IT'S THE TOMMYKNOCKERS' BEAT CLUB VOLUME 8 - A KNOCK IS AS GOOD AS A HIT (TO A DEAD HORSE)

More uncompiled UK beat rarities from the endless British sixties. Some are even unreleased. Beat wunderbar indeed again...

If it's not on the menue: Go and find an other Wimpy or listen to WYSIWYG!!

01-My Reservations Been Confirmed - Herman's Hermits (Columbia, 66)

02-You're No Good - The Crickets Show Band (Star Club, 65, German-only 7")

03-I Won't Turn Away Now - The Hullaballoos (Roulette, 66, US-7")

04-My Life Ain't Easy - The Equals (President, 67, released on 7" in USA)

05-What Can I Do - The Strangers With Mike Shannon (Philips, 64)

06-Are You Back In My World Now - The Cherokees (Columbia, 64)

07-I'll Go Crazy - The Persuasions (Columbia, 65)

08-I Want You To Want Me - The Shadows (Columbia, 63)

09-Go Away - Trendsetters Ltd. (Parlophone, 64)

10-Love Is A Funny Little Thing - The Creatures (Columbia/CBS, 67, US-7")

11-You Don't Have To Whisper - The Dimensions (Parlophone, 65)

12-La La La - C.M.J. (Mother, 71)

13-Think About The Times - The Times (Columbia, 66)

14-Off The Hook - Tommy Vance (Columbia, 66)

15-I Can't Make Your Way - Paul & Barry Ryan (LP:"Two Of A Kind", Decca,68)

16-Can't Get Through To You - The Honeycombs (Pye, 65)

17-Milkcow Blues - The Presidents (unreleased 64 )

18-Baby Back Now - The Scorpions (CNR, 65, Dutch release)

19-She Was Really Saying Something - The Herd (Parlophone, 65)

20-Time Will Tell (If I'm A Loser) - The Magic Lanterns (CBS, 67)

21-Don't You Dare - The Interns (Philips, 64)

22-The Time It Takes - Alan Dean & His Problems (Decca, 64)

23-Can Your Monkey Do The Dog - Tommy Bruce & The Bruisers (Polydor, 65)

24-And I Do Just What I Want - The Bo Street Runners (Decca, 65)

25-Yes I Do - Pete MacLaine & The Clan (Decca, 63)

26-I Love You - The Graham Bond Organisation (Page One, 67)

27-Love Love Love - The Pathfinders (unreleased 65 Shel Talmy production)

28-Pretty Girls - The Blues Busters (Doctor Bird, 66)

29-Session Man - Five's Company (Pye, 66)

30-I've Just Fallen In Love - The Statesmen (Fontana, 63)

31-Respectable - The Move (unreleased 66)

32-The Friendly Undertaker - The Alleykatz (V.A.-LP:"Ireland's Greatest Sounds, Ember, 66)

33-Cause I Do Care - The Sea-Ders (EP: s.t. Decca, 67)

34-?!?

What, where, when and why not:

Herman's Hermits: Not rare at all - in fact every household should have one - but great, overlooked fuzz-speedbeat, and an apt opener. B-side of "No Milk Today", but few have ever flipped the platter over.+++

The Crickets Showband from Dublin (I should have planned an all Irish volume in its own right, me thinks...) didn't really bring the house down when they played the Star Club, but they were given the chance to record a single for the in-house label nevertheless. "You're No Good", better known in the superior version of the Swinging Blue Jeans, was written by Clint Ballard, Jr., who also wrote "Game Of Love" and "I'm Alive". It was a hit for Betty Everett and later for Linda Ronstadt.+++

Here's another 45 by Hull's Hullaballoos, who spent most of their career in the States.+++

One of the best songs of The Equals was hidden as a filler on the first LP. In the States "My Life Ain't Easy" at least made it to b-side status.+++

The Strangers with Mike Shannon again (see vol.2). Nothing knew about the origins of the group, but here you can listen to the flip of the follow-up to "One And One Is Two".+++

The Cherokees from Leeds, who later mutated to New York Public Library, only had one minor hit, "7 Golden Daffodils", which could have made it bigger, hadn't The Mojos put it out simultaneously. Here's the b-side.+++

The Persuasions started as Terry Anton & The Rhythm Rockers before the first change of name. As The Wackers they recorded 45s for Oriole and Pye. In '65 they caught the soul-virus and recorded three "soul-punk" singles for Columbia as The Persuasions. James Brown's "I'll Go Crazy" has been covered a hundred times around the world, but this version KNOCKS out (not only) all other Tommies.+++

The underestimated Shadows... Can't quite see why they're always labelled as a mere instrumental group or the appendix of Cliff. Man, could they sing. Even like Buddy Holly...+++

With the League of Gentlemen (Fripp) and The Shame (Lake) we already had two of the sources of King Crimson. Here's the third: Trendsetters Ltd. from Bournemouth, a band with four unsuccsessful singles on Parlophone, had brothers Mike and Pete Giles in the ranks. "Go Away", a Alan Hawkshaw composition, was also recorded by The Classmates.+++

Dublin's Creatures already had a couple of tracks on Tommyknockers, and a few others will follow. They started as The Hootenannys and travelled to the USA in '66, where they recorded most of their 45s. "Love is..." is the flip of "Hurtin' All Over" (see vol.2), the only of four singles which had no Irish or UK release.+++

The Dimensions from Merseyside only had this 7", which, though uncredited on the label, was produced by George Martin.+++

