Jess Roden (born 28 December 1947) is an English rock
singer
Singing is the act of creating musical sounds with the voice. A person who sings is called a singer, artist or vocalist (in jazz and/or popular music). Singers perform music (arias, recitatives, songs, etc.) that can be sung with or without ...
,
songwriter
A songwriter is a musician who professionally composes musical compositions or writes lyrics for songs, or both. The writer of the music for a song can be called a composer, although this term tends to be used mainly in the classical music gen ...
and
guitarist
A guitarist (or a guitar player) is a person who plays the guitar. Guitarists may play a variety of guitar family instruments such as classical guitars, acoustic guitars, electric guitars, and bass guitars. Some guitarists accompany themselv ...
.
Biography
Roden's first band was The Raiders followed by The Shakedown Sound which also included the guitarist, Kevyn Gammond, and keyboard player, August Eadon (aka Gus Yeadon).
In 1966, he joined
The Alan Bown Set
The Alan Bown Set later known as The Alan Bown! or just Alan Bown, were a British band of the 1960s and 1970s whose music evolved from jazz and blues through soul and rhythm and blues and ended up as psychedelia and progressive rock. The band a ...
as their new lead singer. Although their
records
A record, recording or records may refer to:
An item or collection of data Computing
* Record (computer science), a data structure
** Record, or row (database), a set of fields in a database related to one entity
** Boot sector or boot record, ...
rarely
charted, Roden and the band did pick up a considerable
fan base in London, and belatedly became a minor
star
A star is an astronomical object comprising a luminous spheroid of plasma (physics), plasma held together by its gravity. The List of nearest stars and brown dwarfs, nearest star to Earth is the Sun. Many other stars are visible to the naked ...
on the
Northern soul scene, with the release of their single, "Emergency 999".
He remained with the Alan Bown through to the late 1960s, but left after recording the album ''
The Alan Bown!'' His vocals were re-recorded by his replacement
Robert Palmer for the UK release of the album, although Roden's original vocals remained on the US release. Roden later appeared as a backing vocalist to Palmer on his 1983 appearance on ''
The Tube''.
In 1970, Roden returned to Worcestershire and formed
Bronco
A bucking horse is any breed or either gender of horse with a propensity to buck. They have been, and still are, referred to by various names, including bronco, broncho, and roughstock.
The harder they buck, the more desirable they are for rod ...
who toured extensively with
Island Records
Island Records is a multinational record label owned by Universal Music Group. It was founded in 1959 by Chris Blackwell, Graeme Goodall, and Leslie Kong in Jamaica, and was eventually sold to PolyGram in 1989. Island and A&M Records, anoth ...
' label-mates
Traffic
Traffic comprises pedestrians, vehicles, ridden or herded animals, trains, and other conveyances that use public ways (roads) for travel and transportation.
Traffic laws govern and regulate traffic, while rules of the road include traffic ...
,
Free,
Mott the Hoople
Mott the Hoople were an English rock band formed in Herefordshire. Originally known as the Doc Thomas Group, the group changed their name after signing with Island Records in 1969. The band released albums throughout the early 1970s but fail ...
,
Fotheringay
Fotheringay was a short-lived British folk rock group, formed in 1970 by singer-songwriter and musician Sandy Denny on her departure from Fairport Convention. The band drew its name from her 1968 composition " Fotheringay" about Fotheringhay ...
, and
John Martyn
Iain David McGeachy (11 September 1948 – 29 January 2009), known professionally as John Martyn, was a Scottish singer-songwriter and guitarist. Over a 40-year career, he released 23 studio albums, and received frequent critical acclaim. ...
but left after two albums to embark on a solo album. During this period, he also sang on ''
Wildlife
Wildlife refers to domestication, undomesticated animal species (biology), species, but has come to include all organisms that grow or live wilderness, wild in an area without being species, introduced by humans. Wildlife was also synonymous ...
