Anon were a band made up of pupils from
Charterhouse School
(God having given, I gave)
, established =
, closed =
, type = Public school Independent day and boarding school
, religion = Church of England
, president ...
in
Surrey
Surrey () is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in South East England, bordering Greater London to the south west. Surrey has a large rural area, and several significant urban areas which form part of the Greater London Built-up Area. ...
. Members of the group would eventually merge with another Charterhouse group, called
Garden Wall
The Garden Wall is a steep alpine area within Glacier National Park well known during the summer months to be heavily covered in dozens of species of flowering plants and shrubs. Located along the west side of the Continental divide and extending ...
, to form the progressive rock band
Genesis
Genesis may refer to:
Bible
* Book of Genesis, the first book of the biblical scriptures of both Judaism and Christianity, describing the creation of the Earth and of mankind
* Genesis creation narrative, the first several chapters of the Book of ...
. The band formed in May 1965 and split up in December 1966. It originally consisted of
Rivers Jobe
Rivers Jobe (1950 – 1979), born Rivers Maitland Alexander Job, was a British bass player known for being a member of Anon, one of the two bands which merged to form the progressive rock band Genesis; and for playing on the Savoy Brown album, ...
(bass),
Richard Macphail
Richard Paul Macphail (born 17 September 1950, in Bedford, Bedfordshire) is an English musician, road manager, and business owner best known for his relationship with the rock band Genesis from their formation in 1967 to 1973.
Genesis
Macphail wa ...
(vocals),
Anthony Phillips
Anthony Edwin Phillips (born 23 December 1951) is an English musician, songwriter, producer and singer who gained prominence as the original lead guitarist of the rock band Genesis, from 1967 to 1970. He left in July 1970 and learned to play mo ...
(lead guitar), and Rob Tyrrell (drums). They were later joined by future Genesis guitarist/bassist
Mike Rutherford
Michael John Cloete Crawford Rutherford (born 2 October 1950) is an English guitarist, bassist and songwriter, co-founder of the rock band Genesis. Rutherford and keyboardist Tony Banks are the group's two continuous members.
Initially servin ...
on rhythm guitar. During a short period of time, Rutherford was forced to leave the band by his house master at Charterhouse and was replaced by Mike Colman.
History
The band was formed when Anthony Phillips met up with Rivers Jobe (born Rivers Job). While friends at
prep school, Phillips and Jobe were in a band called The Spiders. The Spiders had been a Beatles type band, and when Phillips entered Charterhouse in April 1965, he hooked up with his old friend and formed Anon with Rob Tyrrell and Richard Macphail within a week. The band's name was short for "
anonymous".
Just after Anon had formed, a young guitarist called Mike Rutherford, who had been at Charterhouse since November 1964, heard that there was a chance he would be let into the band as a rhythm guitarist. He met up with and befriended Phillips and Macphail, passed an audition and was subsequently given a place in the band.
Anon was dedicated to covering songs by
the Beatles
The Beatles were an English Rock music, rock band, formed in Liverpool in 1960, that comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are regarded as the Cultural impact of the Beatles, most influential band of al ...
,
the Rolling Stones
The Rolling Stones are an English rock band formed in London in 1962. Active for six decades, they are one of the most popular and enduring bands of the rock era. In the early 1960s, the Rolling Stones pioneered the gritty, rhythmically d ...
, and rhythm and blues music from that era, like
John Mayall
John Mayall, OBE (born 29 November 1933) is an English blues singer, musician and songwriter, whose musical career spans over sixty years. In the 1960s, he was the founder of John Mayall & the Bluesbreakers, a band that has counted among it ...
. The only recording the band ever made was the only original song that the band had during this period, a demo of a song called "Pennsylvania Flickhouse" written by Anthony Phillips.
