Tin Tin (band)
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Tin Tin was a pop rock band, which first formed in Australia as The Kinetics in 1966. They relocated to the United Kingdom in 1969 and were renamed as Tin Tin, which comprised
Steve Kipner Stephen Alan Kipner (born 1950) is an American-born Australian songwriter and record producer, with hits spanning a 40-year period, including chart-topping songs such as Olivia Newton-John's "Physical", Natasha Bedingfield's "These Words", an ...
(vocals, keyboards, percussion), Steve Groves (vocals, guitar, percussion),
John Vallins John Vallins (Born 19 January 1950) is an Australian Gold and Platinum award winning songwriter/musician best known for his 1970s song "Too Much, Too Little, Too Late". One of only a handful of Australian songwriters ever to make No 1 on the A ...
(bass, guitar, vocals) and Geoff Bridgford (drums). In 1970 they issued a single, " Toast and Marmalade for Tea", which was a No. 10 hit on the ''Go-Set'' National Singles Chart in June the following year. It reached No. 20 in the United States on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100. Their next single, "Is That the Way?" (1971), peaked at No. 59 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100. The group disbanded in 1973 and Kipner continued as a songwriter for various acts including
Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...
,
George Benson George Washington Benson (born March 22, 1943) is an American guitarist, singer, and songwriter. He began his professional career at the age of 19 as a jazz guitarist. A former child prodigy, Benson first came to prominence in the 1960s, pla ...
and
Olivia Newton-John Dame Olivia Newton-John (26 September 1948 – 8 August 2022) was a British-Australian singer, actress and activist. She was a four-time Grammy Award winner whose music career included 15 top-ten singles, including 5 number-one singles on the ...
. Groves returned to Australia and worked as a singer-songwriter. Vallins teamed up with Kipner's father, Nat, to co-write "
Too Much, Too Little, Too Late "Too Much, Too Little, Too Late" is a song performed by singers Johnny Mathis and Deniece Williams. Lyrics and music were arranged by Nat Kipner and John Vallins. The single was a comeback of sorts for Mathis as his last U.S. top 10 hit was 1964' ...
" for
Johnny Mathis John Royce Mathis (born September 30, 1935) is an American singer of popular music. Starting his career with singles of standard music, he became highly popular as an album artist, with several dozen of his albums achieving gold or platinum s ...
and
Deniece Williams Deniece Williams (born June Deniece Chandler; June 3, 1951) is an American singer. She has been described as "one of the great soul voices" by the BBC. She is best known for the songs " Free", " Silly", "It's Gonna Take a Miracle" and two ''Bill ...
, which was a number-one hit on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 in March 1978.


History


Formation and early years

Tin Tin was formed in 1966 in Melbourne as a beat pop group, The Kinetics, with a line-up of Steve Groves on vocals, guitar and harmonica, Ken Leroy on bass guitar, Ian Manzie on drums, piano and banjo, and John Vallins on guitar, drums and clarinet. In September they released their debut single, "Excuses", which reached #19 on the local charts, and followed up with two further singles which were unsuccessful. At the end of 1967 the group broke up and Groves joined with
Steve Kipner Stephen Alan Kipner (born 1950) is an American-born Australian songwriter and record producer, with hits spanning a 40-year period, including chart-topping songs such as Olivia Newton-John's "Physical", Natasha Bedingfield's "These Words", an ...
(ex-Steve & the Board) to form Steve and Stevie as a vocal harmony duo. The duo released a single, "Remains to Be Seen", in 1968 and were then joined by Vallins to form Rombo's World. In 1969, Groves and Kipner travelled to the United Kingdom and formed a British-influenced pop group, Tin Tin, which was named after the main character of the popular Belgian cartoon strip ''
The Adventures of Tintin ''The Adventures of Tintin'' (french: Les Aventures de Tintin ) is a series of 24 bande dessinée#Formats, ''bande dessinée'' albums created by Belgians, Belgian cartoonist Georges Remi, who wrote under the pen name Hergé. The series was one ...
''.
Bee Gees The Bee Gees were a musical group formed in 1958 by brothers Barry, Robin, and Maurice Gibb. The trio were especially successful in popular music in the late 1960s and early 1970s, and later as prominent performers in the disco music era in ...
member
Maurice Gibb Maurice Ernest Gibb (; 22 December 1949 – 12 January 2003) was a British musician. He achieved fame as a member of the pop group Bee Gees. Although his elder brother Barry Gibb and fraternal twin brother Robin Gibb were the group's main le ...
introduced the duo to
Robert Stigwood Robert Colin Stigwood (16 April 1934 – 4 January 2016) was an Australian-born British-resident music entrepreneur, film producer and impresario, best known for managing Cream, Andy Gibb and the Bee Gees, theatrical productions like ''Hair'' ...
and they signed a one-album contract with
Polydor Records Polydor Records Ltd. is a German-British record label that operates as part of Universal Music Group. It has a close relationship with Universal's Interscope Geffen A&M Records label, which distributes Polydor's releases in the United States. ...
. By that time they had been joined by Geoff Bridgford on drums, and Kipner was playing bass guitar, harpsichord, mellotron, percussion, piano, electric piano, tambourine, as well as singing. Gibb produced their debut self-titled album (February 1970) and played various instruments (bass guitar, drums, harpsichord, mellotron, organ) on about half the tracks, which bore a marked resemblance to the tight harmonies of the Bee Gees. The lead single, "Only Ladies Play Croquet", was issued in May 1969 but did not chart.


