The Soul Sisters were an American soul duet consisting of Thresia Cleveland-Fitch and Ann Gissendanner, who recorded for Sue Records. They first toured Britain in 1964 and then returned in 1965 followed by three tours between late 1966 and late 1967.
Record Retailer and Music Industry News’ 3 September 1964 issue reports that Sue recording artistes The Soul Sisters will visit Britain on 10 November for a week of TV, radio and club dates. The music paper says the duo toured with Manfred Mann from 17-23 November and were backed by The Spencer Davis Group.
Melody Maker reports that The Soul Sisters arrived in Britain on 28 May 1965 for their second tour and were backed on all dates by The Brian Auger Trinity (there is a CD of recordings).
The following tour dates are incomplete
Tour dates:
28 May 1965 – Flamingo, Wardour Street, Soho, central London with Geno Washington & The Ram Jam Band (two sessions, including an all-nighter) (Melody Maker)
2 June 1965 – Bromel Club, Bromley Court Hotel, Bromley Hill, southeast London (Melody Maker)
5 June 1965 – Cromwellian, South Kensington, west London (Melody Maker)
5 June 1965 – Flamingo, Wardour Street, Soho, central London (two sessions including an all-nighter) (Melody Maker)
16 June 1965 – Flamingo, Wardour Street, Soho, central London (Melody Maker) Says last London appearance
In late 1966, The Soul Sisters returned to Britain for their third tour, booked by promoter Roy Tempest.
It looks like Tempest used a number of bands to support the duo, including the Victoria, Vancouver Island, British Columbia outfit, The Canadians who at the time comprised: Bobby Faulds (vocals); David Foster (keyboards/vocals); Mike Stymest (bass); Wes Chambers (sax); Rich England (sax); Billy Stewart (trumpet/trombone); and Barry Casson (drums).
During December, The Canadians backed The Original Drifters on a tour, so it’s not clear whether they would have been available for the first three London gigs and the Manchester show below.
The following tour dates are incomplete
Tour dates:
30 December 1966 – New All-Star Club, Artillery Passage, Bishopsgate, east London (Melody Maker)
30 December 1966 – Flamingo, Wardour Street, Soho, central London with The Broodly Hoo (Melody Maker)
30 December 1966 – Cue Club, Praed Street, Paddington, west London (Melody Maker)
31 December 1966 – Twisted Wheel, Manchester with The Alan Bown Set and Cock a Hoops (Manchester Evening News & Chronicle)
31 December 1966 – Cavern, Liverpool with The Prowlers, The Beechwoods, The Tatters, The States, The Klubs, The Kids, The Signs, The Times, The Hideaways, The Shades and The Canadians (Liverpool Echo) Most likely backed by The Canadians
1 January 1967 – Oasis, Manchester with Steve Aldo & The Fix (Manchester Evening News & Chronicle) Possibly backed by The Fix
1 January 1967 – Warmingham Grange Country Club, Warmingham, Cheshire (Chester Chronicle) Possibly backed by The Canadians
6 January 1967 – Princess Theatre, Chorlton, Greater Manchester (Manchester Evening News & Chronicle) Backed by The Statesiders (not the west London group)
6 January 1967 – Domino Club, Openshaw, Greater Manchester (Manchester Evening News & Chronicle) Backed by The Statesiders
7 January 1967 – Starlight Ballroom, Gliderdrome, Boston, Lincolnshire with Jimmy James & The Vagabonds (Lincolnshire Echo) Possibly backed by The Canadians
8 January 1967 – Kirklevington Country Club, Kirklevington, North Yorkshire (Middlesbrough Evening Gazette) Backed by The Canadians
11 January 1967 – Whisky A Go Go, Wardour Street, Soho, central London (Melody Maker) Possibly backed by The Canadians
12 January 1967 – Carlton Ballroom, Erdington, West Midlands with Erskine The T (Birmingham Evening Mail) Possibly backed by The Statesiders
13 January 1967 – Il Rondo, Leicester with The Puppets (Leicester Mercury) Possibly backed by The Statesiders
14 January 1967 – Plebians, Cheapside, Halifax, West Yorkshire (Halifax Evening Courier & Guardian)
14 January 1967 – King Mojo, Sheffield, South Yorkshire (all-nighter) (www.kingmojostory.com)
15 January 1967 – Starlite Ballroom, Greenford, northwest London with Carl Douglas & The Big Stampede (Melody Maker)
The Newham & Stratford Express newspaper’s 28 April 1967 issue notes that The Trend are backing The Soul Sisters on a two-week tour (their fourth British tour), arranged by Roy Tempest. It’s most likely they provided backing on most of the tour although they did leave for West Germany before the tour ended.
