The Merseybeats
Encyclopedia
The Merseybeats are a Merseybeat
band
that emerged from the Liverpool
scene in the early 1960s, performing at The Cavern Club
along with The Beatles
, Gerry & The Pacemakers
and other similar artists.
The current line-up is: Tony Crane (founder member) lead vocals and lead guitar
; Billy Kinsley
(founder member) lead vocals and rhythm guitar
; Bob Packham (joined 1974) backing vocals and bass guitar
(born Robert Packham, 17 July 1944, Anfield
, Liverpool) (ex The Galvinsers); Dave Goldberg keyboards
and lead guitar; and Lou Rosenthal (also joined 2000) drum
s.
(born William Ellis Kinsley, 28 November 1946, at The Mill Road Hospital, Mill Road, Everton, Liverpool) formed their first band in late 1960 and became The Pacifics in September 1961. They were re-named The Mersey Beats in February 1962 by Bob Wooler
, MC
at the Cavern Club. Later in April 1962 they became The Merseybeats. By now Crane and Kinsley had joined up with guitarist Aaron Williams (born 23 June 1942, Liverpool) and drummer John Banks (born 23 September 1943, Liverpool - died 20 April 1988).
They signed a recording contract
with Fontana
and had their first hit
single
in 1963 with "It's Love That Really Counts", followed in 1964 by their million-selling recording "I Think of You" which gained them their first gold disc. They suffered a setback when in February 1964 Billy Kinsley left to form his own band, The Kinsleys. He was temporarily replaced by Bob Garner (later of The Creation
) and permanently by Johnny Gustafson
, formerly of The Big Three
.
With Gustafson they had two more major hits, "Don't Turn Around" and "Wishin' and Hopin'
". Other successful recordings included "Last Night", "Don't Let it Happen to Us", "I Love You, Yes I Do", "I Stand Accused", "Mr. Moonlight
", "Really Mystified" and "The Fortune Teller
". Kinsley returned to the group in late 1964.
The Merseybeats appeared regularly at Liverpool's Cavern Club, and they claim to have appeared there with The Beatles on more occasions than any other band from that era. They were also successful abroad, touring in Germany and the US
in 1964, and having their own Merseybeats Show on Italian
television
.
, later being covered by many other artists (although it was itself a cover, having previously been a B-side
by The McCoys
). The introduction on the record featured a bowed bass played by Jack Bruce
. A line from this song is included in The Beatles' "It's All Too Much
", released in 1969 as part of the Yellow Submarine soundtrack
album
. David Bowie
recorded a single version in 1973 which reached #3 in the UK Singles Chart. The duo split in 1968, with Crane and Kinsley both going on to front a number of other bands.
However, Kinsley and Crane re-formed the Merseybeats in 1993, and after celebrating 45 years in the music industry in 2006, they continued to tour and perform on the 'sixties circuit', and at venues in the UK
, and across Europe
.
Beat music
Beat music, British beat, or Merseybeat is a pop and rock music genre that developed in the United Kingdom in the early 1960s. Beat music is a fusion of rock and roll, doo wop, skiffle, R&B and soul...
band
Band (music)
In music, a musical ensemble or band is a group of musicians that works together to perform music. The following articles concern types of musical bands:* All-female band* Big band* Boy band* Christian band* Church band* Concert band* Cover band...
that emerged from the Liverpool
Liverpool
Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough of Merseyside, England, along the eastern side of the Mersey Estuary. It was founded as a borough in 1207 and was granted city status in 1880...
scene in the early 1960s, performing at The Cavern Club
The Cavern Club
The Cavern Club is a rock and roll club in Liverpool, England. Opened on Wednesday 16 January 1957, the club had their first performance by The Beatles on 9 February 1961, and where Brian Epstein first saw The Beatles performing on 9 November 1961....
along with The Beatles
The Beatles
The Beatles were an English rock band, active throughout the 1960s and one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed acts in the history of popular music. Formed in Liverpool, by 1962 the group consisted of John Lennon , Paul McCartney , George Harrison and Ringo Starr...
