The Monotones in Holland, 1964 from left: Brian Alexander, Gary Nichols, Jim Eaton and Pete Stanley
If you’ve ever seen Michael Apted’s 1964 documentary Seven Up! you may have wondered what song the kids are dancing to during the party scene towards the end of the film. I learned from my friend Michael Lynch that the song was “What Would I Do” by the Monotones, a group from Southend-on Sea in Essex, about 45 miles directly east of London.
Mark Lloyd and Jim Eaton singing the Everly’s“What Would I Do” was the first of four singles they released on Pye in ’64 and ’65. To say this song has charm would be an understatement, even more so if you’ve seen Seven Up. The bridge is especially fine, with tremolo guitar behind the vocals “if I say that I love you, and you know that it’s true …”
The band gives a sharp performance on the flip, “Is It Right” though the song is less distinctive than the top side. Both songs on their first 45 were written by ‘Stanley Alexander’, actually Brian Alexander and Stanley Peter Frederick according to the BMI database. I didn’t know anything else about the band until Phil T. contacted me with the newspaper clipping and the following info:
During their early years, the group line-up changed many times but by 1964, it comprised Brian Alexander (lead), Jim Eaton (vocals and rhythm), Pete Stanley (bass) and Gary Nichols (drums) and I believe that it was these four who made the recordings. Their original vocalist, Nigel Basham also performed separately under the name Mark Loyd and was backed from time to time at local gigs by another Southend band, The Mustangs, who also originated at Westcliff High.
Sadly, I understand that The Monotones’ drummer, Gary Nichols, died in April 2007.
Photos of the band’s early years sent to me by guitarist Ian Middlemiss can be seen on this separate page.
Much more information about the band came when Jim Eaton and Peter Stanley left detailed comments about the band. To read the full history of the group and it’s change to the Treetops, read through the comments below. Jim also sent the photos seen here with this comment:
I have attached some photos of The Monotones in the early sixties and also some of The Treetops (our new name when we joined Mecca at the Wimbledon Tiffanys). You will note we added a female to our lineup, a great vocalist Martha Smith. We cut several records as The Treetops when the lineup comprised Brian Alexander (lead guitar and backing vocals), Jim Eaton (rhythm guitar and lead vocals), Pete Stanley (bass guitar and backing vocals), Mark Lloyd (lead vocals, vibes and harmonica), Martha Smith (lead vocals and piano) and Pete Trout our very fine drummer.
In the article about the band for The Southend Standard Jim Eaton also noted their appearance on Ready Steady Go, Thank Your Lucky Stars and Juke Box Jury, clips I’d love to see if they still survive.
The Monotones, 1962
The Monotones had two U.S. releases on the Hickory label, one of which, “When Will I Be Loved” / “If You Can’t Give Me All” was not released in the UK. It turns out to be a demo recorded before their first Pye 45, released in the U.S. without the group’s knowledge!
Jim Eaton recently heard these songs again for the first time in about 47 years! He wrote to me:
I received and played the record yesterday and it is definitely us. I now recall cutting both sides as a demo in 1963 at the Regent Sound Studio in London’s famous Denmark St. (also known as Tin Pan Alley due to the large number of studios, record publishers and musical instrument shops.)
Monotones 45 releases:
UK: Pye 7N 15608 – What Would I Do / Is It Right (February 14, 1964) Pye 7N 15640 – It’s Great / Anymore (1964) Pye 7N 15761 – No Waiting / Like A Lover Should (1965) Pye 7N 15814 – Something’s Hurting Me / A Girl Like That (1965)
US: Hickory 1250 – What Would I Do / Is It Right Hickory 1306 – When Will I Be Loved / If You Can’t Give Me All
Promo shot for “Now Waiting”, from left: Jim Eaton, Brian Alexander, Gary Nichols and Pete StanleyMark Loyd backed by the Monotones with session musicians:
Parlophone R 5277 -I Keep Thinking About You / Will It Be the Same (1965) Parlophone R 5332 – Everybody Tries / She Said No (1965) Parlophone R 5423 – When Evening Falls / When I’m Gonna Find Her (March 1966)
Note that all his solo releases spell his last name “Loyd”
Treetops 45 releases:
Parlophone R 5628 – Don’t Worry Baby / I Remember (1967 – also released in the U.S. on Tower 388) Parlophone R 5669 – California My Way / Carry On Living (Feb. 1968)
Columbia DB 8727 – Mississippi Valley / Man Is a Man (1970) Columbia DB 8799 – Without the One You Love / So Here I Go Again (1971) Columbia DB 8934 – Why Not Tonite / Funky Flop-Out (Oct. 13, 1972) Columbia DB 9013 – Gypsy / Life Is Getting Better (Aug 3, 1973)
Mark Loyd, 1964Postscript, February 2011:
Jim Eaton: “I have just returned from Australia where I caught up with Mark Loyd who was for many years part of The Monotones before he pursued a solo career.
Update, April, 2012
I’m sorry to report that Mark Loyd (born Nigel Basham), the lead singer with the Monotones and Treetops passed away on April 4, 2012, after fighting cancer for seven years. Mark had been living in Sydney, Australia where he ran a successful event/management company. My condolences to his family, friends, and band mates.
Thanks to Phil for sending in the article from The Southend Standard, January 2006 and to Jim Eaton for his help with songs, photos and information for this page.
