In late November 1966, after he’d recuperated from the car crash that had killed Johnny Kidd the previous month, Nick Simper re-joined New Pirates members Mick Stewart and drummer Roger Truth with plans to revive the group’s name.
However, as Nick Simper recounts on his website, the band was first offered a job backing American soul singer Bobby Hebb, who had arrived for a December tour.
Truth, however, dropped out to join Freddie Mack & The Mack Sound before the tour commenced. Simper and Stewart found a new drummer – Kenny Slade, a Sheffield player who’d worked briefly with west London band The Dae-b-Four and also with future rock star Joe Cocker. The line-up was completed with keyboard player Johnny Goodison who’d led his own band, Johnny B Great & The Quotations (backing band for The Walker Brothers).
1 December 1966 – Streatham Locarno Ballroom, Streatham, southwest London
1 December 1966 – Blaises, 121 Queen’s Gate, Kensington, west London (started at 11.30pm)
2 December 1966 – Tiles, Oxford Street, central London with The Little People (Melody Maker/Record Mirror)
3 December 1966 – Nottingham University, Nottingham (Record Mirror)
3 December 1966 – Britannia Rowing Club, Nottingham (Record Mirror)
3 December 1966 – King Mojo, Sheffield, South Yorkshire with The Eyes of Blue, A New Happening and Chapter 5 (Sheffield Star)
4 December 1966 – The Cavern, Liverpool with Lynn Randell, The Beechwoods, the States, The Hideaways, The Avengers, The Prowlers, Chapter Five and The Kids (Phil Thompson’s book “The Best of Cellars – The story of the Cavern club” and Liverpool Echo)
4 December 1966 – Top Rank, Preston, Lancashire (Record Mirror)
5 December 1966 – Pavilion Ballroom, Bath
8 December 1966 – Glenn Club, Llanelli, Wales (Record Mirror)
9 December 1966 – Gaiety Theatre, Rhyl, north Wales with The Dancing Angels, Johnny Kidd’s Original Pirates (straight from the Cavern), The Signs, The Kids and The Questions (North Wales Weekly News) Bobby Hebb billed as Bobby Hebb & His Orchestra
10 December 1966 – Imperial Ballroom, Nelson, Lancashire with The Spectres and The Inmates (Burnley Express & News)
10 December 1966 – Queen’s Hall, Widnes with The SOS and The Unknown (Record Mirror/Runcorn Weekly News)
A band that may have the name Stitch in Time (Stuck in Time or Stich in Time? It’s difficult to read the writing) cut a four-song demo acetate at Fiesta Studio in Hartford, CT.
Two of the songs are “Visions of a Dream” and “Darkness of My Mind”. The other label only has “Wayne” written along the edge. The acetate is in terrible condition, with severe flaking on those two songs, but I was able to salvage one track on the other side. I don’t know the name of the song, maybe “I Want to Live”. Hear an excerpt below:
Fiesta Recording Studio was located at 922 Main Street in Hartford, Connecticut. The best thing cut at Fiesta that I know of was the Bends “If It’s All the Same to You”.
Fiesta also seems to cut a number of polka LPs by Johnny Menko, Ted Nowack’s Harmony Kings, and Ed Podolak & his Polka Cats.
The Viscanes, from left: Al Martansic, John Ayers, Lou Dobrolosky, Jerry Hyde and Donald Jack Four song EP cut at Hertz Sound in Newark
The Viscanes came from Morristown, New Jersey, and included:
Donald Jack – lead guitar John Ayers – rhythm guitar Al Martansic – keyboards Jerry Hyde – bass Lou Dobrolosky – drums Billy King – vocals
They cut four unreleased songs at Hertz Recording Studio in Newark. From the songs on the acetate, the Viscanes had a style influenced by soul sounds of the day. There’s a cover of “Ooh-Poo-Pah-Doo”, and two original songs, the uptempo “Windstorm” and a ballad, “Black and Blue”. They also recorded a loose jam of organ and guitar solos with some ad-libbed vocals.
