3's a Crowd was a
folk rock
Folk rock is a hybrid music genre that combines the elements of folk and rock music, which arose in the United States, Canada, and the United Kingdom in the mid-1960s. In the U.S., folk rock emerged from the folk music revival. Performers suc ...
band from
Vancouver
Vancouver ( ) is a major city in western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the ...
who existed from 1964 to 1969, spending most of that time in
Toronto
Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...
and
Ottawa
Ottawa (, ; Canadian French: ) is the capital city of Canada. It is located at the confluence of the Ottawa River and the Rideau River in the southern portion of the province of Ontario. Ottawa borders Gatineau, Quebec, and forms the core ...
. The group had some Canadian chart success, but is particularly notable for the caliber of Canadian musicians who passed through its ranks and would later establish successful careers of their own, including
Bruce Cockburn
Bruce Douglas Cockburn ( ; born May 27, 1945) is a Canadian singer-songwriter and guitarist. His song styles range from folk to jazz-influenced rock and his lyrics cover a broad range of topics including human rights, environmental issues, po ...
,
Colleen Peterson
Colleen Susan Peterson (November 14, 1950 – October 9, 1996) was a Canadian country and folk singer, who performed both as a solo artist and as a member of the band Quartette.
Career
Peterson began performing in coffeehouses in Ottawa in 1966 ...
,
David Wiffen
David Wiffen (born 11 March 1942) is an English-Canadian folk singer-songwriter. Two of his songs, "Driving Wheel" and "More Often Than Not", have become cover standards.
Early life
Wiffen was born in Redhill, Surrey, England. ,
Trevor Veitch
Trevor Veitch (born May 19, 1946 in Vancouver, British Columbia) is a Canadian musician/record producer who has worked behind the scenes on many pop trends from the 1960s to the present. He is mostly known for his involvement in the popular 1960s ...
, and
Brent Titcomb
Brent Arthur Titcomb (born August 10, 1940 in Vancouver, British Columbia) is a Canadian actor and musician. He plays guitar, percussion, harmonica, and jaw harp.
Music career
Titcomb was the original member of the folk-rock group 3's A Crowd ...
. 3's a Crowd is also remembered for its association with
Cass Elliott
Ellen Naomi Cohen (September 19, 1941 – July 29, 1974), known professionally as Mama Cass and later on as Cass Elliot, was an American singer and voice actress. She was a member of the singing group the Mamas & the Papas. After the group brok ...
, who co-produced the group's only album.
History
3's a Crowd was formed in 1964, and was originally called the Bill Schwartz Quartet (though no one named Bill Schwartz was in the group). The group initially consisted of singer Donna Warner,
Trevor Veitch
Trevor Veitch (born May 19, 1946 in Vancouver, British Columbia) is a Canadian musician/record producer who has worked behind the scenes on many pop trends from the 1960s to the present. He is mostly known for his involvement in the popular 1960s ...
(guitar) and
Brent Titcomb
Brent Arthur Titcomb (born August 10, 1940 in Vancouver, British Columbia) is a Canadian actor and musician. He plays guitar, percussion, harmonica, and jaw harp.
Music career
Titcomb was the original member of the folk-rock group 3's A Crowd ...
(guitar, percussion, harmonica), who met when they were playing, in separate acts, at the 1964
Calgary Stampede
The Calgary Stampede is an annual rodeo, exhibition, and festival held every July in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. The ten-day event, which bills itself as "The Greatest Outdoor Show on Earth", attracts over one million visitors per year and featu ...
. The three moved to Vancouver, where they became regulars at
The Bunkhouse and decided to form a band.
In 1966, they moved to
Toronto
Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...
and sent a demo tape to Sid Dolgay, who had been a member of
The Travellers but had formed his own management company, and he signed the trio. He sent them on the road, and they played clubs across Canada, sometimes accompanied by bassist
Brian Ahern. Ahern was unavailable full-time so, in 1966, they added
Ken Koblun
Ken Koblun is a Canadian musician who played alongside Neil Young in The Jades, the Squires, the Stardusters, and briefly Buffalo Springfield. He replaced Comrie Smith in 3's a Crowd, playing with the band from 1966 to 1967.