At this point, The Trend comprised Norman Cummins (lead guitar/vocals); Michael Claxton (keyboards/vocals); Phil Duke (bass); and Frankie Morgan (drums).
It’s possible that west London group, The Sovereigns completed the tour after The Trend left Britain. An advert in the Nottingham Evening Post for The Sovereigns’ gig at the Dungeon in Nottingham on 16 July lists them as Soul Sisters’ backing group.
Originally from Hillingdon, The Sovereigns comprised Roy St John-Foster (vocals); Pip Williams (lead guitar); Mick Tomich (bass); Brian Johnston (keyboards); Freddie Tillyer (sax); and Keith Franklin (drums).
The following tour dates are incomplete
Tour dates:
30 March 1967 – Golden Torch, Tunstall, Staffordshire (Evening Sentinel) This date seems unlikely considering the gap between it and the second show
14 April 1967 – Harvest Moon Club, Guildford, Surrey (Aldershot News/Reading Evening Post) Most likely backed by The Trend
15 April 1967 – Starlight Ballroom, Boston Gliderdrome, Boston, Lincolnshire with The Symbols, Root and Jenny Jackson, The Hightimers and The Caribbean Steel Band (Nottingham Evening Post/Spalding Guardian) Most likely backed by The Trend
18 April 1967 – Dungeon, Nottingham with supporting group (Nottingham Evening Post) Most likely backed by The Trend
21 April 1967 – Tiles, Oxford Street, central London with The Love Affair (Newham & Stratford Express) Definitely backed by The Trend/confirmed by Michael Claxton’s picture of the band with the two singers at the club
22 April 1967 – Birdcage, Eastney, Portsmouth, Hampshire with The Bizarre (David Allen Research) Allen confirms The Trend were backing band but originally The Senate were billed
22 April 1967 – Speakeasy, Margaret Street, central London (Newham & Stratford Express) Backed by The Trend
26 April 1967 – Sibyllas, Swallow Street, central London (Newham & Stratford Express) Backed by The Trend
27 April 1967 – Golden Torch, Tunstall, Staffordshire with The Toggery and The Canadians (Evening Sentinel) Final gig backed by The Trend who drive to West Berlin after the show, according to Michael Claxton
28 April 1967 – California Ballroom, Dunstable, Bedfordshire with Barry Noble & The Sapphires (Melody Maker/http://www.california-ballroom.info/gigs/) Possibly backed by The Sovereigns
29 April 1967 – Blue Moon, Cheltenham, Gloucestershire (Worcester News) Possibly backed by The Sovereigns
29 April 1967 – New All-Star Club, Artillery Passage, Bishopsgate, east London (Melody Maker) Possibly backed by The Sovereigns
30 April 1967 – Warmingham Grange Country Club, Warmingham, Cheshire with American backing band and Harry Brown Sound (Chester Chronicle/Crewe Chronicle) Possibly backed by The Sovereigns
For The Soul Sisters’ fifth British tour, it looks like The Clockwork Oranges, who’d previously backed The Fabulous Temptations (aka The Fantastics) and Garnet Mimms did most of the backing. However, The Trend did play some shows.