'', the third
Mott the Hoople
Mott the Hoople were an English rock band formed in Herefordshire. Originally known as the Doc Thomas Group, the group changed their name after signing with Island Records in 1969. The band released albums throughout the early 1970s but fail ...
album, and sang and played on albums by
Carol Grimes
Carol Ann Grimes (born 7 April 1944) is a British singer and songwriter.
In 1969, she joined the band Delivery and recorded one album before departing for a solo career. Her debut solo album, ''Warm Blood'' (1974), was recorded with members of ...
,
Jim Capaldi
Nicola James Capaldi (2 August 1944 – 28 January 2005) was an English singer-songwriter and drummer. His musical career spanned more than four decades. He co-founded the progressive rock band Traffic in 1967 with Steve Winwood with whom he co ...
,
Sandy Denny
Alexandra Elene MacLean Denny (6 January 1947 – 21 April 1978) was an English singer who was lead singer of the British folk rock band Fairport Convention. She has been described as "the pre-eminent British folk rock singer".
After briefly w ...
, and sang lead vocals on
Keef Hartley
Keith "Keef" Hartley (8 April 1944 – 26 November 2011)
was an English drummer and bandleader. He fronted his own band ...
's 1973 album ''
Lancashire Hustler
''Lancashire Hustler'' is the debut solo album by Keef Hartley. Robert Palmer, Elkie Brooks and Pete Gage of the band Vinegar Joe (with whom Hartley worked on the 1972 album ''Rock 'n Roll Gypsies'') provided support on some tracks.
Track li ...
''.
His solo album plans were sidelined when, in the same year, he was asked to team up with ex-
Doors
A door is a hinged or otherwise movable barrier that allows ingress (entry) into and egress (exit) from an enclosure. The created opening in the wall is a ''doorway'' or ''portal''. A door's essential and primary purpose is to provide security b ...
John Densmore
John Paul Densmore (born December 1, 1944) is an American musician, songwriter, author and actor. He is best known as the drummer of the rock band the Doors, and as such is a member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. He appeared on every recordi ...
and
Robby Krieger
Robert Alan Krieger (born January 8, 1946) is an American guitarist and founding member of the rock band the Doors. Krieger wrote or co-wrote many of the Doors' songs, including the hits "Light My Fire", "Love Me Two Times", " Touch Me", and "L ...
in
The Butts Band
''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 ...
, together with
Phil Chen
Phillip David Chen (21 October 1946 – 14 December 2021) was a Jamaican bassist. He was one of England's most utilized session bassists during the 1970s and 1980s, including Jeff Beck, and the Rod Stewart band from 1977 to 1980, but is prob ...
(bass) and Roy Davies (keyboards). Their first album was recorded in London and Kingston, Jamaica and released in the United States on
Blue Thumb Records
Blue Thumb Records was an American record label founded in 1968 by Bob Krasnow and former A&M Records executives Tommy LiPuma and Don Graham. Blue Thumb's last record was released in 1978. In 1995, the label was revived and remained active un ...
and
Island Records
Island Records is a multinational record label owned by Universal Music Group. It was founded in 1959 by Chris Blackwell, Graeme Goodall, and Leslie Kong in Jamaica, and was eventually sold to PolyGram in 1989. Island and A&M Records, anoth ...
(rest of the world). The Butts Band played a short US tour including multiple dates at New York's Max's Kansas City, a handful of British dates including opening for
The Kinks
The Kinks were an English rock band formed in Muswell Hill, north London, in 1963 by brothers Ray and Dave Davies. They are regarded as one of the most influential rock bands of the 1960s. The band emerged during the height of British rhythm ...
at London's Finsbury Park Astoria, later The Rainbow Theatre as well as recording one session for BBC TV's ''
The Old Grey Whistle Test
''The Old Grey Whistle Test'' (sometimes abbreviated to ''Whistle Test'' or ''OGWT'') is a British television music show. The show was devised by BBC producer Rowan Ayers, commissioned by David Attenborough and aired on BBC2 from 1971 to 1988. ...
'' after which Roden, Chen, and Davies left the group.
