John Neighbour – lead vocals/harp
Frank Torpey – lead guitar
Martin Slavenic – Hammond organ
Dennis Cowan – bass
Malcolm Wolffe – drums
The Tribe were a northwest London band from Kilburn that formed around late 1964 and were notable for featuring future Bonzo Dog Doo Dah Band bass player Dennis Cowan and Frank Torpey, who was the original lead guitarist in The Sweet. Torpey had started out in a band with future Sweet drummer Mick Tucker. Drummer Malcolm Wolffe subsequently played with Happy Magazine and then Geno Washington & The Ram Jam Band.
Regulars at the Ealing Club and the State Ballroom Kilburn, the band gigged widely (see gigs list below) and travelled to Paris twice to play at the Gaff Club. The Tribe also spent a month in Copenhagen, Denmark in spring 1966. Petticoat Magazine ran a short article on them in its 4 June issue (see below).
Signed to Shel Talmy’s Planet label, The Tribe’s debut single was the blues rocker “The Gamma Goochie” c/w “I’m Leaving”, which was produced by John Sullivan and issued on 4 February 1966.
The former can be found on the Big Beat compilation CD Planet Mod while the latter has been included on another CD in the Big Beat series, Planet Beat. Out of interest, Planet Mod also includes the previously unreleased Tribe recording “Don’t Let It Be”, which was cut in March 1966.
After recording a couple of unreleased demo tracks after leaving Planet, including a cover of Edwin Starr’s “Headline News” and a track called “Sometimes You Win, Sometimes You Lose” (the latter at Abbey Road), The Tribe moved to RCA for its second release in May 1967 – the soulful “Love Is a Beautiful Thing” c/w “Steel Guitar and a Glass of Wine”.
That same month, the group landed a three-month residency at the Marquee (and while there played at the exclusive Mayfair club the Scotch of St James a handful of times after finishing up at the Marquee in the evening).
In mid-August, to tap into the burgeoning psychedelic scene, The Tribe changed name to Dream and appeared at the Festival of the Flower Children held at Woburn Festival on 27 August 1967.
When the band broke up in October 1967, Torpey spent a few months with another west London band, Wainwright’s Gentlemen where he worked with soon-to-be Sweet band mates Brian Connolly and Mick Tucker.
Selected gigs:
7 November 1964 – Wilton Hall, Bletchley, Bucks with The Troggs
9 January 1965 – Club A Go Go, Newcastle upon Tyne, Tyne & Wear with Jimmy Powell & The Dimensions
30 March 1965 – Nurses Club, Jolly Gardeners, Isleworth, Middlesex
8 April 1965 – Bromel Club, Bromley Court Hotel, Bromley, southeast London
13 April 1965 – Elms Club, South Harrow, northwest London
2 May 1965 – Ealing Club, Ealing, west London
7 May 1965 – Elms Club, South Harrow, northwest London
11 May 1965 – Elms Club, South Harrow, northwest London
13 May 1965 – Ealing Club, Ealing, west London
14 May 1965 – Elms Club, South Harrow, northwest London
23 May 1965 – Ealing Club, Ealing, west London
25 May 1965 – Elms Club, South Harrow, northwest London
28 May 1965 – Elms Club, South Harrow, northwest London
31 May 1965 – Ealing Club, Ealing, west London
3 June 1965 – Elms Club, South Harrow, northwest London with The CC Riders and Initial Four
3 July 1965 – Club Noreik, Tottenham, north London
6 July 1965 – London Cavern, Holland Park, west London with The Dae ‘B’ Four
13 August 1965 – California Ballroom, Dunstable with Zoot Money’s Big Roll Band and Bern Elliott & The Klan
14 August 1965 – Maple Ballroom, Northampton with The Dragsters
4 September 1965 – Club Dolphin, Luton, Beds
18 September 1965 – Borough Assembly Hall, Aylesbury, Bucks with Johnny Cannon & The Shades
8 October 1965 – Legion Hall, Amersham, Bucks
16 October 1965 – Finstock, Oxfordshire
23 October 1965 – Tackley, Oxfordshire
20 November 1965 – Airport Restaurant, Rochester Airport, Rochester, Kent
22 November 1965 – Drill Hall, Newmarket, Cambridgeshire
