The Rubettes are an English pop/glam rock band put together in 1974 after the release of "Sugar Baby Love", a recording assembled of studio session musicians in 1973 by the songwriting team of Wayne Bickerton, the then head of A&R at Polydor Records, and his co-songwriter, Tony Waddington after their doo-wop and 1950s American pop-influenced songs had been rejected by a number of existing acts. Waddington paired the group with manager John Morris, the husband of singer Clodagh Rodgers and under his guidance, the band duly emerged at the tail end of the glam rock movement, wearing trademark white suits and cloth caps on stage. Their first release, "Sugar Baby Love" was an instant hit remaining at number one in the United Kingdom for four weeks in May 1974, while reaching number 37 on the US chart that August, and remains their best-known record. Subsequent releases were to be less successful, but the band continued to tour well into the 2000s with two line-ups in existence.
Gerry and the Pacemakers were an English beat group prominent in the 1960s Merseybeat scene. In common with the Beatles, they came from Liverpool, were managed by Brian Epstein and recorded by George Martin. Their early successes helped make popular the Merseybeat sound and launch the wider British beat boom of the mid-1960s.
Herman's Hermits are an English rock and pop group formed in 1963 in Manchester and fronted by singer Peter Noone. Known for their jaunty beat sound and Noone's often tongue-in-cheek vocal style, the Hermits charted with numerous transatlantic hits in the UK and in America, where they ranked as one of the most successful acts in the Beatles-led British Invasion. Between March and August 1965 in the United States, the group logged twenty-four consecutive weeks in the Top Ten of Billboard's Hot 100 with five singles, including the two number ones "Mrs. Brown You've Got a Lovely Daughter" and "I'm Henry VIII, I Am".
The Fatback Band is an American funk and disco band that was popular in the 1970s and 1980s. The Fatback Band is most known for their R&B hits: "(Do the) Spanish Hustle", "I Like Girls", "Gotta Get My Hands on Some (Money)", "Backstrokin'" and "I Found Lovin'".
The Boomtown Rats are an Irish new wave band originally formed in Dublin in 1975. Between 1977 and 1985, they had a series of Irish and UK hits including "Like Clockwork", "Rat Trap", "I Don't Like Mondays" and "Banana Republic". The original line-up comprised six musicians; five from Dún Laoghaire in County Dublin; Gerry Cott, Simon Crowe (drums), Johnnie Fingers (keyboards), Bob Geldof (vocals) and Garry Roberts, plus Fingers' cousin Pete Briquette (bass). The Boomtown Rats broke up in 1986, but reformed in 2013, without Fingers or Cott. Garry Roberts died in 2022. The band's fame and notability have been overshadowed by the charity work of frontman Bob Geldof, a former journalist with the New Musical Express.
The Dazz Band is an American R&B/funk band most popular in the early 1980s. Emerging from Cleveland, Ohio, the group's biggest hit songs include "Let It Whip" (1982), "Joystick" (1983), and "Let It All Blow" (1984). The name of the band is a portmanteau of the description "danceable jazz".
Peter Blair Denis Bernard Noone is an English singer-songwriter, guitarist, pianist and actor. He was the lead singer "Herman" in the 1960s pop group Herman's Hermits.
Showaddywaddy are a rock and roll group from Leicester, England. They specialise in revivals of hit songs from the 1950s and early 1960s, while also issuing original material. They have spent 209 weeks on the UK Singles Chart, and have had 10 Top Ten singles, one reaching number one.
Colin David Tooley, better known as Carl Wayne, was an English singer and actor. He is best remembered as the lead singer of The Move, a group that he co-founded in 1965. He sings lead on several of the band's hits, such as "Curly", "Flowers in the Rain", "I Can Hear the Grass Grow", and "Night of Fear".
Hot Chocolate are a British soul band popular during the 1970s and 1980s, formed by Errol Brown and Tony Wilson. The group had at least one hit song every year on the UK Singles Chart from 1970 to 1984.
Argent were an English rock band formed in 1969 by former Zombies keyboardist Rod Argent. They had three UK Top 40 singles: "Hold Your Head Up", which reached No. 5 and spent 12 weeks on the chart, "Tragedy", and "God Gave Rock and Roll to You". Two of their albums charted in the UK: All Together Now, which peaked at No. 13 in 1972, and In Deep, which spent one week at No. 49 in 1973.
Pilot are a Scottish rock group, formed in 1973 in Edinburgh by David Paton and Billy Lyall. They achieved considerable mainstream success during 1974–1975, primarily with the release of "Magic" which reached number one in Canada, five on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100, six in Ireland and eleven in the United Kingdom. Follow up single "January" released in 1975 reached number one in Australia, Ireland and the United Kingdom, as well as reaching eighty-seven in the United States. In the United Kingdom, "January" was awarded a Silver certification from the BPI.
"Heartbeat" is a rockabilly song originally recorded by Bob Montgomery and credited to Norman Petty. It was recorded most famously by Buddy Holly in 1958. The B-side of the single was "Well... All Right". "Heartbeat" reached the UK top 10 twice: once in 1975 for Showaddywaddy at number seven and again in 1992 for Nick Berry, recorded as the theme to the television series Heartbeat, which reached number two.
Mike Pender's Searchers contains lead singer and guitarist Mike Pender, formerly of The Searchers. Pender left The Searchers in December 1985 hoping to explore new musical directions while preserving the classic 12-string guitar style that he helped to popularise. Mike Pender's Searchers showcase the classic hits from Pender's many years with The Searchers in addition to his all-new material and a blend of popular rock standards by classic artists such as Buddy Holly, The Drifters and Roy Orbison.
Mike Holoway is a British musician and actor. He was the drummer and percussionist in Flintlock and at the same time became an actor, notably in the cult TV series The Tomorrow People.
Derek Pascoe is a British musician now based in Adelaide, South Australia. He was the vocalist and saxophonist in pop band Flintlock in the 1970s. He is a member of the jazz performance academic staff of the Elder Conservatorium of Music and has collaborated with a number of musicians in musical and spoken word performances.
"I'm into Something Good" is a song composed by Gerry Goffin (lyrics) and Carole King (music) and made famous by Herman's Hermits. The song was originally recorded by Cookies member Earl-Jean on Colpix Records in 1964. Her version entered the U.S. Cash Box Top 100 charts in the US on 4 July 1964 and spent eight weeks there, reaching a high of number 42 on 15 August 1964, and number 38 Billboard.
"I Like It" is the second single by Liverpudlian band Gerry and the Pacemakers. Like Gerry Marsden's first number one "How Do You Do It", it was written by Mitch Murray. The song reached number one in the UK Singles Chart on 20 June 1963, where it stayed for four weeks. It reached No. 17 in the American charts in 1964.
The Glitter Band are a glam rock band from England, who initially worked as Gary Glitter's backing band under that name from 1973, when they then began releasing records of their own. They were unofficially known as the Glittermen on the first four hit singles by Gary Glitter from 1972 to 1973.
Leslie Charles Maguire was an English musician who was a principal member of the Merseybeat band Gerry and the Pacemakers from 1961 to 1966.