The Viscanes played regularly at Danny’s Hideaway in East Hanover NJ, located on Route 10, attached to a bowling alley. Some silent 8mm footage of the band exists, with part of the recordings as the Front Row added for a soundtrack:
They also played at Idaho Pines in Parsippany NJ, Dude Ranch Inn in Dover NJ, and Aunt Kate’s on Rt 46 in Stanhope NJ, as well as the Boardwalk at Seaside Heights and Atlantic City.
The Viscanes on stage Danny’s Hideaway, April 1966
The Front Row perform “The World’s Fantasy”, produced by Marty Foglia at Regent Sound Studio
The Front Row
With a couple lineup changes the Viscanes became the Front Row:
Donald Jack – lead guitar John Arends – rhythm guitar Frank Knox – keyboards Jerry Hyde – bass Lou Dobrolosky – drums Al Martansic – vocals
As the Front Row they made two acetates at Regent Sound Studios on West 56th St in Manhattan. One has two vocals, “The Worlds Fantasy” b/w “Hey Little Girl”. The second acetate has backing tracks for both songs, but with “The World’s Fantasy” titled “Roaches” for some reason.
“The Worlds Fantasy” is well-crafted commercial pop, with a great opening guitar lick and pounding drums. It certainly is good enough to have deserved release, but I don’t think it ever was. I can’t find copyright information on either song, and wonder if “The World’s Fantasy” was a working title.
The Front Row perform on the backing track to “The World’s Fantasy” produced by Marty Foglia
“Hey Little Girl” is a slower ballad. Marty Foglia’s name is on the labels, probably as producer. In 1966, Foglia recorded an early Jim Croce song called “Sun Come Up” with an unknown group called the Clique that Laurie Records released.
Marty Foglia had been active in the late ’50s, running the Cecilia Records label with a handful of pop and doo-wop singles by the Criterions, Johnny Starr and Mike Figlio. He co-wrote “New Orleans Beat” with Michael Ralph Colicchio. Foglia also recorded the Viscounts, selling the masters to Madison Records which hit with “Harlem Nocturne” in 1959 and again in 1965. But I can’t find many credits for him after 1961. Some info from Pop Archives.
Donald Jack moved to Sunrise, Florida in 1975 where he opened D&J Chevron in Deerfield Beach. His sons Don and Steve contributed the photos and info on the band. Don passed away in 2001, and Jerry Hyde passed in 2006.
Thank you to Don and Steve Jack for sharing these great photos and history.
The Viscanes on stage Danny’s Hideaway, April 1966
Photo: Nick Simper. Left to right: Johnny Kidd, Mick Stewart, Roger Truth, Nick Simper and Ray Soper at Kingsbury Odeon on 21 May 1966
Johnny Kidd (lead vocals)
Mick Stewart (lead guitar/vocals)
Nick Simper (bass/vocals)
Ray Soper (keyboards)
Roger Truth (drums)
When legendary British singer Johnny Kidd decided to part with the original Pirates after a gig on 19 April 1966, he had some outstanding gigs to honour and hired several, temporary, groups to fulfil the bookings, one of which was west London R&B outfit Jeff Curtis & The Flames.
The band’s drummer, Pete Burt, younger brother of Dave Burt in Cliff Bennett & The Rebel Rousers, was a window cleaner and was cleaning Kidd’s windows one day when they got talking. The group played a couple of gigs with Kidd, including a naval base in Chatham, before keyboard player Ray Soper was fired.
Unknown group back Kidd as The New Pirates. Image may be subject to copyright
Interestingly, Johnny Kidd & The Pirates played at the annual Festival Gardens Gala in Battersea on 7 May but it’s very doubtful that his backing band were The Flames on this occasion as they were performing at the Locarno Ballroom in Swindon on this date.
Soper decided to form a new group to carry on as Kidd’s new version of The Pirates and got hold of his friend, bass player Nick Simper, who he’d previously worked with in Buddy Britten & The Regents and Cryano & The Bergeracs during late 1964-mid-1965. Roger Truth was the drummer in both groups.
In need of a guitarist, they brought in Mick Stewart who’d, previously played with a number of west London bands, notably The Redcaps and The All-Nite Workers (who briefly backed singer Simon Scott).
