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 Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a major ...

and

blues Blues is a music genre and musical form which originated in the Deep South of the United States around the 1860s. Blues incorporated spirituals, work songs, field hollers, shouts, chants, and rhymed simple narrative ballads from the Afr ...

through

soul In many religious and philosophical traditions, there is a belief that a soul is "the immaterial aspect or essence of a human being". Etymology The Modern English noun ''soul'' is derived from Old English ''sāwol, sāwel''. The earliest attes ...

and

rhythm and blues Rhythm and blues, frequently abbreviated as R&B or R'n'B, is a genre of popular music that originated in African-American communities in the 1940s. The term was originally used by record companies to describe recordings marketed predominantly ...

and ended up as

psychedelia Psychedelia refers to the psychedelic subculture of the 1960s and the psychedelic experience. This includes psychedelic art, psychedelic music and style of dress during that era. This was primarily generated by people who used psychedelic ...

and

progressive rock Progressive rock (shortened as prog rock or simply prog; sometimes conflated with art rock) is a broad genre of rock music that developed in the United Kingdom and United States through the mid- to late 1960s, peaking in the early 1970s. Init ...

. The band achieved limited chart success and is best known for the role it played in developing the careers of numerous musicians including

Mel Collins Melvyn Desmond Collins (born 5 September 1947, Isle of Man) is a British saxophonist, flautist and session musician. Collins has played in several progressive rock groups, having been a member of King Crimson on two occasions (the first from ...

John Helliwell John Anthony Helliwell (born 15 February 1945) is an English musician, best known as the saxophonist, secondary keyboardist, backing vocalist, and occasional songwriter for the rock band Supertramp. He also served as an MC during the band's c ...

, Robert Palmer,

Jess Roden Jess Roden (born 28 December 1947) is an English rock singer, songwriter and guitarist. Biography Roden's first band was The Raiders followed by The Shakedown Sound which also included the guitarist, Kevyn Gammond, and keyboard player, August E ...

and

Dougie Thomson Douglas 'Doogie' Campbell Thomson (born 24 March 1951) is a Scottish musician, born in Glasgow and raised in the Rutherglen area of the city. He was the bass guitarist of progressive rock band Supertramp during much of the seventies and eight ...

Formation

Alan Bown (born Alan James Bown, 21 July 1942,

Slough Slough () is a town and unparished area in the unitary authority of the same name in Berkshire, England, bordering west London. It lies in the Thames Valley, west of central London and north-east of Reading, at the intersection of the M4 ...

, Berkshire died 16 December 2014, Slough), a trumpet player, joined The Embers in 1963, when he left the

RAF The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the United Kingdom's air and space force. It was formed towards the end of the First World War on 1 April 1918, becoming the first independent air force in the world, by regrouping the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) and ...

. This group played both American

and

, and were a very successful live act, playing at venues like

The Star-Club The Star-Club was a music club in Hamburg, Germany, that opened on Friday 13 April 1962, and was initially operated by Manfred Weissleder and Horst Fascher. In the 1960s, many of the giants of rock music played at the club. The club closed on 3 ...

, Hamburg at the same time as

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 ...

. Bown left the group to join

The John Barry Seven The John Barry Seven was a band formed by John Barry in 1957, after he abandoned his original career path of arranging for big bands. Origins Barry contacted three musicians with whom he had served in the Army and three local musicians and in ...

, who were backing

Brenda Lee Brenda Mae Tarpley (born December 11, 1944), known professionally as Brenda Lee, is an American singer. Performing rockabilly, pop and country music, she had 47 US chart hits during the 1960s and is ranked fourth in that decade, surpassed only ...

, and toured and recorded with the band until it broke up in 1965; Barry having made Bown the leader of the touring band, so he could spend more time composing.

Reformation

Bown then formed The Alan Bown Set in c May 1965, initially with three former members of

:- Jeff Bannister (lead vocals and organ) (born Jeffrey Bannister, 7 January 1943), Dave Green (sax, clarinet and flute) and Stan Haldane (bass) together with Pete Burgess (guitar) and Vic Sweeney (drums). They played American R&B and soul and played the same club circuit as

Georgie Fame and the Blue Flames Georgie Fame and the Blue Flames were a British rhythm and blues group during the 1960s whose repertoire spanned jazz, soul, ska, and calypso. They were originally the backing band for rock and roll singer Billy Fury. At the end of 1961, the ...

and

Cliff Bennett and the Rebel Rousers Cliff Bennett and the Rebel Rousers are a 1960s British rhythm and blues, soul and beat group who had two Top 10 hits with " One Way Love" (No. 9 UK, 1964) and "Got to Get You into My Life" (No. 6 UK, 1966). Well-known members include Bennett ...