The Monotones at the Elms, 1964 from left: Pete Stanley, Brian Alexander, Jim Eaton and Gary Nichols
At The Elms, l-r: Brian Alexander, Jim Eaton, Gary Nichols and Pete StanleyThe Treetops, 1966The Treetops, 1967The Treetops promo for “Don’t Worry Baby”The Treetops, 1968
Sultans Five – original mid-60s lineup on the records as noted on photo: Ken Allen, Lenny Juliano, Tim Mickna, Ray Polouski and Vic Weinfurter.
The Sultans Five were based out of Racine, Wisconsin, originally a three-piece when they formed in 1963. Original members were Len Juliano guitar, Tim Michna on bass and Vic Weinfurter, Jr. on drums. With the addition of Ray Plauske from the Sensations on lead guitar they became the Sultans IV. Farfisa organist and saxaphonist Ken Allen made them the Sultans Five.
Their recording career consisted of all or nearly all original songs, with Victor Weinfurter the main contributer along with Ray Plauske and Tim Michna.
Their earliest releases include two on the RAL label “Tonight Is the Night” / “Hey Little Girl” and “Walk with Me” / “Who’s at Fault”. Of these I’ve only heard “Tonight Is the Night” from its later release on Raynard. The flip of that release is “With You”, an original by Ray Plauske.
Their second on Raynard was a good rocker, “Daisy” that features a raucous, booming guitar sound on the breaks. It was backed with “Life Is Like a River”. Both were Vic Weinfurter originals.
Both Raynard 45s, along with their last, came with custom sleeves reading “Enterprise Thirteen presents the Sultans Five”, along with the band’s first names, song titles and composers, the Baker Building address and the optimistic message “more to come”.
Enterprise Thirteen would be the label for their last and most famous release, the fabulous “You Know, You Know” a song that would grab everyone’s attention whenever my pal DJ Bossy Boots played it out in clubs. The flip is the gentle “Calico”, a fine moody number written by Weinfurter and Ray Plauske.
After the recordings Tom Zager joined on bass and Butch Kieffer on organ. The band broke up in 1968.
Thanks to JP Coumans for the scans and transfers of the Raynard 45s. If anyone has good transfers of their RAL releases, please let me know.
Update, November 2009
Ken Allen, who played Farfisa organ with the group wrote to me about his time with the band, and sent in the photo at top:
The picture I sent you was taken from the Racine Journal Times, advertising for us playing at Ligits Beach Bar at Browns Lake, Wisconsin.
Vic called me and asked if I would play organ for the Sultans and I said yes, but I would have to order a portable organ first. I ordered a brand new Farfisa Compact Duo, with two Gibson Saber Reverb amps. It was a great high tech fold up organ for the day. I had to wait for a month and a half for it to come over to the USA on a boat. I was told that my Farfisa was the second one sold in the USA.
We played at Earls Club in Kenosha, The Nitty Gritty in Racine, The Kraut Festival in Franksville, Wisconsin. We also would play for private parties etc.
Yes I was on our records. The records were recorded at the [Dave] Kennedy Recording Studio in Milwaukee. King Sabornick a D.J. at WRIT Radio was one of the arrangers we had and the other one was from New York, but I can’t remember his name.
To make a long story short… Tim Mickna and I resigned from the Sultans Five, and that is when Butch Keifer replaced me on keyboard and Tom Zager replaced Tim Mickna on bass. I can’t remember all the details, 44 years is a long time. We had a great time while it lasted though.
Ken Allen
A later lineup, standing from left: Len Juliano, Ray Plauske, Butch Kieffer, Tom Zager; seated: Vic Weinfurter. Photo from Gary Myers’ Do You Hear That Beat, original from the collection of Vic Weinfurter.
Together with Jon and Lee & The Checkmates, Mandala spearheaded a vibrant R&B scene in Toronto during the mid-1960s. Helmed by the late Domenic Troiano, the band recorded a string of stunning singles and a noteworthy album before morphing in to the funk blues group, Bush in late 1969.
Although Mandala’s jazz-inspired soul-rock was too experimental for the mainstream rock market, interest in the band’s recorded output has been rekindled in recent years and a comprehensive CD detailing its entire work is long overdue.
Originally known as The Rogues, the group first came to prominence during the summer of 1964, working as the house band at the club Bluenote, supporting visiting US soul artists like The Supremes. Keyboard player Josef Chirowski (b. 2 March 1947, Germany), bass player Don Elliott (b. 8 December 1944, Toronto, Canada) and drummer Whitey Glan (b. Finland) had previously worked together in Whitey & The Roulettes (alongside future Luke & The Apostles guitarist Mike McKenna) and The Belltones.
During early 1965, former Belltones and original Roulettes singer George Olliver (b. 25 January 1946, Toronto, Canada) and ex-Robbie Lane & The Disciples and Ronnie Hawkins guitarist Domenic Troiano (b. Michaele Antonio, 17 January 1946, Mondugno, Italy, naturalised Canadian in 1955, d. 25 May 2005) completed the “classic” Mandala line up.
The Rogues, l-r: Don Elliot, Whitey Glan, Joey Davis, Don Troy (Troiano) and George Olliver, and (inset in lower right) David Clayton-Thomas
With Olliver and Troiano in place, The Rogues began playing extensively on the local scene, appearing regularly at clubs like the Devil’s Den, Club 888 and the Hawk’s Nest. For a brief period, the band took on a second lead singer – future Blood, Sweat & Tears front man David Clayton-Thomas but reverted to a five-piece in early 1966.
Following Clayton-Thomas’ departure, the band’s name was modified and, as The Five Rogues, they recorded two rare tracks – “I Can’t Hold Out No Longer” and “I’ll Make It Up To You” as rough demos.