Early years
Koblu ...
, late of
Neil Young
Neil Percival Young (born November 12, 1945) is a Canadian-American singer and songwriter. After embarking on a music career in Winnipeg in the 1960s, Young moved to Los Angeles, joining Buffalo Springfield with Stephen Stills, Richie Furay ...
&
The Squires
The Squires or Neil Young & The Squires were a Canadian band formed in 1963 in Winnipeg. It was one of the first bands of singer-songwriter Neil Young.
Recordings
Young formed the Squires in 1963, and the group played at community clubs, high ...
and
Buffalo Springfield
Buffalo Springfield was a rock band formed in Los Angeles by Canadian musicians Neil Young, Bruce Palmer and Dewey Martin and American musicians Stephen Stills and Richie Furay. The group, widely known for the song "For What It's Worth", relea ...
. Although he would reappear, Koblun did not last long; he was replaced by Neil Young's friend Comrie Smith.
As a result of their live performances, 3's a Crowd were named Top Folk Group at the 1966
RPM
Revolutions per minute (abbreviated rpm, RPM, rev/min, r/min, or with the notation min−1) is a unit of rotational speed or rotational frequency for rotating machines.
Standards
ISO 80000-3:2019 defines a unit of rotation as the dimensionl ...
Awards (which, in 1970, would become the
Juno Award
The Juno Awards, more popularly known as the JUNOS, are awards presented annually to Canadian musical artists and bands to acknowledge their artistic and technical achievements in all aspects of music. New members of the Canadian Music Hall of ...
s). 3's a Crowd would win the same award from RPM in 1967.
The award led to the band's being signed by Epic Records. Two singles were released: "Bound to Fly" and a cover of
Gordon Lightfoot
Gordon Meredith Lightfoot Jr. (born November 17, 1938) is a Canadian singer-songwriter and guitarist who achieved international success in folk, folk-rock, and country music. He is credited with helping to define the folk-pop sound of the 1960 ...
's "Steel Rail Blues". "Bound to Fly", which was also released in the UK, peaked at #34 on the Canadian RPM chart and was the group’s biggest hit. The next two recordings with Epic were "Honey Machine" and "When The Sun Goes Down". 3's a Crowd has always injected humor into their performances (Titcomb had been a professional comedian), but they did not want to be seen as a comedy act, and that is how Epic wanted to market them. This was a sticking point that brought an end to the deal with Epic.
3's a Crowd had become a fixture at
Le Hibou Coffee House
Le Hibou Coffee House was an internationally known coffee house established in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, operating from 1960 to 1975.
History
Denis Faulkner, an Ottawa francophone, was the founding owner manager from 1960 to 1968. It was durin ...
in
Ottawa
Ottawa (, ; Canadian French: ) is the capital city of Canada. It is located at the confluence of the Ottawa River and the Rideau River in the southern portion of the province of Ontario. Ottawa borders Gatineau, Quebec, and forms the core ...
, and there they were reunited with their friend from Vancouver, singer
David Wiffen
David Wiffen (born 11 March 1942) is an English-Canadian folk singer-songwriter. Two of his songs, "Driving Wheel" and "More Often Than Not", have become cover standards.
Early life
Wiffen was born in Redhill, Surrey, England. . Wiffen was in Ottawa playing with a folk band called The Children; when the band said they were looking for a drummer, he recommended Richard Patterson, who had been playing with The Children after his band,
The Esquires
The Esquires were an American R&B group from Milwaukee, Wisconsin, United States, principally active from 1957 to 1976.
History
The group first formed in 1957 around the Moorer family: Gilbert (born Gilbert Moorer, Jr., August 20, 1941, Birmi ...
, had broken up. The newly-expanded band first appeared on the TV show
Take 30
''Take 30'' (also expressed as ''Take Thirty'') was a Canadian television newsmagazine series, which aired on CBC Television from 1962 to 1984 for 2,500 episodes. An afternoon series originally designed as a "women's show", the series gradually ev ...
