Ronald Robert Peel (9 August 1946 – 1 November 2020), also known professionally as Rockwell T. James, was an Australian guitarist, singer and songwriter.

Biography

Peel began his career in music in the early 1960s as

bassist A bassist (also known as a bass player or bass guitarist) is a musician who plays a Bass (instrument), bass instrument such as a double bass (upright bass, contrabass, wood bass), bass guitar (electric bass, acoustic bass), synthbass, keyboar ...

for the

Port Macquarie Port Macquarie is a coastal town in the local government area of Port Macquarie-Hastings. It is located on the Mid North Coast of New South Wales, Australia, about north of Sydney, and south of Brisbane. The town is located on the Tasman Sea co ...

surf band The Mystics. In 1964, Peel and Mystics' lead guitarist Dave Boyne were recruited to join

The Missing Links The Missing Links were an Australian garage rock, R&B, and protopunk group from Sydney who were active from 1964 to 1966. The group was known for wearing their hair long and smashing their equipment on-stage. Throughout the course of 1965, the b ...

. The band was known for its long unruly hair, and pioneered the use of

audio feedback Audio feedback (also known as acoustic feedback, simply as feedback) is a positive feedback situation which may occur when an acoustic path exists between an audio input (for example, a microphone or guitar pickup) and an audio output (for examp ...

and

reverse tape effects Reverse tape effects are special effects created by recording sound onto magnetic tape and then physically reversing the tape so that when the tape is played back, the sounds recorded on it are heard in reverse. Backmasking is a type of reverse tap ...

in Australia. They enjoyed moderate success in Sydney and released a single on

Parlophone Parlophone Records Limited (also known as Parlophone Records and Parlophone) is a German–British record label founded in Germany in 1896 by the Carl Lindström Company as Parlophon. The British branch of the label was founded on 8 August 192 ...

in March 1965. Peel left the band in June 1965. Peel next joined

Sydney Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mountain ...

-based band

The Pleazers The Pleazers were an Australian-formed rhythm and blues musical group which were popular in New Zealand. They began in Brisbane as the G-Men in 1964. They released a sole studio album, ''Definitely Pleazers'', in 1966, before disbanding in the ...

. With a New Zealand recording contract and a club residency, they relocated to

Auckland Auckland (pronounced ) ( mi, Tāmaki Makaurau) is a large metropolitan city in the North Island of New Zealand. The List of New Zealand urban areas by population, most populous urban area in the country and the List of cities in Oceania by po ...

where they achieved a number of hit singles and a significant following. Peel left the band in late 1966. In 1967 he joined a revived Ray Brown & the Whispers for a short time. In 1968 Peel launched a solo career under the name Rockwell T James. Backed by his band The Rhythm Aces, he released one single "Love Power" which peaked at #52 on the AMR Top 100 singles chart. Peel travelled to the United Kingdom in 1971 and briefly joined

Thunderclap Newman Thunderclap Newman were an English rock band that Pete Townshend of the Who and Kit Lambert formed in 1969 in a bid to showcase the talents of John "Speedy" Keen, Jimmy McCulloch, and Andy "Thunderclap" Newman. Their single, "Something in the ...

. When that band broke up in April 1971, he returned to Australia and was asked to join One Ton Gypsy, a supergroup put together by Ray Brown, which included

Alison MacCallum Alison MacCallum (born 7 April 1951), also written Alison McCallum, is an Australian rock singer from the late 1960s and 1970s. Her two studio albums are ''Fresh Water'' (March 1972) and '' Excuse Me'' (October 1975). In March 1972 she issued he ...

and

Chrissy Amphlett Christine Joy Amphlett (; 25 October 1959 – 21 April 2013) was an Australian singer, songwriter and actress, best known as the frontwoman of the rock band Divinyls. She was notable for her brash, overtly sexual persona and subversive hum ...

. One Ton Gypsy eventually folded due to the cost of maintaining such a large group.

The La De Da's The La De Da's were a New Zealand rock band of the 1960s and early 1970s. Formed in New Zealand in 1963 as the Mergers, they had considerable success in both New Zealand and Australia until their split in 1975. In Australia the band is proba ...

, led by

Kevin Borich Kevin Nicholas Borich (born 27 October 1948, Huapai, North Island, New Zealand) is a New Zealand-born Australian guitarist and singer-songwriter. He was a founding member of The La De Das, the leader of Kevin Borich Express, and a founding memb ...

, formed in New Zealand in 1963. The band enjoyed great success in Australia and New Zealand but by late 1972 they broke up. Borich decided to rebuild the group as a trio, and approached Peel to join as bassist. The reformed group continued the band's success, and released several records. In July 1973 the band's vehicle was involved in a serious road crash that destroyed their gear and put Peel in hospital. Although they were still a top concert attraction, in early 1975 Borich decided to disband the group. In 1975,

John Paul Young John Inglis Young, OAM (born 21 June 1950), known professionally as John Paul Young, is a Scottish-born Australian pop singer who had his 1978 worldwide hit with " Love Is in the Air". His career was boosted by regular appearances as a perfor ...

achieved his first #1 single with "

Yesterday's Hero ''Yesterday's Hero'' is a 1979 British drama film directed by Neil Leifer and starring Ian McShane, Suzanne Somers, Adam Faith, Paul Nicholas and Cary Elwes (in his film debut). It also features Glynis Barber and Emma Samms in their early ...

". Deciding to tour off the success of this record, Young formed the All Stars Band, including Peel as bassist. Peel would continue to return to the All Stars for the next 45 years to support Young, until Peels' death in 2020. Several members of the All Stars issued solo records to capitalise on their new-found visibility. Peel resurrected his Rockwell T. James persona, and recorded prolifically in the period 1976–1979, releasing six singles and an album, ''A Shot of Rhythm and Blues''. His most successful single was "Roxanne", co-written by Peel with

Garth Porter Garth Ivan Richard Porter (born 24 September 1948) is a New Zealand-born Australian multi-instrumental musician, songwriter and record producer. He was a member, on keyboards and backing vocals, of the pop group, Sherbet (1970–84), and co-wr ...

and Tony Mitchell from Sherbet. It reached #39 in the AMR Top 100. Between gigs with the All Stars, Peel performed with the Scattered Aces in 1983–1984 and Slightly Shadey in 1987. In 2013 he formed duo The Rockwells with Bobby Fletcher. They released an album ''Cover Story'' in 2015.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Peel, Ronnie 1946 births 2020 deaths Australian guitarists 21st-century Australian male singers 20th-century Australian male singers