Peter Watkinson – lead vocals
Kevin Sparkes – rhythm guitar, organ
Keith Kendall – lead guitar
Rick Eagles – bass
Tony Watkinson – drums, vocals
Hayes, Middlesex-based brothers Peter and Tony Watkinson had formed the band in the early 1960s as The Limelites and were joined at some point by rhythm guitarist Kevin Sparkes.
In 1963, Rick Eagles, who’d previously played rhythm guitar with Wembley, Middlesex band The Delta 5 alongside future Deep Purple bass player Nick Simper, joined the Limelites on bass. Soon after, they became resident Sunday night band at the Clay Pigeon in Eastcote, Middlesex.
During mid-1964, Peter Watkinson caught another Hayes band, Brian & The Fantoms playing at the Seagull Hotel in Southall and was impressed by The Fantoms’ lead guitarist Keith Kendall, whose father was Watkinson’s manager at EMI Electronics.
Not long after, Watkinson changed the group’s name to the Legends and secured a recording deal with Pye Records.
Paired with legendary producer Joe Meek, the band cut a lone single, Peter Watkinson’s “Looking For Her” c/w “I’m Coming Home”, which was issued as The First Impressions in March 1965 to avoid confusion with Twickenham, Middlesex group, The Legend.
However, when the US soul band, The Impressions threatened a law suit, the musicians were forced to revert back to The Legends for a second single on Pye – Peter Watkinson’s “I’ve Found Her” c/w “Something’s Gonna Happen” in July 1965.
When the two singles failed to dent the charts, Keith Kendall departed in late 1965/early 1966 and re-joined Brian & The Fantoms for a few months before subsequently joining Hayes group, Four Point Five, which also worked as The Soul System. In the late 1960s/early 1970s, Kendall hooked up with The All Night Workers.
Kendall’s initial replacement was a lead guitarist called Ron, who was joined soon after by second lead player Ian Hollands. Hollands had previously worked with Ealing, Middlesex group, Frankie Reid & The Casuals between 1962-1963 and then a Teddington, Middlesex band (possibly Unit 4).
Towards the end of 1966, the band underwent further changes as both Rick Eagles (who hooked up with Tony Knight’s Chessmen) and the lead guitarist called Ron departed to make way for siblings Terry Williams on trumpet/vocals and Ian Williams on bass. By November, Kevin Sparkes, who’d moved on to Hammond C3, had also left to make way for Russ Pinder.
The Hillingdon Mirror ran article and photo on the new formation in its 28 March 1967 issue, page 24.
That same month, The Legends finally returned with a second single on the Parlophone label – a cover of Boyce & Hart’s “Tomorrow’s Gonna Be Another Day” backed by Peter Watkinson’s “Nobody Laughs Anymore”.
The Hillingdon Mirror ran another article and photos of the band in its 11 July 1967 issue, page 32 (see above).
That same month, The Legends released their final single on Parlophone – Peter Watkinson’s “Under The Sky” c/w “Twenty Four Hours A Day”.
When the band broke up in late 1967, Hollands played guitar on some demos that Peter Watkinson recorded in his home studio before going on to work with Hayes, west London group, The Magic Roundabout.
Thanks to Keith Kendall and Ian Hollands for providing background information on the band.