Throughout 1966, the group consolidated its local standing by landing some important support slots, most notably opening for Wilson Pickett at the Gogue Inn on 25 May, and The McCoys at the North Toronto Memorial Arena on 9 August. In September 1966, however, the band decided to reinvent itself and emerged with a new name and image – Mandala.
Mandala is a symbol (a circle within a circle within a circle) used by Buddhist monks as an aid to contemplation and was chosen by the band’s manager, Rafael Markowitz (aka Randy Martin), a former TV clown. Markowitz envisioned the band as being a channel for the audience to release its emotions and the newly named outfit returned to the Toronto scene with its “Soul Crusade”, which was met with mass hysteria.
In its new guise, Mandala also made a visual impact with their pinstripe, gangster-style suits and were apparently among the first Canadian bands to use strobe lights at their concerts. Markowitz proved to be a master at manipulating the media and made sure that the band was one of the best paid on the local circuit.
The US market soon beckoned and in late November, Mandala travelled to Los Angeles to play (initially) a weekend show at the Hullabaloo and four nights at the famous Whisky A Go Go in West Hollywood. Kicking off with a performance at the Hullabaloo on 26 November, Mandala’s stage show caused quite a stir and the following weekend a huge crowd turned up, curious to see what all the fuss was about.
In “Los Angeles ‘Sun-set’ raves over The Mandala”, an article for the Toronto Star published on 12 December, the Hullabaloo’s manager Gary Bockasta spoke about the band’s immediate impact on the scene. “They have built up an impetus since their first day,” he said. “They drew 1,000 people billed as co-headliners with a local group. The next Saturday night we had 1,400, which is a capacity crowd for us, and they were our only attraction.
“Almost all of this rush comes from word-of-mouth, since we do almost no paid advertising. I think you could say that, for the money we are paying them, they have been our most successful act so far.”
According to the newspaper report, the band had to cut its finale short at its final weekend show as teenyboppers thronged the stage clutching at Olliver and dragging Glan off his drum stool. What’s more The Monkees, who reportedly were interested in signing the band for a US tour with them, had to flee the club when the excited fans rushed the stage, fearing their own safety.
Thanks to their dynamic stage act, Mandala had won a recording deal with the KR label in the US and, on their return to Canada, recorded their debut single, Troiano’s “Opportunity” c/w Olliver’s “Lost Love” at Chess studios in Chicago with The Dells providing backing vocals. Released back home at the tail end of January 1967, the group’s debut single stormed into the Toronto top 10, peaking at #3 on the CHUM chart on 20 February.
“Opportunity” is arguably one of the best recordings to emerge from the Canadian rock scene during the 1960s. Propelled by Olliver’s soulful voice and The Dells’ massed vocals, the track’s infectious rhythm and Troiano’s gutsy guitar solo is totally absorbing. It’s just a shame that the single never broke into the US national charts or attracted a wider audience.
Opportunity at #19 on CHUM’s Hit Parade, Feb. 6, 1967- it would reach #3 two weeks later.
In March 1967, the band travelled to New York to perform at Steve Paul’s The Scene for an extended engagement, running from 6 March through to 2 April. While in the Big Apple, Mandala took part in Murray “the K’s” famous “Music in the Fifth Dimension” held at the RKO Theater from 25 March to 2 April. The show featured a number of artists, including Wilson Pickett and The Blues Project as well as British bands Cream and The Who, both making their debut US appearances. The group returned to Steve Paul’s The Scene for a second run from 25 April through to 4 May.
While all this was going on, the group’s second single, Victor Chambers’s “Give and Take” c/w band collaboration, “From Toronto ‘67” was released but didn’t fare as well as its predecessor, only peaking at #21 on Toronto’s CHUM chart on 22 May.
In mid-June, Mandala returned to the New York area to play two shows at the Farm at Monroe County Fairgrounds, followed by a welcome back tour, kicking off with a one-nighter at the Bonaventure in Montreal on 22 June. Then, shortly after a show at the Broom and Stone in Scarborough, Ontario with Livingstone’s Tripp on 9 July, Mandala headed back to New York to play at Steve Paul’s The Scene on 18 July. Later that month, the group participated in the highly publicised Garden of Stars show in Montreal.
Returning to Toronto the musicians began work on an album, but creative differences resulted in the sessions being abandoned and after another show at Steve Paul’s The Scene in New York on 27 September, Olliver quit the group in frustration. After a brief respite, where he spent three weeks in the north country wondering what to do next, he formed his own band, the 10-piece soul outfit, George Olliver & His (Soul) Children, which featured several musicians who would end up playing with Mandala in later years.
Speaking to Ralph Thomas in the Toronto Daily Star on 2 December, the day before his new group debuted at Marsaryk Hall in Toronto, Olliver confessed that one of the reasons why he left Mandala was because each member of the group had been on a mere $40-a-week salaries. “It’s true that our weekly salary was $40, but Randy [Martin, the group’s manger and part-owner] used to fine us $1-a-minute if we were late for rehearsals or appointments,” he says.
Olliver explained to Ralph Thomas that he found it hard to be on time in the first year because he was in a state of almost complete exhaustion from overwork. It particularly became a problem when Mandala played at the Murray the K Show from 10am to 10pm, followed by late evenings playing at Steve Paul’s The Scene, where the group worked from 11pm to 4am. “That left us about five hours of sleep a night,” he says. “If we got to the job late the next morning, there would be Randy with his little black book. I averaged about $20-a-week after fines.”