?? July 1966 – Gig in Seaton, Devon (most likely Seaton Beat Club at Seaton Town Hall)
Ray Soper left at this point and joined The Denims/Headline News
?? August 1966 – Winter Gardens, Weston-Super-Mare, Somerset with Eden Kane (with Peter Sarstedt on bass)
?? August 1966 – Gig in Grimsby, Lincolnshire
19 August 1966 – Caird Hall, Dundee, Scotland (first date on Scottish tour) with The Red Hawks, Dunfermline Boys, The Ivy League, The Jay-Birds, The St Louis Union and David and Jonathan (http://www.adiebarrett.co.uk/johnnykidd/timeline/timeline.htm)
Image may be subject to copyright
26 August 1966 – The Leys, Clacton, Essex with Hap & Unit Four and Buzz Inc (Essex County Standard)
Image may be subject to copyright
29 August 1966 – Civic Hall, Nantwich, Cheshire with The Outer Limits (Nantwich Chronicle)
29 August 1966 – Regal Ballroom, Ripley, Derbyshire (Derbyshire Evening Telegraph) Also booked to play 12 November 1966 but cancelled
3 September 1966 – Birmingham Flower Show, Handsworth Park, Birmingham with Tony Jackson & The Vibrations (Sports Argus)
3 September 1966 – Gig in Orpington, Kent
19-25 September 1966 – Cabaret dates at Flamingo Club, Darlington with Robb Storme & The Whispers (with former Mojos member Lewis Collins on bass)
1 October 1966 – Raven Club, RAF Waddington, Lincolnshire
6 October 1966 – Gig in Oldham (some source say Bolton), Lancashire (cancelled)
7 October 1966 – Tried to get gig at Nelson Imperial, Nelson, Lancashire but not successful
Kidd and Simper were involved in a car crash on the return journey to London in the early hours of 8 October, a few miles south of Bury, Lancashire. Simper was seriously injured. Kidd, however, was pronounced dead on his arrival at Bolton Royal Infirmary.
In the aftermath, Mick Stewart participated in a Jerry Lee Lewis tour. Then, once Simper had recuperated, Simper and Stewart hooked up with Bobby Hebb for a UK tour, debuting on 1 December 1966 while Truth joined Freddie Mack & The Mack Sound.
The New Pirates:
Mick Stewart (lead guitar/vocals)
Nick Simper (bass/vocals)
John Carroll (keyboards/vocals)
Roger Truth (drums)
Sometime in early February, Simper and Stewart decided to reform The New Pirates. Truth, who’d been playing with Freddie Mack & The Mack Sound, agreed to re-join and they brought in keyboard player John Carroll, who’d recently left Tony Knight’s Chessmen.
According to Melody Maker, The New Pirates played at the Upper Cut in Forest Gate, east London on 17 February 1967 with The Afex and The Trekkas.
Image may be subject to copyright
However, the Newham, West Ham & East Ham, Barking and Stratford Express lists The Apex and Jo Jo Gunne as support.
Photo: Nick Simper. Left to right: John Carroll, Roger Truth, Nick Simper and Mick Stewart, February 1967 prior to Cornwall tour
Truth played the London show and then, a few days before a short tour of Cornwall commenced, he returned to Freddie Mack’s band, possibly for that group’s gig at the Village in Cleethorpes on 22 February.
James Smith, who’d worked with Carroll in The London Beats in 1965, auditioned but turned the job down and subsequently joined Hamilton & The Hamilton Movement in March (replacing Phil Wainman).
John Kerrison, who’d previously drummed with a number of bands, notably Frankie Reid & The Casuals and The Rockin’ Eccentrics, took his place.
The revised line-up undertook the Cornwall tour and played a couple of gigs in England before heading to Scotland.
Notable gigs:
23 February 1967 – Royal Naval Air Station, Helston, Cornwall
Image may be subject to copyright
24 February 1967 – Winter Gardens, Penzance, Cornwall with The Hoboes (West Briton & Royal Cornwall Gazette)
Image may be subject to copyright
25 February 1967 – Blue Lagoon, Newquay, Cornwall with The Other Five (West Briton & Royal Cornwall Gazette)
3 March 1967 – Gig in Welwyn Garden City, Herts (possibly Woodhall Community Centre)
24-25 March 1967 – Kelvin Hall, Glasgow, Scotland with Unit 4 Plus 2, Dave Dee, Dozy, Beaky, Mick and Titch, Screaming Lord Sutch and The Mack Sound
27 March 1967 – Kelvin Hall, Glasgow, Scotland with Unit 4 Plus 2, Dave Dee, Dozy, Beaky, Mick and Titch, Screaming Lord Sutch and The Mack Sound
Returning to London, the band found there was little demand for The New Pirates and the members started to look around for other work.
