London with The C Jam Blues (Tony Bacon’s book: London Live)

22 April 1967 – Thorpedene Community Hall, Thorpe Bay, Essex (Southend Standard)

22 April 1967 – Marquee, Wardour Street, Soho, central London with The Stalkers (Tony Bacon’s book: London Live)

28 April 1967 – Starlite, Greenford, west London with PP Arnold (Melody Maker)

29 April 1967 – Weir Hotel, Rayleigh, Essex (Southend Standard)

29 April 1967 – Marquee, Wardour Street, Soho, central London with Skip Bifferty (Tony Bacon’s book: London Live)

6 May 1967 – Marquee, Wardour Street, Soho, central London with We Three Kings (Tony Bacon’s book: London Live)

12 May 1967 – Starlite, Greenford, west London with The Shell Shock Show (Melody Maker)

13 May 1967 – Marquee, Wardour Street, Soho, central London with The Stalkers (Tony Bacon’s book: London Live)

26 May 1967 – Starlite, Greenford, west London with The Shell Shock Show (Melody Maker)

27 May 1967 – Marquee, Wardour Street, Soho, central London with Bluesyard (Tony Bacon’s book: London Live)

Gunner Jokull Hakanarsson returned to Iceland sometime in the spring/summer and Ray Steele briefly assumed the drum stool.

10 June 1967 – Marquee, Wardour Street, Soho, central London with The Stalkers (Tony Bacon’s book: London Live)

16 June 1967 – West End, Rushden, Northamptonshire with the Q-Men (Northamponshire Evening Telegraph)

17 June 1967 – Marquee, Wardour Street, Soho, central London with The Love Affair (Tony Bacon’s book: London Live)

24 June 1967 – Marquee, Wardour Street, Soho, central London with The Third Eye (Tony Bacon’s book: London Live)

1 July 1967 – Corby Civic Centre, Corby, Northamptonshire with The Ketas (Northamptonshire Evening Telegraph)

According to Disc & Music Echo’s 8 July issue, page 14, Chris Allen from The Attack joined on drums around now.

14 July 1967 – California Ballroom, Dunstable, Bedfordshire with The Long John Baldry Show (website: www.california-ballroom.info/gigs/)

15 July 1967 – Pavilion Ballroom, Weymouth, Dorset with Chris Shakespere’s Movement (Dorset Evening Echo)

17 July 1967 – Marquee, Wardour Street, Soho, central London with The Darlings (Tony Bacon’s book: London Live)

22 July 1967 – Golden Torch, Tunstall, Staffordshire with The Rogues Gallery (Evening Sentinel)

23 July 1967 – Starlite, Greenford, west London with The Action (Melody Maker)

There’s a great article and pic in Record Mirror, 29 July 1967, page 10

30 July 1967 – Kettering Working Men’s Club, Kettering, Northamptonshire with Bluesology and The Southside Move (Northamptonshire Evening Telegraph)

6 August 1967 – Olympia, Cromer, Norfolk with The Young Generation (North Norfolk News)

6 August 1967 – Marquee, Wardour Street, Soho, central London (Tony Bacon’s book: London Live)

9 August 1967 – Concorde, Southampton, Hampshire (Southern Evening Echo)

12 August 1967 – Tin Hat, Kettering, Northamptonshire with The Friction (Northamptonshire Evening Telegraph)

12 August 1967 – Nite Owl, Leicester (Leicester Mercury)

18 August 1967 – Starlite Ballroom, Greenford, west London (Melody Maker)

20 August 1967 – Marquee, Wardour Street, Soho, central London (Tony Bacon’s book: London Live)

25 August 1967 – Fiesta Hall, Andover, Hampshire (Andover Advertiser)

26 August 1967 – Royal Links Pavilion, Cromer, Norfolk with Soul Concern (Julie Fielder book: What Flo Said Next/Eastern Evening News)

There’s another great article and pic in Record Mirror, 9 September 1967, page 10

2 September 1967 – Dreamland, Margate, Kent with Marmalade (East Kent Times & Mail)

3 September 1967 – Rendevous Club, Margate, Kent (East Kent Times & Mail)

7 September 1967 – Marquee, Wardour Street, Soho, central London with The Studio Six (Tony Bacon’s book: London Live)

8 September 1967 – The Old West End, Rushden, Northamptonshire (Northamptonshire Evening Telegraph)

15 September 1967 – Top Twenty Club, Town Hall, Trowbridge, Wiltshire (Chippenham News)

16 September 1967 – Wellington Club, Dereham, Norfolk with The Survivors (North Norfolk News)

17 September 1967 – Kettering Working Men’s Club, Kettering, Northamptonshire with The Alex Reed Sound (Northamptonshire Evening Telegraph)

29-30 September 1967 – Purple Fez, Plymouth, Devon (Fabulous 208)

1 October 1967 – Khyber Club, County Cricket Ground, Taunton, Somerset with Sutra (Somerset County Gazette)

6 October 1967 – Golden Torch, Tunstall, Staffordshire (Fabulous 208)

7 October 1967 – Pearce Hall, Maidenhead, Berkshire (Fabulous 208)

12 October 1967 – Marquee, Wardour Street, Soho, central London with The Third Eye (Tony Bacon’s book: London Live)

13 October 1967 – Hobby’s Club, St Michaels Hall, New Inn Hall, Oxford (Oxford Mail)

14 October 1967 – King Mojo, Sheffield, South Yorkshire (Fabulous 208)

20 October 1967 – Shades, Masonic Hall, Wokingham, Berkshire (Bracknell News) Billed as The Sin

20 October 1967 – Steering Wheel, Weymouth, Dorset (Dorset Evening Echo)

21 October 1967 – Hagger’s Ballroom, Pembroke, Wales (Fabulous 208)

22 October 1967 – Cat-Balou, Grantham, Lincolnshire (Fabulous 208)

28 October 1967 – Sussex University, Brighton, West Sussex (Fabulous 208)

2 November 1967 – Marquee, Wardour Street, Soho, central London with The Quik (Tony Bacon’s book: London Live)

10 November 1967 – Fiesta Hall, Andover, Hampshire (Andover Advertiser) The Syn were booked to play but One in a Million replaced them

16 November 1967 – Marquee, Wardour Street, Soho, central London with The Love Affair (Tony Bacon’s book: London Live)

The band played a three residency at the Op Palladium in Toulon, south of France followed by a short stint at the Bilboquet in St Germain, Paris and this seems the most likely time period.

9 December 1967 – Ritz, Bournemouth, Dorset with The Latest Soul (Bournemouth Echo)

15 December 1967 – West End, Rushden, Northamptonshire (Northamptonshire Evening Telegraph)

24 December 1967 – Kettering Working Men’s Club, Kettering, Northamptonshire with Serendipity (Northamptonshire Evening Telegraph)

6 January 1968 – Nags Head, Motown Club, Wollaston, Northamptonshire with Mick’s Soul Show (Northamptonshire Evening Telegraph)

7 January 1968 – Cat-Balou, Grantham, Lincolnshire (Grantham Journal) This was the band’s final gig

Patrick Campbell-Lyons (lead vocals)

Tony Duhig (lead guitar)

Mickey Holmes (bass)

Bill Hope (drums)

Ealing, Middlesex band, The Second Thoughts were formed around February 1963 and gave birth to a number of notable bands in the late 1960s – Thunderclap Newman, Nirvana, July and Jade Warrior.

Lead singer Patrick Campbell-Lyons (b. 13 July 1943, Lismore, County Waterford, Ireland) had been active on the local scene for several years with The Teenbeats after arriving in the area from Ireland in the summer of 1961.

Campbell-Lyons made plans to form a new group after running into lead guitarist Tony Duhig (b. 18 September 1941, Acton, Middlesex; d. 11 November 1990), drummer Bill Hope and lead guitarist turned bass player Mickey Holmes in early 1963.

Holmes had previously been a member of The Krewsaders alongside future Fleetwood Mac bass player John McVie and Holmes’ cousin, rhythm guitarist Peter Carney, who went on to play with Geno Washington’s Ram Jam Band among others.

Named by Holmes, one of The Second Thoughts’ first gigs was opening for The Rolling Stones at their farewell gig at the Ealing Club on 2 March 1963.

Basing themselves on The Big Three and The High Numbers (aka The Who), the trio’s blues-rock required a harmonica player and Campbell-Lyons recruited his friend from Brentford, Middlesex, Vic Griffiths, who doubled up on rhythm guitar, around Christmas 1963.

The Second Thoughts would play at the Ealing Club regularly and from spring to summer 1964 would hold down a Sunday residency before landing another house gig in central London at the Studio ’51 Club in Leicester Square.

Around July 1964, the band expanded the line up by adding Duhig’s friend, and the band’s roadie, Jon Field (b. 5 July 1940, Harrow, Middlesex) on organ and congas.

Meanwhile Holmes brought in his former band mate from The Krewsaders, drummer John “Speedy” Keen (b. 29 March 1945, Ealing, Middlesex; d. 12 March 2002) to replace Bill Hope.

That summer, the band played four gigs on the Isle of Wight with Jimmy James & The Vagabonds.