Despite gigging incessantly on the Toronto scene from December 1967-January 1969, and opening for The Hollies in Ottawa during March 1968, Olliver’s new group never recorded and in mid-1969, he emerged with a new outfit, Natural Gas, who recorded an album for Firebird Records in 1969 (the long player, incidentally, includes an Olliver-Chirowski instrumental from the Mandala repertoire, “Tribute to Rubber Boots”).
When the band broke up in late 1970 following a US tour, Olliver subsequently recorded two singles, “I May Never Get To See You Again” c/w “Shine” for Much Records and “Don’t Let The Green Grass Fool You” c/w “If I Can Just Be Strong Enough” for the Corner Stone label (with George Olliver and Friends) before playing and recording with Toronto band The Royals in the mid-’70s. He continues to perform regularly on the local circuit.
Olliver’s departure prompted keyboard player Chirowski to also leave in September 1967. At first Chirowski found work for Canadian Pacific Railways, but soon returned to the live scene with The Power Project. When that band folded, he became a member of the highly-rated rock band, Crowbar. During the ‘70s, Chirowksi worked with Alice Cooper and briefly toured with Lou Reed. In later years, he did session work for Peter Gabriel among others.
Mandala meanwhile recruited singer Roy Kenner (b. 14 January 1948, Toronto, Canada) and keyboard player Henry Babraj from local outfit Roy Kenner & The Associates, who’d made the obscure recording “Without My Sweet Baby”.The new line up debuted at the Roost in Ottawa on 8 October 1967 and the following month kicked off their fourth US tour with a show at the Cheetah in Hollywood.
While playing on the West Coast, Mandala supported Buffalo Springfield at the Swing Auditorium in San Bernardino, California on 3 November.The new personnel signaled a change in the group’s fortunes. After Atlantic chief Ahmet Ertegun acted on a tip from producer Phil Spector and bought the group’s contract from KR, Mandala returned to the studios to record their Soul Crusade album.
The band reportedly recorded six tracks at Atlantic Studios, New York in February 1968 with Arif Mardin, including the new single, the Scales/Jacobs written “Love Itis” c/w Troiano’s “Mellow Carmello Pallumbo”, which was another huge Toronto hit, peaking at #9 on the CHUM chart on 8 July 1968. The band completed the sessions for its long-awaited album, and while in New York, played a show at the Action House with The Fallen Angeles on 17 April.
After further shows on the West Coast, this time at the famed Troubadour in West Hollywood in May, Mandala returned to Toronto where keyboard player Barry Hutt was brought in to replace Babraj after an audition on Parliament Street. (Hutt, incidentally, later played in George Olliver and Friends.)
The new line-up continued to be a popular local draw but Barry Hutt did not stay long and was replaced by Hugh Sullivan from local group, Mr Paul and The Blues Council. Sullivan, who’d once been a member of George Olliver’s band, was later credited on the album’s sleeve for keyboards (along with Babraj). With Sullivan on board, the band made a prestigious appearance at the Philadelphia Music Festival on 24 July 1968.
Bad luck, however, dogged the band; Mandala had intended to tour Canada to promote Soul Crusade but Elliot was involved in a car accident and the tour was delayed until October.
Despite the setbacks, Soul Crusade received positive reviews in Canada. The album features some choice cuts, including “Every Single Day” co-written by Troiano with Kensington Market singer Keith McKie (when he was with The Vendettas) and Troiano’s “World of Love” and “Come on Home”. Local R&B singers Jimmy Livingstone, Diane Brooks, Eric Mercury and Shawn Jackson are among the cast of supporting players.
Mandala’s final single, the non-album tracks and Kenner-Troiano penned “You Got Me” backed by “Help Me”, was only given limited release in December and the group began to fall apart. Despite the positive reviews, the album failed to attract the sales the group had expected (some sources suggest that Ertegun felt artistic differences with Markowitz and Atlantic did not push the album).
During early 1969, the band made several visits to Michigan. On 7 April, Mandala played at the Detroit Pop Festival, held at the Olympia Stadium, alongside the MC5, SRC, Amboy Dukes and others, and then on the following day, performed at another festival, the Grand Rapids Pop Festival, held at the city’s Civic Auditorium, again with the same artists billed.
The end, however, was in sight. Returning to Ontario to play a string of dates, Mandala performed its final show on 1 June at the Hawk’s Nest in Toronto.
Following the group’s demise, Elliot went on to play with Leigh Ashford and Milestone while Sullivan moved to Los Angeles to briefly work with Toronto bass player/singer Neil Merryweather, before later doing sessions for former Steppenwolf frontman John Kay (alongside Glan).
Kenner, Troiano and Glan meanwhile brought in local bass player Prakash John and made a lone album as Bush (the live segment also features Sullivan) before splitting in 1971.
Glan and John subsequently became top session players, working for the likes of Lou Reed and Alice Cooper among others while Kenner and Troiano joined The James Gang after guitarist Joe Walsh left for a solo career. Troiano, who later joined The Guess Who and established a moderately successful solo career, sadly died in May 2005 after a long battle with cancer.
Kenner is currently doing jingles and voice-overs and working with a band in Toronto.While the group’s individual members have continued to plough successful careers as performers, Mandala’s recorded legacy remains largely undiscovered by the wider record buying public. The fact that the band’s Soul Crusade album and the non-album singles have yet to be picked up for a comprehensive CD collection probably doesn’t help, although there are murmurings that one collectors label may be set to put the record straight.