, Gerry & The Pacemakers
Gerry & the Pacemakers
Gerry and the Pacemakers were a British beat music group prominent during the 1960s. In common with The Beatles, they came from Liverpool, were managed by Brian Epstein and recorded by George Martin. They are most remembered for being the first act to reach number one in the UK Singles Chart with...
and other similar artists.
The current line-up is: Tony Crane (founder member) lead vocals and lead guitar
Lead guitar
Lead guitar is a guitar part which plays melody lines, instrumental fill passages, guitar solos, and occasionally, some riffs within a song structure...
; Billy Kinsley
Billy Kinsley
Billy Kinsley was an English musician with The Merseybeats until 1966 . The group disbanded in January 1966 to resurface as a duo called The Merseys...
(founder member) lead vocals and rhythm guitar
Rhythm guitar
Rhythm guitar is a technique and rôle that performs a combination of two functions: to provide all or part of the rhythmic pulse in conjunction with singers or other instruments; and to provide all or part of the harmony, ie. the chords, where a chord is a group of notes played together...
; Bob Packham (joined 1974) backing vocals and bass guitar
Bass guitar
The bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
(born Robert Packham, 17 July 1944, Anfield
Anfield
Anfield is an association football stadium in the district of Anfield, Liverpool, England, with a seating capacity of 45,522. It has been the home of Liverpool F.C. since their formation in 1892 and was originally the home of Everton F.C. from 1884 to 1892, before they moved to Goodison Park...
, Liverpool) (ex The Galvinsers); Dave Goldberg keyboards
Keyboard instrument
A keyboard instrument is a musical instrument which is played using a musical keyboard. The most common of these is the piano. Other widely used keyboard instruments include organs of various types as well as other mechanical, electromechanical and electronic instruments...
and lead guitar; and Lou Rosenthal (also joined 2000) drum
Drum
The drum is a member of the percussion group of musical instruments, which is technically classified as the membranophones. Drums consist of at least one membrane, called a drumhead or drum skin, that is stretched over a shell and struck, either directly with the player's hands, or with a...
s.
The Merseybeats
Originally called The Mavericks, Tony Crane (born Anthony Crane, 17 April 1945, Anfield, Liverpool) and Billy KinsleyBilly Kinsley
Billy Kinsley was an English musician with The Merseybeats until 1966 . The group disbanded in January 1966 to resurface as a duo called The Merseys...
(born William Ellis Kinsley, 28 November 1946, at The Mill Road Hospital, Mill Road, Everton, Liverpool) formed their first band in late 1960 and became The Pacifics in September 1961. They were re-named The Mersey Beats in February 1962 by Bob Wooler
Bob Wooler
Bob Wooler was most notable for being instrumental in introducing The Beatles to their manager, Brian Epstein, and as the DJ at The Cavern Club.-Career:...
, MC
Master of Ceremonies
A Master of Ceremonies , or compere, is the host of a staged event or similar performance.An MC usually presents performers, speaks to the audience, and generally keeps the event moving....
at the Cavern Club. Later in April 1962 they became The Merseybeats. By now Crane and Kinsley had joined up with guitarist Aaron Williams (born 23 June 1942, Liverpool) and drummer John Banks (born 23 September 1943, Liverpool - died 20 April 1988).
