A Band Called O were a band from

Jersey Jersey ( , ; nrf, Jèrri, label= Jèrriais ), officially the Bailiwick of Jersey (french: Bailliage de Jersey, links=no; Jèrriais: ), is an island country and self-governing Crown Dependency near the coast of north-west France. It is the l ...

Channel Islands The Channel Islands ( nrf, Îles d'la Manche; french: îles Anglo-Normandes or ''îles de la Manche'') are an archipelago in the English Channel, off the French coast of Normandy. They include two Crown Dependencies: the Bailiwick of Jersey, ...

. Originally known as The Parlour Band, playing

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. In ...

, 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 issuing five albums, on three major labels, and being championed by John Peel, for whom they recorded four

Peel Sessions John Robert Parker Ravenscroft (30 August 1939 – 25 October 2004), known professionally as John Peel, was an English disc jockey (DJ) and radio presenter. He was the longest-serving of the original BBC Radio 1 DJs, broadcasting regularly fr ...

, they had no chart success; but were a popular live act, who toured Britain and Europe.

The Parlour Band

Formed in Jersey,

, circa 1970, as 'The Parlour Band', the early 1970 line-up comprised founding member Peter Filleul (keyboards and vocals) formerly of the

Climax Blues Band Climax Blues Band (originally known as The Climax Chicago Blues Band) is a British blues rock band. The band was formed in Stafford, England, in 1967 by vocalist and harmonica player Colin Cooper (1939–2008), guitarist and vocalist Pete Hayco ...

, with Mike Harwood (lead guitar and vocals) Allen Greenall (acoustic guitar and vocals) Nigel Uren (Drums) John Ashworth (Bass guitar) later replaced by Jeff Smith (Bass and vocals) the last 4 members were replaced in late 1970 by brothers Mark Anders (bass and vocals) and Craig Anders (lead guitar and vocals) Jon "Pix" Pickford (guitar and vocals) and Jerry Robbins (drums). Released in 1972, The Parlour Band's only album ''Is a Friend?'', was produced by Nick Tauber in a melodic progressive rock style, sounding like a "more mainstream, less art-rock-inclined Yes" with strong keyboard and guitar parts. The Parlour Band toured supporting Caravan and Steve Hillage’s Khan. They relocated from Jersey to Leicester, changed their name to 'A Band Called O', and their drummer to Derek Ballard. This line-up released their first album on the Epic label, produced by

Ben Sidran Ben Hirsh Sidran (born August 14, 1943) is an American jazz and rock keyboardist, producer, label owner, and music writer. Early in his career he was a member of the Steve Miller Band and is the father of Grammy-nominated musician, composer an ...

of the

Steve Miller Band The Steve Miller Band is an American rock band formed in 1966 in San Francisco, California. The band is led by Steve Miller on guitar and lead vocals. The group had a string of mid- to late-1970s hit singles that are staples of classic rock, as ...

, and Chris White of

The Zombies The Zombies are an English Rock music, rock band formed in the early 1960s in St Albans and led by keyboardist and vocalist Rod Argent and vocalist Colin Blunstone. The group had a British and American chart-topper, hit in 1964 with "She's Not ...

. ''A Band Called O'' (1974) and, despite being an album orientated band, a single "Rock and Roll Clown" / "Red Light Mama Red Hot" was released in Germany while they recorded the first of four

on 24 September 1974. They recorded their second Peel Session on 18 March 1975, before touring with

Man A man is an adult male human. Prior to adulthood, a male human is referred to as a boy (a male child or adolescent). Like most other male mammals, a man's genome usually inherits an X chromosome from the mother and a Y chromo ...

and

John Cipollina John Cipollina (August 24, 1943 – May 29, 1989) was a guitarist best known for his role as a founder and the lead guitarist of the prominent San Francisco rock band Quicksilver Messenger Service. After leaving Quicksilver he formed the ban ...