Many thanks to Carny Corbett, Bill Munson, Martin Melhuish, Nicholas Jennings, Brian Hunt, Elliott Prentice, Daniel Sneddon and Craig Webb for their help in piecing the Mandala story together. Special thanks to Craig Webb for the photos and transfers of Oppurtunity and the Rogues’ I Can’t Hold Out Much Longer. Hit Parader, Village Voice and Canadian Teen magazine also proved invaluable sources. Thank you to Ivan Amirault for the RPM scan.
To contact the author with further information or corrections, please email nick_warburton@hotmail.com
Mandala Promotional Bio (scans courtesy Ivan Amirault) Page 1 Page 2 Page 3
Advertised gigs
October 9 1966 – Club Kingsway, Toronto with Shawne & Jay Jackson, The Majestics, The Secrets and The Tripp
November 26 1966 – Hullabaloo, West Hollywood
December 3 1966 – Hullabaloo, West Hollywood
December 1966 – Whisky A Go Go, West Hollywood with Fever Tree (four nights)
December 10 1966 – Hullabaloo, West Hollywood
December 16 1966 – Michael Power High School, Toronto
December 17 1966 – George Harvey High School, Toronto
December 26 1966 – The Hawk’s Nest, Toronto
December 29 1966 – Avenue Road Club, Toronto
January 7 1967 – The Hawk’s Nest, Toronto
January 12 1967 – Ryerson Winter Carnival, Ryerson Theatre, Toronto with Dee & The Yeomen, The Creeps and Dianne Brooks, Eric Mercury and The Soul Searchers
February 3 1967 – Hawk’s Nest, Toronto
February 11 1967 – Orange Hall, Brampton, Ontario
February 11 1967 – Clarke Hall, Port Credit, Ontario
February 12 1967 – Syndicate Club, Toronto (formerly Club Isabella) with The Syndicate Five
March 6-April 2 1967 – Steve Paul’s The Scene, New York with Eric Anderson
March 25-April 4 1967 – Murray the K’s Easter Rock Extravaganza, RKO Theater, Manhattan, New York with The Blues Project, Cream, Wilson Pickett, Jim & Jean, Chicago Loop, Mitch Ryder and others
April 8 1967 – YMHA, Toronto (first show back from US trip)
April 15 1967 – Oshawa Civic Auditorium, Oshawa, Ontario with The Tripp, Shawne Jackson, Jay Jackson & The Majestics, Jack Hardin & The Silhouettes, The Midnites and others
April 16 1967 – Crang Plaza, Downsview, Ontario
April 25-May 4 1967 – Steve Paul’s The Scene, New York
June 16-17 1967 – The Farm, Monroe County Fairgrounds, New York state
June 22 1967 – Bonaventure, Montreal (welcome back tour)
June 23 1967 – Kin-Oak Arena, Oakville, Ontario
June 24 1967 – Milton Arena, Milton, Ontario
June 27 1967 – The Hawk’s Nest, Toronto
June 30 1967 – North York Centennial Centre, Toronto with The Power Project, The Spirit and Livingstone’s Tripp
July 1 1967 – Orange Hall, Brampton, Ontario
July 9 1967 – Broom and Stone, Scarborough, Ontario with Livingstone’s Tripp
July 18 1967 – Steve Paul’s The Scene, New York
July 23-24 1967 – Le Hibou, Ottawa
July 30-August 5 1967 – Garden of Stars, Montreal
August 14 1967 – Laporte County Fair, Laporte, Indiana with The Detroit Wheels
August 14 1967 – Laporte County Fair, Laporte, Indiana with Every Mother’s Son
August 14 1967 – Laporte County Fair, Laporte, Indiana with Every Mother’s Son and The Grass Roots
September 27 1967 – Steve Paul’s The Scene, New York (probably George Olliver’s final show)
October 8 1967 – The Roost, Ottawa (probably Roy Kenner’s first show)
October 27-29 1967 – Cheetah, Hollywood, California (fourth US tour)
November 3 1967 – Swing Auditorium, San Bernardino, California with Buffalo Springfield and Yellow Payges
December 27-28 1967 – Mad Hatter, Allentown, Pennsylvania
April 17 1968 – Action House, New York with Fallen Angels
May 10-12 1968 – Troubadour, West Hollywood
June 27 1968 – North Toronto Memorial Arena, Toronto
June 30 1968 – Port Carling Surf Club, Port Carling
July 6 1968 – Balm Beach Danceland, Balm Beach, Ontario
July 13 1968 – Jubilee Auditorium, Oshawa, Ontario
July 20 1968 – Biquin Island Hotel, Bracebridge, Ontario
July 24 1968 – Philadelphia Music Festival, Philadelphia with The Who, The Troggs, Pink Floyd and others
August 3 1968 – Kee-to-Bala, Bala, Ontario with Rifkin
August 4 1968 – Pav-Orillia, Orillia, Ontario with Scarboro Fair
August 5 1968 – Nelson Arena, Burlington, Ontario with The Dana
Photo: Ron Dey
August 13 1968 – The Hawk’s Nest, Toronto
August 17 1968 – Balm Beach Danceland, Balm Beach, Ontario with Mornington Drive
August 24 1968 – Dorval Arena with the Raja
September 14 1968 – Broom and Stone, Scarborough, Ontario
September 21 1968 – Neil McNeil’s High School, Toronto
October 6-20 1968 – Canadian tour accident – Elliott drops out and others play as quartet with Sullivan covering bass on keyboards
KRLA Beat, Nov. 4, 1967KRLA Beat, April 22, 1967
January 24 1969 – Village Pub, Detroit with Electric Blues Band
April 7 1969 – Detroit Pop Festival, Olympia Stadium, Detroit with MC5, SRC, Amboy Dukes and others
April 8 1969 – Grand Rapids Pop Festival, Civic Auditorium, Grand Rapids, Michigan with MC5, SRC, Amboy Dukes and others
May 17 1969 – Whitby Arena, Whitby with The Bedtime Story
May 24 1969 – Pavilion, Orillia, Ontario
June 1 1969 – Hawks Nest, Toronto
Sources: Ottawa Citizen, Montreal Star and “After Four” section in Toronto Telegram.