Roden finally emerged as a solo artist in the mid 1970s on Island Records with his 1974 self-titled solo album. It was
recorded at
Olympic Studios
Olympic Studios was a renowned British independent commercial recording studio based in Barnes, London. It is best known for its recordings of many artists throughout the late 1960s to the first decade of the 21st century, including Jimi Hendr ...
and
Basing Street Studios in London, as well as at
Sea-Saint Studios Sea-Saint Studios was a music recording facility located at 3809 Clematis Street in New Orleans, Louisiana, which was co-owned by musician, producer, and arranger, Allen Toussaint and record A&R man and publishing agent Marshall Sehorn, which was in ...
in
, Louisiana. This record included contributions from
Allen Toussaint
Allen Richard Toussaint (; January 14, 1938 – November 10, 2015) was an American musician, songwriter, arranger and record producer. He was an influential figure in New Orleans rhythm and blues from the 1950s to the end of the century, descri ...
and
The Meters from the US sessions and in London,
John Bundrick
John Douglas "Rabbit" Bundrick (born November 21, 1948 in Houston, Texas) is an American–English rock keyboardist. He is best known for his work with The Who and associations with others including Eric Burdon, Bob Marley and the Wailers, Roge ...
and
Mick Weaver
Mick Weaver (born 16 June 1944, Bolton, Lancashire, England) is an English people, English session musician, best known for his playing of the Hammond organ, Hammond B3 organ, and as an exponent of the blues and funk.
Career
Weaver's band perfor ...
(keyboards), Steve Webb (guitar), Richard Bailey, and
Simon Kirke
Simon Frederick St George Kirke (born 28 July 1949) is an English rock drummer best known as a member of Free and Bad Company. He has been the only continuous member of Bad Company since their inception.
Life and career
Kirke was born in L ...
(drums).
He then formed The Jess Roden Band (originally Iguana – based in Southampton). The initial album sessions were with Steve Smith (and featured
Steve Winwood
Stephen Lawrence Winwood (born 12 May 1948) is an English musician, singer, and songwriter whose genres include blue-eyed soul, rhythm and blues, blues rock, and pop rock. Though primarily a keyboard player and vocalist prominent for his disti ...
on
Hammond organ
The Hammond organ is an electric organ invented by Laurens Hammond and John M. Hanert and first manufactured in 1935. Multiple models have been produced, most of which use sliding drawbars to vary sounds. Until 1975, Hammond organs generated s ...
), but these were eventually discarded in favour of producer Geoff Haslam, with whom the group's first two studio album were recorded – ''Keep Your Hat On'' and ''Play It Dirty, Play It Class''. A major touring draw, the band never achieved significant record sales and disbanded in early 1977. This was after the release of their live album, ''Blowin, which was recorded during capacity shows at Birmingham Town Hall and Leicester University in late 1976. Their final show was, however, also recorded and later issued as Live at the BBC.
Following the ending of the JRB, Roden relocated to New York City and cut two further solo albums for Island (''The Player Not The Game'' and ''Stonechaser'') after which his association with Island ended. He formed The Rivits with Peter Wood (who had co-written "
Year of the Cat" with
Al Stewart
Alastair Ian Stewart (born 5 September 1945) is a Scottish born singer-songwriter and folk-rock musician who rose to prominence as part of the British folk revival in the 1960s and 1970s. He developed a unique style of combining folk-rock so ...
), for one album ''Multiplay''; the album was released by Antilles in North America and via Island for the rest of the world. The Rivits played two UK shows only; one in Stamford in Lincolnshire, the other at The Venue in Victoria, London.
During initial sessions for a second Rivits album that had begun to be recorded at Compass Point Studios in the Bahamas, Roden sang back-up vocals for
Grace Jones
Grace Beverly Jones (born 19 May 1948) is a model, singer and actress. Born in Jamaica, she and her family moved to Syracuse, New York, when she was a teenager. Jones began her modelling career in New York state, then in Paris, working for ...