. In 1965

Tony Hatch Anthony Peter Hatch (born 30 June 1939) is an English composer for musical theatre and television. He is also a songwriter, pianist, arranger and producer. Early life and early career Hatch was born in Pinner, Middlesex. Encouraged by his mus ...

signed to them to

Pye Records Pye Records was a British record label. Its best known artists were Lonnie Donegan (1956–1969), Petula Clark (1957–1971), the Searchers (1963–1967), the Kinks (1964–1971), Sandie Shaw (1964–1971), Status Quo (1968–1971) and Brotherhoo ...

but their first single "Can't Let Her Go" / "I'm The One" did not chart. In 1966 Green was replaced by

and shortly after

joined as a vocalist, allowing Bannister to concentrate on keyboards. They appeared on

Ready Steady Go! ''Ready Steady Go!'' (or ''RSG!'') was a British rock/pop music television programme broadcast every Friday evening from 9 August 1963 until 23 December 1966. It was conceived by Elkan Allan, head of Rediffusion TV. Allan wanted a light enter ...

and at The Windsor Jazz Festival and began headlining London's

Marquee Club The Marquee Club was a music venue first located at 165 Oxford Street in London, when it opened in 1958 with a range of jazz and skiffle acts. Its most famous period was from 1964 to 1988 at 90 Wardour Street in Soho, and it finally closed whe ...

. This line up released 3 singles, none of which charted, although "Emergency 999" later became a Northern Soul club anthem. The Alan Bown Set and

Jimmy James and the Vagabonds Michael "Jimmy" James (born 13 September 1940) is a British-Jamaican soul singer, known for songs like "Come to Me Softly", "Now Is the Time" and "I'll Go Where Your Music Takes Me". Based in Britain, he has performed as the lead singer of Ji ...

were both recorded live and released on a joint album ''London Swings: Live at the Marquee Club'' with one side each. In November 1966 Burgess was replaced by Tony Catchpole and in 1967 the band released "Gonna Fix You Good (Everytime You're Bad)" / "I Really, Really Care" and recorded the soundtrack for ''Jeu de Massacre'' a French film featuring

Jacques Loussier Jacques Loussier (26 October 1934 – 5 March 2019) was a French pianist and composer. He arranged jazz interpretations of many of the works of Johann Sebastian Bach, such as the ''Goldberg Variations''. The Jacques Loussier Trio, founded in 19 ...

. They recorded for the BBCs ''Rhythm and Blues'' programme in 1966 and '' Saturday Club'' in 1967.

The Alan Bown!

When the band's Pye Records contract expired in 1967, Bown reformed the band as "The Alan Bown!" a psychedelic band on

Verve Records Verve Records is an American record label owned by Universal Music Group (UMG). Founded in 1956 by Norman Granz, the label is home to the world's largest jazz catalogue, which includes recordings by artists such as Ella Fitzgerald, Nina Simone, ...

, They finally released their first full album ''Outward Bown'' in 1968 and appeared on ''

Top Gear Top Gear may refer to: * "Top gear", the highest gear available in a vehicle's manual transmission Television * ''Top Gear'' (1977 TV series), a British motoring magazine programme * ''Top Gear'' (2002 TV series), a relaunched version of the or ...

''. The album included a cover of Dylan's "

All Along the Watchtower "All Along the Watchtower" is a song by American singer-songwriter Bob Dylan from his eighth studio album, ''John Wesley Harding'' (1967). The song was written by Dylan and produced by Bob Johnston. The song's lyrics, which in its original vers ...

", a stage version which "directly inspired Hendrix's arrangement of the song". In 1968 they performed "We Can Help You" on

Top of the Pops ''Top of the Pops'' (''TOTP'') is a British Record chart, music chart television programme, made by the BBC and originally broadcast weekly between 1January 1964 and 30 July 2006. The programme was the world's longest-running weekly music show ...

; this was at No 26 in the UK chart but the pressing plant went on strike, so they could not capitalise on the exposure. In 1969 they changed to

Deram Records Deram Records was a subsidiary record label of Decca Records established in the United Kingdom in 1966. At the time, U.K. Decca was a different company from the Decca label in the United States, which was owned by MCA Inc. Deram recordings w ...

where they had a minor hit with "Still as Stone". As with many bands at the time, they recorded cover versions for the

BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board ex ...

, appearing on the '’ Jimmy Young Show'’, "The David Symonds Show" and others, as restricted

needle time Needle time was created in the United Kingdom by the Musicians' Union and Phonographic Performance Limited to restrict the amount of recorded music that could be transmitted by the BBC during any 24-hour period. The number of hours per week allowe ...

required "live" performances between the records. Their next album ''The Alan Bown!'' had been recorded when Roden left the band. Robert Palmer joined and the vocals were re-recorded by him, before the album's UK release, although the Roden vocals were issued in the US (and has never been reissued). The band appeared on BBC TVs ''Disco Two'' (which became

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. ...

). In 1970 the band changed labels yet again, this time to

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 ...

. They recorded the album ''Listen'', but Palmer promptly left, being replaced by Gordon Neville, who re-recorded the vocals before the album was eventually released. The single "Pyramid" was released before Andy Brown replaced Haldane and

joined on saxophone. They recorded another album ''Stretching Out'' and re-appeared on Disco Two. Bannister left but was not replaced, then

replaced Brown and Derek Griffiths, formerly with

The Artwoods The Artwoods (also sometimes known by Decca Records as the Art Woods) were an English rock band who formed in 1963 and were professionally active between 1964 and 1967. They were a popular live attraction, rivalling groups such as the Animals, a ...