Not long after, The Second Thoughts went into the studios twice. On one occasion, the band recorded tracks at a studio near Denham in Buckinghamshire. The other session took place in a studio in north London. The group covered the T J Arnall’s “Cocaine” at one of the sessions.

Four tracks were cut – “Seventh Son”, “Walking”, “You Gotta Help (Help Me)” and “Looking For My Baby” at one session.

Shelved at the time, the Essex label dug out the recordings for a rare EP in 1997.

The tracks have more recently appeared on The Tomcats’ CD, Running at Shadows: The Spanish Recordings 1965-1966, which was issued on RPM in 2016.

During spring 1965, the band cut more unreleased tracks at RG Jones studio in Morden, near Wimbledon – the Wilbur Harrison classic “Let’s Get Together” and a second version of “Cocaine”.

They also started to play more widely across the Southeast. This included playing US airforce bases in Oxfordshire with Percy Sledge, John Lee Hooker and Jimmy James & The Vagabonds.

The Second Thoughts also made their first trip to Hamburg around March 1965 (Ed. This might have been 1963) to perform at the Star Club where they shared the bill with Rory Storm & The Hurricanes and Duane Eddy.

Back in England during April, the group was performing at Beat City (or 100 Club) on Oxford Street when the musicians were approached by French singer Teddy Raye, who wanted to hire a British backing group for a month initially in Madrid.

The Frenchman, however, didn’t want Patrick Campbell-Lyons, Jon Field or Vic Griffiths for the trip.

Renamed The Gatos Salvaje (The Savage Cats), the band proved to be the main attraction rather than Raye and, buoyed by the response, the musicians made plans to return on their own that summer.

Back in England in May, the musicians brought back Jon Field and recruited singer/guitarist Tom Newman from rival Ealing band The Tomcats.

Performing their final gig at Ealing Town Hall, the new formation discovered that Keen did not want to return to Spain.

With Keen subsequently moving to Italy in July to join another Ealing band, The Rocking Eccentrics (replacing John Kerrison) with whom he stayed until January 1966, the group recruited drummer Chris Jackson from The Tomcats as his replacement.

Returning to Spain (and renamed Los Tomcats) in June, the band played northern cities like Oviedo and also returned to Madrid but Holmes soon grew tired of living out of a suitcase and came back to the UK. Another former Tomcat, bass player Alan James stepped into his shoes.

Los Tomcats continued working in Spain for a year before returning to England in early 1967 and changing name to July. Duhig and Field would subsequently leave the band and form Jade Warrior in the late 1960s.

Remaining members, Patrick Campbell-Lyons and Vic Griffiths meanwhile formed a new version of The Second Thoughts that July with new members.

They were soon joined by a returning Mickey Holmes but when the band was offered work at the Star Club in Hamburg in November, Holmes left to move into session work and the group brought in new bass player Chris Thomas around late August.

Out in West Germany, The Second Thoughts gigged until spring 1966 before finally splitting.

Patrick Campbell-Lyons remained in Hamburg and worked with Swedish band, Lucifer & The Angels, which took him to Sweden. In Stockholm, he then joined local group, The Merrymen (who’d earlier featured Boz Scaggs) but became ill.

Returning to England in August 1966, he joined forces with former member Chris Thomas in the duo Hat & Tie. The pair recorded a lone single before splitting soon after and Campbell-Lyons went on to form Nirvana.

Two former members of The Second Thoughts found huge success after the band finally split – Chris Thomas became a noted producer, working with The Beatles and Pink Floyd among others, while John “Speedy” Keen formed Thunderclap Newman and scored an international hit with “Something In The Air”.

Notable gigs:

 2 March 1963 – Ealing Club, Ealing, Middlesex (support The Rolling Stones on their last gig at this venue)

19 April 1964 – Ealing Club, Ealing, Middlesex (Sunday residency)

26 April 1964 – Ealing Club, Ealing, Middlesex (Sunday residency)

3 May 1964 – Ealing Club, Ealing, Middlesex (Sunday residency)

10 May 1964 – Ealing Club, Ealing, Middlesex (Sunday residency)

17 May 1964 – Ealing Club, Ealing, Middlesex (Sunday residency)

24 May 1964 – Ealing Club, Ealing, Middlesex (Sunday residency)

31 May 1964 – Ealing Club, Ealing, Middlesex (Sunday residency)

7 June 1964 – Ealing Club, Ealing, Middlesex (Sunday residency)

14 June 1964 – Ealing Club, Ealing, Middlesex (Sunday residency)

21 June 1964 – Ealing Club, Ealing, Middlesex (Sunday residency)

28 June 1964 – Ealing Club, Ealing, Middlesex (Sunday residency)

5 July 1964 – Ealing Club, Ealing, Middlesex (Sunday residency)

10 July 1964 – Attic, Hounslow, Middlesex with Erky Grant & The Tonetts and The Tempests

11 July 1964 – YWCA Hall, Ealing, Middlesex

12 July 1964 – Ealing Club, Ealing, Middlesex (Sunday residency)

19 July 1964 – Ealing Club, Ealing, Middlesex (Sunday residency)

25 July 1964 – YWCA Hall, Ealing, Middlesex

25 July 1964 – Ealing Club, Ealing, Middlesex (played both weekend nights)

26 July 1964 – Ealing Club, Ealing, Middlesex (Sunday residency)

29 July 1964 – Bedsitter Club, Holland Park, west London

15 August 1964 – YWCA Hall, Ealing, Middlesex

22 August 1964 – YWCA Hall, Ealing, Middlesex

22 August 1964 – Studio ’51 Club, Leicester Square, central London with The Tridents

8 September 1964 – Nurses Club, Jolly Gardeners, Isleworth, Middlesex

9 September 1964 – Bedsitter Club, Holland Park, west London

12 September 1964 – Bedsitter Club, Holland Park, west London

16 September 1964 – YWCA Hall, Ealing, Middlesex

16 September 1964 – Bedsitter Club, Holland Park, west London

18 September 1964 – Studio ’51 Club, Leicester Square, west London

19 September 1964 – YWCA Hall, Ealing, Middlesex

20 September 1964 – Studio ’51 Club, Leicester Square, west London

22 September 1964 – Klooks Kleek, West Hampstead, north London with Dave Davani & The D-Men with Beryl

23 September 1964 – Bedsitter Club, Holland Park, west London

3 October 1964 – YWCA Hall, Ealing, Middlesex

8 October 1964 – Ealing Town Hall, Ealing, Middlesex with The Flexmen

12 October 1964 – Klooks Kleek, West Hampstead, north London with John Lee Hooker

16 October 1964 – Studio ’51 Club, Leicester Square, central London

17 October 1964 – Witchdoctor, Hastings, East Sussex with Four Plus 1

18 October 1964 – Watford Trade Hall, Watford, Hertfordshire

19 October 1964 – Marquee, Wardour Street, Soho, central London

20 October 1964 – 100 Club, Oxford Street, central London with The Tridents

22 October 1964 – Ealing Town Hall, Ealing, Middlesex with The Challengers, Liverpool Lads and Bob Harvey

23 October 1964 – Eel Pie Island, Twickenham, Middlesex

23 October 1964 – Ealing Technical College, Ealing, Middlesex

24 October 1964 – Fratton Hall, Portsmouth, Hants

24 October 1964 – Studio ’51 Club, Leicester Square, central London with The Impacts (All Nighter)

31 October 1964 – Twyford School, Acton, Middlesex

19 November 1964 – New Central Ballroom, Aldershot, Hampshire with St Louis Checks, The Cromwells and Dave Oades Orchestra

22 November 1964 – Studio ’51 Club, Leicester Square, central London

26 November 1964 – Ealing Town Hall, Ealing, Middlesex with Frankie Reid & The Casuals

13 December 1964 – Studio ’51 Club, Leicester Square, central London

29 December 1964 – Klooks Kleek, West Hampstead, north London with Alexis Korner

1 January 1965 – Studio ’51 Club, Leicester Square, central London

2 January 1965 – Egham Literary Institute, Egham, Surrey

3 January 1965 – New Central Ballroom, Aldershot, Hants with The Leeways with Belinda

12 January 1965 – Nurses Club, Jolly Gardeners, Isleworth, Middlesex

22 January 1965 – Studio ’51 Club, Leicester Square, central London

31 January 1965 – Studio ’51 Club, Leicester Square, central London

11 February 1965 – Bromel Club, Bromley, Kent

26 February 1965 – Studio ’51 Club, Leicester Square, central London

4 March 1965 – Ealing Town Hall, Ealing, Middlesex

24 July 1965 – Egham Hythe Social Centre, Egham, Surrey with Bern Elliott & The Klan

25 July 1965 – Studio ’51 Club, Leicester Square, central London

31 July 1965 – Studio ’51 Club, Leicester Square, central London

15 August 1965 – Studio ’51 Club, Leicester Square, central London

4 September 1965 – Egham Hythe Social Centre, Egham, Surrey with Just Five

24 September 1965 – Ealing Town Hall, Ealing, west London with Bob Grant

21 October 1965 – New Central Ballroom, Aldershot, Hampshire with The Southern Valley Four

6 November 1965 – New Central Ballroom, Aldershot, Hampshire

Gigs taken mainly from the Middlesex County Times & West Middlesex Gazette and Melody Maker. Thanks to Mickey Holmes, Tom Newman and Patrick Campbell-Lyons.

