''R.I.P.'', also known as ''R.I.P. - The Lost Album'', is a

studio album An album is a collection of audio recordings issued on compact disc (CD), Phonograph record, vinyl, audio tape, or another medium such as Digital distribution#Music, digital distribution. Albums of recorded sound were developed in the early ...

by the English

rock Rock most often refers to: * Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids * Rock music, a genre of popular music Rock or Rocks may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wales ...

band

the Zombies The Zombies are an English rock band formed in the early 1960s in St Albans and led by keyboardist and vocalist Rod Argent and vocalist Colin Blunstone. The group had a British and American hit in 1964 with "She's Not There". In the US, two fu ...

. It was originally scheduled to be released in 1969, but was cancelled. It was first released in Japan in October 2000 by

Imperial Records Imperial Records is an American record company and label started in 1947 by Lew Chudd. The label was reactivated in 2006 by EMI, which owned the label and back catalogue at the time. Imperial is owned by Universal Music Group. Early years to 19 ...

. In March 1968,

Rod Argent Rodney Terence Argent (born 14 June 1945) is an English musician, singer, songwriter, composer, and record producer. In a career spanning more than 50 years, Argent came to prominence in the mid 1960s as the keyboardist, founder and leader of the ...

, Chris White, and

Hugh Grundy Hugh Birch Grundy (born 6 March 1945) is an English musician. In a career spanning more than 50 years, Grundy came to prominence in the mid 1960s as the drummer of the English Rock music, rock band the Zombies. He was inducted into the Rock and ...

began working on material for a possible new band when they were approached by

CBS CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS, the abbreviation of its former legal name Columbia Broadcasting System, is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainmen ...

to do another Zombies album. This three-man lineup recorded one composition, "Conversation Off Floral Street", before Chris White, wishing to retain only his role as a songwriter, was replaced on bass by

Jim Rodford James Walter Rodford (7 July 1941 – 20 January 2018) was an English musician, who played bass for several British rock bands. He was a founding member of Argent, which was led by his cousin Rod Argent, and performed with them from their format ...

. Rick Birkett briefly joined the band on guitar, but this lineup only recorded a few sessions which did not make the album. By late 1968, Birkett and Grundy had left the band, to be replaced by

Russ Ballard Russell Glyn Ballard (born 31 October 1945) is an English singer, songwriter and musician. Originally coming to prominence as the lead singer and guitarist for the band Argent, Ballard became a songwriter and producer by the late 1970s. His co ...

and

Bob Henrit Robert John "Bob" Henrit (born 2 May 1944, in Broxbourne, Hertfordshire, England)Eder, Bruce " Robert Henrit Biography, Allmusic, retrieved 2010-02-13 is an English drummer who has been a member of several musical groups, including Buster Meikle ...

respectively. This lineup would eventually come to be

Argent In heraldry, argent () is the tincture of silver, and belongs to the class of light tinctures called "metals". It is very frequently depicted as white and usually considered interchangeable with it. In engravings and line drawings, regions to b ...

; however, the remaining five tracks were intentionally recorded to sound like previous Zombies material, with Argent and Chris White handling all of the vocal work. Side B was composed of old out-takes and demos that were overdubbed and enhanced in sessions at

Morgan Studios Morgan Studios (founded as Morgan Sound Studios) was an independent recording studio in Willesden in northwest London. Founded in 1967, the studio was the location for recordings by such notable artists as Jethro Tull, the Kinks, Paul McCartney, ...

in London. Two songs from the album, " Imagine the Swan" and "If It Don't Work Out" (a demo of a song that

Dusty Springfield Mary Isobel Catherine Bernadette O'Brien (16 April 1939 – 2 March 1999), known professionally as Dusty Springfield, was an English singer. With her distinctive mezzo-soprano sound, she was a popular singer of blue-eyed soul, Pop music, p ...

recorded and released in 1965), were put out as singles in 1969. The former only reached #109 on the American charts, while the latter failed to chart at all. Because of the singles' failure, the album was cancelled. "She Loves the Way They Love Her" and "Smokey Day" were recycled by Argent and White for

Colin Blunstone Colin Edward Michael Blunstone (born 24 June 1945) is an English singer, songwriter and musician. In a career spanning more than 60 years, Blunstone came to prominence in the mid-1960s as the lead singer of the English rock band the Zombies, whi ...

's 1971 solo album, ''

One Year ''One Year'' is the debut solo studio album by English singer-songwriter Colin Blunstone, a member of the Zombies. It was released by Epic Records in 1971. It includes "Say You Don't Mind", which peaked at number 15 on the UK Singles Chart. Prod ...

''.

Track listing

Personnel

;Side A *

– lead and backing vocals, keyboards, production *

- guitar (1-5) *

- bass (1-5) *

- drums (1-5) * Chris White – bass (6), backing vocals, production *

– drums (6) ;Side B *

– lead vocals * Rod Argent - keyboards, backing vocals * Paul Atkinson – guitar * Chris White - bass, backing vocals * Hugh Grundy - drums

References

{{Authority control 2000 albums The Zombies albums Albums produced by Rod Argent