9 December 1965 – Ealing Club, Ealing, west London
18 December 1965 – Royal Links Pavilion, Cromer, Norfolk with The Devil’s Coachmen
24 December 1965 – Beachcomber, Nottingham with The Dickens Set
26 December 1965 – The Place, Hanley, Staffordshire with Chris Farlowe & The Thunderbirds and Jimmy Cliff, Ayshea, Pete Hodges and The New Generation (advert says they are from the Marquee)
8 January 1966 – Gala Ballroom, Norwich, Norfolk with The Sneakers
14 January 1966 – Fiesta Hall, Andover, Hampshire (from the Flamingo, Wardour Street, Soho, central London)
5 February 1966 – California Ballroom, Dunstable with The Overlanders and The Amboy Dukes
19 February 1966 – Dreamland, Margate, Kent with The Zombies
26 February 1966 – Marcam Hall, March, Cambridgeshire with The Fenmen
1 April 1966 – Club Continental, Eastbourne, East Sussex
30 April 1966 – Gala Ballroom, Norwich, Norfolk with The Amboy Dukes
10 June 1966 – Il Rondo, Leicester
19 June 1966 – Pavilion Ballroom, Bournemouth, Dorset with The Valiants and The Trackmarks
25 June 1966 – Dreamland, Margate, Kent with St Louis Union
26 June 1966 – Dreamland, Margate, Kent
2 July 1966 – Gala Ballroom, Norwich, Norfolk with Abject Blues
17 July 1966 – Kettering Working Men’s Club, Kettering, Northamptonshire with Brian Poole & The Tremeloes
6 August 1966 – Union Rowing Club, Nottingham
7 August 1966 – Bromel Club, Bromley Court Hotel, Bromley, southeast London
13 August 1966 – ABC Promotions, Public Hall, Heacham, Norfolk with The Zuider Zee
14 August 1966 – Dungeon Club, Nottingham
20 August 1966 – The 7 Club, Wyle Cop, Shrewsbury, Shropshire with Chris Ian
27 August 1966 – Starlight Ballroom, Boston Gliderdrome, Boston, Lincolnshire with The Small Faces, John & Nicky (and group), The Flashbacks and The Ferryboys
2 September 1966 – Dancing Slipper, Nottingham
3 September 1966 – Gaiety, Ramsey, Cambridgeshire with The Eyes of Blond
10 September 1966 – Dorothy Ballroom, Cambridge with Bob Kidman & His Band, The Utopians and The Versions
25 September 1966 – Dungeon Club, Nottingham
30 September 1966 – Elbow Room, Aston, West Midlands
7 October 1966 – Glenlyn Ballroom, Forest Hill, southeast London
15 October 1966 – Royal Links Pavilion, Cromer, Norfolk with New Generation
22 October 1966 – The Flamingo, Wardour Street, Soho, central London with The Savoy Brown Blues Band
2 November 1966 – Gravesend R&B Club, Clarendon Royal Hotel, Gravesend, Kent (Thanks to Andy Neill for providing PACE magazine entry)
5 November 1966 – The Bromel Club, Bromley Court Hotel, Bromley, southeast London (also have them playing at New Spot, Gosport, Hampshire on this day)
6 November 1966 – Bromley Court Hotel, Bromley, southeast London
18 November 1966 – Beaconsfield Youth Club, Beaconsfield, Bucks
19 November 1966 – Union Rowing Club, Nottingham with Fla Makane
2 December 1966 – Dancing Slipper Ballroom, West Bridgeford, Nottingham with Herbie Goins & The Night Timers
3 December 1966 – 76 Club, Burton upon Trent, Staffordshire
15 December 1966 – Flying Fox Club, RAF Cottesmore, Rutland with Davey Sands & The Essex, Marmalade and The Nemkons
17 December 1966 – ABC Promotions, Public Hall, Heacham, Norfolk with The Seasons
19 December 1966 – Kettering Working Men’s Club, Kettering, Northamptonshire with The Missing Links
24 December 1966 – Bath Regency Ballroom, Bath with The First Lites and The Workshop
1 January 1967 – Dungeon Club, Nottingham
7 January 1967 – Il Rondo, Leicester
13 January 1967 – Bicester Youth Centre, Bicester
14 January 1967 – Winter Gardens, Banbury, Warwickshire with The Pride & Passion
14 January 1967 – Flamingo Ballroom, Penzance, Cornwall with The Dissatisfied
16 January 1967 – Kettering Working Men’s Club, Kettering, Northamptonshire
25 January 1967 – Dreamland, Margate, Kent
31 January 1967 – Crayford Town Hall, Crayford, Kent
18 February 1967 – Il Rondo, Leicester
25 February 1967 – Club A Go Go, Newcastle upon Tyne, Tyne & Wear with The Washington DCs