; that led to bookings at
The Scene in New York, and the 1967
Mariposa Folk Festival
Mariposa Folk Festival is a Canadian music festival founded in 1961 in Orillia, Ontario. It was held in Orillia for three years before being banned because of disturbances by festival-goers. After being held in various places in Ontario for a f ...
.
In 1967, the band was spotted performing at Toronto's
Riverboat coffee house
The Riverboat Coffee House was a Canadian coffeehouse located at 134 Yorkville Avenue in the Yorkville neighbourhood of Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It was a key venue for folk rock music and singer songwriter music made famous for featuring high-pr ...
by an entertainment co-ordinator for the Ontario Pavilion at
Expo 67
The 1967 International and Universal Exposition, commonly known as Expo 67, was a general exhibition from April 27 to October 29, 1967. It was a category One World's Fair held in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. It is considered to be one of the most su ...
in Montreal and they were hired to play there.
Cass Elliot
Ellen Naomi Cohen (September 19, 1941 – July 29, 1974), known professionally as Mama Cass and later on as Cass Elliot, was an American singer and voice actress. She was a member of the singing group the Mamas & the Papas. After the group brok ...
and
Denny Doherty
Dennis Gerrard Stephen Doherty (November 29, 1940 – January 19, 2007) was a Canadian singer. He was a founding member of the 1960s musical group the Mamas and the Papas for which he was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1998.
...
, of
The Mamas & the Papas
The Mamas & the Papas were a folk rock vocal group formed in Los Angeles, California, which recorded and performed from 1965 to 1968. The group was a defining force in the music scene of the counterculture of the 1960s. The group consisted of Am ...
, were visiting Expo and Warner's boyfriend was asked to escort them. He took them to see the 3's a Crowd performance, and Elliot was so impressed, she contacted Jay Lasker, President of
Dunhill Records
Dunhill Records was started in 1964 by Lou Adler, Jay Lasker, Pierre Cossette and Bobby Roberts as Dunhill Productions to release the music of Johnny Rivers on Imperial Records. It became a record label the following year and was distributed b ...
. After hearing their demo tape, he brought the band to New York, where they recorded three songs at Bell Studios with producer
Rick Shorter
Rick Shorter (May 1, 1934 - September 1, 2017) was a songwriter, music producer, and author. During the 1960s when he was most active, he produced and arranged for a multitude of artists. They include Ciska Peters, Big Dee Irwin, and Galt MacDer ...
. They were then flown to Los Angeles to record an album; Patterson would say that Eliot quickly lost interest in the process and most of the work was done by
Steve Barri
Steve Barri (born Steven Barry Lipkin in Brooklyn, New York on February 23, 1942) is an American songwriter and record producer.
Career
Early in his career, Barri was a staff writer with Dunhill Records. He produced such huge hits as " Dizzy" ...
(both are credited as producers). The album, ''Christopher's Movie Matinée'', was released in May 1968.
When Wiffen and Patterson were playing with The Children in Ottawa, that band had included an aspiring musician and songwriter named Bruce Cockburn. When the former joined 3's a Crowd, they brought that music with them and, although Cockburn did not perform on the album, three of his songs are included ("The Way She Smiles", "Bird Without Wings" and "View From Pompous Head"). They did a slow, military rendition of "
(Let's) Get Together" by
Chet Powers
Chester William Powers, Jr. (October 7, 1937 – November 16, 1994) was an American singer-songwriter, and under the stage names Dino Valenti or Dino Valente, one of the lead singers of the rock group Quicksilver Messenger Service. As a songwri ...
.
Murray McLauchlan
Murray Edward McLauchlan, (born 30 June 1948) is a Canadian singer, songwriter, guitarist, pianist, and harmonica player. He is best known for his Canadian hits "Farmer's Song," "Whispering Rain," and "Down by the Henry Moore".
Early life
Mc ...
also contributed his first recorded songwriting credit, "Coat Of Colors"; "Coat Of Colors" was issued as the b-side of "Bird Without Wings", which peaked at #61 on the RPM chart. Donna Warner was the primary singer, but Wiffen and Titcomb also sang lead.