They signed a recording contract
Recording contract
A recording contract is a legal agreement between a record label and a recording artist , where the artist makes a record for the label to sell and promote...
with Fontana
Fontana Records
Fontana Records is a record label which was started in the 1950s as a subsidiary of the Dutch Philips Records; when Philips restructured its music operations it dropped Fontana in favor of Vertigo Records. In the seventies PolyGram acquired the dormant label....
and had their first hit
Hit record
A hit record is a sound recording, usually in the form of a single or album, that sells a large number of copies or otherwise becomes broadly popular or well-known, through airplay, club play, inclusion in a film or stage play soundtrack, causing it to have "hit" one of the popular chart listings...
single
Single (music)
In music, a single or record single is a type of release, typically a recording of fewer tracks than an LP or a CD. This can be released for sale to the public in a variety of different formats. In most cases, the single is a song that is released separately from an album, but it can still appear...
in 1963 with "It's Love That Really Counts", followed in 1964 by their million-selling recording "I Think of You" which gained them their first gold disc. They suffered a setback when in February 1964 Billy Kinsley left to form his own band, The Kinsleys. He was temporarily replaced by Bob Garner (later of The Creation
The Creation (band)
The Creation were an English rock band, formed in 1966. The most popular Creation song was "Painter Man", which made the Top 40 in the UK Singles Chart in late 1966, and reached #8 in the German chart in April 1967. It was later covered by Boney M in 1979, and reached the #10 position in the UK...
) and permanently by Johnny Gustafson
John Gustafson (musician)
John "Gus" Gustafson also known as Johnny Gustafson is an influential bass player who has had a thirty eight year recording and live performance career...
, formerly of The Big Three
The Big Three (musical group)
The Big Three were a Merseybeat group from Liverpool. They are best known for their 1963 recording of "Some Other Guy".-Career:The Big Three evolved from a group called Cass & The Cassanovas, formed in May 1959 by Brian Casser as a trio comprising Casser , Adrian Barber The Big Three were a...
.
With Gustafson they had two more major hits, "Don't Turn Around" and "Wishin' and Hopin'
Wishin' and Hopin'
"Wishin' and Hopin" is a song written by Hal David and Burt Bacharach which was a Top Ten hit for Dusty Springfield in 1964.The song was first recorded by Dionne Warwick and was the B-side of Warwick's single "This Empty Place" in the spring of 1963; the track was also featured on Warwick's debut...
". Other successful recordings included "Last Night", "Don't Let it Happen to Us", "I Love You, Yes I Do", "I Stand Accused", "Mr. Moonlight
Mr. Moonlight (song)
"Mr. Moonlight" is a song written by Roy Lee Johnson, best known for being covered by The Beatles on the 1964 albums Beatles for Sale in the United Kingdom and Beatles '65 in the United States.-Different versions:...
", "Really Mystified" and "The Fortune Teller
Fortune Teller (song)
"Fortune Teller" is a song written by Allen Toussaint under the pseudonym Naomi Neville and first recorded by Benny Spellman...
". Kinsley returned to the group in late 1964.
The Merseybeats appeared regularly at Liverpool's Cavern Club, and they claim to have appeared there with The Beatles on more occasions than any other band from that era. They were also successful abroad, touring in Germany and the US
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
in 1964, and having their own Merseybeats Show on Italian
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
television
Television
Television is a telecommunication medium for transmitting and receiving moving images that can be monochrome or colored, with accompanying sound...
.
The Merseys
After their initial success had waned, the band folded and in 1966 Crane and Kinsley formed a vocal duo called The Merseys. They had a major hit with their first single "Sorrow", which reached Number 4 in the UK Singles ChartUK Singles Chart
The UK Singles Chart is compiled by The Official Charts Company on behalf of the British record-industry. The full chart contains the top selling 200 singles in the United Kingdom based upon combined record sales and download numbers, though some media outlets only list the Top 40 or the Top 75 ...
, later being covered by many other artists (although it was itself a cover, having previously been a B-side
A-side and B-side
A-side and B-side originally referred to the two sides of gramophone records on which singles were released beginning in the 1950s. The terms have come to refer to the types of song conventionally placed on each side of the record, with the A-side being the featured song , while the B-side, or...
by The McCoys
The McCoys
The McCoys were a rock group that started in Union City, Indiana, in 1962.-Career:The original members, all from Union City, were guitarist Richard Zehringer , his brother Randy on drums, and bassist Dennis Kelly. This first line-up was known as The Rick Z Combo, and later known as Rick and the...