', ''
Pull Up to the Bumper
"Pull Up to the Bumper" is a 1981 song by Jamaican singer Grace Jones, released as the third single from her fifth album, '' Nightclubbing'' (1981). Sonically, it is an uptempo electro-disco, post-punk, dance-pop and reggae-disco song with dub ...
''. With the sessions incomplete (Woods had to leave to re-join Pink Floyd's band of musicians for The Wall tour) and on returning to New York, Roden and Island parted for the final time.
He began a new career as a graphic artist while, at the same time, recording ''Seven Windows'', an album that was produced by Steve Dwire (who had played bass on The Rivits' album) and A. T. Michael MacDonald that featured the cream of New York-based session players / arrangers (including Elliot Randall, Mark Egan, Jack Waldman, Rob Mounsey, Michael Dawe,
Lou Marini
Louis William Marini Jr. (born May 13, 1945), known as "Blue Lou" Marini, is an American saxophonist, arranger, and composer. He is best known for his work in jazz, rock, blues, and soul music, as well as his association with The Blues Brothers ...
, and Paul Buckmaster). Just before the album was released, Roden returned to live and work in the UK.
Combining graphic art with music, he recorded two albums with a new band, The Humans (named by Jim Capaldi) with a line-up that featured
Gary Grainger
Gary Grainger (born 20 October 1950) is an English rock, blues, jazz and pop songwriter and guitarist, most known for his work with Rod Stewart.
Career 1970–1999
Gary Grainger's professional career took off with the formation of Strider. Afte ...
, Bill Burke and Nick Graham; the group also recorded with
Steve Winwood
Stephen Lawrence Winwood (born 12 May 1948) is an English musician, singer, and songwriter whose genres include blue-eyed soul, rhythm and blues, blues rock, and pop rock. Though primarily a keyboard player and vocalist prominent for his disti ...
and
Jim Capaldi
Nicola James Capaldi (2 August 1944 – 28 January 2005) was an English singer-songwriter and drummer. His musical career spanned more than four decades. He co-founded the progressive rock band Traffic in 1967 with Steve Winwood with whom he co ...
. Subsequent to the release of both records and due to work commitments, Roden's live appearances became increasingly rare with occasional performances with the SAS band that featured
Roy Wood
Roy Wood (born 8 November 1946) is an English musician and singer-songwriter. He was particularly successful in the 1960s and 1970s as member and co-founder of the Move, Electric Light Orchestra and Wizzard. As a songwriter, he contributed a n ...
,
Roger Taylor Roger Taylor may refer to:
*Roger Taylor (Queen drummer) (born 1949), drummer for Queen
*Roger Taylor (Duran Duran drummer) (born 1960), drummer for Duran Duran
*Roger Taylor (author), author of epic fantasy Hawklan series
*Roger Taylor (college pr ...
,
Brian May
Brian Harold May (born 19 July 1947) is an English guitarist, singer, songwriter, and astrophysicist, who achieved worldwide fame as the lead guitarist of the rock band Queen (band), Queen. May was a co-founder of Queen with lead singer Fredd ...
, and
Paul Young
Paul Antony Young (born 17 January 1956) is an English musician, singer and songwriter. Formerly the frontman of the short-lived bands Kat Kool & the Kool Cats, Streetband and Q-Tips, he became a teen idol with his solo success in the 1980s. ...
.
In 2009, Lemon Recordings (a subsidiary of Cherry Red) issued a 'Best Of...' and, a year later, BGO issued both Bronco albums as a single CD package.
During the winter of 2009, deep archive research began into a full-scale Anthology – designed to encompass Roden's entire musical career. During this process, well over 800 pieces of music were logged (and in the vast majority of instances, digitised for the first time) from which a career defining Anthology has been compiled. The set, ''Hidden Masters: The Jess Roden Anthology'', which includes over 50% of previously unheard material – was issued as a limited edition, first pressing of 950 copies, 6-CD set by Hidden Masters in 2013.