The band had previously appeared on the CBC's ''The Juliette Show''. In 1968, they performed on the CBC Television series
Let's Go. Along with
The Box Tops
The Box Tops is an American rock band formed in Memphis in 1967. They are best known for the hits " The Letter", "Cry Like a Baby", "Choo Choo Train," and " Soul Deep" and are considered a major blue-eyed soul group of the period. They perform ...
, they opened for
The Beach Boys
The Beach Boys are an American Rock music, rock band that formed in Hawthorne, California, in 1961. The group's original lineup consisted of brothers Brian Wilson, Brian, Dennis Wilson, Dennis, and Carl Wilson, their cousin Mike Love, and frie ...
at their 1968
Ottawa
Ottawa (, ; Canadian French: ) is the capital city of Canada. It is located at the confluence of the Ottawa River and the Rideau River in the southern portion of the province of Ontario. Ottawa borders Gatineau, Quebec, and forms the core ...
concert. And the CBC gave them their own nationally-televised special, ''Our Kind Of Crowd''. As their guests, they chose two relative unknowns,
Richard Pryor
Richard Franklin Lennox Thomas Pryor Sr. (December 1, 1940 – December 10, 2005) was an American stand-up comedian and actor. He reached a broad audience with his trenchant observations and storytelling style, and is widely regarded as on ...
and
Joni Mitchell
Roberta Joan "Joni" Mitchell ( Anderson; born November 7, 1943) is a Canadian-American musician, producer, and painter. Among the most influential singer-songwriters to emerge from the 1960s folk music circuit, Mitchell became known for her sta ...
.
Koblun, citing exhaustion, now left the band for good. He was replaced on bass by Wayne Davis, whose band,
Bobby Kris & The Imperials
Bobby Kris & The Imperials were a 1960s Toronto folk-rock band, that had a local hit with Burt Bacharach and Hal David's " Walk On By".
Origins
The band was originally called J.S. & The Imperials and was led by singer Jim Snowdon and featured ...
, had just broken up. The workload and touring had also taken their toll on Warner and, increasingly, Ottawa singer
Colleen Peterson
Colleen Susan Peterson (November 14, 1950 – October 9, 1996) was a Canadian country and folk singer, who performed both as a solo artist and as a member of the band Quartette.
Career
Peterson began performing in coffeehouses in Ottawa in 1966 ...
was filling in for her.
3’s a Crowd again went on the road, touring Western Canada and Southern California, playing several dates at the Ash Grove in
West Hollywood
West Hollywood is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States. Incorporated in 1984, it is home to the Sunset Strip. As of the 2020 United States Census, 2020 U.S. Census, its population was 35,757. It is considered one of the most ...
and the Ice House in
Glendale Glendale is the anglicised version of the Gaelic Gleann Dail, which means ''valley of fertile, low-lying arable land''.
It may refer to:
Places Australia
* Glendale, New South Wales
** Stockland Glendale, a shopping centre
*Glendale, Queensland, ...
, sometimes adding
Jim and Jean
Jim and Jean, composed of Jim Glover (born 1942) and Jean Ray (1941–2007) as an opening act.
Back in Canada, the group played the entirety of their album with the
Toronto Symphony Orchestra
The Toronto Symphony Orchestra (TSO) is a Canadian orchestra based in Toronto, Ontario. Founded in 1906, the TSO gave regular concerts at Massey Hall until 1982, and since then has performed at Roy Thomson Hall. The TSO also manages the Toronto ...
at
Massey Hall
Massey Hall is a performing arts theatre in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Opened in 1894, it is known for its outstanding acoustics and was the long-time hall of the Toronto Symphony Orchestra. An intimate theatre, it was originally designed to seat ...
. A related documentary about 1960s Canadian counterculture, ''
Christopher's Movie Matinée'', under the sponsorship of the
National Film Board of Canada
The National Film Board of Canada (NFB; french: Office national du film du Canada (ONF)) is Canada's public film and digital media producer and distributor. An agency of the Government of Canada, the NFB produces and distributes documentary f ...