The members of Anon and Garden Wall were seen as the rebels of the school, as Charterhouse offered an extensive range of activities for pupils, but the members of the bands chose to play music. All music except for classical music was frowned upon by the teachers in the school. The members of Anon used to have their hair longer than everyone else and go down to the local pubs as a sign of rebellion. As a result, the band suffered a lot of pressure from their parents and teachers, and this led to Macphail departing the band because of his parents' attitude to him being in a rock band (leaving Rutherford to take over as singer), and Rutherford leaving the group because his guitar was confiscated by his house master. Rutherford was replaced by a returning Richard Macphail and guitarist Mike Colman, with Colman departing shortly thereafter and Rutherford returning to the fold.
The band continued to go on with the five-piece lineup until July 1966, when Rivers Jobe and Richard Macphail were scheduled to leave Charterhouse. Macphail decided that his band should do a concert with Garden Wall both as top acts and with a third band opening, so Anon set about getting together a concert that was staged within the school. The event marked the end of the five-piece lineup, and Jobe and Macphail both quit the band. Jobe went on to join
Savoy Brown
Savoy Brown (originally Savoy Brown Blues Band) were an English blues rock band formed in Battersea, south west London, in 1965. Part of the late 1960s blues rock movement, Savoy Brown primarily achieved success in the United States, where they ...
, Macphail went on to become a sound engineer for Genesis until 1973.
The band, now only Phillips, Rutherford (who took on Macphail's duties whilst Jobe went unreplaced), and Tyrrell, carried on. Eventually Tyrrell left, leading the band to break up in December 1966. Tyrrell would later surface as the drummer in Freddie Mercury's pre-Queen group, Sour Milk Sea. Phillips and Rutherford then went on to join with all three members of
Garden Wall
The Garden Wall is a steep alpine area within Glacier National Park well known during the summer months to be heavily covered in dozens of species of flowering plants and shrubs. Located along the west side of the Continental divide and extending ...
(vocalist
Peter Gabriel
Peter Brian Gabriel (born 13 February 1950) is an English musician, singer, songwriter, record producer, and activist. He rose to fame as the original lead singer of the progressive rock band Genesis. After leaving Genesis in 1975, he launched ...
, keyboardist
Tony Banks, and drummer
Chris Stewart) in 1967, to form Genesis (with Mike buying his first bass), in January 1967.
[Gallo, Armando (1978). ''Genesis: The Evolution of a Rock Band'' Sidgwick and Jackson Limited. ]
Personnel
Members
*
Rivers Jobe
Rivers Jobe (1950 – 1979), born Rivers Maitland Alexander Job, was a British bass player known for being a member of Anon, one of the two bands which merged to form the progressive rock band Genesis; and for playing on the Savoy Brown album, ...
– bass
(May 1965 – July 1966; died 1979)
*
Richard Macphail
Richard Paul Macphail (born 17 September 1950, in Bedford, Bedfordshire) is an English musician, road manager, and business owner best known for his relationship with the rock band Genesis from their formation in 1967 to 1973.
Genesis
Macphail wa ...
– lead vocals
(May 1965 – Spring 1966, Spring 1966 – July 1966)
*
Anthony Phillips
Anthony Edwin Phillips (born 23 December 1951) is an English musician, songwriter, producer and singer who gained prominence as the original lead guitarist of the rock band Genesis, from 1967 to 1970. He left in July 1970 and learned to play mo ...
– lead guitar
(May 1965 – December 1966), rhythm guitar
(May 1965)
*Rob Tyrrell – drums
(May 1965 – December 1966)
*
Mike Rutherford
Michael John Cloete Crawford Rutherford (born 2 October 1950) is an English guitarist, bassist and songwriter, co-founder of the rock band Genesis. Rutherford and keyboardist Tony Banks are the group's two continuous members.
Initially servin ...
– rhythm guitar
(May 1965 – Spring 1966, Spring 1966 – December 1966), lead vocals
(Spring 1966, July 1966 – December 1966), bass
(July 1966 – December 1966)
*Mike Colman – rhythm guitar
(Spring 1966; died 2010)
Lineups
Timeline
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Anon
Genesis (band)
1965 establishments in England
1966 disestablishments in England
Musical groups established in 1965
Musical groups disestablished in 1966
English rock music groups