The Zombies
- For the undead creature of Vodou lore, see zombie. For other meanings, see Zombie (disambiguation).
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The Zombies, formed in 1961 in St Albans, are an English rock band. Led by Rod Argent on piano and Colin Blunstone on vocals, the band scored US hits in the mid- and late-1960s with "She's Not There", "Tell Her No", and "Time of the Season". [1]Their 1968 album Odessey and Oracle, comprising twelve songs by the group's principal songwriters, Argent and Chris White, is now considered one of the best of its time and is ranked 80 on Rolling Stone magazine's list of the 500 Greatest Albums of All Time.[2]
1960s incarnation
The group formed in 1961 in St Albans, England, and gained their initial reputation playing the Old Verulamians Rugby Club in that city. The group was formed while the members were at school. Some sources state that Argent, Atkinson and Grundy were at St Albans School, while Blunstone and White were students at St Albans Boys' Grammar School (since renamed Verulam School).[3][4]
After winning a beat-group competition sponsored by the London Evening News, the Zombies signed to Decca and recorded their first hit, "She's Not There" (Argent's second song, written specifically for this session), which was released in mid-1964 and peaked at number 12 in the UK, where it was their only UK Top 40 hit. This minor-key, jazz-tinged number, distinguished by its musicianship and Blunstone's breathy vocal, was unlike anything heard in British rock at the time. It was first aired in the United States in early August 1964 on New York City rock station WINS by Stan Z. Burns, who debuted the song on his daily noontime "Hot Spot". The tune began to catch on in early fall and eventually climbed to #2.
Like many other British Invasion groups, the Zombies were sent to the United States to tour behind their new hit single. One of their most memorable early U.S. gigs were Murray the K's Christmas shows at the Brooklyn Fox Theatre, where the band played seven performances a day. Hugh Grundy later recalled also contributing to the sets by the Shangri-Las — not as a musician, but by revving a motorcycle brought backstage as a sound effect for their performance of "Leader of the Pack". In January 1965 the band was set to make their first in person appearence on us televison. The Zombies were to appear on the first episode of NBC's Hullabaloo. They played "She's Not There" to a screaming hysterical audience full of teenage girls. [1]
In early 1965, Rod Argent's "Tell Her No" became another big seller in the United States, but failed to make the Top 40 in the band's native UK. Subsequent recordings such as "I Love You" (which became a hit for People! in 1968), "Indication", "Whenever You're Ready", and "Is This the Dream" failed to achieve the success of the previous two singles. [1]
Their first LP, Begin Here (1965), was a collection of early singles, featuring half a dozen original songs combined with several R&B covers. In 1967, the Zombies signed to CBS Records, for whom they recorded the album Odessey and Oracle. (The word odyssey was misspelled by cover designers.) Because the band's budget could not cover session musicians, they used a Mellotron, a device designed to imitate orchestral sections.[1]
By the time Odessey and Oracle was released in April 1968, the group had disbanded. The album sold poorly and was only given a U.S. release because musician Al Kooper, then signed to Columbia Records, convinced his label of the album's merits. An album track, "Time of the Season", written by Argent, was released as a single and eventually (1969) became a nationwide hit (Billboard #3).
The band's original lineup declined to regroup for concerts, so various concocted groups tried to capitalize on the success and falsely toured under the band's name. Another such group toured in 1988, going so far as to trademark the group's name (since the band had let the mark lapse) and recruit a member named Ronald Hugh Grundy, who was passed off as being an original member. [5]
Later incarnation
After The Zombies disbanded, Rod Argent formed a band called Argent, with Chris White as a non-performing songwriter. Colin Blunstone eventually launched a solo career after brief careers outside the music biz, including one stint in the burglary claims section of an insurance company. Both Argent and White continued to provide him with new songs.[1]
In 1991 Blunstone, Grundy and White briefly reunited as The Zombies with guitarist Sebastian Santa Maria and recorded the album New World.[1]
On 25 November, 1997, all five Zombies reunited at the Jazz Cafe in London's Camden Town as part of a solo show by Blunstone, to perform "She's Not There" and "Time of the Season".
Blunstone and Argent reunited for an album and tour together in 2001 under the Blunstone & Argent monicker and continued playing live shows together into 2004 when they began going out under The Zombies name again. The new line-up included Rod's cousin Jim Rodford (formerly of The Kinks and Argent), his son Steve Rodford on drums, and Keith Airey (brother of Don Airey) on guitar.