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Selected gigs (also see comments below):
26 January 1965 – Walton Playhouse, Walton-on-Thames, Surrey (Woking Herald)
30 January 1965 – Carfax Ballroom, Oxford with The Puppets (Oxford Mail)
5 March 1965 – Co-op Hall, Addlestone, Surrey (Woking Herald)
5 June 1965 – Carfax Ballroom, Oxford with The Pressmen (Oxford Mail)
14 August 1965 – Orchid Room, Oxford with The Beat Merchants (Oxford Mail)
19 September 1965 – Co-op Hall, Addlestone, Surrey (Woking Herald)
21 September 1965 – Kodak Hall, Wealdstone, northwest London Paul Dean & The Savages (Harrow Observer & Gazette)
26 October 1965 – Kodak Hall, Wealdstone, northwest London with The Creed (Harrow Observer & Gazette)
16 November 1965 – Kodak Hall, Wealdstone, northwest London with The Creed (Harrow Observer & Gazette)
17 December 1965 – Kodak Hall, Wealdstone, northwest London Paul Dean & The Savages (Harrow Observer & Gazette)
16 August 1967 – Town Hall Park, Hayes, west London (Hillingdon Mirror)
Found some more gigs in Melody Maker:
28 November and 12 December 1965 at Clay Pigeon, Eastcote, Middlesex
This is from Walthamstow Guardian:
3 July 1965 – Assembly Hall, Walthamstow with The Blue Dukes
This is from the Yarmouth Mercury:
17 April 1965 – Floral Hall, Gorleston, Norfolk with the Cheaters
Found some live dates for this band:
18 April 1964 – Hi Fi Hop, Walton Playhouse, Walton-on-Thames, Surrey (as Limelights)
6 December 1964 – Sunday Club, Addlestone, Surrey with The Applejacks (Woking Herald)
17 April 1965 – Galaxy Club, Basingstoke (Hants & Berkshire Gazette)
19 September 1965 – Co-op Hall, Addlestone, Surrey (Woking Herald)
16 August 1967 – Town Hall Park, Hayes (Uxbridge & West Drayton Chronicle)
Found these gigs for the band:
28 November 1965 – Clay Pigeon, Eastcote, Middlesex
10 December 1965 – Middlesex Hospital
12 December 1965 – Clay Pigeon, Eastcote, Middlesex
17 December 1965 – London Rowing Club
18 December 1965 – Grange Youth Centre, Hayes, Middlesex
Chris from Fulson Stillwell contacted me and sent me a list of gigs by the pre-Legends band, The Fabulous “Limelights”. Chris filled in on drums on the Southampton gig.
20 February 1964 – White Hart, Acton, Middlesex
21 February 1964 – Park Ballroom, Southampton (Chris on drums)
22 February 1964 – Clay Pigeon, Eastcote, Middlesex
28 February 1964 – Cheam Hall Baths, Cheam, Surrey
29 February 1964 – King’s College, London University
1 March 1964 – Clay Pigeon, Eastcote, Middlesex
3 March 1964 – Kodak, Harrow, Middlesex
5 March 1964 – White Hart, Acton
8 March 1964 – Clay Pigeon, Eastcote, Middlesex
10 March 1964 – Studio 4, BBC, Delaware Road
13 March 1964 – Connaught Hall, Tavistock Square, London
15 March 1964 – Clay Pigeon, Eastcote, Middlesex
19 March 1964 – White Hart, Acton, Middlesex
20 March 1964 – Acton Town Hall, Acton, Middlesex
Does anyone remember my Uncle Eddie Kettlewell he played sax with the Limelights at the Clay Pidgeon in Eastcote.
I am the son of Peter watkinson and have only just found all this information I have non of his recordings when in the band and would love to hear from anybody who can supply me with any cheers Mark
Found some more gigs in the Staines and Egham News, which I presume is the same Legends.
26 February 1965 – The British Legion Hall, Virginia Water, Berkshire
5 March 1965 – Dance Club, Addlestone, Surrey
8 May 1965 – Egham Hythe Social Club with The Roosters
12 June 1965 – St Paul’s FC, Social Centre, Egham Hythe, Surrey
19 June 1965 – Social Club, Egham Hythe with the Cherokees (Columbia Recording Stars)
21 August 1965 – Egham Hythe Social Centre with Stormville Shakers
Discovered that the Legends in the Staines newspaper is an entirely different, local band (see previous entry). Members ended up in Jeep Rongle
Hi,
Have just found your excellent website, hence a ‘bit’ late to the party.
As you rightly say the Legends in the Staines & Egham News was a different local band, as I was their Bass Guitarist.
Besides your posting of October 13, 2016 I also remember most of the ‘Woking Herald’ dates, as we regularly played at the Co-op Hall in Addlestone, Surrey, including backing the Applejacks at this venue in December 1964.
Found two gigs in the Dorset Evening Echo for shows at the Steering Wheel in Dorchester on 3 November 1967 and 15 December 1967. However, I don’t know if this was the same Legends band. It was such a popular name that it could have been a different outfit