Mandala with the Raja at Dorval Arena, August 24, 1968
Here is Chuck Conlon on two fascinating 1967 45s on Henry Stone’s Marlin label after leaving the Nightcrawlers and relocating from Daytona Beach to Miami. “I Won’t Tell” reworks the opening guitar line of “Little Black Egg” and adds similarly odd lyrics like “A teaspoon holds more than the fork does”, sung in the same naive style.
“You’re Comin’ On” has fine production, opening with distinctive percussion, allowing the bass carry the melody and keeping the distorted guitar as decoration. Though credited to Conlon and the Crawlers, I don’t know if any of the his former band the Nightcrawlers actually played on these songs. I’ve heard that Ron and the Starfires were backing him on some of these tracks.
The A-side of the second 45, “Won’t You Say Yes to Me Girl” is a pop gem. I don’t usually object to horns on songs but I wish the producers had kept to the simple arrangement of the intro for this one. The piano trills and organ are excellent and the trombone player’s solo lines blend well.
“Midnight Reader” is more obscure, an ode to introspection as far as I can tell: “He goes behind closed doors every night / all that shines is a small intensity light / there’s no one inside the room but him”. Another verse goes “All the persons who are drunk are asleep / he cares not if they leave him in peace”: the scholar surrounded by hedonistic students maybe?
Compare the opening lines to another that Conlon wrote for the Nightcrawlers, “A Basket of Flowers”: “She sits in a cell at the midnight hour / gatekeeper tied in the darkest hour / she seems so lonely there”.
“I Won’t Tell” entered the charts of Orlando AM station WLOF in April ’67 and reached as high as #19 in May. The first 45 was a Bard Shapiro / Steve Alaimo Production, the second credited to Marlin Productions. All four songs are Conlon originals, though “Won’t You Say Yes to Me Girl” is co-credited to Brad Shapiro.
Chuck released a few solo 45s that I haven’t heard about once every ten years beginning with “When God Comes to Call” in 1965, all as Charles Conlon. He also wrote “Eric Cleveland” which appears on a 45 by the Yak on Tooth 533 and Avco Embassy AVE-4514 with a cover of the Beatles “Every Little Thing” on the flip. I don’t know if he had any involvement with that group, it was pressed at Queen City Album Co. in Cincinnati, Ohio in August, 1969. There seem to be some unreleased recordings as well, including one titled “Poor Little Mixed Up Kid”.
Thanks to Joe Emery for suggesting this post way back in February.
Kelsom Hashim and the Plastic Deers are another mystery group, at least for me.
Three of the songs on this EP are fairly tame, but there is one gem, “Pemuda Pemudi Sekarang” (“Young Men and Young Women Today”), which sounds like a cross between the Guess Who’s “No Time” and the Archies’ “Sugar Sugar”. This is fairly reasonable as both songs were released in 1969 and this record might date from that year as well, but I think 1970 or 1971 might be more likely. The fantastically named Plastic Deers do a fine job as does Kelsom.
Looking at the cover and listening to the song, one might think it was a celebration of the young generation, but it is actually very critical, claiming that the young men with their long hair are rather unpleasant and that parents can only shake their heads etc, but I think the whole thing is sung a bit tongue in cheek. The cover and label give no clue as to the origin of this group, but I will take a punt with Singapore as I have only ever seen two other Libra releases and one of those was definitely a Singapore band.
Barry Lee is the stage name of Lee Cuilli, who came from the Italian section of Cleveland, like Bocky, both of them managed by Redda Robbins.
In 1964 Barry released his first 45 on the Redda label. One side is the upbeat vocal pop “Make It” which earned some radio play at the time and got the record picked up by UA subsidiary Veep. More interesting is “Things Gotta Change” a nice bit of r&b with guitar flourishes, credited to Lee, Redda Robbins and Tony Styles. The backing vocalists really getting a workout trying to keep up the bop-ba-shu-bop-ba-bas. The buckeyebeat site suggests it’s likely that Barry is being accompanied by Bocky & the Visions on vocals with their backing band Richie & the Fortunes.
Barry Lee found a group of teens from Euclid, a town northeast of Cleveland, to become his band the Actions. Members included Dave Zaller guitar, Vince Baskovic bass and Ken Ruscittio drums. With the Actions he released his second record in 1966, almost two years after the first. “For Such a Little Wrong” might best be called a power ballad, but on the b-side “Try Me”, Barry’s vocal blends perfectly with the band’s strong backing and harmonies. Production was by Kenny Lark, arrangements by Barry Lee and Fortunes guitarist Tony Styles (Tony Bodanza). Originally released on the Wine & Roses label, it too was picked up by a UA subsid., Ascot, for a quick ride to nowhere.