This article originally appeared on the Strange Brew website. I’ve updated it and provided more information since but would like to thank Jason Barnard for posting it on his excellent site. 

Copyright © Nick Warburton. All Rights Reserved. No part of this article may be reproduced or transmitted in any from or by any means, without prior permission from the author.

I have tried to ensure the accuracy of this article but I appreciate that there are likely to be errors and omissions. I would appreciate any feedback from anyone who can provide any additions or corrections. Email: Warchive@aol.com

Ron Paisley – guitar/vocals
John Scott – bass
Steve Pryor – organ
Ray Beresford – drums 

Formed in February 1967, The National Existence was a R&B band from southeast London who featured former Carl Douglas drummer Ray Beresford. According to the South East London Mercury they played every Saturday at the Country Club in Sidcup. The newspaper reported that the group was still working locally in May 1968 and with the same formation.

We’d be interested to hear any more about this band and can also include photos. 

Welcome to another posting of a series of gig listings for 1960s bands. None of these lists is exhaustive and my idea is to add to them in the comments section below over time. They are here for future researchers to draw on.  I have also added a few interesting bits of information and will add images in time.

I’d like to encourage band members to get in touch to share memories, or for anyone to send corrections/clarifications to my email: Warchive@aol.com 

Equally important, if you attended any of the gigs below or played in the support band, please do leave your memories below in the comments section for future historians to use. If you know of any missing gigs, please add them too, if possible, with the sources.

Formed in September 1963, The Pretty Things’ original line up comprised:

 Phil May (lead vocals)

Dick Taylor (lead guitar)

Brian Pendelton (rhythm guitar)

John Stax (bass/harmonica)

Pete Kitley (drums)

Around November 1963, Viv Andrews (aka Viv Broughton), who’d been working with David Bowie in The Hooker Brothers replaced Kitley.

1964

3 January 1964 – 100 Club, Oxford Street, central London with The Mike Cotton Band (Rieks Korke’s research)

7 January 1964 – 100 Club, Oxford Street, central London with Acker Bilk, Kenny Walsh & Walsh Band (Rieks Korke’s research)

9 January 1964 – 100 Club, Oxford Street, central London with The Mike Cotton Band (Rieks Korke’s research)

14 January 1964 – 100 Club, Oxford Street, central London with Douggie Richford’s London Jazzmen (Rieks Korke’s research)

16 January 1964 – 100 Club, Oxford Street, central London with Bob Wallis’ Storeyville Jazzmen (Rieks Korke’s research)

21 January 1964 – 100 Club, Oxford Street, central London with Monty Sunshine’s Jazz Band (Rieks Korke’s research)

23 January 1964 – 100 Club, Oxford Street, central London with The Animals and Jimmy Powell & The Dimensions (Rieks Korke’s research)

28 January 1964 – 100 Club, Oxford Street, central London with Georgie Fame & The Blue Flames, Manfred Mann, Alexis Korner, Jimmy Powell, John Mayall’s Bluesbreakers, Zoot Money, Long John Baldry & The Hoochie Coochie Men, The Animals, The Yardbirds and others (Rieks Korke’s research) Cyril Davies benefit concert

30 January 1964 – 100 Club, Oxford Street, central London with Jimmy Powell & The Five Dimensions and The Wes Minster 5 (Rieks Korke’s research)

4 February 1964 – 100 Club, Oxford Street, central London with Graham Bond’s R&B Quartet and The Art Wood Combo (Rieks Korke’s research)

6 February 1964 – 100 Club, Oxford Street, central London with Alex Harvey’s Soul Band and John Lee & The Groundhogs (Rieks Korke’s research)

11 February 1964 – 100 Club, Oxford Street, central London Graham Bond’s R&B Quartet and The Art Wood Combo (Rieks Korke’s research)

13 February 1964 – 100 Club, Oxford Street, central London with Jimmy Powell & The Five Dimensions and The Wes Minster 5 (Rieks Korke’s research)

18 February 1964 – 100 Club, Oxford Street, central London with The Animals and The Wes Minster 5 (Rieks Korke’s research)

20 February 1964 – 100 Club, Oxford Street, central London with Jimmy Powell & The Five Dimensions and John Lee & The Groundhogs (Rieks Korke’s research)

21 February 1964 – Ricky Tick, Star & Garter, Windsor, Berkshire (Ricky Tick website: https://www.rickytick.com/)

25 February 1964 – 100 Club, Oxford Street, central London with The Animals and The Art Wood Combo (Rieks Korke’s research)

27 February 1964 – 100 Club, Oxford Street, central London with Jimmy Powell & The Five Dimensions and John Lee & The Groundhogs (Record Mirror)

28 February 1964 – Ricky Tick, Plaza Ballroom, Guildford, Surrey (Ricky Tick website: https://www.rickytick.com/)

3 March 1964 – 100 Club, Oxford Street, central London with The Animals and John Lee & The Groundhogs (Rieks Korke’s research)

5 March 1964 – 100 Club, Oxford Street, central London with The Alex Harvey Soul Band and The Wes Minster Five (Rieks Korke’s research)

12 March 1964 – 100 Club, Oxford Street, central London with Graham Bond’s R&B Quartet and Gene Latter & The Cousins (Record Mirror)

17 March 1964 – 100 Club, Oxford Street, central London with The Animals and John Lee & The Groundhogs (Rieks Korke’s research)

24 March 1964 – 100 Club, Oxford Street, central London (Record Mirror)

31 March 1964 – 100 Club, Oxford Street, central London with The Animals and John Lee & The Groundhogs (Record Mirror)

7 April 1964 – 100 Club, Oxford Street, central London with The Falling Leaves (Record Mirror)

13 April 1964 – Hermitage Ballroom, Hitchin, Hertfordshire (Hertfordshire Express)

14 April 1964 – 100 Club, Oxford Street, central London with The Mark Leeman Five and The Tridents (Record Mirror)

15 April 1964 – Market Hall, St Albans, Herts (Record Mirror)

17 April 1964 – Ricky Tick, Guildford Civic Hall, Guildford, Surrey (Ricky Tick website: https://www.rickytick.com/)

19 April 1964 – Phoenix Blues Club, Staines, Middlesex (Record Mirror)

Record Mirror’s 18 April issue, page 8 has a picture of the Viv Andrews’ line up

21 April 1964 – 100 Club, Oxford Street, central London with The Art Wood Combo and The Impacts (Record Mirror)

24 April 1964 – Ricky Ticky, Star & Garter, Windsor, Berkshire (Record Mirror)

25 April 1964 – Gig in Ruislip, Middlesex (Record Mirror)

26 April 1964 – Phoenix Blues Club, Staines, Middlesex (Record Mirror)

Record Mirror reported that The Pretty Things played at the 100 Club every Tuesday from 28 April to 16 June

Towards the end of April 1964, Viv Prince took over from Viv Andrews on drums

28 April 1964 – 100 Club, Oxford Street, central London with The Art Wood Combo and The Muleskinners (Rieks Korke’s research)

29 April 1964 – Market Hall, St Albans, Herts (Record Mirror)

30 April 1964 – ABC Croydon, Croydon, Surrey with Billy Fury, Dave Berry & The Cruisers, Brian Poole & The Tremeloes, The John Barry 7 and The Zephyrs (Chris Broom book: Rockin’ and Around Croydon)

1 May 1964 – Gig in Crawley, West Sussex (possibly Starlight Ballroom) (Record Mirror)

Record Mirror reported in its 2 May issue that Viv Prince was on drums but the picture shows Viv Andrews

2 May 1964 – Ricky Tick, Pearce Hall, Maidenhead, Berks (Record Mirror/Ricky Tick website: https://www.rickytick.com/)

3 May 1964 – Gig in Chertsey, Surrey (most likely the Cricketer’s Hotel) (Record Mirror)

4 May 1964 – Northampton R&B Club, Embassy Ballroom, Northampton (Record Mirror)

5 May 1964 – 100 Club, Oxford Street, central London with Brian Knight’s Blues by Six (Rieks Korke’s research)

6 May 1964 – Orford Cellar, Norwich, Norfolk (Record Mirror)

7 May 1964 – Blue Opera Club, Cooks Ferry Inn, Edmonton, Middlesex (Record Mirror)

8 May 1964 – Golders Green Refectory, Golders Green, north London (Rieks Korke’s research)

9 May 1964 – Stamford Hall, Altrincham, Greater Manchester (Record Mirror)

10 May 1964 – Phoenix Blues Club, Staines, Middlesex (Rieks Korke’s research)

11 May 1964 – Gig in Slough, Berkshire (Record Mirror)

12 May 1964 – 100 Club, Oxford Street, central London with The Harps (Rieks Korke’s research)

13 May 1964 – Market Hall, St Albans, Herts (Record Mirror)

14 May 1964 – British Legion Hall, South Harrow, Middlesex (Record Mirror/Rieks Korke’s research)

16 May 1964 – Bure Club, Mudeford, Dorset (website: https://bournemouthbeatboom.wordpress.com/)

16 May 1964 – Rendevous, Portsmouth, Hampshire (Rieks Korke’s research)

16 May 1964 – Embes Ballroom, Harlow, Herts (Rieks Korke’s research)

17 May 1964 – Orford Cellar, Norwich, Norfolk (Record Mirror)

18 May 1964 – Ricky Tick, St John’s Hall, Reading, Berkshire (Record Mirror/Ricky Tick website: https://www.rickytick.com/)