. Later that year, they released their second album, ''Oasis''. They had one track "There Ain't Nothing I Wouldn't Do" on a single to promote their tour with Sassafras and Randy Pie as the 'Hot on the Tracks' package. Filleul left and was replaced by Ian Lynne, after about 6 months he was also replaced by Jeff Bannister, formerly with the John Barry Seven,

The Alan Bown Set 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 and blues through soul and rhythm and blues and ended up as psychedelia and progressive rock. The band a ...

and Jess Roden’s

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 ...

The O Band

The band changed label from CBS/Epic to United Artists, and played their third Peel Session on 23 March 1976 (the BBC credit all the Peel sessions to A Band Called O, although one or two were after the name change). Musically, their style had already evolved from

soft-rock Soft rock is a form of rock music that originated in the late 1960s in Southern California and the United Kingdom which smoothed over the edges of singer-songwriter and pop rock, relying on simple, melodic songs with big, lush productions. S ...

, but it then moved towards a pop style. They changed their name to 'The O Band' and released their third album ''Within Reach'' later that year. A promotional single "Excerpts from Within Reach" was issued in the UK whilst two singles were taken from the album: "A Smile Is Diamond" / "Coasting" was issued in Germany, and "Don't Cha Wanna" / "Coasting" in the UK. They played their fourth and final Peel Session on 22 February 1977. Also in 1977 they released a 12" EP ''Look to the Left, Look to the Right'', before recording their final album ''The Knife'', from which the single "Almost Saturday Night" / "Love Ain't a Keeper" was taken. Shortly before a planned change of management, Pix Pickford decided to leave for a solo career. The O Band later disbanded at the end of 1977. ''On the Road 1975-77'' was released in June 2012 on CD (78 minutes) and as a download (118 minutes). Strangely, for a band known for its live performances, "this is the only live material ever released by the band".

Unrelated O-Band

Since 2008 the name "The O Band" has been used by an unrelated Jazz, Hip-Hop, R&B and Gospel band from Norfolk, Virginia. There is also music band from

Ukraine Ukraine ( uk, Україна, Ukraïna, ) is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the second-largest European country after Russia, which it borders to the east and northeast. Ukraine covers approximately . Prior to the ongoing Russian inv ...

called Band O (Гурт О)

Subsequent careers

* Craig Anders later played with Alan Ross and Charlie Dore. * Mark Anders now runs Bug Music. * Derek Ballard went on to work with Razar,

Charlie Dore Charlie Dore (born 1956) is an English singer-songwriter, composer, multi-instrumentalist, and actress. Although best known as a singer-songwriter, Dore has a multi-faceted career that includes acting in film, TV and radio, comedy-improvisatio ...

, Bram Tchaikovsky and John Watts. In 1982 he moved to Germany and works in Berlin as a session musician and photographer. * Filleul rejoined the

and later became a session musician recording with numerous artists including,

Loudon Wainwright III Loudon Snowden Wainwright III (born September 5, 1946) is an American singer-songwriter and occasional actor. He has released twenty-six studio albums, four live albums, and six compilations. Some of his best-known songs include "The Swimmin ...

The Blues Band The Blues Band is a British blues band formed in 1979 by Paul Jones, former lead vocalist and harmonica player with Manfred Mann, and guitarist Tom McGuinness also of Manfred Mann and The Roosters. The band’s first line-up also included b ...

and Richard Thompson, adding composing, mixing and production work to his keyboard playing. * Pix Pickford had a brief solo career, releasing two singles: "Long Drop" and "Are you Rockin'", before moving to Spain to play with 'Racket' comprising Pickford, Nik Ramsey and Arturo Tore. Later, after a personnel change the band became 'Guiri', which saw Tore being replaced by Nigel Barrett on bass/vocals and for a while included Mike Smith on guitar and

Blue Weaver Derek John "Blue" Weaver (born 11 March 1947) is a Welsh rock keyboardist, session musician, songwriter and record producer. Career Weaver's career as a musician began as a co-founding member of 1960s Welsh rock band Amen Corner and its succ ...

on piano and keyboards. After Weaver and Smith's departure, Stefan Wickenden joined the band on guitar/vocals and this continued to be the line-up. Pickford lived in

Torre del Mar Torre del Mar is a locality on the southern coast of Spain, part of the municipality of Vélez-Málaga, Axarquía, located in the province of Málaga. It is a popular summer tourist resort for Spanish people. History There is archaeological e ...

