The McCoys were a rock group formed in Union City,

Indiana Indiana () is a U.S. state in the Midwestern United States. It is the 38th-largest by area and the 17th-most populous of the 50 States. Its capital and largest city is Indianapolis. Indiana was admitted to the United States as the 19th ...

, United States, in 1962. They are best known for their 1965 hit single " Hang On Sloopy". Their name was changed from Rick and the Raiders to The McCoys, taken from the

B-side The A-side and B-side are the two sides of phonograph records and cassettes; these terms have often been printed on the labels of two-sided music recordings. The A-side usually features a recording that its artist, producer, or record compan ...

of The Ventures' hit record " Walk, Don't Run" titled "The McCoy".

Career

The original members were all from Union City; however, the Zehringer boys were initially from Fort Recovery, Ohio. The band members were guitarist and lead singer Richard Zehringer (later known as Rick Derringer), his brother Randy (later known as Randy Z) on drums, and bassist Dennis Kelly. This first line-up was known as The Rick Z Combo, and later known as Rick and the Raiders. When Kelly left for college, the Zehringers were joined by bassist Randy Jo Hobbs, saxophonist Sean Michaels, and keyboardist Ronnie Brandon. This was the line-up that took the name of "The McCoys". Brandon left the group in 1965 and was replaced by Bobby Peterson on keyboards. Their best-known hit is " Hang On Sloopy", which was #1 in the United States in the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 chart in October 1965 and is the official rock song of the state of Ohio. It also is the unofficial fight song of the

Ohio State University The Ohio State University, commonly called Ohio State or OSU, is a public land-grant research university in Columbus, Ohio. A member of the University System of Ohio, it has been ranked by major institutional rankings among the best pub ...

Buckeyes and is played at many Ohio State athletic events by the OSU bands. Sales of the single in the US alone were over one million copies. Other hits include a top 10 cover of "

Fever Fever, also referred to as pyrexia, is defined as having a temperature above the normal range due to an increase in the body's temperature set point. There is not a single agreed-upon upper limit for normal temperature with sources using val ...

" (''Billboard'' #7) and a top 40 cover of Ritchie Valens's "Come On, Let's Go" (''Billboard'' #21). A cover of " Sorrow", the

of their version of "Fever", was a hit in the United Kingdom for The Merseys and later covered by

David Bowie David Robert Jones (8 January 194710 January 2016), known professionally as David Bowie ( ), was an English singer-songwriter and actor. A leading figure in the music industry, he is regarded as one of the most influential musicians of the ...

. Its opening line, "with your long blonde hair and eyes of blue" was quoted by

George Harrison George Harrison (25 February 1943 – 29 November 2001) was an English musician and singer-songwriter who achieved international fame as the lead guitarist of the Beatles. Sometimes called "the quiet Beatle", Harrison embraced Indian c ...

in the fadeout of " It's All Too Much", featured on the 1969 soundtrack of '' Yellow Submarine''. "The McCoys" performed as part of Murray the K's Christmas show on December 18, 1965 at the Brooklyn Fox Theater. Also performing on the program were Peter & Gordon, Wilson Pickett, The Fortunes, The Moody Blues, The Toys, Lenny Welch, Cannibal and the Headhunters, The Vibrations, The Spinners, The O'Jays, Bloodless Revolutionaries, Patti Michaels, Bobby Diamond, and Diane Langan. The McCoys were being labeled as a

bubblegum pop Bubblegum (also called bubblegum pop) is pop music in a catchy and upbeat style that is considered disposable, contrived, or marketed for children and adolescents. The term also refers to a rock and pop subgenre, originating in the United States ...

act, much to the disdain of the band. In 1967, after the death of

Bert Berns Bertrand Russell Berns (November 8, 1929 – December 30, 1967), also known as Bert Russell and (occasionally) Russell Byrd, was an American songwriter and record producer of the 1960s. His songwriting credits include " Twist and Shout", " Piec ...

, The McCoys broke free from Bang Records in hopes of recording more serious music. They ended up signing a deal with

Mercury Records Mercury Records is an American record label owned by Universal Music Group. It had significant success as an independent operation in the 1940s and 1950s. Smash Records and Fontana Records were sub labels of Mercury. In the United States, it ...

and recorded their last two records, ''Infinite McCoys'' (1968), and ''Human Ball'' (1969) for the label. The albums were The McCoys' attempt at making

psychedelic music Psychedelic music (sometimes called psychedelia) is a wide range of popular music styles and genres influenced by 1960s psychedelia, a subculture of people who used psychedelic drugs such as LSD, psilocybin mushrooms, mescaline, and cannabi ...

that would appeal to the mature listeners of that time. Both were commercial failures and did not chart anywhere. The two Zehringer brothers (then known as Rick Derringer and Randy Z) and Hobbs became

Johnny Winter John Dawson Winter III (February 23, 1944 – July 16, 2014) was an American singer and guitarist. Winter was known for his high-energy blues rock albums and live performances in the late 1960s and 1970s. He also produced three Grammy Award-win ...

's band for the albums '' Johnny Winter And'' and ''

Live Johnny Winter And ''Live Johnny Winter And'' is an album by Johnny Winter, recorded with his group Johnny Winter And live during the fall of 1970 at the Fillmore East in New York City and at Pirate's World in Dania, Florida. It was released in March 1971. Besi ...

'' in 1970 and 1971 respectively. At first, the band was supposed to be called Johnny Winter & The McCoys, but was changed due to management warning Winter about their bubblegum past, and how it could hurt his reputation as a serious musician. As backing musicians, both Derringer and Hobbs contributed to Winter's later releases '' Still Alive and Well'' (1973), '' Saints & Sinners'' (1974), and '' John Dawson Winter III'' (1974). Derringer and Hobbs later played with Edgar Winter as well as appeared on '' Together: Edgar Winter and Johnny Winter Live'' (1976). Hobbs later toured with Johnny Winter, but without Derringer, on Winter's '' Captured Live!'' (1976). Derringer also played with

Steely Dan Steely Dan is an American rock band founded in 1971 in New York by Walter Becker (guitars, bass, backing vocals) and Donald Fagen (keyboards, lead vocals). Initially the band had a stable lineup, but in 1974, Becker and Fagen retired from liv ...

and

Cyndi Lauper Cynthia Ann Stephanie Lauper Thornton (born June 22, 1953) is an American singer, songwriter, actress, and activist. Her career has spanned over 40 years. Her album ''She's So Unusual'' (1983) was the first debut album by a female artist to achi ...

and formed bands such as DNA, with drummer Carmine Appice. Hobbs died of drug-related heart failure on 5 August 1993 (Derringer's birthday) at the age of 45. Peterson died in Gainesville, Florida on 21 July 1993 at the age of 47.

Discography

Albums

Singles

Notes

References

External links

Classic Bands: The McCoys
* {{DEFAULTSORT:McCoys, The Rock music groups from Indiana Musical groups established in 1962 Bang Records artists Mercury Records artists People from Union City, Indiana People from Fort Recovery, Ohio 1962 establishments in Indiana