, was released in 1968; it includes some of the songs from the album.
Just as ''Christopher’s Movie Matinee'' became available in stores, Warner's health had declined to the point where she had to leave the band. With her departure, Titcomb and Veitch weren't interested in continuing and they left as well. But the band's manager, Sid Dolgay, had obtained investment in the band from Toronto producers
Harvey Glatt
Harvey Glatt (born March 28, 1934) is a Canadian music promoter, manager, broadcaster, record and instrument retailer, and record label owner.
Early life and education
Harvey Glatt was born in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, graduating from Glebe C ...
and
Sydney Banks and the band needed to carry on. In early 1969, Wiffen and Patterson brought in bassist Dennis Pendrith and, from The Children, Bruce Cockburn, Colleen Peterson and Sandy Crawley. RCA Victor released a second single from the album, a cover of Dino Valenti’s "Let’s Get Together", backed by "I Don't Wanna Drive You Away"; the former peaked at #70 on the RPM charts.
The new line-up returned to the road, spending the summer of 1969 supporting
The Turtles
''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the m ...
and
Gary Puckett & The Union Gap
Gary Puckett & The Union Gap (initially credited as The Union Gap featuring Gary Puckett) was an American pop rock group active in the late 1960s. The group, formed by Gary Puckett, Gary "Mutha" Withem, Dwight Bement, Kerry Chater and Paul Wheat ...
on their Canadian dates. They recorded Cockburn's "Electrocution of The Word"; its video was showcased at the Youth Pavilion at
Ottawa SuperEX
Ottawa SuperEX (officially the Central Canada Exhibition) was an eleven-day annual exhibition that took place every August at Lansdowne Park in Ottawa, Ontario. The exhibition provided exhibits, entertainment and amusements indoors in the buil ...
(the Central Canada Exhibition). They also had to move to
Montreal
Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-most populous city in Canada and List of towns in Quebec, most populous city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian ...
, where they became the house band on Sydney Banks' CBC Television show, ''One More Time'', which was hosted by
Gilbert Price
Gilbert Price (September 10, 1942 – January 2, 1991) was an American operatic baritone and actor.
Price was a protégé of Langston Hughes. He was a life member of New York's famed Actors Studio. Price first gained notice in 1964, for his ...
. The series ended in early 1969. Crawley left to pursue an acting career. The remaining members performed a few US dates, then disbanded permanently at the end of 1969.
Post Break-Up
In 1973, Cockburn and Pendrith collaborated with Wiffen on his 1973 album ''Coast To Coast Fever''. After that, Wiffen became a successful songwriter ("Driving Wheel"). Pendrith played with
Tom Rush
Thomas Walker Rush (born February 8, 1941) is an American folk and blues singer, guitarist and songwriter who helped launch the careers of other singer-songwriters in the 1960s and has continued his own singing career for 60 years.
Life and ...
and
Ian & Sylvia
Ian & Sylvia were a Canadian folk and country music duo which consisted of Ian and Sylvia Tyson, née Fricker. They began performing together in 1959 (full-time in 1961), married in 1964, and divorced and stopped performing together in 1975.
Hi ...
, became a busy session musician and then went to work for the CBC. Bruce Cockburn became an international mega-star.
Peterson joined the Canadian cast of ''Hair'' and then moved to Nashville and became a successful singer/songwriter before joining
Sylvia Tyson
Sylvia may refer to:
People
*Sylvia (given name)
* Sylvia (singer), American country music and country pop singer and songwriter
*Sylvia Robinson, American singer, record producer, and record label executive
* Sylvia Vrethammar, Swedish singer cre ...
's band
Quartette; she died of cancer in 1996. Sandy Crawley became an actor and film composer. Brent Titcomb became a member of
Anne Murray
Morna Anne Murray (born June 20, 1945) is a retired Canadian singer. Her albums, consisting primarily of pop, country, and adult contemporary music, have sold over 55 million copies worldwide during her over 40-year career.
Murray was the fir ...