Thanks to his contacts with bass player Peter Carney who he had worked with in The Flexmen and The London Beats (and briefly Tony Knight’s Chessmen), Carroll played with Geno Washington & The Ram Jam Band for a few weeks (debuting on 26 April in Croydon) before Dave Greenslade was taken on as a permanent member.
According to Nick Simper’s website, The New Pirates met on 1 May 1967 to discuss their future and decided to go their separate ways.
Later that month, Simper would join Billie Davis & The Quality. However, when work dried up, he became a member of Screaming Lord Sutch & The Savages during July. Next he signed up with The Flowerpot Men (September 1967-February 1968) before forming the original Deep Purple.
After his brief time with Geno Washington, John Carroll worked with Herbie Goins & The Nightimers from August 1967 through to March 1968. He then played with The Flowerpot Men briefly (just after Simper had departed). In early 1969, he was part of the backing band appearing on Stevie Wonder’s UK tour.
In late August, 1967, John Kerrison joined Episode Six who featured future Deep Purple members Ian Gillan and Roger Glover and remained until August 1968.
After working on a few projects (including working with Don Arden’s son David), Mick Stewart joined Hamilton & The Hamilton Movement around October 1967 and stayed until April 1968. He then worked with The James Royal Set before working briefly with The Flowerpot Men in late 1968 (after Carroll had departed). During 1969, he replaced Frank Torpey in The Sweet.
Interestingly, a band called themselves The New Pirates was billed to perform the following dates, but it’s not clear who the musicians were.
2 July 1967 (for two weeks) – Blue Lagoon, Newquay, Cornwall (West Briton & Royal Cornish Gazette)
Roger Truth might have been one of the members as he left Freddie Mack at the end of June 1967.
Big thank you to Adrian Barrett, Nick Simper, Ray Soper, John Carroll, Mick Stewart and John Kerrison.
Little is known about this Bristol band, which was originally known as The Denims.
Keyboard player Ray Soper, who hailed from London, remembers that the singer was called Rick. He also recalls that Dudley, the lead guitarist, had previously auditioned for The Small Faces in late 1965.
Soper had worked with several bands before, notably Jeff Curtis & The Flames, but had left in May 1966 to form a new version of The Pirates.
The New Pirates (as they were called) supported Johnny Kidd throughout the summer but Soper stopped playing with the band in August.
Two months later, he joined The Denims who were playing US bases in France. After working in Strasbourg for two months as The Headline News, he returned to the UK in December 1966 and left the band, which carried on working (presumably with a replacement).
In July 1967, Soper found work playing in a band on the Cunard Cruise liner Carmania, which travelled between Southampton and Montreal on a six-week passage.
Marrying a Canadian, he subsequently immigrated to Canada in 1970 and later played with The Dusty Roads Band from his home in Ontario.
We would be interested to hear from anyone who can add more information about The Denims/Headline News in the comments below.
The Snakes, from left: unidentified woman, Cecil Cotten, unidentified man in white coat, Keith Ferguson (on floor), Steve Karnavas (seated in barber’s chair) and Benny Rowe
In 1969, four Texans formed a band in San Francisco known as Benny, Cecil and the Snakes. I believe the group’s name was a take on the popular cartoon, Beany and Cecil the Seasick Sea Serpent by Bob Clampett.
Members were:
Cecil Cotten of the Briks on vocals Benny Rowe of the Wig and a later lineup of the Jackals on lead guitar Steve Karnavas of the Chaparrals on drums Keith Ferguson – previously with Johnny Winter, and later with the Fabulous Thunderbirds, on bass
Keystone Korner, July 1970, photo taken by Fred King, used with permissionThey played parties for for the Rip Off Press and opened shows for Boz Scaggs, including at the Keystone Korner in July of 1970. Reese Wymans and George Raines of Boz’s band would sit in with the Snakes on occasion.