An album of new material released in 2004, As Far as I Can See..., received mixed reviews.[1] A 1997 120-track compilation of the original band's work, Zombie Heaven, was released.[1]
Guitarist Paul Atkinson died in Santa Monica, California, on 1 April, 2004. Having retired as a performer, he was an A&R man for many years.
In 2005 Colin Blunstone and Rod Argent of The Zombies released a DVD and 2-CD album (Live At The Bloomsbury Theatre), which received excellent reviews.
In 2006, Rod Argent and Colin Blunstone carried on touring as The Zombies. Their U.S. tour of 2007 garnered stellar reviews.
To mark the 40th anniversary of Odessey & Oracle, the four surviving original members of The Zombies participated in a three-night series of concerts at London's Shepherd's Bush Empire Theatre between 7 and 9 March, 2008. [6] [7] [8] Rod and Colin's respective websites had advertised that the 8 March concert was recorded for a CD and/or DVD release later in 2008, and the CD has been officially posted by Amazon.com to be presold for a release of 1 July, 2008.
The Zombies kicked off a North American tour on 3 July, 2008, with an outdoor festival performance at the Comerica Cityfest in Detroit, Michigan.
Line-ups
- 1961 to 1968
- Rod Argent - born Rodney Terence Argent, 14 June 1945, in St Albans, Hertfordshire - (organ, vocals and songwriting)
- Paul Atkinson - born Paul Ashley Warren Atkinson, 19 March 1946 in Cuffley, Hertfordshire, died 1 April 2004 in Santa Monica, California - (guitar, vocals)
- Colin Blunstone - born Colin Edward Michael Blunstone, 24 June 1945, in Hatfield, Hertfordshire - (lead vocals)
- Chris White - born Christopher Taylor White, 7 March 1943, in Barnet, Hertfordshire - (bass, vocals and songwriting)
- Hugh Grundy - born Hugh Birch Grundy, 6 March 1945, in Winchester, Hampshire - (drums)
- 2004 to date
- Rod Argent - (organ, vocals)
- Colin Blunstone - (lead vocals)
- Keith Airey - (guitar, vocals)
- Jim Rodford - (bass, vocals)
- Steve Rodford - (drums)
Discography
Studio albums
- Begin Here (UK) (1965)
- The Zombies (Featuring "She's Not There" and "Tell Her No") (U.S.) (1965) #39 U.S.
- Odessey and Oracle (1968) #95 U.S.
- New World (1991)
- As Far As I Can See... (2004)
Live albums
- Live at the BBC (Repertoire REP4790, 29 Tracks, 2003)
- Live at the Bloomsbury Theatre, London (2005)
- Odessey and Oracle: 40th Anniversary Live Concert (2008)
Compilation albums
- The Zombies: Time Of The Zombies (A 28 song compilation from 1965-1968) (1972)
- Zombie Heaven (1997) (4 CD comprehensive compilation with rarities and live recordings)
- The Singles As and Bs (2005)
- The Ultimate Zombies - Original Hits (2007)
- Into the Afterlife (2007) (compilation of post Odessey and Oracle recordings)
Contributions
- Bunny Lake Is Missing - An Original Soundtrack Recording (1965) (contributed tracks)
Singles
| Release date | Title | Chart positions | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| UK | U.S. | CAN | ||
| August 1964 | "She's Not There"/"You Make Me Feel Good" | #12 | #2 | #2 |
| November 1964 | "Leave Me Be"/"Woman" (not issued in US) | — | — | — |
| December 1964 | "Tell Her No"/"What More Can I Do?" (UK) /"Leave Me Be" (not issued in UK) | #42 | #6 | #6 |
| March 1965 | "She's Coming Home"/"I Must Move" | — | #58 | #21 |
| June 1965 | "I Want You Back Again"/"Remember When I Loved Her" (US only) | — | #95 | — |
| August 1965 | "Whenever You're Ready"/"I Love You" | — | #110 | — |
| September 1965 | "Just Out of Reach"/"Remember You" | — | #113 | — |
| February 1966 | "Is This the Dream"?"Don't Go Away" | — | — | — |
| June 1966 | "Indication"/"How We Were Before" | — | — | — |
| September 1966 | "Gotta Get a Hold of Myself"/"The Way I Feel Inside" | — | — | — |
| November 1966 | "Goin' Out of My Head"/"She Does Everything For Me" | — | — | — |
| November 1967 | "Care of Cell 44"/"Beechwood Park" | — | — | — |
| June 1968 | "Butcher's Tale (Western Front 1914)"/"This Will Be Our Year" (US only) | — | — | — |
| November 1968 | "Time of the Season"/"I'll Call You Mine" (UK & US) /"Friends of Mine" (US 2nd issue) | — | #3 | #1 |
| May 1969 | "Imagine the Swan"/"Conversations Off Floral Street" | — | #109 | #59 |
Covers
- "I Love You", a hit for the band People!