19 May 1964 – 100 Club, Oxford Street, central London with The Harps (Record Mirror)

20 May 1964 – Cellar Club, Kingston upon Thames, Surrey (Record Mirror)

21 May 1964 – Blue Opera Club, Cooks Ferry Inn, Edmonton, Middlesex (Record Mirror)

22 May 1964 – Ricky Tick, Plaza Ballroom, Guildford Civic Hall, Guildford, Surrey (Aldershot News)

22 May 1964 – Ricky Tick, Borough Assembly Hall, Aylesbury, Bucks (Ricky Tick website: https://www.rickytick.com/)

23 May 1964 – Gig in Bournemouth, Dorset (Record Mirror)

25 May 1964 – Northampton R&B Club, Embassy Ballroom, Northampton (Record Mirror)

26 May 1964 – 100 Club, Oxford Street, central London with The Harps (Rieks Korke’s research)

27 May 1964 – Dancing Slipper, Nottingham (Rieks Korke’s research)

28 May 1964 – Blue Opera Club, Cooks Ferry Inn, Edmonton, Middlesex (Leyton and Leytonstone Guardian)

29 May 1964 – Mercers Arms, Coventry (Coventry Evening Telegraph)

31 May 1964 – Black Prince Hotel, Bexley, Kent (Record Mirror)

1 June 1964 – Hermitage Ballroom, Hitchin, Hertfordshire (Hertfordshire Express)

2 June 1964 – 100 Club, Oxford Street, central London with The Art Wood Combo (Rieks Korke’s research)

4 June 1964 – Blue Opera Club, Cooks Ferry Inn, Edmonton, Middlesex (Leyton and Leytonstone Guardian)

5 June 1964 – Ricky Ticky, High Wycombe Town Hall, High Wycombe, Bucks (Bucks Free Press/Ricky Tick website: https://www.rickytick.com/)

6 June 1964 – Rhodes Centre, Bishop’s Stortford, Herts with Johnny & The Starliners (Steve Ingless book: The Day Before Yesterday)

9 June 1964 – 100 Club, Oxford Street, central London with The Art Wood Combo (Rieks Korke’s research)

10 June 1964 – Market Hall, St Albans, Herts (Record Mirror)

11 June 1964 – Blue Opera Club, Cooks Ferry Inn, Edmonton, Middlesex (Leyton and Leytonstone Guardian)

14 June 1964 – Ricky Tick, Clewer Mead, Windsor, Berkshire (Ricky Tick website: https://www.rickytick.com/)

16 June 1964 – Attic Club, 1a High Street, Hounslow, Middlesex with Them (aka Themselves) (Dave Gale research/Kingston & Malden Borough News)

18 June 1964 – Blue Opera Club, Cooks Ferry Inn, Edmonton, Middlesex (Leyton and Leytonstone Guardian)

Record Mirror reported that The Pretty Things were on a Manchester area tour from 21-27 June 1964

30 June 1964 – 100 Club, Oxford Street, central London (Rieks Korke’s research)

3 July 1964 – Hoveton, Wroxham, Norfolk with Rod Harvey & The Drifting Strangers (Eastern Evening News)

5 July 1964 – Black Prince Hotel, Bexley, Kent (Record Mirror)

7 July 1964 – 100 Club, Oxford Street, central London with The Farinas (Rieks Korke’s research)

11 July 1964 – Berkeley Grill Crawdaddy Club, Coventry with The Sorrows (Coventry Evening Telegraph)

17 July 1964 – Winchester Lido, Winchester, Hampshire with The Missing Links (Hampshire & Berkshire Gazette)

21 July 1964 – 100 Club, Oxford Street, central London with The Farinas (Rieks Korke’s research)

23 July 1964 – McIlroy’s Ballroom, Swindon, Wiltshire (Rieks Korke’s research)

24 July 1964 – Caribbean Club, Radcaster, Leeds, West Yorkshire (Rieks Korke’s research)

25 July 1964 – Majestic, Crewe, Cheshire (Rieks Korke’s research)

26 July 1964 – Belle Vue, Manchester (Rieks Korke’s research)

27 July 1964 – Gig in Edinburgh, Scotland (Rieks Korke’s research)

28 July 1964 – Public Hall, Wallington, Surrey (Rieks Korke’s research)

30 July 1964 – Dreamland Ballroom, Margate, Kent with Rockin Henri & The Hayseeds (East Kent Times & Mail)

31 July 1964 – Trentham Gardens, Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire with Reg Bassett & His Orchestra and Singers (Crewe Chronicle)

31 July 1964 – Royal Hotel, Lowestoft, Suffolk (Rieks Korke’s research)

1 August 1964 – Trentham Gardens, Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire (Rieks Korke’s research)

2 August 1964 – Gig in Ryde, Isle of Wight (probably Disco Blue) (Rieks Korke’s research)

3 August 1964 – Public Hall, Heacham, Norfolk (Rieks Korke’s research)

6 August 1964 – El Toro, Swiss Cottage, central London (Rieks Korke’s research)

7 August 1964 – California Ballroom, Dunstable, Bedfordshire with Johnny Kaye & The Kossacks and Brent Peters & The Chessmen (website: www.california-ballroom.info/gigs/)

8 August 1964 – Clacton Town Hall, Clacton, Essex with The Federals (Essex County Standard)

9 August 1964 – Gig in Manchester (Rieks Korke’s research)

11 August 1964 – 100 Club, Oxford Street, central London with Brian Knight’s Blues by Six (Rieks Korke’s research)

12 August 1964 – Town Hall, Torquay, Devon with The Bluesounds and Mel Fear & The Fantastic Phantoms (Torbay Express and South Devon Echo)

13 August 1964 – Gig in Peterborough, Cambridgeshire (Rieks Korke’s research)

14 August 1964 – Gig in Bradford, West Yorkshire (Rieks Korke’s research)

15 August 1964 – Wilton Hall, Bletchley, Oxfordshire (Rieks Korke’s research)

16 August 1964 – Gig in Bromley, Kent (probably Bromley Court Hotel) (Rieks Korke’s research)

18 August 1964 – 100 Club, Oxford Street, London with Brian Knight’s Blues by Six (Rieks Korke’s research)

19 August 1964 – Mayfair Ballroom, Newcastle upon Tyne, Tyne & Wear (Newcastle Evening Chronicle) First visit to Newcastle

21 August 1964 – Town Hall, Trowbridge, Wiltshire (Rieks Korke’s research)

22 August 1964 – Town Hall, Chippenham, Wiltshire (Rieks Korke’s research)

25 August 1964 – Orford Jazz Cellar, St Andrew’s Hall, Norwich, Norfolk with The Bluebottles (with Mike Patto) (Eastern Evening News)

26 August 1964 – Bromley Court Hotel, Bromley, Kent (Rieks Korke’s research)

28 August 1964 – Winter Gardens, Morecambe, Lancashire (Rieks Korke’s research)

29 August 1964 – Marcam Hall, March, Cambridgeshire with The Blobs (Cambridgeshire Times)

30 August 1964 – The Scene, Florida Room, Brighton, West Sussex with The Beat Merchants (Evening Argus)

1 September 1964 – 100 Club, Oxford Street, central London with Brian Knight’s Blues by Six (Rieks Korke’s research)

7 September 1964 – Mojo Club, Sheffield, South Yorkshire (Rieks Korke’s research)

8 September 1964 – 100 Club, Oxford Street, central London with Brian Knight’s Blues by Six (Rieks Korke’s research)

11 September 1964 – Flamingo Ballroom, Redruth, Cornwall (Cornish Guardian)

12 September 1964 – New Cornish Riveria Lido, St Austell, Cornwall (Cornish Guardian)

18 September 1964 – Wimbledon Palais, Wimbledon, Surrey with Mike Rabin & The Demons and The UKs (Kingston & Malden Borough News)

27 September 1964 – Bromley Court Hotel, Bromley, Kent (Rieks Korke’s research)

29 September 1964 – High Wycombe Town Hall, High Wycombe, Bucks (Bucks Free Press)

5 October 1964 – Silver Blades, Streatham, southwest London with The Bo Street Runners (Record Mirror)

6 October 1964 – 100 Club, Oxford Street, central London with Blues by Six (Record Mirror)

13 October 1964 – 100 Club, Oxford Street, central London with Blues by Six (Rieks Korke’s research)

27 October 1964 – 100 Club, Oxford Street, central London with Blues by Six (Rieks Korke’s research)

29 October 1964 – Majestic Ballroom, Luton, Bedfordshire with Bracer Ball (Luton News)

30 October 1964 – Co-op Hall, Peckham, south London (Rieks Korke’s research)

3 November 1964 – 100 Club, Oxford Street, central London with Brian Knight’s Blues by Six (Record Mirror)

6 November 1964 – Regal, Edmonton, Middlesex with Chuck Berry, The Barron Knight’s featuring Duke D’Mond, Kim Weston with The Earl Van Dyke Quartet, Teatime Four and The Leroys (Tottenham Weekly Herald) Chuck Berry replaced P J Proby who cancelled according to Rieks Korke