I found a few published notices for the band:
Benny, Cecil and the Snakes shared a bill on July 24, 1970 with Joy of Cooking at the New Orleans House on San Pablo in Berkeley.
They played for a Young Replublicans of Santa Clara event at the Ramada Inn on November 13, 1970!
July 1-4, 1971 they opened for Charlie Musselwhite at In Your Ear, 135 University Avenue in Palo Alto.
In a February 1971 feature in the San Francisco Examiner, Kathy Goss described the band playing a Bastille Day party at the Pacific Heights mansion she shared at 2300 Pacific before it was torn down. The photo at top was taken at this mansion, I believe; the unidentified man in the white coat was a tenant there. It’s worth quoting a small part of that article:
Maurice and Stanford, the owners of a shop that had recently moved from Union Street to upper Fillmore, had a gigantic French flag that they wanted us to hang outside the mansion for Bastille Day. And so we decided to have a Bastille Day party, and to invite not only our personal friends, but also people who we thought would enjoy having their minds blown by a beautiful, free, colorful party. The house was hung with banners of red felt and velvet, the tables were laden with food.
Benny, Cecil and the Snakes, a fine band and good friends of the house, began playing in the late afternoon. The rooms were filled with shifting images and colors of a light show, and we reveled in the blend of wildly costumed guests of all ages and pursuits who danced and talked and generally enjoyed themselves, sharing in the excitement and energy and splendor of the mansion.
Some unreleased tapes exist of rehearsals and live shows, including one that may have been recorded at the Pacific St. mansion.
Thank you to Wm. Lewis Wms for sending the photos that Cecil Cotten shared with him, and for much of the information in this post.
I’d appreciate more info on Benny, Cecil and the Snakes.
The Snakes, from left: Keith Ferguson, Steve Karnavas, Cecil Cotten and Benny Rowe
I have to give a great big thank you to David Else for supplying most of the information on this very obscure band, who featured some fascinating musicians during their short time together.
David Else believes that the original line-up may have come together towards the end of 1965 and may have been formed as a “pick-up” band to play odd gigs.
He has the following line-up and we’d welcome any further information from readers:
Pat Willoughby – vocals
Bobby Harrison – vocals
Keith DeGroot – vocals
Vince ? – vocals
Alan Spenner – guitar
Tex Makins – bass
Roy Edwards – trumpet
Rudy Jones – saxophone
Barry ? – organ
Red Reece – drums
Pat Willoughby, Bobby Harrison and Alan Spenner had previously played together in The Golden Apples of The Sun, recording a lone 45 issued in October 1965. Before that, they had worked together in The Jimmy Ritchie Combo.
Tex Makins and Red Reece meanwhile had been with Georgie Fame & The Blue Flames.
Keith DeGroot had previously worked as singer Gerry Temple.
I believe that Roy Edwards and Rudy Jones may have been from the Caribbean originally and were probably recruited from the London club scene. Edwards may have been with The Del Vikings.
Else notes that Makins left in December 1965 to join The Sidewinders while Harrison formed The Powerpack, who recorded for CBS and was then an original member of Procul Harum. He adds that Reece joined Graham Bond. I’ve read that he worked briefly with south London band, The Kingpins.
A revised line-up of the band comprised the following musicians who were responsible for the band’s lone 45, “Precious Words” c/w “Ba Boo”, released on Island Records in 1966.
Pat Willoughby – vocals
Keith DeGroot – vocals
Alan Spenner – guitar
Roy Edwards – trumpet
Rudy Jones – saxophone
Mike O’Neill – organ
Billy Law – drums (replaced by Bruce Rowland)
Of the new members, Mike O’Neill had previously been a member of Nero & The Gladiators while Billy Law had drummed for Long John Baldry.
David Else found the following gigs for the band, either credited as Creepers, Leapers, Sleepers Band or Leepers Weepers Sleepers Band:
11 September 1966 – Cue Club, Paddington, London (Melody Maker)
23 September 1966 – Cue Club, Paddington, London (Melody Maker)
16 October 1966 – Cue Club, Paddington, London (Melody Maker)
4 November 1966 – Ricky Tick, Hounslow, west London
It’s not clear when the band split, but during 1967 Alan Spenner and Bruce Rowland ended up with Wynder K Frog and later worked with The Grease Band backing Joe Cocker.
