Colin Leo Hanton (born 12 December 1938) is a British musician who was a
drummer
A drummer is a percussionist who creates music using drum
The drum is a member of the percussion group of musical instruments. In the Hornbostel-Sachs classification system, it is a membranophone. Drums consist of at least one mem ...
for
The Quarrymen
The Quarrymen (also written as "the Quarry Men") are a British skiffle/rock and roll group, formed by John Lennon in Liverpool in 1956, which evolved into the Beatles in 1960. Originally consisting of Lennon and several schoolfriends, the Quar ...
—the band which would later evolve into
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 ...
.
Biography and career
Hanton was in an early line-up of the band from summer 1956 along with
John Lennon
John Winston Ono Lennon (born John Winston Lennon; 9 October 19408 December 1980) was an English singer, songwriter, musician and peace activist who achieved worldwide fame as founder, co-songwriter, co-lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist of ...
,
Eric Griffiths
Eric Ronald Griffiths (31 October 1940 – 29 January 2005) was an English musician and dry cleaner, he was best known as the guitarist in the original lineup of the Quarrymen until he left the group in the summer of 1958.
Early life
Born i ...
,
Pete Shotton
Peter Shotton (4 August 1941 – 24 March 2017) was an English businessman and former washboard player. He is known for his long friendship with John Lennon of The Beatles. He was a member of The Quarrymen, the precursor of the Beatles, and r ...
and Rod Davis, and stayed with the band through several line-up changes until January 1959 (by then, the group's members were Lennon, Hanton,
Paul McCartney
Sir James Paul McCartney (born 18 June 1942) is an English singer, songwriter and musician who gained worldwide fame with the Beatles, for whom he played bass guitar and shared primary songwriting and lead vocal duties with John Lennon. One ...
,
George Harrison
George Harrison (25 February 1943 – 29 November 2001) was an English musician and singer-songwriter who achieved international fame as the lead guitarist of the Beatles. Sometimes called "the quiet Beatle", Harrison embraced Indian c ...
and
John Lowe John Lowe may refer to:
Sports
* John Lowe (darts player) (born 1945), English darts player.
* John Lowe (footballer) (1912–1995), Scottish football player
* John Lowe (rugby league), English rugby league footballer
* John Lowe (cricketer) (18 ...
).
Hanton was working as an apprentice upholsterer when he was asked to join the nascent band, largely because he had recently purchased a new drum kit. Many of the band's early practice sessions took place in Hanton's parents' house. He left the Quarrymen after an argument with the rest of the band following a disastrous performance at the Speke Bus Depot Social Club in
Wavertree
Wavertree is a district of Liverpool, England. It is a ward of Liverpool City Council, and its population at the 2011 census was 14,772. Located to the south and east of the city centre, it is bordered by various districts and suburbs such as ...
on 1 January 1959.
In 1997, Hanton joined the revived Quarrymen with other original members: Rod Davis, Len Garry, Pete Shotton (who retired from the band before his death in 2017) and Eric Griffiths, who died in 2005. John "Duff" Lowe, original Quarrymen pianist, also plays with the group occasionally.
References
External links
Original Quarrymen: Colin Hanton
1938 births
Living people
English rock drummers
Musicians from Liverpool
The Quarrymen members
{{UK-drummer-stub