7 November 1964 – Granada, Slough, Berkshire with Chuck Berry, The Barron Knight’s featuring Duke D’Mond, Kim Weston with The Earl Van Dyke Quartet, Teatime Four and The Leroys (Rieks Korke’s research)

8 November 1964 – Hippodrome, Birmingham Chuck Berry, The Barron Knight’s featuring Duke D’Mond, Kim Weston with The Earl Van Dyke Quartet, Teatime Four and The Leroys (Rieks Korke’s research)

10 November 1964 – Odeon, Leicester with Chuck Berry, The Barron Knight’s featuring Duke D’Mond, Kim Weston with The Earl Van Dyke Quartet, Teatime Four and The Leroys (Rieks Korke’s research)

11 November 1964 – Rialto York, North Yorkshire with Chuck Berry, The Barron Knight’s featuring Duke D’Mond, Kim Weston with The Earl Van Dyke Quartet, Teatime Four and The Leroys (Rieks Korke’s research)

12 November 1964 – Odeon Bolton, Bolton, Greater Manchester with Chuck Berry, The Barron Knight’s featuring Duke D’Mond, Kim Weston with The Earl Van Dyke Quartet, Teatime Four and The Leroys (Rieks Korke’s research)

13 November 1964 – Odeon Newcaste, Newcastle upon Tyne with Chuck Berry, The Barron Knight’s featuring Duke D’Mond, Kim Weston with The Earl Van Dyke Quartet, Teatime Four and The Leroys (Rieks Korke’s research)

15 November 1964 – Palace, Manchester with Chuck Berry, The Barron Knight’s featuring Duke D’Mond, Kim Weston with The Earl Van Dyke Quartet, Teatime Four and The Leroys (Rieks Korke’s research)

16 November 1964 – Granada, Rugby, Warwickshire with Chuck Berry, The Barron Knight’s featuring Duke D’Mond, Kim Weston with The Earl Van Dyke Quartet, Teatime Four and The Leroys (Rieks Korke’s research)

17 November 1964 – Gaumont, Wolverhampton, West Midlands with Chuck Berry, The Barron Knight’s featuring Duke D’Mond, Kim Weston with The Earl Van Dyke Quartet, Teatime Four and The Leroys (Rieks Korke’s research)

18 November 1964 – Odeon, Liverpool with Chuck Berry, The Barron Knight’s featuring Duke D’Mond, Kim Weston with The Earl Van Dyke Quartet, Teatime Four and The Leroys (Rieks Korke’s research)

19 November 1964 – 100 Club, Oxford Street, central London with The Hell-Raisers (Rieks Korke’s research)

20 November 1964 – Gaumont, Sheffield, South Yorkshire with Chuck Berry, The Barron Knight’s featuring Duke D’Mond, Kim Weston with The Earl Van Dyke Quartet, Teatime Four and The Leroys (Rieks Korke’s research)

20 November 1964 – Glad Rag Ball, Wembley Empire Pool, Wembley, west London with The Animals, The Migil Five, Julie Rogers, Gene Vincent, Cliff Bennett & The Rebel Rousers, Lorne Lesley, The Hustlers and others (Rieks Korke’s research)

22 November 1964 – Winter Gardens, Morecambe, Lancashire with Chuck Berry, The Barron Knight’s featuring Duke D’Mond, Kim Weston with The Earl Van Dyke Quartet, Teatime Four and The Leroys (Rieks Korke’s research)

23 November 1964 – Brixton Granada, Brixton, south London with Chuck Berry, The Barron Knights, Tea Time 4, Don Spencer, The Leroys, Kim Weston and Earl Van Dyke Quartet (South East London Mercury)

24 November 1964 – Gauount, Bournmouth, Dorset with Chuck Berry, The Barron Knight’s featuring Duke D’Mond, Kim Weston with The Earl Van Dyke Quartet, Teatime Four and The Leroys (Rieks Korke’s research)

25 November 1964 – Gaumont State, Kilburn, north London with Chuck Berry, The Barron Knight’s featuring Duke D’Mond, Kim Weston with The Earl Van Dyke Quartet, Teatime Four and The Leroys (Rieks Korke’s research)

27 November 1964 – Odeon, Romford, Essex with Chuck Berry, The Barron Knight’s featuring Duke D’Mond, Kim Weston with The Earl Van Dyke Quartet, Teatime Four and The Leroys (Rieks Korke’s research)

28 November 1964 – Odeon, Lewisham, southeast London with Chuck Berry, The Barron Knight’s featuring Duke D’Mond, Kim Weston with The Earl Van Dyke Quartet, Teatime Four and The Leroys (Rieks Korke’s research)

29 November 1964 – Hippodrome, Brighton, West Sussex with Chuck Berry, The Barron Knight’s featuring Duke D’Mond, Kim Weston with The Earl Van Dyke Quartet, Teatime Four and The Leroys (Rieks Korke’s research)

1 December 1964 – 100 Club, Oxford Street, central London with Brothers Grimm (Rieks Korke’s research)

10 December 1964 – 100 Club, Oxford Street, central London with The Westsiders (Rieks Korke’s research)

14 December 1964 – The Tower Ballroom, New Brighton with The Others (Liverpool Echo)

15 December 1964 – Newcastle City Hall, Newcastle upon Tyne with The Rockin’ Berries, Julie Rodgers and The Poets (Newcastle Evening Echo)

19 December 1964 – 100 Club, Oxford Street, central London with The Westsiders (Record Mirror)

22 December 1964 – 100 Club, Oxford Street, central London with Blues by Knight (Record Mirror)

29 December 1964 – 100 Club, Oxford Street, central London with Blues by Knight (Record Mirror)

31 December 1964 – Northwich Memorial Hall, Northwich, Cheshire (Record Mirror)

1965

5 January 1965 – 100 Club, Oxford Street, central London with Brothers Grimm (Record Mirror)

12 January 1965 – 100 Club, Oxford Street, central London with Brothers Grimm (Record Mirror)

19 January 1965 – 100 Club, Oxford Street, central London with The Crescents (Record Mirror)

27 January 1965 – High Wycombe Town Hall, High Wycombe, Bucks (Bucks Free Press)

29 January 1965 – Dungeon Club, Nottingham with Mike Fayne & The Fontains (https://dungeonmods.wordpress.com/)

2 February 1965 – 100 Club, Oxford Street, London with The Loose Ends (Melody Maker)

3 February 1965 – Majestic Hull, Hull (Record Mirror)

5 February 1965 – Bolton Boneyard, Bolton, Greater Manchester (Record Mirror)

6 February 1965 – Manchester New Century Hall, Manchester and Manchester University, Manchester (Record Mirror)

7 February 1965 – Wembley Starlite, Wembley, west London (Record Mirror)

8 February 1965 – Newcastle Majestic, Newcastle upon Tyne, Tyne & Wear (Record Mirror)

22 February 1965 – Galaxy Club, Town Hall, Basingstoke, Berkshire with The Troggs (Hampshire & Berkshire Gazette)

22 February 1965 – Ricky Tick, Pearce Hall, Maidenhead, Berks (Buck Free Press/Ricky Tick website: https://www.rickytick.com/)

1 March 1965 – Galaxy Club, Community Centre, Basingstoke, Hampshire with The Troggs (Hampshire & Berkshire Gazette)

2 March 1965 – High Wycombe Town Hall, High Wycombe, Bucks (Bucks Free Press)

6 March 1965 – Florida Rooms, Brighton, West Sussex with The Who, The-Bones and Johnny B Great (Evening Argus)

6 March 1965 – Mersey View Ballroom, Frodsham, Cheshire with The Spidermen, The Squad and Rita (Cheshire Observer)

19 March 1965 – Big Beat Nite Out, Fairfield Hall, Croydon, Surrey with The Kinks, The Animals, The Caravelles, Dodie West and Sean Buckley & The Breadcrumbs (Chris Broom book: Rockin’ and Around Croydon)

21 March 1965 – Empire Pool, Wembley, west London with Dave Berry & The Cruisers, The Searchers, Kenny Lynch, Elkie Brooks, The Four Pennies, Long John Baldry & The Hoochie Coochie Men, Them, Billy J Kramer & The Dakotas, Tommy Quickly, The Fourmost, Lulu & The Luvvers, The Merseybeats, PJ Proby, The Zombies and Kenny Ball (Rieks Korke’s research)

2 April 1965 – Heaven & Hell, Manchester (Rieks Korke’s research)

3 April 1965 – Corn Exchnage, Cambridge (Rieks Korke’s research)

4 April 1965 – Bromley Court Hotel, Bromley, Kent (Melody Maker)

7 April 1965 – Gig in Rochdale, Greater Manchester (Rieks Korke’s research)

8 April 1965 – Gig in Stockport, Greater Manchester(probably the Tabernacle) (Rieks Korke’s research)

10 April 1965 – Gig in Wigan, Greater Manchester (Rieks Korke’s research)

11 April 1965 – New Theatre, Oxford with Wayne Fontana & The Mindbenders, The Artwoods, The Ivy League, Elkie Brooks, Syd & George, The Chapters and The Guards (Oxford Mail) This looks like a tour so the other artists may also have been on the rest of the tour with The Pretty Things and Wayne Fontana & The Mindbenders