Interestingly, Barry Lee puts songwriting credits to both Barry Lee and Lee Allen Cuilli. Barry wrote a number of songs that he didn’t record himself, as BMI lists him as co-author of “Can’t Get You Home on Time”, “Down Down”, “I Can Dance”, “I’m Not Worth It”, “I’m Pickin’ Petals”, “Land Beyond the Moon”, “Little Wheel” and “When the Sun Goes Down”, all written with Tony Bodanza.
Info for this article from Buckeyebeat.com. Thanks to Mark Meinhart for the transfer of Things Gotta Change.
The Rythmn Boys from Singapore backed many popular singers in the mid to late 1960s and even performed in a couple of movies. The band is said to have won a battle of the bands competition in Singapore in 1965 playing Rolling Stones songs. The Rythmn boys were M. Ayob Taib (lead guitar), M. Osman Said (rhythm guitar), M. Ali Taib (bass), A. Rahim Razak (organ) and M. Nor Ahmad (drums).
The Rythmn Boys first came to prominence backing singer A. Ramlie on his first few EPs, which were big hits in Singapore and Malaysia in 1966. The band made recordings following that with a number of other singers, including S. Mariam, Novel (from Indonesia), M. Amin, Adnan Othman, and S. Ahmad. Not all those recordings include organ and some of the record covers have pictures of the band with only four members, so A. Rahim Razak may have joined later.
Presented here are the first two EPs The Rythmn Boys recorded with Ramlah Aziz. There are good songs on both EPs, but the thing that really impresses me is the organ playing, especially on the second EP, which adds a very atmospheric tone.
The titles on the first EP are Bertemasha (Excursion), Kaseh Yang Suchi (Pure Love), Kerana Setia (Because Of Loyalty) and Rela (Consent), which seems to be another song related to Indonesia’s ‘Confrontation’ with Malaysia, in which Ramlah consents to her loved one going off to ‘defend the nation’.
On the second EP the songs are Janji (Promise), Untok Mu (For You), Balasan Illahi (God’s Judgement) and Sukma Ria (Proud Soul). A number of songs on both EPs are credited to Salleh Aziz, who may have been Ramlah’s brother, or other relation. I have seen reports of The Rythmn Boys playing nostalgia concerts over many years. Perhaps they never stopped.
(Updated from the original January 3, 2008 post to include new text and the first EPs scans.
This 45 has great atmosphere and unusual production. It’s the work of several talented people who were usually involved in much more commercial music.
Singer and songwriter Stephen Hartley is Stephen Hartley Dorff, a composer of songs and movie & TV soundtracks. The producer Walt Levinsky was an old-time swing clarinet player, composer and arranger who is most well known for writing theme songs for television, including the old CBS evening news theme. The arranger Steve Cagan worked for years with Melissa Manchester. MB Records is also the label that released Manchester’s first record, again with Cagan and Levinsky’s production.
“Have You Seen Her” did make the charts of WOR-FM in New York for a few weeks in July and August of 1967. I prefer “The Other Side” for the moodiness of the music and obsessive lyrics.
The 004 were a mid-1960s R&B group put together at the suggestion of Trevor Boswell, a partner in the Hugo Keleti agency, after Dusty Springfield’s disastrous expulsion from South Africa in late 1964. (Hugo Keleti was the father of Eve Boswell, the South African 1950s star, and Trevor was her husband.) The band comprised of expatriate Britons, who recorded a string of singles and a lone album for the CBS label.Lead guitarist Pete Clifford (b. 10 May 1943, Whetstone, London) had first played with The Jesters and then briefly worked with Georgie Fame in London before visiting South Africa for the first time in 1964 with Dusty Springfield as a member of her backing group, The Echoes. Following the fateful trip, Clifford played with Tom Jones on a UK tour and then formed The 004 to return to South Africa, sailing on the Capetown Castle on 10 June 1965 where the band got its set list together.
Bass player/singer Jack Russell (b. 29 April 1944, Caerleon, South Wales) and rhythm guitarist/singer Brian Gibson (b. 17 March 1942, Newport, South Wales) had first met in Wales as members of The Victors, who had a residency at the Latin Quarter in London’s West End. When the band broke up in June 1964, Russell toured the Costa Del Sol and Morocco with French pop singer Teddy Raye while Brian Gibson joined The Laurie Jay combo where he met and socialised with Pete Clifford. In March 1965, after the failed continental tour, Russell got a job as production manager with Vox in Dartford. When Clifford had the call from Boswell and was asked to form a band to return to South Africa that summer, he recruited Gibson, who in turn recommended Russell. The band added Londoner Peter Stember on drums to complete the line up.
with Gene Vincent and Jackie Frisco, Daily News, December 3, 1965
After arriving in Durban by boat on 30 June 1965, the group began playing at the Al Fresco Night Club in a hotel on 1 July. The band signed to CBS and recorded a string of singles for CBS, kicking off with “The In Crowd” in November 1965. The following month, the band backed Gene Vincent in Durban for three months.Prior to the release of the group’s debut single, The 004 had briefly relocated to Johannesburg and worked the 505 Club in Kotze Street, Hillbrow. Back in Durban in early 1966, The 004 opened Tiles club, playing with The Ivy League in May. The following month, the band’s lone album It’s Alright was released and contained Gibson’s promising originals, “She’s Going Back Home Today”, “I’ve Found Her” and “Beverley” alongside covers of Curtis Mayfield’s title track and Mann, Weil and Stoller’s “On Broadway”. The album had been recorded in CBS studios in Johannesburg in late 1965 on an old two-track machine with overdubbing rather than the four-track Studer equipment widely available in Europe. During this time, Clifford and Russell did lots of studio work as session musicians recording with Eve Boswell, The Dream Merchants, The Sandpipers (the South African version), Johnny Collini and many others.
