Zoot were a

pop rock Pop rock (also typeset as pop/rock) is a fusion genre with an emphasis on professional songwriting and recording craft, and less emphasis on attitude than rock music. Originating in the late 1950s as an alternative to normal rock and roll, earl ...

band formed in

Adelaide Adelaide ( ) is the capital city of South Australia, the state's largest city and the fifth-most populous city in Australia. "Adelaide" may refer to either Greater Adelaide (including the Adelaide Hills) or the Adelaide city centre. The dem ...

South Australia South Australia (commonly abbreviated as SA) is a state in the southern central part of Australia. It covers some of the most arid parts of the country. With a total land area of , it is the fourth-largest of Australia's states and territories ...

, in 1964 as Down the Line.McFarlane (1999). Encyclopedia entry fo
'Zoot'
Retrieved 21 January 2010.Spencer et al, (2007
ZOOT
entry. Retrieved 21 January 2010. They changed their name to Zoot in 1967 and by 1968 had relocated to

Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...

. They had a top-five hit on the ''

Go-Set ''Go-Set'' was the first Australian pop music newspaper, published weekly from 2 February 1966 to 24 August 1974, and was founded in Melbourne by Phillip Frazer, Peter Raphael and Tony Schauble. NOTE: This PDF is 282 pages. Widely described as ...

'' national singles chart with a heavy rock cover of

The Beatles The Beatles were an English rock band, formed in Liverpool in 1960, that comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are regarded as the most influential band of all time and were integral to the developmen ...

' ballad "

Eleanor Rigby "Eleanor Rigby" is a song by the English rock band the Beatles from their 1966 album ''Revolver''. It was also issued on a double A-side single, paired with " Yellow Submarine". The song was written primarily by Paul McCartney and credited to L ...

" released in 1970, but they disbanded in May 1971. Mainstay bass guitarist,

Beeb Birtles Beeb Birtles (born Gerard Bertelkamp, 28 November 1948) is an Australian musician, singer, songwriter and guitarist. He has been a member of various Australian groups including Zoot (1967–71), Mississippi (1972–74), Little River Band (1975 ...

, was later a founder of

Little River Band Little River Band (LRB) are a Rock music, rock band originally formed in Melbourne, Australia, in March 1975. The band achieved commercial success in both Australia and the United States. They have sold more than 30 million records; six studi ...

in 1975, and their guitarist singer-songwriter,

Rick Springfield Richard Lewis Springthorpe (born 23 August 1949), known professionally as Rick Springfield, is an Australian-American musician and actor. He was a member of the pop rock group Zoot from 1969 to 1971, then started his solo career with his debut ...

, who moved to the United States in 1972, achieved international fame as a solo artist, songwriter and actor. Zoot reunited for the Rick Springfield and Friends cruise in November 2011.

Career

1964–1968: Early years

In 1964,

Plympton Plympton is a suburb of the city of Plymouth in Devon, England. It is in origin an ancient stannary town. It was an important trading centre for locally mined tin, and a seaport before the River Plym silted up and trade moved down river to P ...

High School mates John D'Arcy, Gordon Rawson and Gerard Bertlekamp (later known as

) began to learn and play popular songs of the day. Ted Higgins was added and the band was named Times Unlimited.Spencer et al, (2007
TIMES UNLIMITED
entry. Retrieved 21 January 2010. They were joined by

Darryl Cotton Darryl Grant Cotton (4 September 1949 27 July 2012) was an Australian pop, rock singer-songwriter, television presenter and actor. He was a founding member of Australian rock group Zoot in 1965, with Beeb Birtles, and were later joined by Rick ...

, lead vocalist from local rivals, The MurmenSpencer et al, (2007
MERMEN, THE
entry. Retrieved 21 January 2010. and were renamed Down the Line from

The Hollies The Hollies are a British pop rock band, formed in 1962. One of the leading British groups of the 1960s and into the mid-1970s, they are known for their distinctive three-part vocal harmony style. Allan Clarke and Graham Nash founded the band ...

' version of Roy Orbison's song "

Go Go Go (Down the Line) "Go Go Go (Down the Line)" (often credited as "Down the Line") is a song by Roy Orbison, released in 1956. According to the authorised biography of Roy Orbison, this was the B-side to Orbison's first Sun Records release "Ooby Dooby". This was the ...