, replaced Catchpole. This line-up continued until February 1972. Bown then formed a new band with Dave Lawson (keyboards), Tony Dangerfield (bass) and Frank White (guitar) replaced by Pete Goodall, formerly with Thunderclap Newman, Nick Payn (tenor saxophone and flute) and Alan Coulter (drums), but after a major tour, Bown finally disbanded the group in July 1972.

Subsequent careers

*Alan Bown joined Jonesy, and then became an A&R manager with

CBS Records CBS Records may refer to: * CBS Records or CBS/Sony, former name of Sony Music, a global record company * CBS Records International, label for Columbia Records recordings released outside North America from 1962 to 1990 * CBS Records (2006), founde ...

. *Jeff Bannister joined

A Band Called O A Band Called O were a band from Jersey, Channel Islands. Originally known as The Parlour Band, playing progressive rock, they renamed to A Band Called O for two albums on CBS/Epic and later to The O Band for further albums with UA. Despite is ...

worked with

King Crimson King Crimson are a progressive rock band formed in 1968 in London, England. The band draws inspiration from a wide variety of music, incorporating elements of classical, jazz, folk, heavy metal, gamelan, industrial, electronic, experime ...

Alexis Korner Alexis Andrew Nicholas Koerner (19 April 1928 – 1 January 1984), known professionally as Alexis Korner, was a British blues musician and radio broadcaster, who has sometimes been referred to as "a founding father of British blues". A major in ...

and numerous other bands. *

and

joined

Supertramp Supertramp were an English rock band that formed in London in 1969. Marked by the individual songwriting of founders Roger Hodgson (vocals, keyboards, and guitars) and Rick Davies (vocals and keyboards), they are distinguished for blending pro ...

*Gordon Neville later joined

Elton John Sir Elton Hercules John (born Reginald Kenneth Dwight; 25 March 1947) is a British singer, pianist and composer. Commonly nicknamed the "Rocket Man" after his 1972 hit single of the same name, John has led a commercially successful career a ...

's band, and worked with

Rick Wakeman Richard Christopher Wakeman (born 18 May 1949) is an English keyboardist best known as a former member of the progressive rock band Yes across five tenures between 1971 and 2004, and for his solo albums released in the 1970s. Born and raised ...

* Robert Palmer joined Dada, which evolved into Vinegar Joe, and then had a successful solo career and formed

Power Station A power station, also referred to as a power plant and sometimes generating station or generating plant, is an industrial facility for the generation of electric power. Power stations are generally connected to an electrical grid. Many p ...

formed his own band

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 ...

*Vic Sweeney worked with

Kevin Coyne Kevin Coyne (27 January 1944 – 2 December 2004) was an English musician, singer, composer, film-maker, and a writer of lyrics, stories and poems. The "anti-star" was born in Derby, Derbyshire, England, and died in his adopted home of Nurember ...

*Pete Goodall worked with Percy Sledge, Viola Wills, Carl Douglas and many more *Nick Payn currently plays in Bill Wyman's Rhythm Kings *Dave Lawson joined/co-founded Greenslade with whom he played until their break up in late 1975

Discography

;Singles *"Can't Let Her Go" / "I'm the One" (1966) Pye *"Baby Don't Push Me" / "Everything's Gonna Be Alright" (1966) Pye *"Headline News" / "Mister Pleasure" (1966) Pye – UK #52 *"Emergency 999" / "Settle Down" (1966) Pye *"Gonna Fix You Good (Everytime You're Bad)" / "I Really, Really Care" (1967) Pye *"Jeu De Massacre" (1967) Disques Vogue *"We Can Help You" / "Magic Handkerchief" (1967) Music Factory – UK #55 *"Toyland" / "Technicolour Dream" (1967) MGM – UK #53 *"Story Book" / "Little Lesley" (1968) MGM *"Still As Stone" / "Wrong Idea" (1969) Deram *"Gypsy Girl" / "All I Can" (1969) Deram *"Pyramid" / "Crash Landing" (1971) Island *"Rockford Files" /"I Don't Know" (1975) CBS ;Albums *''London Swings: Live at the Marquee Club'' (1966) Pye (1 side) (1994) Castle (CD) *''Outward Bown'' (November 1968) Music Factory *''The Alan Bown'' (February 1970) Deram (US featured Jess Roden's vocals; UK and subsequent reissues featured Robert Palmer's vocals) *''Listen'' (November 1970) Island *''Stretching Out'' (August 1971) Island ;Compilations *''Kick Me Out'' (1985) See for Miles *''Emergency 999'' (2002) Sequel This discography was compiled from several sources, but there are a number of inconsistencies.

References

Bibliography

''The Alan Bown Set – Before and Beyond'' by Jeff Bannister, published by Banland Publishing Ltd

External links

Jess Roden on The Alan Bown
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bown Set, The Alan British soul musical groups English jazz ensembles British rhythm and blues musical groups English blues musical groups English progressive rock groups Deram Records artists Island Records artists MGM Records artists English psychedelic rock music groups Pye Records artists Musical groups established in 1964 Musical groups disestablished in 1972 Northern soul musicians