Selective discography
Solo
*''Jess Roden'' (1974)
*''The Player Not the Game'' (1977)
*''Stonechaser'' (1980)
The Jess Roden Band
*''Keep Your Hat On'' (1976)
*''Play It Dirty, Play It Class'' (1976)
*''Blowin (1977)
*''Live at the BBC'' (released 1993)
Alan Bown
*''London Swings – Live at the Marquee'' (1967) One side of an album also featuring Jimmy James & The Vagabonds
*''Emergency 999'' (CD which collects all early Alan Bown singles featuring Roden)
*''Outward Bown First Album'' (1968)
*''The Alan Bown!'' (1969) (US edition only)
Bronco
A bucking horse is any breed or either gender of horse with a propensity to buck. They have been, and still are, referred to by various names, including bronco, broncho, and roughstock.
The harder they buck, the more desirable they are for rod ...
*''Country Home'' (1970)
*''Ace of Sunlight'' (1971)
*''Smoking Mixture'' (1973)
Butts Band
Butts Band was a British and American group formed by ex-Doors members John Densmore and Robby Krieger, active from 1973 to 1975. The band released two albums and, with the exception of Krieger and Densmore, they consisted of different band per ...
*''
Butts_Band
Butts Band was a British and American group formed by ex-Doors members John Densmore and Robby Krieger, active from 1973 to 1975. The band released two albums and, with the exception of Krieger and Densmore, they consisted of different band per ...
'' (1973)
The Rivits
*''Multiplay'' (1980)
Seven Windows
*''Seven Windows'' (1986)
The Humans
*''Jess Roden and The Humans'' (1995)
*''Live at The Robin 1996'' (2004)
Compilations
*''Jess Roden – The Best Of...'' (2009) CD via Lemon (a subsidiary of Cherry Red)
*''Bronco – Country Home & Ace of Sunlight'' Both albums reissued as a 2for1 by BGO Records (November 2010)
*''Outward Bown'' (2012) – CD reissue via Grapefruit (a subsidiary of Cherry Red)
*''Hidden Masters , The Jess Roden Anthology'' – a hand-numbered, 94 track, 6-CD box set, 12" hard-back book format limited edition (bonus 6th CD only available with the 1st edition); Exclusive availability via HiddenMasters.net. First edition (pressing) limited to 950 copies only.
Other appearances
*
The Who
The Who are an English rock band formed in London in 1964. Their classic lineup consisted of lead singer Roger Daltrey, guitarist and singer Pete Townshend, bass guitarist and singer John Entwistle, and drummer Keith Moon. They are considered ...
– "
Magic Bus" (backing vocals) (1968)
*
Mott the Hoople
Mott the Hoople were an English rock band formed in Herefordshire. Originally known as the Doc Thomas Group, the group changed their name after signing with Island Records in 1969. The band released albums throughout the early 1970s but fail ...
– ''
Wildlife
Wildlife refers to domestication, undomesticated animal species (biology), species, but has come to include all organisms that grow or live wilderness, wild in an area without being species, introduced by humans. Wildlife was also synonymous ...
'' (backing vocals) (1971)
*
Keef Hartley
Keith "Keef" Hartley (8 April 1944 – 26 November 2011)
was an English drummer and bandleader. He fronted his own band ...
– ''
Lancashire Hustler
''Lancashire Hustler'' is the debut solo album by Keef Hartley. Robert Palmer, Elkie Brooks and Pete Gage of the band Vinegar Joe (with whom Hartley worked on the 1972 album ''Rock 'n Roll Gypsies'') provided support on some tracks.
Track li ...
'' (lead vocals) (1973)
*
Paul Kossoff
Paul Francis Kossoff (14 September 1950 – 19 March 1976) was an English guitarist, mainly known as the co-founder and guitarist for the rock band Free. He was ranked number 51 in ''Rolling Stone''s list of the "100 Greatest Guitarists of All ...
– ''
Back Street Crawler'' (Roden sang lead on "I'm Ready" and harmony with Paul Rodgers on "Molten Gold") (1973)
*
Carol Grimes
Carol Ann Grimes (born 7 April 1944) is a British singer and songwriter.