). The introduction on the record featured a bowed bass played by Jack Bruce
Jack Bruce
John Symon Asher "Jack" Bruce is a Scottish musician and songwriter, respected as a founding member of the British psychedelic rock power trio, Cream, for a solo career that spans several decades, and for his participation in several well-known musical ensembles...
. A line from this song is included in The Beatles' "It's All Too Much
It's All Too Much
"It's All Too Much" is a song by The Beatles which first appeared on the 1969 Yellow Submarine film soundtrack album. It was written and sung by George Harrison. It was originally recorded in 1967, shortly before the release of Sgt...
", released in 1969 as part of the Yellow Submarine soundtrack
Soundtrack
A soundtrack can be recorded music accompanying and synchronized to the images of a motion picture, book, television program or video game; a commercially released soundtrack album of music as featured in the soundtrack of a film or TV show; or the physical area of a film that contains the...
album
Album
An album is a collection of recordings, released as a single package on gramophone record, cassette, compact disc, or via digital distribution. The word derives from the Latin word for list .Vinyl LP records have two sides, each comprising one half of the album...
. David Bowie
David Bowie
David Bowie is an English musician, actor, record producer and arranger. A major figure for over four decades in the world of popular music, Bowie is widely regarded as an innovator, particularly for his work in the 1970s...
recorded a single version in 1973 which reached #3 in the UK Singles Chart. The duo split in 1968, with Crane and Kinsley both going on to front a number of other bands.
Tony Crane and The Merseybeats
During the 1970s Crane continued to tour and perform live as Tony Crane and the Merseybeats, with various line-ups.The Merseybeats re-formed
The Merseybeats' founder member and drummer John Banks died on 20 April 1988, at the age of 44.However, Kinsley and Crane re-formed the Merseybeats in 1993, and after celebrating 45 years in the music industry in 2006, they continued to tour and perform on the 'sixties circuit', and at venues in the UK
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
, and across Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
.
Singles
- 1963 FontanaFontana RecordsFontana Records is a record label which was started in the 1950s as a subsidiary of the Dutch Philips Records; when Philips restructured its music operations it dropped Fontana in favor of Vertigo Records. In the seventies PolyGram acquired the dormant label....
– "It's Love That Really Counts" / "The Fortune TellerFortune Teller (song)"Fortune Teller" is a song written by Allen Toussaint under the pseudonym Naomi Neville and first recorded by Benny Spellman...
" - UKUK Singles ChartThe UK Singles Chart is compiled by The Official Charts Company on behalf of the British record-industry. The full chart contains the top selling 200 singles in the United Kingdom based upon combined record sales and download numbers, though some media outlets only list the Top 40 or the Top 75 ...
#24 - 1963 Fontana – "I Think of You" / "Mr. MoonlightMr. Moonlight (song)"Mr. Moonlight" is a song written by Roy Lee Johnson, best known for being covered by The Beatles on the 1964 albums Beatles for Sale in the United Kingdom and Beatles '65 in the United States.-Different versions:...
" - UK #5 - 1964 Fontana – "Don't Turn Around" / "Really Mystified" - UK #13
- 1964 Fontana – "Wishin' and Hopin'Wishin' and Hopin'"Wishin' and Hopin" is a song written by Hal David and Burt Bacharach which was a Top Ten hit for Dusty Springfield in 1964.The song was first recorded by Dionne Warwick and was the B-side of Warwick's single "This Empty Place" in the spring of 1963; the track was also featured on Warwick's debut...