".Spencer et al, (2007
DOWN THE LINE
entry. Retrieved 21 January 2010. Down the Line performed covers of English Mod groups: The Hollies,

The Move The Move were a British rock band of the late 1960s and the early 1970s. They scored nine top 20 UK singles in five years, but were among the most popular British bands not to find any real success in the United States. For most of their car ...

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 ...

and

The Small Faces Small Faces were an English rock band from London, founded in 1965. The group originally consisted of Steve Marriott, Ronnie Lane, Kenney Jones and Jimmy Winston, with Ian McLagan replacing Winston as the band's keyboardist in 1966. The ...

in many clubs and discos around Adelaide, gradually gathering a following. In May 1967,

Darryl Sambell Darryl Lloyd Sambell (26 November 194519 September 2001) was an Australian accountant, talent manager and music promoter from the mid-1960s. In 1967 Samball established the "Australian Musicians Booking Organisation" (AMBO), with fellow talent ...

, who also managed rising singer,

Johnny Farnham John Peter Farnham Officer of the Order of Australia, AO (born 1 July 1949) is a British born Australian singer. Farnham was a Teen idol, teen pop idol from 1967 until 1979, billed then as Johnny Farnham, but has since forged a career as an Adu ...

, used Down the Line as session musicians on demo recordings which secured Farnham a contract with EMI Records. After recording with Farnham, Down the Line were approached by Adelaide-based promoters, Alan Hale and

Doc Neeson Bernard Patrick "Doc" Neeson OAM (4 January 1947 – 4 June 2014) was an Australian singer-songwriter and musician. He was the front man for the hard rock band The Angels from its formation in February 1976 through to 1999. The band then split ...

, who were interested in band management and suggested to change their name to Zoot. Zoot were playing some original material in their set and by early 1968 decided to move to

. D'Arcy didn't want to go and was replaced on guitar by Steve Stone.

1968–1969: Think Pink

In August 1968, Zoot arrived in Melbourne and were co-managed by Wayne de Grouchy and Tony Knight. It was de Grouchy's idea to dress them in pink and on 3 September 1968, the band made their 'Think Pink' debut; dressing from head to toe in pink. Zoot signed with Columbia Records/ EMI Music and recorded their first single, "You'd Better Get Goin' Now", a

Jackie Lomax John Richard Lomax (10 May 1944 – 15 September 2013) was an English guitarist and singer-songwriter. He is best known for his association with George Harrison, who produced Lomax's recordings for the Beatles' Apple record label in the late 1 ...

cover with David Mackay producing. They invited the music media to Berties discothèque—co-owned by de Gruchy and Tony Knight—to promote its release in August. Continuing the 'Think Pink' theme, the band members continued to dress in pink satin and they arrived to venues in Cotton's pink painted car. The publicity gimmick brought attention to the group and attracted significant numbers of teenage girl fans, however it caused problems in establishing their credibility as serious rock musicians. By December, management by de Gruchy was dropped in favour of Sambell and Jeff Joseph, who also managed Farnham and The Masters Apprentices. Zoot's second single, "1 × 2 × 3 × 4" was released in December 1968 and charted on the ''

'' National Top 40 Singles Chart. Besides radio airplay, the band appeared regularly on local pop music TV show, ''Uptight!''. The band's third single, "Monty and Me" continued the 'Think Pink' theme and was produced by ''Go-Set'' writer, Ian Meldrum, which also reached the Top 40 in June. In June 1969, Zoot was voted Top Australian Group in ''Go-Sets pop poll. NOTE: This PDF is 282 pages. In July they undertook a tour through the eastern states with Ronnie Burns, The Sect and Jon Blanchfield on the bill. In September 1969 Hicks left for The Avengers, and was replaced by

(ex-Icy Blues, Moppa Blues Band, Wickedy Wak).Spencer et al, (2007
Springfield, Rick
entry. Retrieved 22 January 2010. From September 1969, Zoot joined other Australian bands on the national Operation Starlift tour, which was generally a publicity success but a financial disaster. For Zoot, it brought about increased media ridicule, peer envy and scorn from detractors, much of the criticism was

homophobic Homophobia encompasses a range of negative attitudes and feelings toward homosexuality or people who are identified or perceived as being lesbian, gay or bisexual. It has been defined as contempt, prejudice, aversion, hatred or antipathy, m ...

such as "pretty pink pansies" taunts. In October 1969, saw the release of "About Time"/"Sha La La". In December they made headlines when they were assaulted by street toughs in Brisbane.