C.M.J. stands for Chris Cook-Murf Murfin-John Haithwaite. They started in Worcester and recorded a single, an EP and an LP for the tiny Impression label from '65 to '69. (see "Return Of The Amphetamine Generation" and "Syde Trips" vol.4). Their last sign of life was this 45 for the even tinier Mother label in '71. "La La La" is a meaty, beaty, big and bouncy cover of the Blendells' hit, which made the lower regions of the German charts in the version of The Rattles back in '65.+++

Not much known about The Times, who had two singles on Columbia. According to "Tapestry Of Delight" they were " a seven-piece from Manchester". If so, two or three of them must have been pantomiming, and the relevant Manchester specialists seem to know nothing of the group. Anyway, here comes the other side of the brilliant "Tomorrow Night", which was comped on "Basement Beat "vol1.+++

Tommy Vance from Oxfordshire was a famous DJ, who worked for pirates like Radio Caroline and Radio London, before he joined Radio Luxembourg and later BBC 1, where he was one of the presenters of Top Gear. Later on he developed a fondness for boring heavy metal, but that's another story. He died in 2005. In '66 he had tried his luck as a performer with two singles for Columbia, but made little impression. This somewhat over-orchestrated version of The Stones' "Off The Hook" was his best effort by far.+++

Here's another choice cut from Paul & Barry Ryan's (see vol.5) best album "Two Of A Kind". Brilliant rendition of one of The Yardbirds' finest originals.+++

The Honeycombs with female drummer Honey Lantree were Joe Meek's most succsessful proteges in the mid-60s, but they hardly ever rocked. Here they do like there'd be no tomorrow...+++

The Presidents from Surrey only had one 45 for Decca before they disbanded in '65. But they recorded a couple of extra tracks in the studio with Glyn Jones twiddling the knobs. Here's one of these.+++

Read about Manchester's Scorpions on vol.5. This is another one of their numerous Continental-only singles.+++The Herd had some pretty modish 45s before they went the bombastic underworld and lost paradise. This is a version of a Tamla Motown classic first recorded by The Velvelettes and then by The Marvelettes.+++

The Magic Lanterns from Warrington had five fine, but flopping 45s for CBS, before they changed the label and made it comparatively big in America with the lacklustre "Shame Shame". "Time Will Tell" is the fourth of these.+++

The Interns originally came from South Wales, but settled down in London in the early 60s. "Don't You Dare" was the first of four singles from '64 to'67.+++

We've already met Alan Dean & His Problems on vol.2. This is the other side of "Dizzy Heights". They had one more 7" on Pye before they called it a day in'65.+++

Tommy Bruce started recording in 1960, and had a lot of releases with and without The Bruisers. On most of his records he sounds more like a crooner in a comedy act, but he really lets it all hang out on his only 7" for Polydor, where he gives a credible interpretation of the Rufus Thomas number that later inspired The Cramps a bit.+++

The Bo Street Runners seemed to make it big when they won the "Ready Steady Win" competition in '64, but permanent line-up changes led to a mish-mash of styles that left the fans puzzled after each new release. Starting as a straight London R&B band on the Decca debut, they had a pick at jazzy soul music with this here record, that had James Brown covers on both sides, just to follow up with a pure pop single and then a pretty heavy proto-prog Beatles cover as the swansong in '66.+++

Pete MacLaine (real name: Pete Whetton) & The Clan from Manchester only recorded one 7", but reunited in in the early years of the new millennium, and still play some gigs these days.+++

Here's the last 45 of The Graham Bond Organisation, the one after Bruce and Baker went to form Cream, and the only one with Jon Hiseman on drums.+++

We've had The Pathfinders on vols. 2 and 4 with regular releases. Here is an unreleased '65 Shel Talmy production of the band from Birkenham.+++

Next is another little excursion to 60s ska territory. Now and then you can find some great R&B renditions on most of the notorious ska and blue beat label. The Blues Busters, who are backed here by Byron Lee & The Dragonaires, were Philip James and Lloyd Campbell who came from Jamaica and recorded numerous 45s for various labels. For this b-side on Doctor Bird they chose a often covered song by Eugene Church . Notable 60s versions came from Otis Spann, The V.I.P.s and The Walker Brothers.+++Awright, so this 7" by Five's Company has already been comped somewhere. But I don't want to shredder the tracklist yet another time, and I just couldn't resist to continue our tradition of presenting Kinks covers once in a while. And a real good version this is! The band had three singles, the most prominent member was Bob Brunning, who played bass for Fleetwood Mac and Savoy Brown in the founding days of both bands, and went on to form his own Brunning Sunflower Blues Band soon after.+++

Manchester's Statesmen released two singles. I haven' heard the first one on Decca yet, but I can offer the second on Fontana.+++The Move obviously used to be real mods in their very early days. This is an unreleased studio demo from the audition tapes. An Isley Brothers number better known in the versions of The Yardbirds and The Cheynes.+++

The Alleykatz from Belfast never had a single, but they contributed two cuts to an LP called "Ireland's Greatest Sounds - Five Groups From Belfast's Maritime Club". This '66 comp was eagerly plundered for the "Belfast Beat - Maritime Blues" CD in 1997. Due to time limitations two of the tracks from the LP didn't make it to the CD. This is one of them. (No, not of Them!).+++

The Sea-Ders were a group from Lebanon, who, after a local hit, were invited to come to London and record for Decca. They never made the charts and returned disillusioned and broke to their home shores after about 14 months, but they recorded an EP and three wonderful singles, the last two under the more appropriate name The Cedars. "Cause I Do Care" is one of two tracks on the EP that haven't been released as a seperate single. ___ Now we're half through with the knockers. Stay tuned. It's a dirty job, but someone's gotta do it. Compiled and executed by The Dirty Robbers: The Lolly Pope & Westfauster.

TOMMYKNOCKERS VOLUME EIGHT

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