, and was found dead in Spain, in September 2021, after going missing on 29 August following a meal with friends. * Jeff Bannister played with

, on

Raphael Ravenscroft Raphael Ravenscroft (4 June 1954 – 19 October 2014) was a British musician, composer and author. He is best known for playing the saxophone on Gerry Rafferty's song " Baker Street". Early life While his place of birth is disputed, the E ...

’s ''Her Father Didn't Like Me Anyway'' (1979), and

Joan Jett Joan Jett (born Joan Marie Larkin, September 22, 1958) is an American singer, guitarist, record producer, and actress. Jett is best known for her work as the frontwoman of her band Joan Jett and the Blackhearts, and for earlier founding and per ...

's '' Bad Reputation'' (1980).

Discography

Albums

;As The Parlour Band * 1972: ''Is a Friend'' (

Decca Decca may refer to: Music * Decca Records or Decca Music Group, a record label * Decca Gold, a classical music record label owned by Universal Music Group * Decca Broadway, a musical theater record label * Decca Studios, a recording facility in W ...

/ Deram Records SDL 10 / CD: 2010, Esoteric Eclec 2192) ;As A Band Called O * 1974: ''A Band Called O'' (

CBS CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS, the abbreviation of its former legal name Columbia Broadcasting System, is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainm ...

/ Epic EPC 80120) UK * 1975: ''Oasis'' (CBS/Epic EPC 80596) UK * 2012 ''On the Road 1975-77'' (

Major League Productions (MLP) Major League Productions is a record label from the United Kingdom based in Oxfordshire. It was founded in 1991 and operates in 100 different countries. As of 2013, it had 39 employees. Following a reduction of live services, in 2020 the company ...

MLP21CD) UK ;As The O Band * 1976, ''Within Reach'' (

United Artists United Artists Corporation (UA), currently doing business as United Artists Digital Studios, is an American digital production company. Founded in 1919 by D. W. Griffith, Charlie Chaplin, Mary Pickford, and Douglas Fairbanks, the stud ...

UAS 29942 / CD: 1994, Repertoire RR4419) + Bonus tracks (2002) * 1977: ''The Knife'' (United Artists UP36276 UK / CD: 1994 Repertoire RR442, Germany / CD: 2006 Repertoire)

Singles

;As A Band Called O * 1974: "Rock & Roll Clown" / "Red Light Mama Red Hot" (Epic EPCS 2677) Germany * 1974: "There Ain't Nothing I Wouldn't Do" (1Epic HOT 1 UK) (Concert promo with Sassafras & Randy Pie) * 1974: "No Manners" / "That's Up" (Epic SEPC 2721) UK ;As The O Band * 1976: "Excerpts from Within Reach" (United Artists UA-PROMO 1) UK * 1976: "A Smile Is Diamond" / "Coasting" (United Artists 36108AT) Germany * 1976: "Don't Cha Wanna" / "Coasting" (United Artists UP36108) UK * 1977: "Look to the Left" / "A Smile Is Diamond" (United Artists UP36297) UK * 1977: "Look to the Left" / "A Smile Is Diamond" / "Fine White Wine(live)" (12" red vinyl) (United Artists 12-UP36297) UK * 1977: "Almost Saturday Night" / "Love Ain't a Keeper" (United Artists UP36276) UK

References

;Further Reading ''The Alan Bown Set – Before and Beyond'' by Jeff Bannister, published by Banland Publishing Ltd {{DEFAULTSORT:Band called O English progressive rock groups English dance music groups Musical groups established in 1970 Deram Records artists Epic Records artists United Artists Records artists