" / "Milkman" - UK #13 - 1964 Fontana – "Last Night" / "See Me Back" - UK #40
- 1965 Fontana – "Don't Let it Happen to Us" / "It Would Take a Long Long Time"
- 1965 Fontana – "I Love You, Yes I Do" / "Good Good Lovin'" - UK #22
- 1965 Fontana – "I Stand Accused" / "All My Life" - UK #38
EPs
- 1964 Fontana – "The Merseybeats on Stage"
- 1963 Fontana – "The Merseybeats" / "I Think of You"
- 1964 Fontana – "Wishin' and Hopin'"
- 1966 Fontana – "I Think of You" (French)
LPs
- 1963 Oriole – This Is Merseybeat
- 1964 Fontana – The Merseybeats - UKUK Albums ChartThe UK Albums Chart is a list of albums ranked by physical and digital sales in the United Kingdom. It is compiled every week by The Official Charts Company and broadcast on a Sunday on BBC Radio 1 , and published in Music Week magazine and on the OCC website .To qualify for the UK albums chart...
#12 - 1966 Wing – The Merseybeats
- 1977 Look – The Merseybeats Greatest Hits
- 1978 Crane Productions – Tony Crane sings Elvis Presley
- 1982 Edsel – The Merseybeats Beats & Ballads
CDs
- 1990 Fontana – The Merseybeats
- 1992 Trace – The Merseybeats
- 1993 Amadeus – I’ll Get You
- 1993 Amadeus – I’ll Get You (Extended)
- 1996 Javelin – The Merseybeats
- 1997 Karussell – The Very Best of the Merseybeats
- 1999 Crane – The Merseybeats Greatest Hits
- 2002 Bear Family Records – The Merseybeats I Think of You
- 2003 Crane – The Merseybeats Greatest Hits
- 2003 Merseybeat – Anniversary Tour 2003
- 12-track compilation with The Swinging Blue JeansThe Swinging Blue JeansThe Swinging Blue Jeans were a four piece 1960s British Merseybeat band, best known for their hit singles with the HMV label; "Hippy Hippy Shake", the follow-up, Little Richard's "Good Golly Miss Molly", and "You're No Good", a Clint Ballard song that provided a change of pace and furnished the...
and The FourmostThe FourmostThe Fourmost were an English Merseybeat band that recorded in the 1960s. Their biggest UK hit single was "A Little Loving" in 1964.-Biography:...
; The Merseybeats' four tracks - "Sorrow" / "This Time" / "Don't Ask Me to be Friends" / "Poor Boy From Liverpool"
- 12-track compilation with The Swinging Blue Jeans
- 2003 This Time – "This Time" / "Don't Ask Me to Be Friends" / "Poor Boy From Liverpool"
The Merseys discography
- 1966 Fontana – "Sorrow" / "Some Other Day" - UKUK Singles ChartThe UK Singles Chart is compiled by The Official Charts Company on behalf of the British record-industry. The full chart contains the top selling 200 singles in the United Kingdom based upon combined record sales and download numbers, though some media outlets only list the Top 40 or the Top 75 ...
#4 - 1966 Fontana – "So Sad About Us" / "Love Will Continue"
- 1966 Fontana – "Rhythm of Love" / "Is It Love"
- 1966 Fontana – "Rhythm of Love" (EPExtended playAn EP is a musical recording which contains more music than a single, but is too short to qualify as a full album or LP. The term EP originally referred only to specific types of vinyl records other than 78 rpm standard play records and LP records, but it is now applied to mid-length Compact...
) - 1967 Fontana – "The Cat" / "Change of Heart"
- 1967 Fontana – "Penny In My Pocket" / "I Hope You're Happy"
- 1968 Fontana – "Lovely Loretta" / "Dreaming"
- 1973 Philips – "Sorrow" / "I Think of You"
The Merseys under the pseudonym Crackers
- 1968 Fontana – "Honey Do" / "It Happens All The Time"
Further reading
- Call Up The Groups, Alan Clayson, 1985, Blandford Press - ISBN 978-0-71715538
External links
- [ The Merseybeats biography at Allmusic]
- Liverpool Express website