John Summerton

Last updated
John Summerton
Born (1961-01-10) 10 January 1961 (age 63)
Essex, England, UK
GenresRock, pop
Instrument(s)Guitar, vocals
Years active1970s–present
Member of Herman's Hermits
Formerly of

John Summerton (born 10 January 1961 [1] ) is an English guitarist and vocalist. He was the guitarist for Flintlock in the 1970s.

Contents

Career

Flintlock

Summerton's career began in the late 1960s with the group Flintlock. [2] The group began under the name The Young Revivals, formed by John and drummer Mike Holoway, when Summerton was eleven years old, but after two years changed their name to Flintlock. They came to national attention in the mid-1970s through regular appearances on the British children's television programmes You Must Be Joking [3] and Pauline's Quirkes , the latter hosted by the then teenage actress Pauline Quirke.

Flintlock also appeared on programmes such as Blue Peter , Magpie and Top of the Pops , and their own programme Fanfare. The bands other members were: Derek Pascoe (vocals/saxophone), Mike Holoway (drums/percussion), Jamie Stone (bass/vocals), and Bill Rice (keyboards). [4] Their only charting song was "Dawn" in 1976. The song peaked at number 30 on the UK singles chart. [5] Flintlock disbanded after two tours in Japan in 1980. [6] According to Summerton, the main reason for the bands sudden end was due to the rise of punk music. [3] As a result of the band having a one-hit wonder status and having many television appearances to their name, Summerton has described Flintlock as a "TV band", comparing them to The Monkees. [3]

Post-Flintlock

Afterwards, he spent a number of years working in the business. From June 1987 to October 1999, he was a service technician. He appeared with Flintlock for a one-off reunion concert in 2007. On stage, Summerton has performed with the likes of Gary Brooker (vocalist for Procol Harum), and John Illsley (bass guitarist for Dire Straits). [6]

In 2018, he joined The Rubettes featuring Bill Hurd to accompany them on a few tours around Europe. [6] After the European tours were finished, John left Bill Hurd's Rubettes to join Gerry's Pacemakers, [7] the new version of Gerry and the Pacemakers that carried on after Marsden's retirement and death. [2]

In 2019, Summerton played on stage alongside Elliott Randall of Steely Dan at the "Giants of Rock" music festival at Butlin's in 2019. [8] [9] In January 2023, Summerton joined Herman's Hermits, [10] [6] replacing Geoff Foot. Outside of working in bands, he runs a Music Academy and recording studio (Basildon Studios [3] ) in Essex, [2] which he first opened in June 2009.

Summerton has often played at the Isle of Wight Festival with different groups. [3] In 2023, Summerton played at a charity event in the Isle of Wight. [3] [11] Summerton's influences include Jeff Beck; Summerton praises Beck's works on his 1975 album Blow by Blow. [3]

Personal life

Born in Essex, John Summerton attended Erkenwald Comprehensive School from 1971 to 1977. He now lives in Billericay with his wife Teresa.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Rubettes</span> English pop band

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.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Steely Dan</span> American rock band

Steely Dan is an American rock band founded in 1971 in New York by Walter Becker and Donald Fagen. Originally having a full band lineup, by the end of 1974 Becker and Fagen chose to stop playing live and continue Steely Dan as a studio-only duo, utilising a revolving cast of session musicians. Rolling Stone has called them "the perfect musical antiheroes for the seventies".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gerry and the Pacemakers</span> British band

Gerry and the Pacemakers were a British beat group prominent in the 1960s Merseybeat scene. In common with the Beatles, they came from Liverpool, were managed by Brian Epstein, and were recorded by George Martin. Their early successes alongside the Beatles were instrumental in popularizing the Merseybeat sound and launching the wider British beat boom of the mid-1960s.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Herman's Hermits</span> English beat rock band

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".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Peter Noone</span> English singer-songwriter and actor

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.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ric Lee</span> English drummer

Richard "Ric" Lee is an English drummer of the blues rock band Ten Years After.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Alan Moore (drummer)</span> British musician

Alan "Skip" Moore is a British musician who is best known for his time as drummer of the heavy metal band Judas Priest. He played on their second album, Sad Wings of Destiny (1976).