17 April 1965 – Spalding Ballroom, Spalding, Lincolnshire with Wayne Fontana & The Mindbenders (Rieks Korke’s research)

18 April 1965 – De Montfort, Leicester with Wayne Fontana & The Mindbenders (Rieks Korke’s research)

19 April 1965 – Gig in Scarborough, North Yorkshire with Wayne Fontana & The Mindbenders (Rieks Korke’s research)

24 April 1965 – Gig in Gloucester, Gloucestershire with Billy Fury & The Gamblers, Dave Berry & The Cruisers, Brian Poole & The Tremeloes, John Barry Seven, The Kestrels and The Zephyrs (Rieks Korke’s research/The Stage)

25 April 1965 – ABC Northampton, Northampton with Billy Fury & The Gamblers, John Barry Seven, The Kestrels, Dave Berry & The Cruisers, Brian Poole & The Tremeloes and The Zephyrs (Rieks Korke’s research/The Stage)

27 April 1965 – ABC Plymouth, Plymouth, Devon with Billy Fury & The Gamblers, Dave Berry & The Cruisers, Brian Poole & The Tremeloes, John Barry Seven, The Kestrels and The Zephyrs (Rieks Korke’s research/The Stage)

28 April 1965 – Savoy, Exeter, Devon with Billy Fury & The Gamblers, Dave Berry & The Cruisers, Brian Poole & The Tremeloes, John Barry Seven, The Kestrels and The Zephyrs (Rieks Korke’s research/The Stage)

29 April 1965 – ABC Southampton, Southampton Hampshire with Billy Fury & The Gamblers, Dave Berry & The Cruisers, Brian Poole & The Tremeloes, John Barry Seven, The Kestrels and The Zephyrs (Rieks Korke’s research/The Stage)

30 April 1965 – ABC Croydon, Croydon, south London with Billy Fury & The Gamblers, Dave Berry & The Cruisers, Brian Poole & The Tremeloes, John Barry Seven, The Kestrels and The Zephyrs (Rieks Korke’s research/The Stage)

1 May 1965 – ABC Dover, Dover, Kent with Billy Fury & The Gamblers, Dave Berry & The Cruisers, Brian Poole & The Tremeloes, John Barry Seven, The Kestrels and The Zephyrs (Rieks Korke’s research/The Stage)

2 May 1965 – ABC Harrow, Harrow, west London with Billy Fury & The Gamblers, Dave Berry & The Cruisers, Brian Poole & The Tremeloes and The Zephyrs (Rieks Korke’s research)

4 May 1965 – ABC Hull, Hull with Billy Fury & The Gamblers, Dave Berry & The Cruisers, Brian Poole & The Tremeloes and The Zephyrs (Rieks Korke’s research)

5 May 1965 – Gig in Stockton, Teesside with Billy Fury & The Gamblers, Dave Berry & The Cruisers, Brian Poole & The Tremeloes and The Zephyrs (Rieks Korke’s research)

6 May 1965 – ABC Carlisle, Carlisle, Cumbria with Billy Fury & The Gamblers, Dave Berry & The Cruisers, Brian Poole & The Tremeloes and The Zephyrs (Rieks Korke’s research)

8 May 1965 – Theatre Royal, Norwich, Norfolk with Billy Fury & The Gamblers, Dave Berry & The Cruisers, Brian Poole & The Tremeloes and The Zephyrs (Rieks Korke’s research)

9 May 1965 – Colston Hall, Bristol with Billy Fury & The Gamblers, Dave Berry & The Cruisers, Brian Poole & The Tremeloes and The Zephyrs (Rieks Korke’s research)

13 May 1965 – Marquee, Ashton-under-Lyne, Greater Manchester (Rieks Korke’s research)

14 May 1965 – Top Ten Club, Town Hall, Liskeard, Cornwall with The Blue Beats and People (Cornish Guardian)

15 May 1965 – Top Ten Club, New Cornish Riveria Lido, St Austell, Cornwall with The Blue Beats and People (Cornish Guardian)

18 May 1965 – Majestic, Newport, Wales (Rieks Korke’s research)

19 May 1965 – Gig in Porthcawl, Wales (Rieks Korke’s research)

20 May 1965 – City Hall, Sheffield, South Yorkshire with Donovan (Rieks Korke’s research) Donovan’s drummer was Skip Alan who would replace Viv Prince in November. The 22 May date suggests there were other artists on the tour.

21 May 1965 – Central Pier, Morecambe, Lancashire with Donovan (Rieks Korke’s research)

22 May 1965 – Winter Gardens, Bournemouth, Dorset with Donovan, The New Faces, Unit 4 Plus 2, John L Watson & The Hummelflugs and Chris Carlson (website: https://bournemouthbeatboom.wordpress.com/)

23 May 1965 – Guildhall, Portsmouth, Hampshire with Donovan (Rieks Korke’s research)

24 May 1965 – Spa Hall, Warrington, Cheshire with Donovan (Rieks Korke’s research)

25 May 1965 – Stamford Hall, Altrincham, Greater Manchester (Rieks Korke’s research)

29 May 1965 – Imperial Ballroom, Nelson, Lancashire (Steve Chapples research: www.lankybeat.com)

3 June 1965 – Gig in Munich, West Germany (Rieks Korke’s research)

4 June 1965 – Gig in Munich, West Germany (Rieks Korke’s research)

5 June 1965 – Gig in Hamburg, West Germany (possibly Star Club) (Rieks Korke’s research)

6 June 1965 – Gig in Hamburg, West Germany (possibly Star Club) (Rieks Korke’s research)

7 June 1965 – Gig in Hamburg, West Germany (possibly Star Club) (Rieks Korke’s research)

11 June 1965 – Ricky Tick, Guildford Civic Hall, Guildford, Surrey with Blues Syndicate (Ricky Tick website: https://www.rickytick.com/)

12 June 1965 – Hill Liola, Stamford, Lincolnshire (Rieks Korke’s research)

18 June 1965 – Wimbledon Palais, Wimbledon, southwest London (Rieks Korke’s research)

25 June 1965 – New Restaurant, Aere Harwell, Oxfordshire with Candy ‘N’ Cookies, Ricky & The Gamblers and The Outcrowd (Oxford Mail) Rieks Korke has the band performing at Harwell Atomic Energy Establishment on this date

4 July 1965 – Margate Winter Gardens, Margate, Kent with The Nashville Teens and support (East Kent Times & Mail) Rieks Korke also has Screaming Jay Hawkins and The Clayton Squares

23 July 1965 – 32 Club, Harlesden, north London (Hammersmith & Shepherds Bush Gazette)

24 July 1965 – Witham Public Hall, Witham, Essex with Cops ‘N’ Robbers and The Senates (Essex County Standard)

28 July 1965 – Pool Ballroom, Rhos-on-Sea, Wales with The Motown Sect and The Panzies (North Wales Weekly News)

1 August 1965 – Dungeon Club, Nottingham with The In Crowd (website: https://dungeonmods.wordpress.com/)

2 August 1965 – Galaxy Club, Town Hall, Basingstoke, Hampshire with support (Hampshire & Berkshire Gazette)

3 August 1965 – High Wycombe Town Hall, High Wycombe, Bucks (Bucks Free Press)

The Daily Mirror’s 16 August edition noted that The Pretty Things flew off for their New Zealand tour on Sunday, 15 August after a farewell gig in London

10 September 1965 – Lucky Stars Club, Staines, Middlesex (Staines and Egham News)

11 September 1965 – Bure Club, Mudeford, Dorset with Clive Shane & The Avengers (website: https://bournemouthbeatboom.wordpress.com/)

There’s an article on Viv Prince with a pic in Staines and Egham News 17/9/65, page 13

19 September 1965 – Southall Community Centre, Southall, west London (Middlesex County Times & West Middlesex Gazette)

22 September 1965 – Stevenage Mecca, Locarno, Stevenage, Hertfordshire (http://www.coda-uk.co.uk/60’s_music_scene.htm)

21 October 1965 – Empire Social Club, Neath, Wales (Port Talbot Guardian) This was cancelled when two members fell ill

1 November 1965 – Grand Pavilion, Porthcawl, Wales (Rieks Korke’s research)

6 November 1965 – Florida Room, Brighton, West Sussex (Rieks Korke’s research)

7 November 1965 – Oasis, Manchester (Rieks Korke’s research)

Skip Alan subbed for Viv Prince on a Scottish tour in November so this seems the most likely date when he took over

8 November 1965 – Town Hall, Iveraray, Scotland (Rieks Korke’s research)

9 November 1965 – Bobby Jones, Ayr, Scotland (Rieks Korke’s research)

10 November 1965 – Kinema Ballroom, Dunfermline, Scotland (Rieks Korke’s research)

12 November 1965 – Town Hall, Falkirk, Scotland (Rieks Korke’s research)

20 November 1965 – Civic Hall, Wormley, Surrey (Rieks Korke’s research)

22 November 1965 – High Wycombe Town Hall, High Wycombe, Bucks (Bucks Free Press)

New Musical Express’ 26 November issue reported that Viv Prince had told the music paper that he’d been asked to leave the group. The Pretty Things were on a Scottish tour with a deputy drummer (Skip Alan)

27 November 1965 – Coronation Hall, Ramsgate, Kent (Rieks Korke’s research) East Kent Times & Mail reports that this was rescheduled

New Musical Express’ 3 December issue reported that Viv Prince had agreed to leave. Skip Alan (ex-Them) who had subbed on the recent Scottish tour, was now a permanent member and on tour with the band in Scandinavia.