1970–1971: New Image, ''Just Zoot'' and break up

By early 1970, band members had tired of the garish pink outfits and associated harassment and physical abuse, hence, to rid themselves of the bubblegum/teen idol image, they burnt their outfits on TV music show, ''Happening '70''. In April 1970, Zoot promoted their single "Hey Pinky", with an advertisement in ''Go-Set'' which featured a nude picture of thei
buttocks
"Hey Pinky" was a hard charging guitar oriented song but it failed to chart. The song was rebellious in nature and openly mocked the pink outfits as well as their previous management and their detractors. The group's debut studio album '' Just Zoot'' was released in July and reached number 12 on the Australian Kent Music Report. In August 1970, Zoot finished second to The Flying Circus at the

Hoadley's Battle of the Sounds Hoadley's Battle of the Sounds was an annual national rock/pop band competition held in Australia from 1966 to 1972. The winners of the national finals were the Twilights (1966), the Groop (1967), the Groove (1968), Doug Parkinson in Focus (m ...

. In December 1970 Zoot released a heavy metal cover of

' song, "

" which became their most popular single when it peaked at No. 4 in March 1971. It remained in the Top 40 for twenty weeks and reached No. 12 on the Top Records for the Year of 1971. Their next single, "The Freak" / "Evil Child", another hard rock song, was released in April 1971 and peaked into the top 30. With the chart success of "Eleanor Rigby",

RCA The RCA Corporation was a major American electronics company, which was founded as the Radio Corporation of America in 1919. It was initially a patent trust owned by General Electric (GE), Westinghouse, AT&T Corporation and United Fruit Comp ...

expressed interest in bringing them to the United States to record, but they encountered problems with visa work permits, and Springfield was being scouted for a solo career. Along with other disappointments and frustrations, this led to the band breaking up in May 1971. ''Go-Set'' published its 1971 pop poll results in July, with Zoot in third place behind Daddy Cool for 'Best Group', while "Eleanor Rigby" won 'Best Single' ahead of Daddy Cool's " Eagle Rock". EMI/Columbia released a

compilation Compilation may refer to: *In computer programming, the translation of source code into object code by a compiler **Compilation error **Compilation unit *Product bundling, a marketing strategy used to sell multiple products *Compilation thesis M ...

, ''Zoot Out'' late in 1971.

1971–present: After break-up

After Zoot, Birtles and Cotton almost immediately formed a duo called Darryl and Beeb, which became Frieze when they were sponsored by Frieze Brothers (a clothing company). The band released a single, "Feelings" in September 1971 on Sparmac Records and an album, ''BC 1972'', on

Warner Brothers Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. (commonly known as Warner Bros. or abbreviated as WB) is an American film and entertainment studio headquartered at the Warner Bros. Studios complex in Burbank, California, and a subsidiary of Warner Bros. D ...

in June 1972, using session musicians.Spencer et al, (2007
Frieze
entry. Retrieved 24 January 2010. Frieze disbanded in May and Cotton travelled to America while Birtles joined

Mississippi Mississippi () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States, bordered to the north by Tennessee; to the east by Alabama; to the south by the Gulf of Mexico; to the southwest by Louisiana; and to the northwest by Arkansas. Miss ...

(previously known as Allison Gros and then as Drummond). Mississippi evolved into

in 1975. Springfield also signed with Sparmac and released "

Speak to the Sky "Speak to the Sky" is the debut single by Rick Springfield. It reached No. 6 in Australia, No. 8 on the Canadian adult contemporary chart, No. 10 on the Canadian pop chart, No. 14 on the U.S. pop chart, and No. 16 on the U.S. Adult Contempora ...

" in October 1971, which peaked at No. 6 on the Kent Music Report. Sparmac label owner,

Robie Porter Robert George Porter (4 June 1941 – 16 December 2021) was an Australian country and pop-rock musician, producer and record label owner. Beginning in 1959, he performed under the stage name Rob E.G. and recorded lap steel guitar instrum ...

