Tour manager Richard Cole , who would become a major figure in the touring life of the group, organised their first North American tour at the end of the year.
In October 1967, the band made its debut performance as Steve Noonan’s backing band at the Stony Brook University Gymnasium , a gig booked by Pearlman. The band’s name came from Winston Churchill ‘s description of Italy as “the soft underbelly of the Axis .”
Budgie formed in 1967 in Cardiff , Wales, under the name Hills Contemporary Grass. The original line-up consisted of Burke Shelley on vocals and bass, Tony Bourge on guitar and vocals and Ray Phillips on drums. After performing several gigs in 1968, the band changed their name to Budgie the…
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Blue Öyster Cult was formed in 1967 as Soft White Underbelly (a name the group would occasionally use in the 1970s and 1980s to play small club gigs around the United States and UK) in a communal house at Stony Brook University on Long Island when rock critic Sandy Pearlman…
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In 1967, former Searchers drummer Chris Curtis contacted London businessman Tony Edwards , in the hope he would manage a new group he was assembling, to be called Roundabout. Curtis’ vision was a “supergroup” where the band members would ‘get on’ and ‘get off’, like a musical roundabout. Impressed with…
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The band’s origins go back to 1967 when 19-year-old guitarist Mick Box formed a band in Brentwood, Essex called Hogwash, which began playing in local clubs and pubs. When the band’s singer left, drummer Roger Penlington suggested his cousin David Garrick (who knew the band) as a replacement. Box and…
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This new line-up recorded an album, Little Games , in 1967, before embarking on a tour of the United States, during which they performed several songs which would later be part of Led Zeppelin’s early repertoire, including covers of Johnny Burnette ‘s ” Train Kept A-Rollin’ ” and ” Dazed…
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By 1967, the band had begun to make regular road trips to Los Angeles to play shows. They soon renamed themselves Nazz and released the single “Wonder Who’s Lovin’ Her Now”, backed with future Alice Cooper track “Lay Down and Die, Goodbye”. Around this time, drummer John Speer was replaced…
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The band later claimed that this period was highly influenced by Pink Floyd , especially their debut studio album The Piper at the Gates of Dawn (1967), the only Pink Floyd album made under the leadership of founding member Syd Barrett (lead vocals and guitar). Glen Buxton said he could…
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Following Beck’s departure in October 1966, the Yardbirds became a four-piece with Page as the sole guitarist.