At some point, Billy Harrison, formerly of Them, covered for Dick Taylor when The Pretty Things played in Norway, which may have been this same tour.

December 1965 – British Legion Hall, Coleford, Somerset (Somerset Guardian)

11 December 1965 – Coronation Ballroom, Ramsgate, Kent with The System (East Kent Times & Mail)

17 December 1965 – Farnborough Technical College, Farnborough, Hampshire with The Carnaby and The Generation (Aldershot News)

21 December 1965 – 100 Club, Oxford Street, London with The Artwoods (Melody Maker)

31 December 1965 – Matrix Hall, Coventry with The Fairies and The Playboys (Coventry Evening Telegraph)

1966

21 January 1966 – Wimbledon Palais, Wimbledon, southwest London (Balham & Tooting News and Mercury)

22 January 1966 – Esquire Club, Sheffield, South Yorkshire with Micky Finn’s and Motown Sect (The Star)

25 January 1966 – High Wycombe Town Hall, High Wycombe, Bucks (Bucks Free Press)

28 January 1966 – Gaiety Ballroom, Grimsby, Humberside (Grimsby Evening Telegraph)

11 February 1966 – Start of four day tour of the Netherlands (Rieks Korke’s research)

18 February 1966 – Start of four day tour of Denmark (Rieks Korke’s research)

21 February 1966 – Wimbledon Palais, Wimbledon, southwest London (Melody Maker)

23 February 1966 – Bromley Court Hotel, Bromley, southeast London (Melody Maker)

4 March 1966 – Ricky Tick, Plaza Ballroom, Newbury, Berkshire (Andover Advertiser/Ricky Tick website: https://www.rickytick.com/)

4 March 1966 – Carfax Ballroom, Oxford (North Berks Herald)

6 March 1966 – Agincourt Ballroom, Camberley, Surrey with The Condors (Aldershot News)

9 March 1966 – Tower Ballroom, Great Yarmouth, Norfolk with The John Lofty Sounds (Yarmouth Mercury)

27 March 1966 – Raven Hall, Corby Hotel, Corby, Northamptonshire with The Veldens (Northamptonshire Evening Telegraph)

8 April 1966 – Wimbledon Palais, Wimbledon, southwest London (Balham & Tooting News and Mercury)

12 April 1966 – 100 Club, Oxford Street, central London with Jo Jo Gunne (Melody Maker)

21 April 1966 – Mayfair Ballroom, Newcastle upon Tyne, Tyne & Wear with The Junco Partners, The Jazz Board and Hilton K’s (Newcastle Evening Chronicle)

6 May 1966 – Chislehurst Caves, Chislehurst, southeast London (Melody Maker)

7 May 1966 – St George’s Ballroom, Hinckley, Leicestershire (Nuneaton Evening Tribune)

14 May 1966 – Rhodes Centre, Bishop’s Stortford, Herts with The Prowlers (Steve Ingless book: The Day Before Yesterday)

1 June 1966 – Target’s Paul Row, High Wycombe, Bucks (Bucks Free Press)

8 June 1966 – Stevenage Mecca, Locarno, Stevenage, Hertfordshire (http://www.coda-uk.co.uk/60’s_music_scene.htm)

18 June 1966 – New Cornish Riveria Lido, St Austell, Cornwall with The Missfits and Don Carroll Big Blues Band (Cornish Guardian)

30 June 1966 – Winter Gardens, Cleethorpes, North East Lincolnshire with The Image (Grimsby Evening Telegraph)

6 July 1966 – Top Rank Hanley Suite, Hanley, Staffordshire (Evening Sentinel)

8 July 1966 – Winter Gardens, Penzance, Cornwall (Rieks Korke’s research)

9 July 1966 – Flamingo Ballroom, Redruth, Cornwall with Little John & The Giants and Rikki and The Layabouts (West Briton & The Royal Cornwall Gazette)

10 July 1966 – Khyber Club, Taunton, Somerset with The Germs (Somerset County Gazette)

13 July 1966 – Town Hall, Stourbridge, West Midlands (Rieks Korke’s research)

14 July 1966 – Kimbells, Southsea, Hampshire (Rieks Korke’s research)

15 July 1966 – Town Hall, Welshpool, Wales (Rieks Korke’s research)

16 July 1966 – Haggers Cinema, Pembroke, Wales (Rieks Korke’s research)

19 July 1966 – 100 Club, Oxford Street, central London (Rieks Korke’s research)

20 July 1966 – Hedeland Pavilion, Bude, Cornwall (Rieks Korke’s research)

21 July 1966 – Queen’s Hall, Barnstaple, Devon (Rieks Korke’s research)

23 July 1966 – Town Hall, Torquay, Devon with The Dicers and The Buccaneers (Rieks Korke’s research)

24 July 1966 – Gig in Cannes, France (Rieks Korke’s research)

25 July 1966 – Gig in Cannes, France (Rieks Korke’s research)

26 July 1966 – Gig in Cannes, France (Rieks Korke’s research)

27 July 1966 – Gig in Cannes, France (Rieks Korke’s research)

28 July 1966 – Gig in Cannes, France (Rieks Korke’s research)

29 July 1966 – Gig in Cannes, France (Rieks Korke’s research)

30 July 1966 – Gig in Cannes, France (Rieks Korke’s research)

31 July 1966 – Gig in Cannes, France (Rieks Korke’s research)

2 August 1966 – Plaza Ballroom, Belfast, Northern Ireland (Belfast Telegraph) The Pretty Things’ first appearance in Belfast

13 August 1966 – Corby Civic Centre, Corby, Northamptonshire with The Cyclones (Northamptonshire Evening Telegraph)

18 August 1966 – Dreamland, Margate, Kent with The Nite People (East Kent Times & Mail)

19 August 1966 – Wimbledon Palais, Wimbledon, southwest London (Streatham News)

28 August 1966 – Starlite, Greenford, west London with Sands (Melody Maker)

17 September 1966 – St George’s Ballroom, Hinckley, Leicestershire with The Nemkons (Nuneaton Evening Tribune)

23 September 1966 – Flamenco, Folkestone, Kent (Folkestone & Hythe Gazette)

4 October 1966 – BCSU Fresher’s Ball, Bournemouth Pavilion, Bournemouth, Dorset with The Spectres and Syd Fay (Poster)

7 October 1966 – New Addington Hotel, New Addington, south London with Odds-On (Coulson & Purley Advertiser)

6 November 1966 – Oasis, Manchester (Manchester Evening News and Chronicle)

11 November 1966 – Bishop, Stoke, Staffordshire (Rieks Korke’s research)

12 November 1966 – Gig in Halifax, West Yorkshire (Rieks Korke’s research)

13 November 1966 – Gig in Southsea, Hampshire (Rieks Korke’s research)

15 November 1966 – Chinese R&B Jazz Club, Bristol Corn Exchange, Bristol (Bristol Evening Post)

16 November 1966 – Gig in Stroud, Gloucestershire (Rieks Korke’s research)

18 November 1966 – Floral Hall, Belfast, Northern Ireland with Express (Belfast Telegraph)

19 November 1966 – Gig in Dewsbury, West Yorkshire (Rieks Korke’s research)

24 November 1966 – Gig in Hull (Rieks Korke’s research)

28 November 1966 – Gig in Great Yarmouth, Norfolk (Rieks Korke’s research)

At some point in December Brian Pendelton dropped out but wasn’t replaced.

23 December 1966 – Wimbledon Palais, Wimbledon, west London (Balham & Tooting News and Mercury)

26 December 1966 – The Upper Cut, Forest Gate, east London with The Mack Sound (Melody Maker)

29 December 1966-2 January 1967 – The band undertakes gigs in Ireland (Disc & Music Echo)

1967

4 January 1967 – Benefit gig at Kensington Town Hall, Kensington, west London with David Garrick (Disc & Music Echo)

5 January 1967 – The band flies to West Germany (Disc & Music Echo)

14 January 1967 – Imperial Ballroom, Nelson, Lancashire (Steve Chapples research: www.lankybeat.com)

26 January 1967 – Tiles, Oxford Street, central London with The Lonely Ones (Melody Maker)

14 February 1967 – Speakeasy, Mayfair, central London with Valentine’s Day Massacre (Fabulous 208/Mick Capewell’s Marmalade Skies)

25 February 1967 – Civic Hall, Guildford, Surrey with The Fancy Bred (Surrey Advertiser)

25 February 1967 – Weekend Club, Paris, France with The Moody Blues, Ronnie Bird and Vigon (Website: http://www.webwriter.f2s.com/moody/tourbooks/1967tour.htm)

At some point in March, John Stax also departed. He was replaced by two members from The Fenmen before Easter.