In August 1966, Nick ‘Doc’ Dokter (b. 24 July 1945, Kampen, Overijsel, Holland) was recruited from The Leemen Limited to replace Stember, who returned to the UK and later became an internationally renowned photographer, based in California.
Two months later, The 004 returned to Durban to play at Tiles and on 24 December joined a number of acts, including The Gonks, The Difference and The Dream Merchants to play a Christmas Eve show at Durban City Hall.
In March 1967 Gibson also left and Barry Mitchell from The In Crowd briefly took his place. Gibson later played with progressive rock band, Abstract Truth and lives in South Africa. Two months later, the band met John Kongos who invited the musicians, by then down to trio without Mitchell, to the UK to record that summer.
Clifford, Dokter and Russell recorded with John Kongos as a group called Floribunda Rose in London during mid-late 1967 before Clifford left to return to South Africa to join The Bats. Dokter also moved back to South Africa, albeit briefly, working as a boilermaker. He soon moved to Holland before emigrating to Canada where he played with Five Man Cargo, a UK band who later morphed in Cross Town Bus. In later years, he did session work for the Bruce Allan Agency and currently lives in Vancouver.
Russell meanwhile stuck with John Kongos until 1969 and recorded a string of singles in London as Scrugg before moving in to an advertising agency. He currently lives near Hampton Court.
Article by Nick Warburton
Pop Gear article, May 1966August, 1966, clockwise from top left: Brian Gibson, Jack Russell, Pete Clifford and Nick DokterArticle in the Natal Mercury, November 26, 1966.Final group photo, 1967
List of releases: 45: The In Crowd/Without You (CBS SSC 599) 1965 LP: It’s Alright (CBS ALD 8911) 1966 45: Goin’ Out Of My Head/Little Miss Trouble (CBS SSC 677) 1966 45: Happening Humpty/Lah To The Power of 6 (Continental PD 9198) 1966
Many thanks to Jack Russell, Nick Dokter, Pete Clifford, Vernon Joynson and Tertius Louw
Ed: The oddball single “Happening Humpty” was recorded in order to get Matt Mann to release The 004 from the CBS contract. The band felt suppressed by Mann who offered them no material. Mann refused to release the idiosyncratic and oddball trumpet work by one of South Africa’s top trumpeters. The idiotic inclusion of “out of time” bum notes was deliberate. Mann released the band. Graham Beggs then released the single under the Continental label. It has since become a collector’s item.
May, 1966, l-r: Pete Stember (foreground), Brian Gibson, Jack Russell and Pete Clifford
The Shados-M were from Blackstone, Virginia. Drummer Michael Hurley gave me this information about the group:
The original band and the people on the record were Gary Taggart, guitar, me, drums, Gilliam Winn, backup vocals, Eddie Greene, bass, Wayne Goin, rhythm guitar, Neil Owens, organ.
The songs were played on the radio constantly. We were all like 15 except for the guitar player who was maybe 22 at the time. It was a time when bands had long hair and dressed in jeans with holes and that kind of stuff. We wore white tuxedos and that caught a lot of attention at the time.
The name was something we just came up with. It didn’t mean anything we just thought it looked cool. We did some radio shows and people would call in guessing what the name meant. It was funny because they thought of everything from the “M” being for Michael my name to a “W” upside down. We did a few reunions. The last one was probably 10 years ago and we raised over $10,000 in one night for a girl that had a bad accident.
Both songs, “Sweet Love” and “All the Time” both written by Gary Taggart.
Ken Friedman tells me that the Quintet label was a subsidiary of Justice Records of Winston-Salem, which meant the band traveled over 180 miles southwest to Winston-Salem instead of recording in Richmond, an hour’s drive away.
The other 45 on Quintet that I know of is D. Martindale & the Star Fires “Go Jenny”, which is more like amateurish rockabilly than garage.
The Shados-M had another 45 on the Colpar label, “She Loves Me (She Loves Me Not)” / “You Owe Me Nothing” from September 1969, almost three years after their first. Nick Colleran produced that second 45, and again Gary Taggart wrote both songs.
Thank you to Marty for loaning his rare 45, and to Michael Hurley for background on the group.
This site is a work in progress on 1960s garage rock bands. All entries can be updated, corrected and expanded. If you have information on a band featured here, please let me know and I will update the site and credit you accordingly.
I am dedicated to making this site a center for research about '60s music scenes. Please consider donating archival materials such as photos, records, news clippings, scrapbooks or other material from the '60s. Please contact me at rchrisbishop@gmail.com if you can loan or donate original materials
The Monotones had two U.S. releases on the Hickory label, one of which, “When Will I Be Loved” / “If You Can’t Give Me All” was not released in the UK. It turns out to be a demo recorded before their first Pye 45, released in the U.S. without the group’s knowledge!
Jim Eaton recently heard these songs again for the first time in about 47 years! He wrote to me:
Despite gigging incessantly on the Toronto scene from December 1967-January 1969, and opening for The Hollies in Ottawa during March 1968, Olliver’s new group never recorded and in mid-1969, he emerged with a new outfit, Natural Gas, who recorded an album for Firebird Records in 1969 (the long player, incidentally, includes an Olliver-Chirowski instrumental from the Mandala repertoire, “Tribute to Rubber Boots”).
Barry Lee is the stage name of Lee Cuilli, who came from the Italian section of Cleveland, like Bocky, both of them managed by Redda Robbins.