Pip Williams, guitarist with The Clockwork Oranges (previously The Sovereigns) confirms they backed The Soul Sisters.
By this point, The Clockwork Oranges comprised Roy St John-Foster (vocals); Pip Williams (lead guitar); Ron Thomas (bass); Brian Johnston (keyboards); Freddie Tillyer (sax); and Keith Franklin (drums)
At this stage, The Trend had also undergone some personnel changes. The line-up now comprised Norman Cummins (lead guitar/vocals); Cliff Reuter (keyboards); Pete Cole (bass/vocals); and Frankie Morgan (drums). It’s also possible that Bob Mather (sax) from The Senate may have joined by this point or during the tour.
The following tour dates are incomplete
Tour dates:
5 October 1967 – Skyline Ballroom, Hull, Humberside with Clockwork Orange, Duane Eddy, Bobby & The Rebels, Garnet Mimms and The Senate (Hull Daily Mail) Backed by The Clockwork Oranges
6 October 1967 – Paradise Club, Wigan, Lancashire with Earl Preston’s Reflections and The Millers (Liverpool Echo)
7 October 1967 – Royal Lido, Prestayn, Wales with The Raynes (Chester Chronicle)
7 October 1967 – Whisky A Go Go, Manchester with The Clockwork Oranges (Manchester Evening News & Chronicle) Backed by The Clockwork Oranges
8 October 1967 – Vaudeville & Georgian, Salford, Greater Manchester with backing group (Manchester Evening News & Chronicle) The Clockwork Oranges backed Garnet Mimms in Barnsley on this date
10 October 1967 – The Place, Hanley, Staffordshire with The Silverstone Set (Evening Sentinel)
11 October 1967 – Nite Owl, Leicester with The Clockwork Orange (Leicester Mercury) Backed by The Clockwork Oranges
12 October 1967 – Whisky A Go Go, Wardour Street, Soho, central London (Melody Maker) Pip Williams confirms that The Clockwork Oranges backed the singers at this show
13 October 1967 – California Ballroom, Dunstable, Bedfordshire with The Crew (http://www.california-ballroom.info/gigs/)
14 October 1967 – Starlight Ballroom, Boston Gliderdrome, Boston, Lincolnshire with The Tages, The Amboy Dukes and The Clockwork Oranges (Lincolnshire Echo) Backed by The Clockwork Oranges
The John Peel Wiki page notes that The Soul Sisters backed by The Clockwork Orange(s) recorded a Peel session on 16 October, which was first broadcast on 22 October. The Clockwork Orange(s) cut two tracks separately: “Three Time Loser” and “Bring Me Home Love”. Five other tracks were cut with The Soul Sisters – “You Got ‘em Beat Baby”, “Hold On”, “Blueberry Hill”, “Soulful Dress” and “I Can’t Stand It”.
17 October 1967 – The Place, Hanley, Staffordshire (Evening Sentinel)
20 October 1967 – Princess Theatre, Chorlton, Greater Manchester with The Trend, The Isley Brothers and Clockwork Oranges (Manchester Evening News & Chronicle) Backed by The Trend unless they backed Isley Brothers
20 October 1967 – Domino Club, Openshaw, Greater Manchester with The Trend, The Isley Brothers and Clockwork Oranges (Manchester Evening News & Chronicle) Backed by The Trend unless they backed Isley Brothers
21 October 1967 – Upper Cut, Forest Gate, east London with Ben E King (Melody Maker) Backed by The Trend unless The Clockwork Oranges backed both Ben E King and The Soul Sisters
22 October 1967 – The Hub, Barnsley, West Yorkshire with The Pitiful Souls (Barnsley Chronicle & South Yorkshire News) Backed by The House of Orange (aka The Clockwork Oranges)
22 October 1967 – The Place, Wakefield, West Yorkshire (Barnsley Chronicle & South Yorkshire News) Backed by The House of Orange (aka The Clockwork Oranges)
We’d welcome any further information that readers can provide in the comments below