Mainstream success

Tin Tin's debut album initially sold poorly, and in 1970 they issued a second single " Toast and Marmalade for Tea", written by Groves. In May 1971 Vallins joined the line-up. In June "Toast and Marmalade for Tea" became a #10 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 Top 40, and it remained on the Australian
Kent Music Report The Kent Music Report was a weekly record chart of Australian music singles and albums which was compiled by music enthusiast David Kent from May 1974 through to January 1999. The chart was re-branded the Australian Music Report (AMR) in July ...
Singles Chart for 15 weeks. Note: Single is listed as "Toast and for Tea". Note: Used for Australian Singles and Albums charting from 1974 until
Australian Recording Industry Association The Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA) is a trade association representing the Australian recording industry which was established in the 1970s by six major record companies, EMI, Festival, CBS, RCA, WEA and Universal replacing th ...
(ARIA) 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 tabul ...
in mid-1988. In 1992, Kent back calculated chart positions for 1970–1974.
The dreamy ballad, with lead vocals by Kipner, was belatedly released as a single in mid-1971 in the US, and reached #20 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100. The song featured just eight lines of
nursery rhyme A nursery rhyme is a traditional poem or song for children in Britain and many other countries, but usage of the term dates only from the late 18th/early 19th century. The term Mother Goose rhymes is interchangeable with nursery rhymes. From t ...
-like lyrics repeated over a distinctive "vibrato"
piano The piano is a stringed keyboard instrument in which the strings are struck by wooden hammers that are coated with a softer material (modern hammers are covered with dense wool felt; some early pianos used leather). It is played using a keyboa ...
(achieved by manipulating the recorded tape reel) and
electric guitar An electric guitar is a guitar that requires external amplification in order to be heard at typical performance volumes, unlike a standard acoustic guitar (however combinations of the two - a semi-acoustic guitar and an electric acoustic gui ...
backing. The song gradually builds in intensity adding
acoustic guitar An acoustic guitar is a musical instrument in the string family. When a string is plucked its vibration is transmitted from the bridge, resonating throughout the top of the guitar. It is also transmitted to the side and back of the instrument, ...
,
bass guitar The bass guitar, electric bass or simply bass (), is the lowest-pitched member of the string family. It is a plucked string instrument similar in appearance and construction to an electric or an acoustic guitar, but with a longer neck and ...
,
drums A drum kit (also called a drum set, trap set, or simply drums) is a collection of drums, cymbals, and other Percussion instrument, auxiliary percussion instruments set up to be played by one person. The player (drummer) typically holds a pair o ...
, a
string orchestra A string orchestra is an orchestra consisting solely of a string section made up of the bowed strings used in Western Classical music. The instruments of such an orchestra are most often the following: the violin, which is divided into first ...
, and finally
brass instrument A brass instrument is a musical instrument that produces sound by sympathetic vibration of air in a tubular resonator in sympathy with the vibration of the player's lips. Brass instruments are also called labrosones or labrophones, from Latin a ...
s, and is Tin Tin's best-remembered song. The album appeared on the ''Billboard'' 200. While seldom played on oldies radio today, "Toast and Marmalade for Tea" is regarded by some critics as one of the finest and most ambitious singles by a
one hit wonder A one-hit wonder or viral hit is any entity that achieves mainstream popularity, often for only one piece of work, and becomes known among the general public solely for that momentary success. The term is most commonly used in regard to music p ...
, and a late
psychedelic Psychedelics are a subclass of hallucinogenic drugs whose primary effect is to trigger non-ordinary states of consciousness (known as psychedelic experiences or "trips").Pollan, Michael (2018). ''How to Change Your Mind: What the New Science of ...
classic. Tin Tin's next single, "Come on Over Again", (1970) did not chart. It was followed by "Is That the Way?" in 1971, which peaked at #59 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100, ahead of their second album, ''
Astral Taxi ''Astral Taxi'' is the second and final album released by the Australians, Australian rock band Tin Tin (band), Tin Tin, released in December 1971. It was produced by Billy Lawrie, and Maurice Gibb was the executive producer. Track listing All ...
'' (December 1971). For the album they were joined by Carl Keats (aka
Carl Groszmann Carl Arnold Groszmann was an Australian songwriter and musician. Also performing as 'Carl Keats', he was the guitarist in the 1960s Australian group Steve & the Board, which included Steve Kipner and Colin Petersen. Groszmann was studying law in ...
) on rhythm guitar, a former bandmate from Steve & the Board. After their unexpected success, Tin Tin toured with The Bee Gees on their 1972 American tour. Non-album singles, "Talking Turkey" (1972), "I'm Afraid" and "It's a Long Way to Georgia" (both 1973) followed but did not chart. Another single, "Strange One", was released under the name Quire, also on the Polydor label, but had very little success.