In 1969, she joined the band Delivery and recorded one album before departing for a solo career. Her debut solo album, ''Warm Blood'' (1974), was recorded with members of ...
– ''Warm Blood'' (backing vocals) (1974)
*
Jim Capaldi
Nicola James Capaldi (2 August 1944 – 28 January 2005) was an English singer-songwriter and drummer. His musical career spanned more than four decades. He co-founded the progressive rock band Traffic in 1967 with Steve Winwood with whom he co ...
– ''
Short Cut Draw Blood
''Short Cut Draw Blood'' is the third studio album by the British musician Jim Capaldi, released by Island Records in 1975. It marked a major turning point in Capaldi's career: it was his first album recorded after the breakup of Traffic, and mor ...
'' (guitarist) (1975)
*
Stomu Yamashta
Stomu Yamashta (or Yamash'ta), born ,
is a Japanese percussionist, keyboardist and composer. He is best known for pioneering and popularising a fusion of traditional Japanese percussive music with Western progressive rock music in the 1960s and 1 ...
– ''
Go Too
''Go Too'' (1977) is Go's third album. Go was founded by Stomu Yamashta, Steve Winwood and Michael Shrieve. For this album, Jess Roden replaced Steve Winwood (who had left the group). The style of the music became modified accordingly. In additi ...
'' (1977)
*
Sandy Denny
Alexandra Elene MacLean Denny (6 January 1947 – 21 April 1978) was an English singer who was lead singer of the British folk rock band Fairport Convention. She has been described as "the pre-eminent British folk rock singer".
After briefly w ...
– ''
Rendezvous'' (backing vocals) (1977)
*
Grace Jones
Grace Beverly Jones (born 19 May 1948) is a model, singer and actress. Born in Jamaica, she and her family moved to Syracuse, New York, when she was a teenager. Jones began her modelling career in New York state, then in Paris, working for ...
– ''
Nightclubbing'' (backing vocals) (1981)
* Seven Windows – ''Seven Windows'' (1986)
*
Peter Green – ''Rattlesnake Guitar: The Music of Peter Green'' (Roden sang on two tracks "Crying Won't Bring You Back" and "Merry Go Round") (1995)
*
Luther Grosvenor
Luther James Grosvenor (born 23 December 1946) is an English rock musician, who played guitar in Spooky Tooth, briefly in Stealers Wheel and, under the pseudonym Ariel Bender, in Mott the Hoople and Widowmaker.
Grosvenor was born in Evesha ...
– ''Floodgates'' (Roden sang on two tracks "I Wanna Be Free" and "Fire Down Below") (1996)
* SAS Band – (Roden sang on "
That's The Way God Planned It") (1998)
*
Sandy Denny
Alexandra Elene MacLean Denny (6 January 1947 – 21 April 1978) was an English singer who was lead singer of the British folk rock band Fairport Convention. She has been described as "the pre-eminent British folk rock singer".
After briefly w ...
– ''
A Boxful of Treasures
''A Boxful of Treasures'' is a 2004 compilation box set of recordings by folk singer Sandy Denny and comprises solo material and recordings made during her time as a member of Fotheringay
Fotheringay was a short-lived British folk rock gro ...
'' (includes "Losing Game" –
duet
A duet is a musical composition for two performers in which the performers have equal importance to the piece, often a composition involving two singers or two pianists. It differs from a harmony, as the performers take turns performing a solo ...
with Roden) (2004)
References
External links
Official websiteJess Roden entry on Wyfopedia Unsung Heroes No 1: Jess RodenA blog commentary that has turned into an informal Jess Roden discussion group.
website for Steve Webb, guitarist with the Jess Roden Band
{{DEFAULTSORT:Roden, Jess
1947 births
Living people
People from Kidderminster
English rock singers
English male singers
English rock guitarists
Island Records artists
English male guitarists
The Alan Bown Set members