's touring band and she recorded several of his songs, including "Sing High, Sing Low" and "I Still Wish The Very Best For You".
Trevor Veitch moved to Los Angeles and became a successful session player, soundtrack composer, and songwriter ("Gloria" by
Laura Brannigan
Laura Ann Branigan (July 3, 1952 – August 26, 2004) was an American singer, songwriter, and actress. Her signature song, the platinum-certified 1982 single "Gloria", stayed on the U.S. ''Billboard'' Hot 100 for 36 weeks, then a record for a ...
). Ahern became a successful producer, with a long list of credits, including albums by
Barbra Streisand
Barbara Joan "Barbra" Streisand (; born April 24, 1942) is an American singer, actress and director. With a career spanning over six decades, she has achieved success in multiple fields of entertainment, and is among the few performers List ...
,
Bette Midler
Bette Midler (;''Inside the Actors Studio'', 2004 born December 1, 1945) is an American singer, actress, comedian and author. Throughout her career, which spans over five decades, Midler has received List of awards and nominations received by Be ...
,
Johnny Cash
John R. Cash (born J. R. Cash; February 26, 1932 – September 12, 2003) was an American country singer-songwriter. Much of Cash's music contained themes of sorrow, moral tribulation, and redemption, especially in the later stages of his ca ...
,
Willie Nelson
Willie Hugh Nelson (born April 29, 1933) is an American country musician. The critical success of the album ''Shotgun Willie'' (1973), combined with the critical and commercial success of ''Red Headed Stranger'' (1975) and '' Stardust'' (197 ...
and (his wife)
Emmylou Harris
Emmylou Harris (born April 2, 1947) is an American singer, songwriter and musician. She has released dozens of albums and singles over the course of her career and has won 14 Grammys, the Polar Music Prize, and numerous other honors, including ...
.
Richard Patterson played with a variety of bands and was working on a 3's a Crowd compilation album, but he died in 2011 and it was not completed.
Donna Warner, Wayne Davis and Ken Koblun did not continue with professional music careers.
Comrie Smith's subsequent involvement as a professional musician does not appear to have been documented, although he was quoted extensively by ''Mojo'' magazine in an article about the release of
Neil Young
Neil Percival Young (born November 12, 1945) is a Canadian-American singer and songwriter. After embarking on a music career in Winnipeg in the 1960s, Young moved to Los Angeles, joining Buffalo Springfield with Stephen Stills, Richie Furay ...
's ''Archives'' CD set; Smith, who died in 2009, was a life-long friend of Young's and had backed him on some of his early recordings. (Young's associations with the group create their own fascinating web, what with both Smith and Koblun playing with him in his early days, and Donna Warner having sung with him in Toronto.)
Discography
Singles
*"Bound To Fly" / "Steel Rail Blues" (1966), Epic 5-10073
*"Honey Machine" / "When The Sun Goes Down" (1967), Epic 5-10151
*"Bird Without Wings" / "Coat of Colours" (1967), RCA Victor 4120
*"Bird Without Wings" / "Coat of Colours" (1968), (USA) Dunhill D-4120
*"Let’s Get Together" / "I Don't Wanna Drive You Away" (1968), RCA Victor 4131
*"Let’s Get Together" / "I Don't Wanna Drive You Away" (1968), (USA) Dunhill D-4131
*"Electrocution of The Word" (1968)
Albums
*''Christopher’s Movie Matinee'' (1968), (Canada, Australia) RCA Victor DS-50030
*''Christopher’s Movie Matinee'' (1968), (USA) Dunhill DS-50030)
*''Christopher’s Movie Matinee'' (2012), Vintage Masters Inc.
Film
*''Christopher’s Movie Matinee'' (1968), National Film Board of Canada
References
External links
*
*
Profile of 3's a CrowdThe Canadian Pop Encyclopedia; www.jam.canoe.ca.
Entry at thecanadianencyclopedia.ca www.brenttitcomb.com.
{{Authority control
Canadian folk rock groups
Dunhill Records artists
Musical groups disestablished in 1969
Musical groups established in 1964
Musical groups from Vancouver