5 March 1967 – Dungeon Club, Nottingham (they might have been replaced by The Army)
8 March 1967 – Eel Pie Island, Twickenham, west London with The Savoy Brown Blues Band
18 March 1967 – New Yorker Discotheque, Swindon, Wiltshire with Sac-0-Woe
25 March 1967 – New Dungeon Club, Nottingham
30 March 1967 – Marquee, London with Marmalade
1 April 1967 – Union Rowing Club, Nottingham
1 April 1967 – Beeches Barn Theatre, Cirencester, Gloucestershire (advert mistakenly says they are from Oxford)
10 April 1967 – Kettering Working Men’s Club, Kettering, Northamptonshire with The Finger Print Set
14 April 1967 – Bluesette, Bridge Street, Leatherhead, Surrey
15 April 1967 – Dreamland Ballroom, Margate, Kent with The Tonicks featuring Joey Young
16 April 1967 – Dreamland Ballroom, Margate, Kent
4 May 1967 – Marquee, Wardour Street, Soho, central London with Marmalade
6 May 1967 – Royal Links Pavilion, Cromer, Norfolk with Chicago Line featuring Mike Patto and The New Generation
26 May 1967 – Slipper, West Bridgford, Nottinghamshire
27 May 1967 – Exeter Eights Week Ball, Oxford University with The Cream, The Other Extreme and The Cabinet
27 May 1967 – St Thomas’ Hall, Brentwood, Essex
3 June 1967 – Bal Tabarin, Downham, southeast London with supporting groups
7 June 1967 – Dungeon Club, Nottingham
9 June 1967 – Union Rowing Club, Nottingham
15 June 1967 – Marquee, Wardour Street, Soho, central London with Marmalade
17 June 1967 – Hull College of Commerce Students’ Union, Hull, Humberside with That Feeling and The Locomotion
24 June 1967 – Il Rondo, Leicester
1 July 1967 – Marquee, Wardour Street, Soho, central London with The Stalkers
2 July 1967 – Dungeon Club, Nottingham
8 July 1967 – Marquee, Wardour Street, Soho, central London with The Love Affair
15 July 1967 – Marquee, Wardour Street, Soho, central London with The Monopoly
22 July 1967 – Marquee, Wardour Street, Soho, central London with Ten Years After
29 July 1967 – Marquee, Wardour Street, Soho, central London with Darlings
5 August 1967 – Marquee, Wardour Street, Soho, central London with The Third Eye
12 August 1967 – Marquee, Wardour Street, Soho, central London with Impact Blues
19 August 1967 – Marquee, Wardour Street, Soho, central London with Nite People
Selected gigs (as Dream)
26 August 1967 – Marquee, Wardour Street, Soho, central London with The Third Eye
27 August 1967 – Festival of the Flower Children, Woburn Abbey, Woburn, Bedfordshire with The Move, Eric Burdon & The New Animals, The Soft Machine and others
2 September 1967 – Marquee, Wardour Street, Soho, central London
9 September 1967 – Marquee, Wardour Street, Soho, central London with Herbal Mixture
16 September 1967 – Marquee, Wardour Street, Soho, central London with The Iveys
23 September 1967 – Marquee, Wardour Street, Soho, central London with Mud
30 September 1967 – Golden Torch, Tunstall, Staffordshire
30 September 1967 – Marquee, Wardour Street, Soho, central London with The Third Eye
21 October 1967 – Dreamland, Margate, Kent with Zoot Money
22 October 1967 – Rendezvous Club, Margate, Kent
These final gigs must have been a different band unless some of the members carried on with the name after Frank Torpey left.
11 December 1967 – Broadway Club, Dudley Zoo with The Probe (see gig poster as they had been on tour)
29 December 1967 – Dreamland, Margate, Kent
Thanks to Frank Torpey, Alec Palao and Bruce Welsh for providing information.
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.
The gigs above were sourced from many sources. I apologise for any sources that are missing but they include Melody Maker, the Middlesex County Times & West Middlesex Gazette, Birmingham Evening Mail, Bucks Free Press, Lynn News, Nottingham Evening Post, Northampton Chronicle, Oxford Mail, Cherwell, Banbury Guardian, Andover Advertiser, Hull Daily Mail, East Kent Times & Mail.
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