- Crowded House recorded, released and occasionally perform "She's Not There"
- Dave Matthews Band began occasionally performing "Time of the Season" on their 2005 summer tour, and subsequently released a live version on their Weekend on the Rocks CD and DVD later that year. It continues to be a Dave Matthews Band crowd favorite[citation needed].
- Both "Time of the Season" and "She's Not There" were covered on American Idol by Blake Lewis and Chris Sligh, respectively, on the sixth season British Invasion episode.
- In Quentin Tarantino's Kill Bill Vol. 2, the song "About Her" is a remake of "She's Not There" by Malcolm McLaren.
- Santana recorded a version of "She's Not There" and released it as a single and on their Moonflower album in 1977.
- The Necro song "Who's Ya Daddy" samples "Time of the Season."
- OK Go covered "This Will Be Our Year" it appeared on the Future Soundtrack for America compilation (2004) and the John Tucker Must Die soundtrack (2006).
- Jon Brion has covered multiple Zombies songs live, including "Time of the Season" and "This Will Be Our Year".
- Boston-based indie-pop duo Action Camp closed out their rare Live at Howlers EP with "The Way I Feel Inside". They have also performed an electronic arrangement of "Time of the Season" on occasion.
- The late Elliott Smith performed a cover of "Care of Cell 44".
- Matthew Sweet and Susanna Hoffs covered "Care of Cell 44" on Under the Covers, Vol. 1.
- The Tough Alliance recorded a cover of the song "Hung up on a Dream", released as the b-side of their single "First Class Riot" in 2007.
- Anthony Green performed "This Will Be Our Year" on his acoustic tour with Days Away.
- The Canadian indie-rock trio Immaculate Machine has been known[who?] to cover "Time of the Season" live.
- Various bands from the Pacific Northwest, including the Young Fresh Fellows and The Posies, contributed versions of Zombies songs to a 1994 tribute album, The World Of The Zombies. [9]
- Lois recorded "The Way I Feel Inside" on her "Strumpet" lp
- The Beautiful South re-recorded "This Will Be Our Year" on their cover album Golddiggas, Headnodders and Pholk Songs.
- Gym Class Heroes covered "Time of the Season" on their Campus Tour in 2008.
- Of Montreal covered "Friends of Mine" on their compilation If He Is Protecting Our Nation, Then Who Will Protect Big Oil, Our Children?
- The Vancouver indie band The Top Drawers covered "Just Out Of Reach" on You're So Fine, and they regularly perform the song live.
- Belle & Sebastian covered "Time of the Season" at Glastonbury Festival 2004.
References
- ^ a b c d e f g h allmusic Biography
- ^ The RS 500 Greatest Albums of All Time : Rolling Stone
- ^ Zombies' heyday recalled - The Hendon Times
- ^ Classic Bands - The Zombies
- ^ "Jim Powers, The Zombies Biography", enotes.com
- ^ Coplin, James (2008-03-10). "The Zombies - Shepherds Bush Empire, London - Music-News.com". Retrieved 2008-03-28.
- ^ Petridis, Alexis (2008-03-10), The Guardian http://music.guardian.co.uk/live/story/0,,2263788,00.html
{{citation}}: Missing or empty|title=(help)CS1 maint: date and year (link) - ^ Sinclair, David (2008-03-10), The Times http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/tol/arts_and_entertainment/music/live_reviews/article3516439.ece
{{citation}}: Missing or empty|title=(help)CS1 maint: date and year (link) - ^ "MC Tom, Flop: 2 Degrees Separated from Cat Butt", Lamestain
Sources
- Guinness Book of British Hit Singles - 16th Edition - ISBN 0-85112-190-X
- Guinness Book of British Hit Albums - 7th Edition - ISBN 0-85112-619-7
- Guinness Rockopedia - ISBN 0-85112-072-5
- The Great Rock Discography - 5th Edition - ISBN 1-84195-017-3
- The Book of Golden Discs - 2nd Edition - ISBN 0-214-20512-6