DeGroot meanwhile went solo and recorded for RCA Records.
Roy Edwards and Rudy Jones stuck together and somehow ended up in either France or Spain where they worked and recorded with US soul singer Eddie Lee Mattison during 1968. It’s possible that before that, they may have worked with Otis Redding during his 1967 UK tour.
After Eddie Lee Mattison they both spent a very short period playing with Berry Window & The Movements, a Swiss-based international band who were recording in Italy when Edwards and Jones briefly joined them.
Edwards subsequently returned to the UK where he recorded with J J Jackson and then played with Bandwagon and Sonority among others. Jones also returned to the UK and later played with The Trojans among others after working as a noted session player.
Delta Recording Center, aka Delta Studio, Fort Worth, 1965Opening announcement, Nov 23, 1965
Delta Recording Center opened in November 1965 at 910 Currie. It was one of a handful of Fort Worth recording studios in the mid-’60s, including Clifford Herring, Sound City, and Bluebonnet Recording Studios.
Garage rock was only a small part of their business, which would have included much gospel, country and other types of music.
I’m sure there were many other rock singles cut at Delta, but these seem to be definite:
Charay Records C-17 – The Elite – “One Potato” / “Two Potato” Charay Records C-31 – The Elite – “My Confusion” / “I’ll Come to You”
Ector Records 101 – The Jades – “I’m Alright” / “Till I Die” (Prod. & Eng. by Jesse Smith)
Sound Track ST-2000 – The Reasons Why – “Don’t Be That Way” / “Melinda”
November 1966 adJohn D. Maxson from Dallas was owner and engineer, Robert L. Farris, vice president, and John A. Patterson, production manager. It is often referred to as Delta Studio or Delta Recording Studio instead of Delta Recording Center.
Maxson was also part owner of Spot Productions, Inc, at 2831 Bledsoe, which produced TV and radio jingles, breaks, and programming.
Johnny Patterson, guitarist with Bob Wills’ Texas Playboys and other groups, bought the studio in 1969.
By 1973 it was running ads that boasted:
“Ampex and Scully mono, two, four and EIGHT TRACK recorders. When you record at Delta you receive a custom service … from mastering and processing, to labels, album covers, cassettes and cartridges.
In February, 1974 the Star-Telegram announced:
Lawton Williams is the new manager of Delta Recording Center, owned by Rick Snow and Jim Shadle. Johnny Patterson, formerly with the Bob Wills band is chief engineer and directs the house band.
Demos / acetates from Delta Recording:
The Tracks- “Rain in My Eyes” (?) / “Don’t Cut My Hair”
Louis Howard – “You Can Do as You Please” / “Comin’ Home to You”
Louis had a 45 on Impact Records I-4074 with the Red Hearts, “You’re Too Much” / “I’ve Got the Feeling”.
Uncredited band (probably the Creep) at Holiday A-Go-Go, April, 1965
Uncredited band (probably the Creep) at Holiday A-Go-Go, April, 1965The Creep had one fine single, “Betty Lou’s Got a New Tattoo” / “I’m Wise” in 1964.
Both sides are credited to Hobson and Kithas, though the A-side is an adaption of Bobby Freeman’s “Betty Lou Got a New Pair of Shoes”. Still it’s a great performance by the group, and a record I’ve never found.
Members included:
Nick Kithas – sax and vocals John Hobson – guitar Joe Moore – drums
I don’t know the names of any other members yet. I believe Nick sings lead on “I’m Wise”.
The Star-Telegram ran a feature on the Holiday Skating Rink’s Holiday a-Go-Go, mentioning only one group, the Creeps, with Nick Kithas the only member named (and misspelled Kethas). The feature has two unlabeled photos of a band, I assume these are the Creeps, can anyone confirm that?
The notes to Fort Worth Teen Scene vol. 3 states they were also called Creep and the Deacons, and that Homer Sewell engineered and released the 45 on Oakridge Records OK-1. The labels credit Mike Dooley Productions.
Nick Kithas later ran a couple clubs in Fort Worth, Daddio’s and The Jazz Café, and was still playing live as of 2019.
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