Flintlock were a 1970s pop group from Essex, England. Its members were Derek Pascoe (vocals/saxophone), Mike Holoway (drums/percussion), Jamie Stone (bass/vocals), John Summerton (guitar/vocals) and Bill Rice (keyboards).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sugar Baby Love</span> 1974 single by The Rubettes

"Sugar Baby Love", recorded in autumn 1973 and released in January 1974, is a bubblegum pop song, and the debut single of the Rubettes. Written by Wayne Bickerton and Tony Waddington and produced by Bickerton, engineered by John Mackswith at Lansdowne Recording Studios, and with lead vocals by Paul Da Vinci, "Sugar Baby Love" was the band's one and only number one single on the UK Singles Chart, spending four weeks at the top of the chart in May 1974.

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.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Alex Ligertwood</span> Scottish singer, guitarist and drummer

Alexander John Ligertwood is a Scottish singer, guitarist and drummer.

Andy Kerr is a Canadian-born musician, originally from British Columbia and currently residing in Amsterdam, the Netherlands. Kerr is best known as the former guitarist, frequent vocalist, and co-songwriter in the progressive punk rock/punk jazz band NoMeansNo. He has also recorded and performed as a solo artist, and his current group is Two Pin Din.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Les Maguire</span> British pianist (1941–2023)

Leslie Charles Maguire was an English musician who was a principal member of the Merseybeat band Gerry and the Pacemakers from 1961 to 1966.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gary Howard</span> British musician (born 1955)

Gary William Howard is a British musician, best known as a member of the a cappella group The Flying Pickets.

Anthony Wilson is a Trinidadian vocalist, bass guitarist and songwriter, best known for his time with soul and funk band Hot Chocolate. He co-wrote the Hot Chocolate hits "Love Is Life", "Emma", "Brother Louie" and "You Sexy Thing".

Colin William Manley was an English rock guitarist and singer. He was the lead singer for The Remo Four and later a guitarist for The Swinging Blue Jeans from 1977 until his death in 1999.

Sixties Gold is a yearly tour based in the UK, that has a revolving lineup of singers and bands from the 1960s decade of music. Many of the acts were a part of the British Invasion phenomenon.

Tony Young is a British keyboardist. He was the keyboardist for Gerry and the Pacemakers for over twenty years, from 1996 to 2018.

References

  1. ↑ "John SUMMERTON personal appointments - Find and update company information - GOV.UK". find-and-update.company-information.service.gov.uk. Retrieved 2024-04-28.
  2. 1 2 3 "The Band – Gerry's Pacemakers" . Retrieved 2023-12-24.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 "John Summerton - Guitarist and Vocalist with Flintlock & The Rubettes".
  4. ↑ "Flintlock - Relationships - MusicBrainz". musicbrainz.org. Retrieved 2024-04-28.
  5. ↑ "FLINTLOCK". Official Charts. 1976-05-29. Retrieved 2024-04-28.
  6. 1 2 3 4 "Band Members – Herman's Hermits" . Retrieved 2023-12-24.
  7. ↑ "Retunesday in July: John Summerton, The Blue Highways and The Sugarcoated Sisters on Retune bill at South Mill Arts". 24 December 2023.
  8. ↑ Elliot Randall Reeling in the Years ( Steely Dan ) , with me on vocals at Giants of Rock 2019 . Retrieved 2024-04-29– via www.youtube.com.
  9. ↑ "GIANTS OF ROCK FESTIVAL, BUTLINS MINEHEAD". www.metaltalk.net. 2014-04-28. Retrieved 2024-04-29.
  10. ↑ "Herman's Hermits".
  11. ↑ Highlights from the White Gates set at the Tower Party, Isle of Wight, July 2023. This year this charity event supported Cure Parkinson's.... | By The White Gates BandFacebook . Retrieved 2024-04-28– via www.facebook.com.

Additional

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.