Separate ways

After Tin Tin disbanded in 1973, Kipner went on to write and produce songs for
Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...
("
Hard Habit to Break "Hard Habit to Break" is a song written by Steve Kipner and John Lewis Parker, produced and arranged by David Foster and recorded by the group Chicago for their 1984 album ''Chicago 17'', with Bill Champlin and Peter Cetera sharing lead vocals. Rel ...
"),
Olivia Newton-John Dame Olivia Newton-John (26 September 1948 – 8 August 2022) was a British-Australian singer, actress and activist. She was a four-time Grammy Award winner whose music career included 15 top-ten singles, including 5 number-one singles on the ...
("
Physical Physical may refer to: *Physical examination In a physical examination, medical examination, or clinical examination, a medical practitioner examines a patient for any possible medical signs or symptoms of a medical condition. It generally co ...
" and " Twist of Fate"),
Christina Aguilera Christina María Aguilera (; ; born December 18, 1980) is an American singer, songwriter, actress, and television personality. Known for her four-octave vocal range and ability to sustain high notes, she has been referred to as the " Voice of ...
,
98 Degrees 98 Degrees (stylized as 98°) is an American pop and R&B vocal group consisting of four vocalists: the group's founding member Jeff Timmons, brothers Nick and Drew Lachey, and Justin Jeffre. The group was formed by Timmons in Los Angeles, Cali ...
and
Dream A dream is a succession of images, ideas, emotions, and sensations that usually occur involuntarily in the mind during certain stages of sleep. Humans spend about two hours dreaming per night, and each dream lasts around 5 to 20 minutes, althou ...
. In 1975, Groves returned to Australia and worked as a singer-songwriter, co-writing (with Brian Dawe) " On the Loose", which was performed by
Marty Rhone Marty Rhone (born Karel Lawrence van Rhoon, 7 May 1948, Soerabaja, Dutch East Indies) is an Australian pop singer-songwriter, actor and talent manager. In July 1975 his single, " Denim and Lace", peaked at No. 8 on the Australian Kent Musi ...
to win the Australian Popular Song Contest. Groves formed his own group, Steve Groves Band, and released his version of "On the Loose (Again)" in November 1976. Vallins teamed up with Kipner's father, Nat, to co-write "
Too Much, Too Little, Too Late "Too Much, Too Little, Too Late" is a song performed by singers Johnny Mathis and Deniece Williams. Lyrics and music were arranged by Nat Kipner and John Vallins. The single was a comeback of sorts for Mathis as his last U.S. top 10 hit was 1964' ...
" for
Johnny Mathis John Royce Mathis (born September 30, 1935) is an American singer of popular music. Starting his career with singles of standard music, he became highly popular as an album artist, with several dozen of his albums achieving gold or platinum s ...
and
Deniece Williams Deniece Williams (born June Deniece Chandler; June 3, 1951) is an American singer. She has been described as "one of the great soul voices" by the BBC. She is best known for the songs " Free", " Silly", "It's Gonna Take a Miracle" and two ''Bill ...
, which was a number-one hit on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 in March 1978.


Discography


Albums

* '' Tin Tin'' (1970) * ''
Astral Taxi ''Astral Taxi'' is the second and final album released by the Australians, Australian rock band Tin Tin (band), Tin Tin, released in December 1971. It was produced by Billy Lawrie, and Maurice Gibb was the executive producer. Track listing All ...
'' (1971)


Singles

* "Only Ladies Play Croquet" b/w "He Wants to Be a Star" (1969) * " Toast and Marmalade for Tea" b/w "Manhattan Woman" (1970) - AU #10, US #20, Can #11 * "Come On Over Again" b/w "Back to Winona" (1970) * "Shana" b/w "Rocky Mountain" (1971) * "Is That the Way" b/w "Swans on the Canal" (1971) - US #59, AU #99 * "Talking Turkey" b/w "The Cavalry Are Coming" (1972) * "Strange One" b/w "Halfway Up the Hill" (1972) * "I'm Afraid" b/w "Handle Me Easy" (1973) * "It's a Long Way to Georgia" b/w "Can't Get Over You" (1974)


Notes


References

* Noel McGrath, ''Australian Encyclopedia of Rock & Pop'', Rigby Publishers, 1978. * Chris Spencer, ''The Who's Who of Australian Rock'', Moonlight Publishing.


External links

*
Entry at 45cat.com
{{Authority control Musical groups established in 1966 Musical groups disestablished in 1973 Australian psychedelic rock music groups Polydor Records artists Atco Records artists Maurice Gibb 1966 establishments in Australia