, was also producer and manager for Springfield. After recording his debut album, ''Beginnings'' in London, Springfield moved to the United States in mid-1972, where he achieved international fame as a solo artist, songwriter and actor and continues to record. Brewer drummed for a succession of bands including, Cashbox, Bootleg, Whole Man and I'Tambu before joining The Ferrets in 1976,Spencer et al, (2007
Brewer, Rick
entry. Retrieved 24 January 2010. which had a No. 2 hit with "Don't Fall in Love" on the Australian Kent Music Report Singles Chart. Note: Used for Australian Singles and Albums charting from 1974 until

ARIA In music, an aria ( Italian: ; plural: ''arie'' , or ''arias'' in common usage, diminutive form arietta , plural ariette, or in English simply air) is a self-contained piece for one voice, with or without instrumental or orchestral accompa ...

created their own

charts A chart (sometimes known as a graph) is a graphical representation for data visualization, in which "the data is represented by symbols, such as bars in a bar chart, lines in a line chart, or slices in a pie chart". A chart can represent tab ...

in mid-1988. In 1992, Kent back calculated chart positions for 1970–1974. He has also drummed for

Jim Keays James Keays (9 September 194613 June 2014) was a Scottish-born Australian musician who fronted the rock band The Masters Apprentices as singer-songwriter, guitarist and harmonica-player from 1965 to 1972 and subsequently had a solo career. He ...

(ex-The Masters Apprentices) in his band Southern Cross and subsequently for The Motivators and Greg Baker's Blues Party.

2011–present: Reunion and ''Archaeology''

Zoot reformed for the Rick Springfield and Friends cruise in November 2011. The cruise took place from 5–10 November 2011 on the Carnival Destiny out of Miami. The band consisted of Springfield, Birtles, Cotton and Brewer. Darryl Cotton died on 27 July 2012 from liver cancer. In 2018, the band released an anthology entitled ''Archaeology'', including a new recording of "

Life in a Northern Town "Life in a Northern Town" is the debut single by British band the Dream Academy, released in March 1985. It is from their self-titled debut studio album ''The Dream Academy''. The song was written as an elegy to British folk musician Nick Drake ...

". In late 2020, Zoot was scheduled to reform for four Australian shows, with a line-up consisting of band friend and contemporary

Russell Morris Russell Norman Morris (born 31 July 1948) is an Australian singer-songwriter and guitarist who had five Australian Top 10 singles during the late 1960s and early 1970s. On 1 July 2008, the Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA) recog ...

joining Springfield, Birtles, and Brewer; however, owing to COVID-19, this tour was postponed to 2022. In April 2022, it was announced that the tour had been cancelled. On 24 June 2022, Zoot released "That Was Then", which brought the Zoot story to a conclusion.

Members

– bass guitar, guitar, backing vocals (1964–1971, 2011) *

– lead vocals, guitar (1964–1971, 2011; died 2012) *Teddy Higgins – drums (1964–1968) *John D'Arcy – lead guitar, backing vocals (1964–1968) *Steve Stone – lead guitar (1968) *Rick Brewer – drums (1968–1971, 2011) * Roger Hicks – lead guitar (1968–1969) *

– lead guitar, backing vocals (1969–1971, 2011)

Discography

Studio albums

Compilation and live albums

Extended plays

Singles

Awards and nominations

Battle of the Sounds

The

was an annual national rock/pop band competition held in Australia from 1966 to 1972. , - , 1970 , themselves , Battle of the Sounds National Final , style="background:silver;", 2nd , -

Go-Set Pop Poll

The Go-Set Pop Poll was coordinated by teen-oriented pop music newspaper, ''

'' and was established in February 1966 and conducted an annual poll during 1966 to 1972 of its readers to determine the most popular personalities. , - , 1969 , themselves , Best Australian Group , style="background:gold;", 1st , - , 1970 , themselves , Best Australian Group , 5th , - , rowspan="2", 1971 , themselves , Best Australian Group , style="background:tan;", 3rd , - , "Eleanor Rigby" , Best Australian Single , style="background:gold;", 1st

South Australian Music Awards

The South Australian Music Awards are annual awards that exist to recognise, promote and celebrate excellence in the South Australian contemporary music industry. They commenced in 2012. The South Australian Music Hall of Fame celebrates the careers of successful music industry personalities. ! , - , 2017 , Zoot , Hall of Fame , , , -

References

;General * Note: Archived n-linecopy has limited functionality. * * ;Specific

External links

Zoot entry
at Milesago.

by

. {{DEFAULTSORT:Zoot (Band) Australian rock music groups Musical groups from Adelaide Musical groups established in 1964 Musical groups disestablished in 1971