15 April 1967 – Ram Jam Club, Brixton with The All Night Workers (Melody Maker)

Melody Maker’s 29 April issue reported that Jon Povey and Alan “Wally” Waller from The Fenmen had joined The Pretty Things. Waller says his first gig was Les Sables D’olonne in France around Easter (late March).

19 May 1967 – Oriel Ball, Oxford with The Mickey Finn, Nightgales, The Artwoods and The Burlington Sound (Cherwell)

10 June 1967 – Dartmouth Guildhall, Dartmouth, Devon with support (Torbay Express and South Devon Echo)

16 June 1967 – Diss Corn Hall, Diss, Norfolk with Ian and Danny Eves and The Reformation (North Norfolk News)

24 June 1967 – Supreme Eastern Esplanade, Ramsgate, Kent with Len Marshall Show (East Kent Times & Mail)

22 July 1967 – Alexandria Palace, north London with The Move and others (Rieks Korke’s research)

26 July 1967 – Regal Ballroom, Minehead, Somerset with The Phaze (Somerset County Gazette)

19 August 1967 – Flamingo, Redruth, Cornwall with Acoustics (West Briton & Royal Cornish Gazette)

6 October 1967 – Regal, Ardglass, Northern Ireland with The Kings (Belfast Evening Telegraph)

6 October 1967 – Starlite, Belfast, Northern Ireland with The Agents (Belfast Evening Telegraph)

13 October 1967 – King’s Hall, Stoke, Staffordshire (Evening Sentinel)

9 November 1967 – Princess Pavilion, Falmouth, Cornwall (West Briton & Royal Cornish Gazette)

24 November 1967 – Middle Earth, Covent Garden, central London with The Eyes of Blue and T-Rex (Melody Maker)

1 December 1967 – Queen’s Rink Ballroom, Hartlepool, County Durham with The Tony King Sound (Hartlepool Mail)

16 December 1967 – Assembly Rooms, Framlingham, Suffolk with The Wildoats (Fabulous 208/Ipswich Star)

20 December 1967 – Stockton Tech College, Stockton-on-Tees (Fabulous 208)

22 December 1967 – Purple Fez, Devonport, Devon (Fabulous 208)

23 December 1967 – Chelmsford Corn Exchange, Chelmsford, Essex (Essex Chronicle)

1968

9 February 1968 – Middle Earth, Covent Garden, central London with Winston G and Crystal Ship (Melody Maker)

17 February 1968 – Ewell Tech, Ewell, Surrey with Dantalion’s Chariot (Melody Maker)

13 March 1968 – Middle Earth, Covent Garden, central London with The Action, Fairport Convention, Blossom Toes and The Track (Melody Maker)

24 March 1968 – New Regis Club, Bognor Regis, West Sussex with The Machine (Brighton Evening Argus)

Sometime in March 1968, Twink from Tomorrow took over from Skip Alan on drums.

27 April 1968– Middle Earth, Covent Garden, central London with Coconut Mushroom (Melody Maker)

11 May 1968 – Grand Pavilion, Matlock Bath, Derbyshire (Derby Evening Telegraph)

22 June 1968 – Middle Earth, Covent Garden, central London with July and Juniors Eyes (Melody Maker)

6 July 1968 – St Thomas Hall, Brentwood, Essex with Pinkerton’s Colours (Essex Chronicle)

28 July 1968 – The Cockpit, Hyde Park, central London (Rieks Korke’s research)

1 August 1968 – Tetbury Show Carnival Week, Marquee, Recreation Ground, Tetbury, Gloucestershire with Johnny Carr & The Cadillacs (Stroud News)

2 August 1968 – Bournemouth Pavilion, Bournemouth, Dorset with Bruce Channel and Dr Marigold’s Prescription (Bournemouth Evening Echo)

3 August 1968 – Torquay Town Hall, Torquay, Devon (Western Evening Mail)

24 August 1968 – Middle Earth, Covent Garden, central London with Bonzo Dog Doo Dah Band and Terry Reid (Melody Maker)

18 September 1968 – Country Club, Belsize Park, north London (Rieks Korke’s research)

19 September 1968 – Cellar Club, Newcastle upon Tyne, Tyne & Wear (Newcastle Evening Chronicle)

8 October 1968 – Kew Boat House, Kew, west London (Time Out)

18 October 1968 – Mistrale Club, Beckenham Junction, London with T-Rex and Julian Hirsch (Coulson & Purley Advertiser/Poster)

8 November 1968 – Kew Boat House, Kew, west London (Richmond & Twickenham Times)

15 November 1968 – Mothers, Erdington, West Midlands (Rieks Korke’s research)

15 November 1968 – Fishmonger’s Arms, Wood Green, London with Downliners Sect (Melody Maker)

29 November 1968 – Mothers, Erdington, West Midlands (Rieks Korke’s research)

30 November 1968 – Middle Earth, Covent Garden, central London with The End (Melody Maker)

5 December 1968 – Somerset College of Art, Arts Ball, Country Ballroom, Taunton, Someset with Savoy Brown and Copper-Pot Band (Newcastle Evening Chronicle)

12 December 1968 – Walthamstow Assembly Hall, Waltham Forest Tech College and School of Art with The Bonzo Dog Doo Dah Band and Jimmy James & The Vagabonds (Melody Maker)

15 December 1968 – City Hall, Newcastle upon Tyne, Tyne & Wear with Pink Floyd, Aynsley Dunbar Retaliation, Deviants and Gordon Smith (Newcastle Evening Chronicle)

19 December 1968 – College of Technology, Maidstone, Kent (Rieks Korke’s research)

22 December 1968 – Country Club, Belsize Park, north London (Melody Maker)

27 December 1968 – Mistrale Club, Beckenham Junction, south London (Rieks Korke’s research)

1969

25 January 1969 – Polytechnic, central London (Rieks Korke’s research)

25 January 1969 – Middle Earth, Covent Garden, central London (Rieks Korke’s research)

3 February 1969 – Bay Hotel, Sunderland (www.45worlds.com/live)

8 February 1969 – Ewell Tech, Ewell, Surrey (Rieks Korke’s research)

14 February 1969 – Inner Circle, central London (Rieks Korke’s research)

23 February 1969 – Country Club, Belsize Park, north London (Melody Maker)

24 February 1969 – Dome, Brighton, West Sussex (Rieks Korke’s research)

2 March 1969 – Country Club, Belsize Park, north London (Melody Maker)

4 March 1969 – Poole College, Poole, Dorset with Elmer Gantry (website: https://bournemouthbeatboom.wordpress.com/)

6 March 1969 – Lanchester College, Coventry (Rieks Korke’s research)

15 March 1969 – Chelsea College of Science and Technology, southwest London with Barclay James Harvest and Steamhammer (Melody Maker)

16 March 1969 – Blaises, Imperial Hotel, Queen’s Gate, Kensington, west London (Time Out)

3 April 1969 – Country Club, Belsize Park, north London with Deviants (Melody Maker)

26 April 1969 – Kee Club, Bridgend, Wales (Rieks Korke’s research)

9 May 1969 – Parliament Hill Fields, north London (Rieks Korke’s research)

11 May 1969 – Country Club, Belsize Park, north London (Time Out)

23 May 1969 – Fishmongers Arms, Wood Green, north London (Time Out)

13 June 1969 – North west Poly, Prince of Wales Road, northwest London (Time Out)

22 August 1969 – Burton Constable Hall, Hull (Rieks Korke’s research)

30 August 1969 – Isle of Wight Pop Festival, Ryde, Isle of Wight with many others (Rieks Korke’s research)

3 October 1969 – Acton Town Hall, Acton, west London (Time Out)

4 October 1969 – Regional College, Barking, east London (Rieks Korke’s research)

Many thanks to Mike Stax for passing on Rieks Korke’s incomplete gig list, which he shared with Stax in the early 2000s. I tried to email Rieks to get in touch regarding using dates missing from my list but his email no longer worked. I’ve credited Rieks for gigs above but would welcome contact with him.

Copyright © Nick Warburton. All Rights Reserved. No part of this article may be reproduced or transmitted in any from or by any means, without prior permission from the author.

Robert Valentine (rhythm guitar/vocals)

Roger Cotton (lead guitar/keyboards/vocals)

Harry Blakey (bass/vocals)

John Parish (drums)

Robert Valentine (lead vocals)

Brian Brockie (lead guitar)

John Hawksley (bass)

Alan Attridge (baritone sax)

Roger Shoesmith (tenor sax)

John Parish (drums)

Formed by Valentine and Parish in early 1968 when The Clockwork Oranges broke up, Brian Brockie had previously played with The Honey Band. The group played at the Witchdoctor in Catford and on one occasion (most likely 17 February), they supported Marmalade.

Thanks to Robert Valentine for the photo and history

The Stardusters went professional in 1963 when they changed name to Unit 4 (no relation to the Ealing band nor the better known Unit 4 Plus 2) to back HMV recording artist Ricky Bowden.

The band comprised (as shown in the above photo, left to right):

Robert Valentine (rhythm guitar)

Brian Ranger (bass)

Graham Willeard (drums)

Richard Miles (lead guitar)

In 1964, Valentine went on to form The Clockwork Oranges.